2024 WIHS Tuesday Report: Cannon Creek Adds Accolades

The 2024 Washington International Horse Show (WIHS) presented by MARS Equestrian™ continued on Tuesday, October 22, with the culmination of the professional hunter divisions. Hunt Tosh of Milton, GA, and Cannon Creek, owned by the Wheeler Family, added yet another accolade to their successful partnership with the Grand Champion Hunter award. At the end of the day, Kenzie Smith was first and second in the $10,000 WIHS Children’s Hunter Championship presented by MARS Equestrian aboard Mirage and Sundown, respectively, both owned by Charlotte Rossetter. In the $10,000 WIHS Adult Hunter Championship presented by MARS Equestrian, Reilly Canard and Carry On, another Charlotte Rossetter-owned entry, took the top prize.

Tosh and Cannon Creek are three-time winners of the USHJA International Hunter Derby National Championships and have won plenty of championships at major shows but this is the horse’s first grand championship at WIHS. To achieve this, they won three classes in the High Performance Hunters along with a third place, which gave them the division championship. They were also awarded with the Protocol Trophy for their success in the High Performance Hunter division at the Devon Horse Show, Pennsylvania National Horse Show, and WIHS.

“I've been lucky to have great horses in my career, and it's been fun winning all we have, but every day there is that next class you want to win,” said Tosh. “To be grand champion here is special and especially with this horse because he deserves it. He keeps doing it and keeps giving, so that's the great thing about him. He was spectacular.

“We don't have to show him that much so we can pick and choose where we show him each year and tweak his schedule a bit,” continued Tosh of the 13-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Canara) he has ridden for four years. “It's been four years with him, and he's such a special horse.”

Though they started their partnership with a bang by winning their first “Derby Finals,” Tosh noted that “Cannon” has improved in his balance over the years. The tall horse makes it easy for Tosh to feel confident walking into any ring.

“It’s so nice to have a horse like him that's so scopey so whatever they build you're comfortable to jump,” he remarked.

Horses are a family affair for the Tosh family, with daughter Maddie – a successful junior rider – helping in the business. She prepared Hunt’s horses while he taught students on this past Sunday in Harrisburg.

“I actually just told Maddie I was going to retire from preparing horses now,” he said with a smile. “Maddie for sure gets full credit for this championship because she did all the training this week, and I was able just to swoop in here on Monday, get on, and he was ready to go.

As Maddie Tosh approaches the end of her junior career, Tosh reflected on what it’s been like having her grow up in the sport he loves.

“It’s been a fun 18 years,” he said. “She set her goals so high and what she's really accomplished and has done in her career and as a friend and rider and horse person, it's unbelievable. She's truly a business partner now with me. She was just down there at the gate telling everyone who was going to be champion of each division – divisions we didn't even have horses in – she had everyone's points added up. There's no one that loves the sport more than she does and to be able to do it with her, I couldn't ask for anything else."

Smith and Canard Top WIHS Children’s and Adult Hunter Championships

Kenzie Smith of Shoreham, NY, set the bar high for herself during her first WIHS. In the $10,000 WIHS Children’s Hunter Championship, presented by MARS Equestrian Smith saved the best for last as she piloted Charlotte Rossetter’s 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Mirage to the pinnacle position with a two-round total of 173 points. The victory proved to be an important moment and an impressive feat in Smith’s young career as she transitions from ponies to horses.

“This is my first WIHS on a horse because I’ve only done ponies here, so I’m really happy with how it went,” expressed Smith. “I wasn’t really worried today except for the last jump because I wanted to make sure that I didn’t have a swap or a rail or chip at the last and mess it up!”

The pair procured a high score of 87 in the class’s first round to earn the prime spot in the callback, and after another round worthy of 86 from the judges, Smith bested her own previous leading score to take two out of the top three ribbons. With combined scores of 85.50 and 86 on Charlotte Rossetter’s nine-year-old Zangersheide gelding Sundown, Smith also claimed the runner-up position.

