Amanda Steege Starts Strong in Green 3’9” Hunter Division with Lafitte De Muze at Devon Horse Show

Devon, Pa. – May 27, 2019 – Monday marked the start of Senior Week at the 2019 Devon Horse Show and Country Fair, where professional hunter athletes kicked off competition in the Dixon Oval with the Green Hunter divisions. Leading the way in the Green 3’9” Hunters, with a total of 18 entries, was Amanda Steege and Lafitte De Muze who dominated both over fences classes to take home two Devon blues.

Amanda Steege and Lafitte De Muze

In the first over fences class, sponsored by Patriot Dealerships, Steege and Cheryl Olsten’s Lafitte De Muze scored the class high score of 89. The pair expertly tackled the first 3’9” course of the day, which won them the Lisa Heyman Warren Challenge Trophy. Rounding out the top three was Holly Orlando and Ann Rice Ervin’s Alright and Will Roberts and Maura Harrower’s Who Dat with scores of 87 and 82, respectively.

Staying consistent and demonstrating a textbook, classic hunter form, Steege and the 8-year-old Belgian Warmblood earned another high score of 90 to win the second over fences class and the Louisa M. Latch Memorial Challenge Trophy. Coming in second place was Roberts with a score of 87, while Phoebe Demott and Marla Parente’s Last Light finished in third place with a score of 86.

Amanda Steege and Lafitte De Muze

The Devon Horse Show remains a special place for Steege, who is continuing on with her family’s tradition of showing in the famous Dixon Oval. Steege’s great-grandfather showed at the iconic venue in 1912, making Monday’s back-to-back wins all the more special for the decorated hunter rider.

While it may have been his first Devon blue, Lafitte De Muze is no stranger to the winner’s circle. The impressive bay gelding placed second in the $100,000 WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular during the 2019 Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, Florida. Previously, as a 7-year-old, Steege and her mount of over a year captured the victory in the $50,000 WCHR Professional Challenge at the 2018 Capital Challenge Horse Show.

Amanda Steege and Lafitte de Muze with their Devon blue

Hunter competition will continue in the Dixon Oval on Tuesday, May 27, where the Green Hunter divisions will champion and the High Performance divisions will begin. After winning two over fences classes, Steege and Lafitte De Muze are settled in a promising position to take home Tuesday’s championship tricolor.

FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE

Amanda Steege – Green 3’9” Hunter division leader

On Lafitte De Muze:
“Lafitte De Muze is 8 years old. We imported him a little over a year ago. I showed him last year here in the Green 3’6” division and he had the most beautiful round but when everyone clapped, he got really scared and didn’t score as well. It was really nice to come back here a year later and see how much more mature the horse is. He handled the crowd beautifully.”

On showing at Devon:
“Devon is always the highlight of my show year. My great-grandfather showed at Devon in 1912 and we have a photo of it. I’ve championed here at Devon three times now and it’s so special with all of the history. The amount of spectators that come out to watch is amazing. There’s nothing like it anywhere else. It’s always high on my list of priorities to get here.”

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