Looks like Downton has brought the side-saddle back to the forefront!
Side saddle steeplechase to return to America thanks to Downton Abbey
9 April, 2015 – 16:55
Glamour, elegance and side saddle are set to return to Virginia this weekend (Sunday 12 April) when the first side saddle steeplechase to be run in America since the 1930s takes place.
The inaugural Esther Everhart Memorial Invitational Side Saddle Chase will run at the historic Oatlands Plantation in Virginia.
A dedicated group of female riders set out to recreate the pursuit of the 1930s — and they credit television series such as Downton Abbey for the resurgence in interest in the sport in the US.
Organisers Maggie Johnston and Devon Zebrovious met on a side-saddle hunting trip in Ireland. There they also met Dianas of the Chase organiser Philippa Holland, and decided the US needed a version of the race.
The race will be mostly on the flat — with an optional jump towards the finish — and will run over a mile.
The race is named after US side saddle repair specialist George “Smoky” Everhart’s mother Esther. Esther was a regular fixture in the Middleburg and Orange County Hunt fields, as well as the ladies point-to-point racing circuit, all while riding side saddle.