Riders belonging to the Amateur Riders Club of America had a successful afternoon at the Grand National in Butler, Md., on Saturday, April 22.
In the kickoff race, Eric Poretz rode Irvin “Skip” Crawford’s Senior Senator to victory in the $30,000 Grand National and will have the mount as Senior Senator seeks a repeat win the Maryland Hunt Cup next Saturday.
In addition, French Fegentri rider Gonzague Cottreau finished fifth on Gerry Brewster’s Derwins Prospector, and Bethany Baumgardner finished sixth on Merriefield Farm’s Imperial Way. Both horses are likely to join Senior Senator in the classic four-mile timber test.
Six riders associated with ARCA or Fegentri, the international riders association, competed in the Benjamin H. Murray Memorial. Poretz finished second on De Chera for owner trainer H. Bruce Fenwick, and Cottreau rode another Crawford horse, Touchdowntony, to finish third.
Other riders from ARCA were Amelia McGuirk finishing fourth on Prime Prospector, Englishman Max Kendrick seventh on Our Town, Annie Yeager eighth on Out Playing, and Englishman rider Emma Todd ninth on Sumo Power. ARCA Executive Director Don Yovanovich made the arrangements for the three foreign riders to come to the United States to ride for Joe Davies, who trains Senior Senator.
Finishing the card, Yeager won the Western Run Plate on Upland Partners’ Mystic Strike, trained by Todd McKenna. Baumgardner rallied to be second on Where’s the Beef, and Poretz ended his weekend with a third on Sportsmans Hall’s Hill Tie.
Poretz is scheduled to leave Saturday night after the Hunt Cup to ride in the Longines Fegentri Championship Gentlemen’s Race at Dusseldorf Race Course in Germany on Sunday.