CAZENOVIA — Following a two-year hiatus, the full three-day Lorenzo Driving Competition (LDC) will return to Cazenovia July 15-17.
Held on the grounds of Lorenzo State Historic Site, the carriage pleasure driving competition is one of Cazenovia’s signature summer events and the only horse show of its kind in Central New York.
Visitors can park and experience the show for free, purchase food from food trucks, shop, enter a silent auction, and explore the site, including the Lorenzo mansion, formal gardens, Dark Aisle Arboretum, carriage house, and collection of antique vehicles.
Located at 17 Rippleton Road, Lorenzo is the 1807 Federal-style home of John Lincklaen, Holland Land Company agent and founder of Cazenovia. The Lincklaen/Ledyard family continually occupied Lorenzo until the property and its contents were conveyed to New York State in 1968. The site is operated by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and supported with help from the Friends of Lorenzo (FOL).
Since its inception in 1977, the LDC has typically been held on the third weekend in July.
“Lorenzo Driving Competition is the oldest American Driving Society-recognized pleasure driving show in the country,” said Show Manager Hannah Polson. “In the last several years, we have lost a number of great shows due to retiring management and loss of land and venues. It is important to keep this sport alive as it is a connection to our past and highlights the elegance and grace of a past era, as well as showing the unique connection between driver and equine. Drivers are a friendly, supportive, and enthusiastic group in the equestrian sports world. There is no better venue to highlight our shared history than having the show at the Lorenzo Historic Site.”
In 2020, the show was canceled due to COVID-19, and in 2021, the organizers offered a modified version of the traditional event.
“We offered a modified version so that drivers had something to participate in since so many other shows had been canceled,” said Polson.
According to Polson, LDC usually draws between 60 and 80 competitors from across New York, Mid-Atlantic states, and New England.
This year, 35 to 40 drivers are entered to compete.
“[We] have a competitor, Paul Maye, coming from Virginia who will be driving the Ayrshire Farm Shires,” said Polson. “He will be competing in two different divisions — Pair Horse and Antique Vehicle — with a pair of Shires. He will also be demonstrating the ‘mad man hitch’ with all four horses on Sunday, July 17 at 11:45 a.m. in the main ring.”
The 2022 competition will also include drivers and horses from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, Connecticut, and Ontario, Canada.
This year’s festivities will begin on Friday, July 15, with obstacle classes, a Timed Country Drive, and, beginning at 4:30 p.m., two signature competitions in the main ring. The first is the Antique Vehicle Turnout, featuring vehicles built prior to 1940. The second, the Picnic Class, will showcase both the competitors’ reinsmanship — the art of communicating with the carriage driving horse through the reins, whip, and voice — and ability to set a festive table complete with homemade goodies for the judge to sample.
The classes will be followed by the “Hats Off to Lorenzo!” opening gala, which will feature drinks and hors d’oeuvres on the lawn and a hat competition. Tickets are $25 at the door and include a souvenir wine or beer glass that can be refilled without charge. Lamplit Farms will offer complimentary horse-drawn carriage rides around the Lorenzo grounds, and the mansion will be open 5:30 to 7 p.m. for free tours.
Saturday, July 16, will feature a full schedule of pleasure driving classes. The last classes before the noon lunch break are two fan favorites: the Carriage Dog class, which is judged primarily on the suitability of the dog to serve as a companion to the driver, and the Drive & Ride class, in which the horses are hitched and driven in the first portion of the event and then, after lunch, ridden and judged under saddle.
“[The Carriage Dog class is] meant to be a fun, stylish, and entertaining class, and there’s a huge ‘aww’ factor that is not part of the official judging criteria,” said LDC board member Janis Barth. “It isn’t really a costume class for dogs, although there does seem to be a natural affinity between poodles and flowered hats, and we’ve had at least one bulldog in a top hat and tuxedo. I’ve yet to see a spectator who isn’t putty in their paws.”
On Sunday morning, the Pleasure Drive-Pace, another trademark activity, will take horse and driver through the countryside surrounding Lorenzo. The course challenges drivers to pace their horse(s) and finish as close as possible to an ideal time set in advance.
Classes resume in the main ring after lunch and continue through the afternoon.
“Lorenzo State Historic Site has gladly hosted the Lorenzo Driving Competition for over four decades as the sport of carriage driving demonstrates the main form of transportation from the time that Lorenzo was built and throughout much of its history,” said Lorenzo Site Manager Michael Roets. “It is our pleasure to have a weekend of horses and carriages moving across the landscape as they bring the history of the site alive for our visitors and help us to highlight our extensive carriage collection and exquisite 1891 Carriage House. We are grateful for the Lorenzo Driving Competition Board and volunteers who year after year bring this excellent competition and demonstration of history to Lorenzo and the Cazenovia Community.”
For more information on the LDC, visit lorenzodriving.org.
To learn more about Lorenzo, call 315-655-3200, visit parks.ny.gov/historic-sites/lorenzo/, friendsoflorenzo.org, or follow the site and FOL on Facebook and Instagram.
