Pro-Ams Camp it up at L.A. Masters

By Julia Seltz October 4, 2015

When in Hollywood, do as the stars do. In the case of the Longines Los Angeles Masters Pro-Am Style & Ride Competition, that meant donning costumes and acting out character parts. Eduardo Menezes as the Big Bad Wolf, Hannah Selleck imagined as Alice in Wonderland, Kaley Cuoco channeling Luke Skywalker and Jack Towell and Jennifer Gates as the Scarecrow and Dorothy.

Those were just some of the colorful characters to delight a teeming Saturday night crowd at the Los Angeles Convention Center. As celebrity judges Denise Richards, Perrey Reeves and Sam Rubin assessed the action, professional and amateur riders tag-teamed to put on a show, complete with music and extras.

Representing eight different charities, each team was welcomed to the ring with some theme music, and occasionally by a scurrying support cast that helped enact their skit. Then the amateur riders proceeded to jump a 1.10m course, followed by the professionals, who tackled 1.20m jumps. The judges seemed lax about time, throwing more weight on the entertainment factor.

Accessorized by Storm Troopers and climaxing with a light saber battle with Darth Vader (Karen Healey Stables‘ Tracey Wade), Cuoco’s Star Wars spin won the day for Ride On. Richards, a “Bond Girl,” “Entourage” cast-member Reeves, and Rubin, an anchor at KTLA,  judged the “best style” using metrics including penalties over fences, the team’s look and elegance and the horse’s style.

Other worthy causes on the field included Amade, Autism Speaks, The Compton Jr. Posse, Just World, Park Place Foundation, Thrive Animal Rescue and Wolf Connection. Each charity received a check from $35,000 from EEM, raising more than $200,000 for charity.

The event was a big hit at the inaugural Longines Masters of Los Angeles last year, and show producer EEM also schedules the fund-raiser at Longines Masters Series shows in Paris and Hong Kong, although typically for a single charity (such as Amade, Princess Caroline of Monaco’s cause). “In Los Angeles, we decided to do it a bit differently and open it up to several charities,” EEM’s U.S. Event Manager Matthieu Gheyson explained. “It confirms the commitment of the organizers and partners, not to mention that of the competition’s riders, to benefit deserving organizations.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Short URL: https://theequestriannews.com/?p=18599