Two American amateur jump riders, Bethany Baumgardner and Eric Poretz, traveled abroad this past week representing the Amateur Riders Club of America in the opening Longines Fegentri Men’s and Ladies Individual World Championship series.
On February 19, Poretz traveled to the race course in St. Moritz, Switzerland, where three days of racing are run on a frozen lake. Eric’s mount Saltas finished third, beaten four lengths in the 2500 meter handicap race.
Baumgardner traveled to Qatar, where on February 23 at the Doha race course she piloted her longshot Arabian horse, Falot Del Falot, to a third-place finish after covering 1600 meters on the turf. Well done to both as the American riders start the year off with great efforts.
Baumgardner and another National Steeplechase Association-licensed amateur jockey, Zoe Valvo, will be traveling soon as part of their ARCA participation. Baumgardner will travel to Chile to ride in the second Longines Fegentri Ladies race at the Valparaico Race Course on March 7. Valvo is headed for Sam Houston Park to ride in the HH Sheika Fatima bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship Race, a registered race with the International Federation of Arabian Horse Racing Authority on March 4.