August 5, 2002 — Victor Hugo-Vidal, 68, of San Juan Capistrano, California, passed away in
the early morning on Saturday, August 3, 2002. He was the 1951 Champion
of
the AHSA Hunter Seat Equitation Medal Finals and Reserve Champion of the
ASPCA Maclay Equitation Finals. In 1971 he was named as the AHSA Horseman
of the Year, in 1991 the California Professional Horseman’s Association
Horseman of the Year and in 1996 was awarded the Walter B. Devereux Trophy
for the AHSA Sportsmanship Award.
Hugo-Vidal trained a large number of students that competed in the AHSA
Hunter Seat Equitation Medal Finals and the ASPCA Maclay Horsemanship
Finals
and his students retired the Hunt Team Trophies at both the National Horse
Show and the Devon Horse Show and, along with Elaine Shirley Watt, was a
key
player in the success of Connecticut Yankee, as the horse competed for the
United States at the 1956 Olympics in Helsinki. He managed Cedar Lodge
Farm
in Stamford, CT in the 1960’s, producing numerous AHSA Champions such as
General C and GoodBoy Dee. For many years Victor announced and was known
as
“the voice” of the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden in New
York.
Some of the AHSA Committees he served on were, the Hunter Seat Equitation
Committee, the Licensed Officials Committee, and the Drugs & Medications
Committee. He also served on the Board of Directors and the Executive
Committee. He has held AHSA judges licenses in Hunters, Jumpers,
Equitation, Hunter Seat and Saddle Seat, and was an “S” Dressage judge.
These are just a few of the accomplishments of this renowned horseman.
He is survived by two sons, Ross and Christopher, and 3 grandchildren,
Victoria, Spencer and Virginia.
A celebration of Victor’s life is planned for Tuesday, August 13, at 4
pm at The Oaks in San Juan Capistrano, California.
At the request of the family, a fund has been set up with the West Coast
Equestrian’s Charity, a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization. Please send
donations to:
WCE – Victor Hugo-Vidal Fund
480 Riverside Drive, Suite 1
Burbank, CA 91506
For those wishing to send a personal card to the family, please address
it to:
Ross Hugo-Vidal & Family
52 Joy Valley Road
Buxton, ME 04093
