All posts by Associate Editor

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Eventing/H.T., Events, FEI, FEI, Show Jumping

Mary King Clinches HSBC FEI Classics, as Fox-Pitt Adds Pau to His CCI4* Tally

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Mary King

Lausanne (SUI),16 October 2011 – William Fox-Pitt (GBR) showed the amazing strength of his horsepower when his exciting young horses Oslo and Lionheart finished first and third at Les Etoiles des Pau (FRA), the final leg of the HSBC FEI Classics 2011.

However, it was the unstoppable Mary King (GBR) who claimed the 150,000 USD prize, the biggest single award in Eventing, as HSBC FEI Classics champion for 2011. She clinched the title with a magnificent clear Jumping round on Imperial Cavalier, which elevated her six places to fourth.

King has been placed no lower than eighth at all five of the HSBC FEI Classics events this year, which is a remarkable achievement. She is the first woman to win the title since the series started in 2008 and has kept it in British hands for the fourth consecutive year.

Continue reading Mary King Clinches HSBC FEI Classics, as Fox-Pitt Adds Pau to His CCI4* Tally →

*Featured/Spotlights, Championships, Competitions, Eventing/H.T., Events, USEF

Byyny & Lyman Set the Pace in the USEF National Eventing Championships

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Jan Byyny and Inmidair (Shannon Brinkman Photo)

Elkton, MD – Clear jumping and quick trips across the country were the name of the game Saturday at the 2011 Dansko Fair Hill International. The rain that plagued the first two days of competition was nowhere in sight as the sun shone over Derek di Grazia’s tracks. Heavy going resulted in time faults for many of the competitors and a shake-up on the leaderboard in both divisions. Jan Byyny and Kylie Lyman produced two of the quickest rounds of the day in the CCI3* and CCI2* to lead their respective divisions and USEF National Eventing Championships.

All will be to play for in Sunday’s show jumping as one rail separates the top four in the CCI3*. In the CCI2* nine points divide first from tenth.

Full scores are available here: http://www.evententries.com/livescoring/14839.html.

2011 USEF National CCI3* Eventing Championship

Byyny (Purceville, VA) rose from fifth place after the dressage to lead the CCI3* on her own Inmidair with a score of 51.2. The 12-year-old New Zealand Thoroughbred gelding rocketed around the 10:08-minute course, adding just 4.4 penalties.

Continue reading Byyny & Lyman Set the Pace in the USEF National Eventing Championships →

*Featured/Spotlights, Championships, Competitions, Events, Show Jumping, USEF

Meg O’Mara and Sinatra IV Go for the Gold in Randolph College/Junior Jumper Championships at Harrisburg

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Meg O'Mara and Sinatra IV. Photo: Phelps Media Group

Harrisburg, PA – An action-packed junior weekend continued to wow the crowd at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show tonight, as Phase III of the Randolph College/USEF Individual Championships culminated in a triumph for junior jumper Meg O’Mara. Riding out of Romson, NJ, O’Mara and Sinatra IV had one of only two clear rounds of the evening, emerging victorious through a steady, controlled approach. Earning the silver medal tonight was Savannah Talcott of Wildwood, MO, who bested third place finisher Reed Kessler of Amrock, NY in a suspenseful jump-off.

O’Mara and Sinatra IV held a solid lead going into tonight’s final event, with just a single fault to their name. The duo produced another brilliant performance over the difficult course designed by Steve Stephens of Palmetto, FL. They were one of only two horse and rider combinations to leave all fences intact, retaining their highly impressive one fault score. O’Mara and Sinatra’s IV confidence and consistency prevailed, as they claimed the winning title to the lead final victory gallop.

After her flawless turn in the ring tonight, gold medal winner O’Mara remarked, “There was a little bit of pressure, but I knew that it could go perfectly with Sinatra. He’s such a special horse that I knew he’d be able to do it. Sinatra is the best horse in the world; he’s the sweetest thing ever, and my mom says she wants him to live in our backyard! We actually went through a little bit of a bumpy patch this spring, but we’ve come back to an amazing show.”

Continue reading Meg O’Mara and Sinatra IV Go for the Gold in Randolph College/Junior Jumper Championships at Harrisburg →

Championships, Competitions, Events, Show Jumping, USEF

Zone 2 Tops $15,000 USEF Prix de States Team Championship at Pennsylvania National Horse Show

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Katie Dinan and Belle Dame D. Phelps Media Group.

Harrisburg, PA – It was an exciting night of jumper action at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show tonight, as the $15,000 USEF Prix de States Team Championship and Individual Championship Phase II took place in Harrisburg, PA. The team from USEF Zone 2 swept the top spot for the second year in a row with excellent rides by Meg O’Mara of Rumson, NJ, Katie Dinan of New York, NY, Charlotte Jacobs of Buffalo, NY, and last night’s Randolph College/USEF $7,500 Individual Championship Phase I winner Reed Kessler of Armonk, NY. Despite an initial tie for second place between Zones 5 and 7, the silver medal was ultimately awarded to Zone 5 thanks to Nora Laue of Wilmette, IL.

Sponsored by Randolph College, the competition featured 32 of the country’s top junior jumpers showing over a technical course by Steve Stephens of Palmetto, FL with compact turns and three different combinations. Riders also had to scale the Pennsylvania National Horse Show signature vertical, which proved to be a problem fence for several riders. Since the competition mixed individual riders as well as riders representing their USEF zones, the crowd was able to witness a variety of jumper talent.

