The annual Skidmore College Saratoga Classic Horse Show – which has raised nearly $3 million for scholarships over the last decade – starts this week. A highlight of the early summer season in Saratoga Springs, this top-level competition is a nationally recognized United States Equestrian Federation-sanctioned event and a World Championship Hunter Rider event, attracting many of the country’s best horses and riders.

Running June 14-19 and June 21-26 at the horse show grounds on Union Avenue, the show includes numerous events in hunter, jumper, and equitation classes, for riders ranging from children to adults. Click here for the schedule.

Among noteworthy additions to this year’s show are The Landgero Cup, a $25,000 Rolex/USEF computer list Grand Prix, which will take place Saturday, June 25, at 3 p.m.; and a $10,000 jumper classic, scheduled during the first week on Saturday, June 18. Also on Saturday, June 18, is a $10,000 USHJA International High Performance Hunter Derby which is a qualifying event for the finals in Lexington, Kent., which carries a purse of $100,000.

The latter competition will follow strict USHJA specifications, with a judging system that rewards great jumping, athletic ability, and bold hunter riding.

“It's an exciting class to watch,” said Hunter Messineo, a member of the USHJA High Performance Hunter Committee and associate publisher of the organization’s magazine, In Stride. “The venue in Saratoga is a perfect place to show off these horses and riders. Whether you know a lot or a little about horses, you can’t help but get excited watching the derby and the strategies used by each rider to try to bring home a piece of the $10,000 prize money.”

Photos by James Parker