Now in its fourth year, The Rolex Central Park Horse Show has taken over Wollman Rink once again, transforming New York City’s famed ice skating rink into a Grand Prix show jumping ring. Nestled at the bottom of Central Park, with the city’s skyscrapers behind it, this urban yet bucolic setting makes for a spectacular venue. The show has become a highlight of the equestrian circuit, attracting the biggest names in the sport who come to compete under the lights and under the stars in the heart of New York City.
The course itself is extremely challenging for both riders and horses, squeezing the multiple combinations of head high jumps that define a Grand Prix competition into what is a small and oddly shaped arena. But first there is the metamorphosis of an ice skating rink into a horse ring which is no easy feat. From the first load of dirt to the first horse in the ring, it is about 5 non-stop days and nights of activity – one that we thought would fun to document. The time lapse video shown above takes place over the course of week, compressing the whole process into about 90 seconds.
For those who want to watch the show live, The Rolex Central Park Horse Show continues this weekend with the exciting inaugural event of Arena Eventing. Combining show jumping and cross-country, this popular two-round event offers double the competition in one ring and has become a spectator favorite. There is also Family Day on Sunday, another major attraction of the week offering free general admission and entertaining equestrian demonstrations and performances throughout the day. For ticket and general information got to: Rolex Central Park Horse Show.
Finally, we would like to congratulate Kent Farrington on his victory Friday night in the $216,000 FEI 3* Grand Prix presented by Rolex. Kent is a favorite of ours, featured a couple of times on Style of Sport, and we couldn’t be happier to see him get the big win here in NYC!
Special thanks to Kirk Edwards for your time lapse guidance and expertise!
