All posts by Associate Editor

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Kent Farrington and Richie Moloney Share Victory in $32,000 WEF Challenge Cup Round 5

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Likely V and Nina Zollo Top Smartpak’s Low Hunter 2’6” Division

Kent Farrington and Uceko. Photos © Sportfot

Wellington, FL – February 9, 2012 – It was a great afternoon for grand prix riders Kent Farrington (USA) and Richie Moloney (IRL) at the 2012 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) as each took home the top share of prize money in a split class for round five of the WEF Challenge Cup Series. Held in a ‘California Split’, the class awarded two sets of placings, each with $32,000 distributed due to the large number of entries.

Week five of the FTI WEF, sponsored by Spy Coast Farm, will run February 8-12. The highlight class of the week is Saturday night’s $125,000 FEI World Cup Qualifier Grand Prix, presented by Spy Coast Farm. The 2012 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival has 12 weeks of competition that conclude on April 1, 2012, and they will be awarding more than $6 million in prize money through the circuit.

Continue reading Kent Farrington and Richie Moloney Share Victory in $32,000 WEF Challenge Cup Round 5 →

Media/Radio/TV Sources, Phelps Media Group

Full Metal Jousting Premieres Sunday on HISTORY

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James H. Fairclough II will be a competitor during HISTORY's Full Metal Jousting. Photo By: AE Networks

Wellington, FL – February 10, 2012 – Prepare for the impact of HISTORY’s Full Metal Jousting as the show makes its premiere this Sunday, February 12, 2012. The show features sixteen of the toughest warriors in the country, competing in a pulverizing battle. The all-new one-hour series will begin at 10 p.m. on HISTORY, and James H. Fairclough II, of Cavalier Show Jumping, will also make his jousting debut in its inaugural season.

Renowned jouster Shane Adams will be the host for Full Metal Jousting. The 10-part series features full-contact jousts with competitors going head-to-head on horseback in brutal tests of strength, endurance and courage. High-speed cameras capture every un-choreographed arduous blow as jousters charge and collide at 30 miles per hour. The last man standing takes home a $100,000 cash prize.

Continue reading Full Metal Jousting Premieres Sunday on HISTORY →

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Driving, Events, JRPR

Chester Weber Drives Away with Victory at Sunshine State CDE at Florida Horse Park

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Chester Weber during the cones phase at the Sunshine State CDE. (Photo courtesy of PicsofYou.com)

Ocala, FL (February 10, 2012) – Chester Weber kicked off his 2012 show season in familiar style – by winning the Advanced Horse Team division at the Sunshine State FEI Combined Driving Event at the Florida Horse Park. Weber, the eight-time United States National Four-In-Hand Champion, competed Splash, Boris W, Para and Uniek as a team to handily win the Four-In-Hand division by a margin of 85 points over second place.

“I was very pleased with our entire team’s performance. I competed in the Four-In-Hand with great success and Olof Larsson, my barn manager, competed Reno W in the Advanced Single Horse and won his class,” Weber said.

Weber added that Boris W, a new horse on his team that he refers to as “the youngster,” proved he has international star power during the Sunshine State CDE. “Boris W did a great job all three days in the left lead and is now qualified for the WC in Riesenbeck should we need him,” Weber said. Boris W’s teammates gained great success during 2011, when Splash and Uniek, owned by Jane Forbes Clark, and Para, owned by Weber, won the National Combined Driving Four-In-Hand Horse Of The Year title.

Continue reading Chester Weber Drives Away with Victory at Sunshine State CDE at Florida Horse Park →

Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Desert Circuit II Comes to a Close as Qualifying Heats Up and Competition Peaks at HITS Thermal

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©Flying Horse Photography. Josephina Nor Lantzman and Chello Z on their way to a victory in the $30,000 SmartPak Grand Prix

THERMAL, CA (February 9, 2012) – Josephina Nor Lantzman put an exclamation point on Desert Circuit II when she rode her own Chello Z to the blue ribbon in Sunday’s $30,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, at the HITS Desert Horse Park in Thermal, California.

In Sunday’s $30,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, Nor Lantzman and Chello Z were the top horse-and-rider team out of a group of 34 starters that challenged the first-round track set by International Course Designer Bernard Cabral of Lisbon, Portugal.

“I couldn’t be happier with the way I finished my two weeks at HITS Thermal,” said Nor Lantzman. “I will be back for the second half of the circuit where I look forward to competing against some of the top riders in the world. I am riding for Brazil and my ultimate goal is to make the 2016 Olympics.”

Continue reading Desert Circuit II Comes to a Close as Qualifying Heats Up and Competition Peaks at HITS Thermal →

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, FEI, Olympic Games, Para-Equestrian

200 Days to Go to London 2012 Paralympic Games

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Denmark’s Stinna Kaastrup, pictured here preparing for the Freestyle Grade Ib competition at the FEI European Para-Equestrian Dressage Championships 2011, which she went on to win aged just 17. Photo: Liz Gregg.

Lausanne (SUI), 10 February 2012 – The London 2012 Paralympic Games look set to take Paralympic Equestrian into the history books for many reasons, as we get one step closer on the eve of the 200-day countdown (11 February).

Sales of Paralympic Equestrian tickets for London 2012 have already broken records.

More than 40,000 tickets were sold before Christmas last year, dramatically overtaking the previous record of 33,000 for the 2008 Paralympic Equestrian events held in Hong Kong.

Mexico will also be making its Paralympic Equestrian début on 30 August – 4 September in Greenwich Park represented by a team of four riders, and Ireland will be competing for the very first time as a Paralympic Equestrian Team.

