September 2020 Issue

Page 24 September 2020 EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN Three legends of steeple- chasing–Charlie Fenwick, Turney McKnight and Dixon Stroud–will design the new timber course at Fair Hill. “Each of these individuals has designed their own successful timber courses; we are very fortu- nate to have them involved in this project,” Fair Hill Foundation Vice Chair and Campaign Chair, Jack S. Griswold said. Charlie Fenwick is a five-time Maryland Hunt Cup and 1980 Ain- tree England Grand National win- ner aboard Ben Nevis II. Turney McKnight won the Maryland Hunt Cup in 1982 and the Virginia Gold Cup in 1980 on Tong, owned by his mother, June McKnight. Dixon Stroud rode Bewley’s Hill to win the Maryland Hunt Cup in 1984. As an amateur steeplechase jockey, Fenwick is just the second American rider to win the English Grand National when Ben Nevis II pulled a 40-1 upset in 1980. Fenwick trained a top stable on the circuit in the 1980s and 1990s, Steeplechasing Legends to Design Fair Hill Timber Course winning an Eclipse Award with Inlander in 1987. Beyond riding and training, Fenwick has been an officer with the National Stee- plechase Association and Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foun- dation and is chair of the Shawan Downs Races in Maryland. An owner, trainer and amateur jockey on the steeplechase circuit from the late 1960s to the early 1980s, McKnight also rode the mare Perfect Cast to timber wins and to back-to-back seconds to the great Ben Nevis II in the Maryland Hunt Cup in 1977 and 1978. Tong also won the Maryland Hunt Cup with McKnight’s wife, Liz, aboard in 1986. McKnight is a retired attorney with degrees from Cornell University and the University of Michigan law school. He chaired the My Lady’s Manor Races in Monkton, Md. for 40 years and serves on the boards of theAtlantic Salmon Federation, Chesapeake Conservancy and as president of the Sumner T. McKnight Foundation. An amateur steeplechase rider, polo player, owner and race meet founder, Stroud has worn more than his share of hats in the horse industry. Riding Bewley’s Hill, owned and trained by Lisa Stroud, Stroud started in the 1987 English Grand National at Aintree; the pair were brought down by another horse at Becher’s Brook. Building on his father’s idea and with his advice, Dixon started the Landhope Farms convenience store business in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. The elder Stroud and his wife Joan created the StroudWater Research Center in 1966. Dixon Stroud serves on the board today, and the center is an international leader in watershed research and preservation. In 1993, Stroud founded theWillowdale Steeplechase in Kennett Square, Pa. and is the meet’s chairman. The committee began work this summer. The inaugural race on the new course is planned for spring 2021. PA Farm Show be announced as they unfold over the coming weeks. Virtual events will be focused on education and awareness for both the general public and the agriculture industry. Any competitive ag events that are held virtually will not require the purchase of an animal. “Each year, the Pennsylva- nia Farm Show uses a theme to convey our vision for the future of Pennsylvania agriculture – through Cultivating Tomorrow we’ll tell this story through technology as we envision and cultivate a prosper- ous, thriving future together,” said Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex Executive Director Sharon Myers. “We have not lost sight of what this industry means to Pennsylvania, in fact, this pandemic has highlighted our reliance on it. The show will go on, just as agriculture has perse- vered.” For information as it relates to agriculture during COVID-19 mitigation in Pennsylvania visit agriculture.pa.gov/covid. For news and updates on the virtual show, visit farmshow.pa.gov or on Facebook or Instagram. (Continued from page 22) Tired of running to the tack shop to find your copy of East Coast Equestrian? SUBSCRIBE! You’ll get it in your mailbox each month (before it hits the tack shop) for as long as you like. PLUS : Place FREE classifieds each month. Just $20! Visit eastcoastequestrian.net to sign up.