Katydid CDE at Tryon International Crowns USEF National Combined Driving Pony Championships for Training, Preliminary, Intermediate, & Open Advanced Divisions

For Immediate Release

Sarah Madden Taylor for Tryon International

Mill Spring, NC - April 29, 2025 - Tryon International Equestrian Center & Resort (Tryon International) welcomed the Katydid CDE to the venue April 24-27, also hosting the USEF National Combined Driving Pony Championships for Training, Preliminary, Intermediate, & Open Advanced Divisions. Competitors navigated three phases of competition: Dressage, Marathon, and Cones. See below for highlights.

For full results from the Katydid CDE at Tryon International, click here. 

In the 3* Single Pony Division, Janelle Marshall (AUS) topped the division itself, ending the weekend on a score of 139.86, but it was Sarah Reitz (NY) who took home the National Championship as the highest-placing US competitor, accumulating 154.17 points across three phases of competition. Amy Cross (MD) earned reserve honors with just a marginal difference in score, producing a total of 154.50 points.

Sarah Reitz and FFerm Gwenffrwd Onyx Star
©Sharon Packer Photography

Reitz assessed that her Marathon phase was the strongest with her longtime partner, FFerm Gwenffrwd Onyx Star, her own 2007 Welsh Pony gelding (Hilin Peredur x Cottrell Charmer), but that Dressage is the phase that she’s been working on the most. “It was one of our better tests. Dressage isn’t easy, and there’s always something to work on!” 

The horse-and-pony pair sat in fourth place overall, third in the championship race, walking into the Marathon phase on day two. “Onyx was just on his game in Marathon, and gave us the win in that phase, which moved us up considerably, so we were sitting in second place,” she shared. “Cones was a tough course, and we all had some penalties. We were able to hang on to the win by less than half a point! It’s a tough class - we were all within a few points of each other, and our group has been that way all year,” she revealed.

Reitz and Onyx have been together since she picked him from a field as a weanling, and their next big goal is to travel abroad for the 2025 FEI Driving World Championship for Combined Ponies in Le Pin au Haras, France. 

“It’s an expensive goal,” Reitz quipped, “but that’s where we would like to go next. I think the obstacles here [at Tryon International] were super technical, which will help prepare us for what we would see over there. The way they were gated and built were very technical. The water was a bit more wide open, but it was long, and we don’t always get such long obstacles here as [in Europe].” 

Brandy Snedden and Mischief Managed
©Sharon Packer Photography

Tina England (ONT) claimed top honors in the 2* Single Pony Division, scoring 140.19 points. Brandy Snedden (OH) was the top-ranked US competitor after three phases with a score of 142.95, taking home the championship. Reserve championship honors belonged to Jacqueline Kane (MA), who finished on a three-round total of 153.21 points.

Tracey Turner and Chardonnay
©Sharon Packer Photography

The Intermediate Single Pony Division saw its most local competitor, Tracey Turner (SC), score the championship for the Carolinas with a three-day total of 133.10 points. Hilary Mroz-Blythe (MA) claimed reserve honors on a score of 134.77 points, while Kristin Whittington (IN) took home third place with 155.91 points. 

Alice Baughman and Ragtime Up In Smoke
©Sharon Packer Photography

South Carolinian Alice Baughman dominated the Preliminary Single Pony Division to collect the championship, finishing with 107,23 points. Felicity Demitry (NY) received reserve championship honors, scoring 112.19 over three phases, and Taylor Bradish (SC) drove to third place on a score of 112.71 points to round out the competitive podium.

Sonia Williams and White Tie Affair WRP
©Sharon Packer Photography

The Training Single Pony Division awarded the championship title to Sonia Williams (KY) for her 90.26 points accrued over three phases, the lowest scored pony division competitor across the entire Katydid CDE at Tryon International. In reserve was Ashley Mount (PA) on a score of 114.49 points, while Michele Huguet (SC) completed the podium with 116.59 points. 

For full results from the Katydid CDE at Tryon International, including non-championship divisions, click here. 

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