Continue reading 200 Days to Go to London 2012 Paralympic Games →

Championships, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, USEF

USEF Announces Dates for the 2012 National Hunter Championships

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The United States Equestrian Federation, Inc. is pleased to announce the following dates and locations of the 2012 National Hunter Championships:

U.S. Junior Hunter Championship – West Coast: July 23-24, 2012; Showpark Facility, Del Mar, CA

U.S. Junior Hunter Championship – East Coast: July 24-25, 2012; Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington, KY

United States Pony Finals: August 7-12, 2012; Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington, KY

Sallie B. Wheeler/U.S. National Hunter Breeding Championship – West: August 29, 2012; Showpark All Seasons Summer Tournament, Del Mar, CA

Sallie B. Wheeler/U.S. National Hunter Breeding Championship – East: September 1, 2012; Warrenton Horse Show, Warrenton, VA

For sponsorship opportunities or questions about these events, please contact Lauren Fahey lfahey@usef.org or 859-225-6977.

*Featured/Spotlights, Contributors/Press, Dressage, Driving, FEI, USEF

Sterling Graburn and Ulano Longlisted for the FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2012

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Graburn and Ulano at the Katydid CDE, Aiken, N.C.

GEORGETOWN, KY – FEBRUARY 7, 2012 – The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) has announced that Team Sterling – driver Sterling Graburn and the horse Ulano – are now longlisted for a coveted spot on the U.S. Combined Driving Team at the FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2012, to be held in Lezirias, Portugal Sept. 12-16.

Elizabeth Staller, Director of High Performance Driving at USEF, made the eligibility pronouncements in January.

Graburn, who is head trainer at the Gayla Driving Center in Georgetown, KY, is the only Kentucky-based equestrian under consideration for the team. He plans to compete in Florida this spring where the process of final team placings will begin.

Graburn debuted Ulano, owned by Lebanon, Ohio-based Larry Denny, at the Advanced Level at the USEF National Single Horse Championship at the Katydid CDE in Aiken, S.C. last November. Besting 16 more-experienced combinations, Graburn finished 1st in dressage and placed 6th overall – high enough in the rankings to earn consideration for the championship team.

Continue reading Sterling Graburn and Ulano Longlisted for the FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2012 →

Breeds, Wild Horse Sources

Action Alert: Arizona’s Burros Need Your Help

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Comments Needed for Cibola-Trigo Environmental Assessment

Jennie & foal, Marietta Wild Burro Range, NV

Dear Wild Horse & Burro Supporters;
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages wild burro herds at disastrously low numbers throughout the West. One of the few viable burro herds lives in the immense Cibola-Trigo Herd Management Area (HMA) in southwestern Arizona along the Colorado River — a 600,000 acre area.

Yet, even here, burros are in danger. The inept Sun J roundup crew is set to swoop into their peaceful desert home in early April, the height of the foaling time for burros.* Pregnant jennies are in danger of spontaneous abortion and small foals can be permanently damaged or killed.

350 burros will lose their freedom — roughly half the herd.

Continue reading Action Alert: Arizona’s Burros Need Your Help →

*Featured/Spotlights, Community/Charity, Contributors/Press

Kentucky Horse Council Pledges $25,000 to Kentucky Equine Survey

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Lexington, KY, February 7, 2012 – The Kentucky Horse Council (KHC) today announced that it has pledged $25,000 to the Kentucky Equine Survey.

In November 2011, the University of Kentucky announced the plans for the Kentucky Equine Survey, in partnership with the Kentucky Horse Council. KHC was awarded a $200,000 grant from the Agriculture Development Funds for this survey, with a promise of another $100,000 in funds if the equine industry would match that $100,000 with an equal amount.

“This survey is of extreme importance to the future of our industry,” said Anna Zinkhon, President of the Kentucky Horse Council. “This will be the first comprehensive survey of Kentucky’s horses in 35 years. We need an accurate and detailed baseline to determine areas for industry growth.  Our pledge is a commitment to this effort. The KHC Board hopes other groups/businesses will respond to this challenge pledge.  All donations, no matter how large or small, are important steps toward this industry goal.”

Continue reading Kentucky Horse Council Pledges $25,000 to Kentucky Equine Survey →

Championships, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, JRPR

Scott Stewart Dominates The Sanctuary’s Sponsored Hunter Classes during First Week of FTI Winter Equestrian Festival

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Scott Stewart dominated the hunter ring during the first week of the 2012 Winter Equestrian Festival. (Photo courtesy of Sportfot.com)

Wellington, FL (February 8, 2012) – Hunter trainer and rider Scott Stewart dominated the hunter ring during the first week of the 2012 Winter Equestrian Festival, riding away with the Championship in the Green Working Hunter, the First Year Green Working Hunter and the Second Year Green Working Hunter divisions. Kelly Farmer won the Championship in the Regular Conformation Hunter division, also sponsored by The Sanctuary at PBIEC.

“Scott’s a very accomplished hunter trainer and rider and he showed off his skill during the first week of WEF by riding into the winner’s circle countless times,” said Brenda McDuffee, General Manager of the Sanctuary Equine Sports Therapy & Rehabilitation Center in Ocala. “We are thrilled that Scott won so many of the classes we sponsored and we congratulate him on his victories. We also want to congratulate Kelley. She is also an accomplished hunter rider who is also well known for being in the winner’s circle.”

Continue reading Scott Stewart Dominates The Sanctuary’s Sponsored Hunter Classes during First Week of FTI Winter Equestrian Festival →