Show Jumping's Face In New York - Jennifer Oz LeRoy New Chairman of the Board of the National Horse Show Association of America, Ltd.

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ATTACHED PHOTO: Jennifer Oz LeRoy

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Show Jumping’s ‘Face’ In New York City – Jennifer Oz LeRoy

New Chairman of the Board of the National Horse Show Association of America, Ltd.

NEW YORK, NY – October 8, 2004 – The sport of show jumping has a ‘face’ in New York City, and it belongs to Jennifer Oz LeRoy, the 25-year-old newly named Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Horse Show Association of America, Limited. She was appointed to the position earlier this year and is currently playing an essential role in The Metropolitan National Horse Show, scheduled for November 3-7, 2004, at Pier 94 and The Show Piers on the Hudson in New York. “Jennifer LeRoy became greatly interested in not only the National Horse Show in Palm Beach but also the Metropolitan National Horse Show in New York City and it’s vital that we get the sport to have a ‘face’ in New York City,” said Eugene R. Mische, President of the National Horse Show Association. “We need some young blood coming into the National Horse Show in the position of a board member and we’re going to try to bring in more people like Jennifer.”

Ms. LeRoy is the youngest Chairman ever to be involved with the National Horse Show. The expression ‘If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it’ precisely fits Jennifer Oz LeRoy. In addition to her duties as Chairman of the Board Directors of the National Horse Show Association, she is the Chief Executive Officer of LeRoy Adventures, charged with running Tavern on the Green, the historic landmark restaurant in New York’s Central Park. Tavern on the Green was named the 2004 official caterer for The Metropolitan National Horse Show. Ms. LeRoy also operates Jenny Oz – a boutique line of horse-related fashion items sold at horse shows, well known for her rhinestone-studded helmets and cell phones. She is also an accomplished rider, competing coast-to-coast in the Adult Jumpers. When in her hometown of Manhattan, Ms. LeRoy rides four days a week, commuting almost three hours roundtrip to her trainer Stephen Pack’s Serengeti Stables in Jamison, Pennsylvania, where she boards her four horses.

Often times, Ms. LeRoy is changing hats as fast as she can. For example, on November 6, as the official caterer for The Metropolitan National Horse Show, her restaurant will be supplying hors d’oeuvres at an exclusive upscale cocktail party for 200 in The Metro Club at Pier 94 (The Pamela Dennis Couture Fashion Presentation with a Silent and Live Auction), and on that same night her restaurant is cooking for 18,000 marathon runners at the Ronzoni Macaroni Pasta Party at Tavern. The Metropolitan National Horse Show and Marathon Week in New York City coincide.

“The Pasta Party is an incredible event to watch,” LeRoy says. “It’s a ‘carb fest’. The runners line up outside and eat pasta in shifts. We’ve been doing it for 25 years – since the marathon started.” Preparation during the week is the most time-consuming, she notes, and simultaneously she is responsible for three eateries at the horse show – The Diamond Horseshoe, The Metro Club, and Tavern Café, plus two special event parties. On November 6, Ms. LeRoy plans to attend both the Marathon pasta party at Tavern and the Metropolitan National Horse Show’s fashion/auction party at The Show Piers. “I’ll be running back and forth,” she says with a laugh.

With all her business responsibilities, taking on the Chairman position of the National Horse Show Association actually fit right in. “Horses have always been a big part of my life,” Ms. LeRoy notes. “I didn’t ride for about five years and when I started again two years ago, I went back on the circuit as much as I could, due to work.” When The Metropolitan National Horse Show launched in Manhattan last year, she wanted to be a part of it. “The horse show is in my town – it’s right on my front porch so to speak,” Ms. LeRoy said. “So last year I went and connected with the Board and Gene Mische and Carolyn Vincent, and I said I’d like to get involved. They were so excited about it. They saw my enthusiasm and energy about the horse show. It’s very exciting that they asked me to be a member and then Chairman. It’s hard to turn something like that down.”

