Brian Holmes and Levites Win 2017 Congress Junior Pleasure Driving

By: Brittany Bevis

Brian Holmes was at the helm of Levites to win Junior Pleasure Driving during his final year in the young age division at the 2017 All American Quarter Horse Congress this morning.

For Brian, who typically has Pleasure Driving horses in multiple divisions, this is the only horse he will be competing with here at the Congress. Although, at first, he was unsure if “Levi” would be ready to show here at the Congress, the horse’s potential convinced him that he was ready to make the trip.

“We’ve been working on his since last winter,” he says. “I don’t get him all the time. I get him off and on between his Jumping schedule. He won Progressive Working Hunter the other day with Chuck Briggs!”

Levi is exactly the type of horse that Brian believes benefits from Pleasure Driving training. “A lot of the horses I get are multipurpose. They do a lot of different events. I think Pleasure Driving helps get them a lot more steady, solid, and receptive. They’re get all around tamer, I think.”

“Levi is really not ready to be here, as far as the sense that he has a way to go, but he has a presence and a look. He’s really elegant looking and a little almost exotic.”

Brian was in the cart for Levi’s owners, Mike and Sandy Vargo, today.

The Reserve Champion in the class was Charlie Cole with Not Just Anyhoo. Third place was Lee Paul Shinn with Metallic Iron. Fourth was Kevin Dukes with Dancin For A Living. Fifth was Julie O’Brien with Brown Eyed Blaze.