'Tauk to the Animals

It's A Classic Weekend For Horse Lovers

By Ellen Dioguardi

"The daughter who won't lift a finger in the house is the same child who cycles madly off in the pouring rain to spend all morning mucking out a stable."
- Samantha Armstrong

Photo by Tom W. Ratcliffe III

My mother used to yell up the stairs to my room "if that mess you live in was a horse stall it would be immaculate!" I suppose she was right. When given the chance I would haul hay, muck stalls and clean tack, all with a big smile on my face but my room at home was always a mess. For anyone who remembers a youth seemingly misspent among horses this past week and upcoming weekend is very special. The Hampton Classic is in town!

My association with the Classic goes back further than I can accurately recall. I do know that when they held the show at Dune Alpine Farm I went with the stable I rode at, Smoke Run Farm, and watched the older riders I knew compete. I also know that when my mom moved out to Southampton in about 1980 I would visit her during the Hampton Classic week (which was closer to the middle of July in those days I think). We went to the show a few times together but I don't have a clear memory of it all.

By 1988 I was working for The Sag Harbor Express and I started covering the horse show for them. Since then I've gone to the show every year. Sometimes to cover the Grand Prix and sometimes to set up tables for the corporations I worked for who were sponsors. Let's just say I've spent a lot of time at the Hampton Classic over the past 20 years and I don't regret a moment of it.

For me there's nothing quite as spectacular as sitting in the stands or under the VIP tent on a crisp August morning, coffee and egg sandwich in hand, watching some early jumper classes. The smells, the sounds, the feeling in the air - it all takes me back to the days when all I wanted was to be near a horse. Those were good times and the Hampton Classic embodies those feelings. If you've ever loved a horse you owe it to yourself to visit the Hampton Classic. Just standing there will make you feel happy and content.

Of course there's the other animals at the Hampton Classic too. There are llamas and goats and all sorts of creatures to visit and be amazed by. One of my favorites has always been the miniature horse - what a novel idea, a horse you can keep in your bedroom. I wonder if I'd have cleaned my room more often if there'd been a miniature horse in there someplace?

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