Ms. LeRoy’s late father, Warner LeRoy, operated Tavern for 27 years and included her in the details of the operation. Now she notes, “There is no aspect of Tavern that I'm not a part of.” She is able to regularly travel and compete due to her trusted Tavern employees. “I put together a really great staff, so I’m not worried when I go away to horse shows,” she says.

Ms. LeRoy comes from a long line of entrepreneurs. Her great-grandfather Jack Warner launched Warner Bros. Studios with his three brothers; her grandfather Mervyn LeRoy was a prolific movie producer and director; and her father Warner LeRoy was a successful restaurateur, off-Broadway producer, and theme park developer. She has inherited the family business acumen and is expanding Tavern, currently looking into operating other restaurants. “It’s what our next step will be with Tavern because it’s just such an empire. We want to do it the right way. We’re looking into more off-site catering – which is why we’re doing the National Horse Show – and a lot of opportunities we can take advantage of because Tavern is such a monumental place to people.”

As a competitor, Ms. LeRoy has first-hand familiarity with the horse show regimens of exhibitors. Her understanding of the lifestyle is clear in her assessment of what Tavern adds to the mix at The Metropolitan National Horse Show. “Tavern brings a certain amount of hospitality. Nobody leaves. You’re there the whole time. You don’t know when you’re going to go in the ring. Everybody wants to see the competition go. So we bring a certain amount of ambiance and hospitality.”

Personally, Ms. LeRoy brings not only the needed ‘face of show jumping’, but also the personality. “I bring my energy. My trainer says that I’m like a little kid all the time at the barn. I just love horses. A lot of people forget about what’s important. We all obviously have this same passion. We all have this same indescribable pull to the horse world and the horses.”

The one thing Ms. LeRoy will miss this year is competing in The Metropolitan National Horse Show. “But I may have a horse in the Open Class ridden by a good friend,” she says happily.

For further information, contact the National Horse Show Association of America, Ltd., PO Box 386, Greenvale, NY 11548. E-mail: NationalHS@aol.com; Phone: (516) 484-1865; Fax: (516) 484-1982. Or on the web, visit: www.nhs.org

ATTACHED PHOTO:

Jennifer Oz LeRoy

Courtesy of Tavern on the Green

THE METROPOLITAN NATIONAL HORSE SHOW FAST FACTS

WHAT: The Metropolitan National Horse Show

WHEN: November 3-7, 2004

WHERE: Pier 94 and The Show Piers on the Hudson, New York, New York

TICKETS: Call 866-NHS-SHOW

THE EVENT:

The second annual Metropolitan National Horse Show is one of two shows produced by The National Horse Show Association of America, Ltd. Prize money for The Metropolitan is $310,000.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Dressage Night at The Metropolitan Featuring The Continental Cup (November 3)

$100,000 Metropolitan Cup (November 4, 5, 6)

$50,000 Liberty Cup for Junior/Amateur Jumpers (November 4, 5, 6)

ASPCA Maclay National Horsemanship Championship (November 7)

THE FACILITY:

Pier 94 and The Show Piers has served as a location for major motion picture filming and fashion shows, hosted many top-class events including gift shows and entertainment extravaganzas, and now offers an innovative and unique site for some of the world’s best equestrians. The competition ring is 92’ x 240’ and the schooling area is 120’ x 60’.

DIRECTIONS:

Pier 94 and The Show Piers is located at Twelfth Avenue (West Side Highway) and 54th Street. Use any access point to New York City, including the Lincoln, Holland, or Queens Midtown tunnels, or the George Washington Bridge, and proceed to the Westside Highway Manhattan at 54th Street. Ample parking is available at Ship Terminal, Pier 92.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION:

Subway: A, C, E, to 50th Street, Manhattan

Bus: M31, M11, M50, Manhattan

Livery Cars: On standby at Pier 94 Entrance during show hours

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