Margie Engle Soars Past Laura Kraut for the Lead in Race for American Grand Prix Association (AGA) Rider of the Year

Margie Goldstein Engle, with eight career American Grand Prix Association (AGA) Rider of the Year titles under her belt, has made a furious charge and is back at the top of the charts in this year’s race for the crown. Engle grabbed a seven point lead over Laura Kraut, who had lead the race for most of this year’s series.

Entering its twenty-seventh year, the AGA Grand Prix Series of Show Jumping is the world’s richest and longest running series of equestrian show jumping events. The AGA offers over $3 million dollars in prize money on a tour that encompasses thirty events and twenty different equestrian market locations across the United States.  There are nine events remaining on this year’s schedule; four in the West and five in the East.  This year’s series concludes at the National Horse Show in December, with the AGA Championship CSI*** at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, Florida.

Engle, America’s most prolific show jumping star, has put together a great summer run that has moved her into contention for an unprecedented ninth AGA Rider of the Year title. With only a second place finish following the first thirteen events on the 2005 tour, Engle has strung together two wins, two seconds and two seventh place finishes over the last nine events to grab the lead. 

Engle lead the victory gallop at the $100,000 Budweiser Upperville Jumper Classic on Sunday, June 12, and then a month later, took top honors in the $40,000 Merrill Lynch Cleveland Grand Prix. She finished second in the $60,000 Lake Placid Grand Prix on July 3rd, and this past Sunday in the $50,000 Kentucky Summer Classic. A seventh place finish in the $75,000 Budweiser Grand Prix of Devon in June and in the $75,000 I Love New York Grand Prix in July added just enough points to put Engle over the top with five East Coast events remaining on this year’s AGA schedule. She has 12 clear rounds to her credit and has amassed 95 points.

Laura Kraut, Beezie Madden and Jeffery Welles, three early season frontrunners, have spent much of this AGA season competing with the United States Equestrian Team on the Samsung Super League tour in Europe.  Kraut (8/88) remains second in the AGA Rider of the Year race. Kent Farrington (7/85), who has been near the top of the charts with wins at Devon and in Lake Placid, holds on to third place. Madden (6/75) follows in fourth.  Ramiro Quintana (4/71) in fifth is followed by Jeffery Welles (5/70) and Aaron Vale in seventh.  Vale (9/64) moves back into the top ten following his Sunday victory in the $50,000 Kentucky Summer Classic Grand Prix. It was his second Lexington win of the season and his third AGA victory of 2005.  McLain Ward (5/63) sits eighth and Jimmy Torano (4/61) and Anne Kursinski (6/50) round out the top ten.

In the race for American Grand Prix Association (AGA) Horse of the Year,  Madison, owned by Alexa Weeks, remains the horse to catch with $77,250 in the bank. Kimmel Yager Equine’s Armani is second with a total of $64,250 and Authentic, now under the ownership of Abigail Wexner, sits third with $63,656, just $594 behind Armani. The two new additions to the top ten involve Margie Engle’s two Hidden Creek Farm owned mounts. Hidden Creek’s Wapino has vaulted into fourth place with $58,500 and Hidden Creek’s Perin has broken the top ten in ninth with $42,400.  Hurricane ($56,000), from the Turnabout Farm, is fifth followed by Sapphire ($52,750), owned by Ward, Clark & Double H Farm, sitting sixth.  Anthem ($45,300), owned by the Summit Group, is seventh with Windmill Ranch’s Marlou ($45,000) eighth and Roxana 112 ($41,500) from Scott Hakim, tenth.

Great Britain’s Ellen Whitaker remains atop the leader board in the AGA Rookie of the Year race with $29,500 in total prize money won.  A major move by Jaime Piedra Guerra has rocketed him into second place in the standings with $22,800. Guerra, a West Coast rookie, posted wins at the $30,000 Oaks Classic Grand Prix in San Juan Capistrano, California and the $50,000 Rocky Mountain Grand Prix in Parker, Colorado in June and July.  Cayce Harrison is third with $20,750, followed by Amy Momrow with $16,826. Max Amaya is a distant fifth with $7,500.

The next AGA series event is in the East on Saturday, August 13th, in Sussex, New Jersey. The $50,000 Sussex County Grand Prix is held on Saturday evening. Then on Sunday, August 14th,  it’s the $50,000 Budweiser Grand Prix of Indianapolis and in the west, the $25,000 Evergreen Classic in Monroe, Washington.