2021 Show Recap

It’s the last day of the Silver Oak Jumper Tournament 2021, and once again we were blessed with what was about as close to the best weather for a horse show that you could ask for here at the pristine Flintfields Horse Park in Traverse City. With plenty of events stacked up for the day, all seemed determined to enjoy this special horse show down to the last class. A lovely turnout of top horses and riders filled the arenas, and when it was finally time for that final class the whole horse show gathered together around the Grand Prix arena for the Agero Grand Prix.

This past week we have had some very memorable and thrilling competition, jump-offs that had us on the edge watching every single stride, yes it was serious CSI 3* tension but it also had a family feeling with everybody helping one another.

Today’s feature event, the $136,000 Agero Grand Prix, live up to all the hype! A fittingly exhilarating grand finale, the first round saw well over thirty horses down to twelve in the jump off. Twelve of the best riders in the sport from Switzerland to South America, to Isreal, to the good ole USA and more. 

In the end the sensational Karl Cook aboard the grey gelding Casall almost seemed to float to victory. “I knew this horse has a very big stride, and really I used that to our advantage with the space that we had and, well, it worked!” said Cook in the post-ride press conference. Among discussions of winning strategies and insider details about the horses, Cook and the other two podium riders, Ali Wolff (2nd) and Brooke Kemper (3rd) along with our Chairman Jeff Papows, couldn’t say enough about Agero and their meaningful support of this class, and Silver Oak and it’s charitable causes. They were even quite excited to help us to create the “thank you” video below for our long-time friends and sponsors at Agero. 

The competition was riveting, awe-inspiring, filled with excitement and something more intangible, the bonds with our horses and yes the many dogs who enjoyed the week as much as us.  Jeff Papows wanted me to give a special friend “Moxie”, a Bernice Mountain dog Jeff coopted for the week. 

We cannot thank all our incredible sponsors enough for their dedication to the show, their support of the classes, and the Babington Foundation.  We promise next year will improve upon all the small details that make the SOJT something special in 2022. In the meant time we’ll keep updating you all year subscribe to the SOJT Newsletter to stay informed.