Following a record-breaking inaugural run in Lexington last month, the Real Rider Cup, a charity show jumping event created by Anita Motion to benefit Thoroughbred aftercare, returns to its home at the Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show the evening of Friday, Sept. 16.
Past winner Penelope Miller returns for her fifth Real Rider Cup, riding once again for Team Racing Media. Past top fundraiser Keira Nygaard, whose parents Erik and Pavla own and operate Thor-Bred Stables, was among the leaders in Kentucky and comes now to Maryland with her eyes on the top prize. Paddock analyst and host for America's Day at the Races and Saratoga Live, Maggie Wolfendale Morley, returns for her second Real Rider Cup. 1/ST Racing once again maintains a strong presence with Maryland Jockey Club's marketing & events manager Brittlan Wall and analyst/broadcaster Kali Francois, among others. MidAtlantic Equine Medical Center also steps to support, furnishing a team of its own. Team Racing Kids is also back with a strong lineup.
All proceeds benefit the Retired Racehorse Project, New Vocations Thoroughbred Adoption and the Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show. For additional information and to donate, visit therealridercup.com.
Penelope Miller is the winner of the 2020 Real Rider Cup.
Unanimously voted by the board for this year's title, Penelope has raised just under $14,000 since 2018 when she first competed on Team Racing Analysts. This year was a year like no other. Going virtual was definitely plan B, with COVID becoming a national pandemic early in the Spring.
Organizers quickly realized that having a live show was going to be impractical. Penelope was the first one to say “Yay! I'm in!” when we first announced the virtual plan. Her fundraising tactics are always unique – this year she announced she would dye her hair the racing colors of the first stable to donate $2,000. That was Little Red Feather, so an extra thank you to them.
Designed specifically to showcase Off The Track Thoroughbreds (OTTBs), the Real Rider Cup was first held in conjunction with Plantation Field International Horse Trials in 2017 and 2018. This crowd-pleasing celebrity charity event changed venues in 2019 and served as the kick-off for the Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show which followed on Sept. 21-22.
The 2019 Real Rider Cup participants included a number of racing industry personalities – jockeys, members of the media, “Racing Kids” who grew up in the sport, sidesaddle riders and representatives from world-class breeding farms. Teams competed against each other over a course of show jumping fences to determine the “real riders.” Each competitor pledged to raise at least $1,000, which directly supported our beneficiaries – the Retired Racehorse Project, New Vocations, and The Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show.
Penelope Miller grew up as a horse-crazy kid on her parents' farm in Ocala, Fla., and not much has changed since then. She is now the Senior Manager of Digital Media at America's Best Racing, and spends her weekends traveling to racetracks across the nation to photograph and write about some of the sports biggest events. Before that, she worked on farms from Kentucky to Australia, and worked for six years at Tampa Bay Downs as the Horsemen's Liaison. When she's not in an airplane or the office, Penelope can be found riding at Riverdale Stables in the Bronx or flying through the air at Trapeze School New York.
Penelope tied for second place in the 2018 Real Rider Cup aboard the outstanding retired racehorse and all-around very good boy Disco Elvis, owned and trained by Meghan Wicks Doran. In 2019 she was aboard the wonderful Fort, owned by Abi Skillman, riding for Team Racing Media.
“Horses have given me absolutely everything, and I am so grateful for the chance to give back through the Real Rider Cup,” Miller said. “If you've ever fallen in love with a pony, if you've cheered on your favorite Thoroughbred at the track, or if you just want to help out, please consider a donation here to benefit the incredibly worthy charities supported by the Real Rider Cup: New Vocations, the Retired Racehorse Project, and the Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show.”
Penelope's 2020 mount was Grade 1-winning steeplechaser All The Way Jose, very kindly provided by his owner, Dr. Erica Gaertner. You can watch their flawless show jumping round here:
The beautiful silver cup will be mailed to Penelope today. CONGRATULATIONS PENELOPE!!!
This year's Peoples Choice Award goes to Laura Moquett riding Ultraslan who had the most votes on the online poll. Well done Laura for rallying so much support!! Her prize will be an assortment of goods and swag from our benefactors The Retired Racehorse Project, New Vocations and The Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show.
The total votes for all the riders exceeded 48,000, and as of this writing, we have also raised over $48,000!!
Again, we can't say thank you enough to all of our Real Rider Cup 2020 participants and supporters. You are ALL winners in our eyes!!