“I started riding Sundown in the spring, and I was confident with him because our show at Harrisburg went really well,” she detailed. “I only started riding Mirage about a week before Capital Challenge Horse Show, and this is only our third show together. They are both such nice horses and so sweet; I couldn’t be happier than I am with today.

“I want to thank Charlotte Rossetter and Pamela Wright for the rides on both these horses and their ponies,” Smith continued. “They are incredibly nice to give me the opportunity.”

MJ Maestas (Houston, TX) and Liston Johnson’s Highmark earned high marks to round out the top three with consistent performances across both rounds that earned them scores of 85 and 83 for a total of 168.

Concluding the full day of action, Smith’s barn mate Reilly Canard (Philomont, VA) captured the win in the $10,000 WIHS Adult Amateur Hunter Championship, presented by MARS Equestrian also on a Charlotte Rossetter-owned entry, Carry On. After piloting the 14-year-old Holsteiner gelding to a first-round score of 86, Canard one-upped her original score with an 86.50 score in the callback to conclude on a two-round total of 172.50.

“I just started showing him at the end of March, so I’ve only been riding him for a few months,” explained Canard, “but he’s really great and he makes me feel so confident in the ring. He’s a partner that you know will always have your back and knows his job; it’s just a matter of staying out of his way and letting him do that well.”

Canard is one of a close-knit group of riders training under the tutelage of her sister, Mckenzie Canard, and the camaraderie the group has crafted over their shared passion is one she is grateful to be a part of.

“Charlotte [Rossetter] and Pam [Wright] are amazing, and it’s so fun to get to ride with them and to be able to ride some of their horses,” she expressed. “Our barn is very close; it’s so nice to have Kenzie [Smith] here riding some of the horses and ponies, and it was definitely fun tonight.

“Having my sister as my trainer has been an incredible experience because she is like my right hand,” continued Canard. “She is my go-to and always knows what is going through my head. Even if I say, ‘I’m not nervous’ going into the ring, she will be there to tell me to take a breath. It’s nice to have someone there who knows me so well.”

As someone who has been coming to WIHS since she was a young girl, the show is always a staple and a favorite when it comes time to hit the road.

“WIHS is a show we always look forward to coming to. They dress up the ring beautifully which makes it feel very special, and the format enables you to have the special factor with the big night but also allows you to get in and have a little practice in the ring as well.”

Brooke Cole (Rockville, VA) laid down a dominating second-round trip aboard the Hanoverian gelding Poetic Justis to pair scores of 84.50 and 87 and land just behind Canard in the second-place position. Aboard the aptly-named Holsteiner gelding Miles Ahead, Kate Howlin (North Beach, MD) totaled 84 and 86 points to finish in third place.

High Performance Working Hunter
Champion: Cannon Creek, Hunt Tosh, The Wheeler Family
Reserve Champion: Sinmigo Dos, Halie Robinson, Stable Assets

Protocol Trophy
Cannon Creek, Hunt Tosh, The Wheeler Family

High Performance Conformation
Champion: Chime, Mary Lisa Leffler, Mary Lisa Leffler, LLC
Reserve Champion: California Love, Scott Stewart, Dr. Betsee Parker

Green Hunter 3’9”
Champion: Colter, Scott Stewart, Sophie Gochman
Reserve Champion: Chime, Mary Lisa Leffler, Mary Lisa Leffler, LLC

Grand Green Hunter Champion
Green Conformation Hunter
Champion: Styles, Scott Stewart, Dr. Betsee Parker
Reserve Champion: Walk The Tides, Daniel Geitner, Lynn Seithel

Green Hunter 3’6”
Champion: Leisure, Halie Robinson, Stable Assets
Reserve Champion: Cerulean Blue, Scott Stewart, Dr. Betsee Parker

Leading Hunter Rider Award
Sponsored by Dr. Betsee Parker
Scott Stewart

Leading Hunter Owner Award
Dr. Betsee Parker