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Community/Charity, Competitions, Events, Media/Radio/TV Sources, Pan American Games, USEF

From USEFNetwork.com to ESPN: Extensive Coverage of 2011 Pan American Games

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What? The Pan American Games features 42 nations participating in 36 events. Equestrian sport is represented by 14 athletes who make up 627 athletes to represent the United States.

Where? This year’s event is taking place in Guadalajara, Mexico, and is set to be the largest sporting event of 2011.

When? Equestrian competition runs from October 16-29, 2011. Please visit http://www.guadalajara2011.org.mx/eng/01_inicio/index.asp for more information about the Games.

Want to Watch? The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is providing wall-to-wall coverage including photographs – featured and on-the-grounds – and blogs on USEFNetwork.com. Follow the U.S. Team at the Pan American Games at: http://www.usefnetwork.com/featured/2011PanAmGames/ and on Twitter at: @USEquestrianHP.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, Pan American Games, USEF

Team Dressage Medals Up First at 2011 Pan American Games

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Cesar Parra and Grandioso at the Jog. Anthony Trollope/ stockimageservices.com

Dressage, the first equestrian discipline of the 2011 Pan American Games, begins Sunday, October 16, at the Guadalajara Country Club. The four American dressage horses were presented this morning to the Ground Jury and looked spectacular in the Mexican sunshine. All were accepted without incident. The U.S. has drawn sixth out of the 12 teams vying for Team medals. They will ride the Prix St. Georges test in the following order (unconfirmed times):

1. Cesar Parra and Grandioso (9:12 am)
2. Marisa Festerling and Big Tyme (11:18 am)
3. Heather Blitz and Paragon (2:36 pm)
4. Steffen Peters and Weltino’s Magic (5:00 pm)

Riding for the first time as an American, Colombian ex-patriate Cesar Parra (Whitehouse Station, NJ) is first up for the American team riding Michael and Sarah Davis’ Grandioso. Fourth in the 2003 Pan American Games for Colombia, Parra is also a licensed dentist. The 2010 National Champion at the Intermediaire I level at the Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF Dressage Festival of Champions, he has had considerable national success so far as an American.

Continue reading Team Dressage Medals Up First at 2011 Pan American Games →

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Eventing/H.T., Events, FEI, FEI

Australia’s Christopher Burton Leads Field in Tight Cross Country Finale at HSBC FEI Classics in Pau

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Christopher Burton on Holstein Park Leilani in the lead into Jumping at HSBC FEI Classics in Pau. Image: Kit Houghton/FEI

Lausanne (SUI),15 October 2011 – Christopher Burton (AUS) produced a great Cross Country performance on Holstein Park Leilani to keep his Dressage lead at Les Etoiles de Pau (FRA), final leg of the HSBC FEI Classics 2011, but he has no margin for error in tomorrow’s Jumping phase as one fence covers the top eight riders and a nail-biting finale is guaranteed for tomorrow.

William Fox-Pitt (GBR) was masterful in steering all three of his horses around inside the optimum time to finish in the top 10, with the two nine-year-olds, Oslo and Lionheart, second and sixth, and Macchiato ninth.

Clayton Fredericks (AUS), the joint Dressage leader, accrued 1.2 time penalties on Bendigo, the horse competing in his first CCI4*, to drop to third. The Ground Jury took 0.8 penalties off his original score after he protested that a steward raking the ground had forced him to take avoiding action.

Continue reading Australia’s Christopher Burton Leads Field in Tight Cross Country Finale at HSBC FEI Classics in Pau →

Auctions, Awards, Community/Charity, Conferences, Products/Services, WHIN

1st Annual WHINNY Awards and 3rd Annual Conference a Huge Success!

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The first annual WHINNY awards and the 3rd Annual Women in the Horse Industry Conference was a big success. The events were held October 6-8 in Nashville, Tennessee.

On Thursday night the red carpet was rolled out to identify and recognize people in the horse industry who are using their visibility to promote the welfare of the horse industry. Some of the WHINNY recipients who attended included Elizabeth Shatner (who not only received the award but picked up the one given to her husband Bill), country music superstar Lynn Anderson, Madeleine Pickens, Mike and Martha Borchetta, and Bonnie Garner. The event started off with live entertainment by some of country music’s most promising up and coming stars, including Keith Bryant, Dee Ann Dominy, Mark Wayne Glasmire, and Cassidy Lynn.

In addition to the live entertainment, there was both a silent and live auction benefiting several equine charities. Lynn Anderson served as the auctioneer and helped sell some wonderful items such as a signed guitar from the movie Country Strong by Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGraw and several paintings by Elizabeth Shatner. Some of the sponsors this year included Callaway Farms Manufacturing, National Equine Escrow, EasyMileLog, Equine Resources International, LLC, Tallgrass Animal Acupressure, and Energy Medicine, LLC.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Championships, Competitions, Events, Show Jumping, USEF

Reed Kessler Flies into First during $7,500 Randolph College/USEF Jr. Jumper Championship Welcome at Harrisburg

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Reed Kessler and Ligist. Phelps Media Group.

Harrisburg, PA – Junior jumpers were in the zone Thursday at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show, running October 13-22, 2011 in the state capital of Harrisburg. Reed Kessler of Armonk, NY, soared to victory in the first phase of the $7,500 United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Junior Jumper Individual Championship, sponsored by Randolph College. With a smooth and controlled round, Kessler and her own horse, Ligist, beat out 32 other juniors for the blue ribbon. Second place went to Frances Land of Alpharetta, GA aboard her own Merlin, and cantering cleanly into third was Nora Laue of Wilmette, IL on Peninsula Kheelan, owned by Mary Ellen Laue.

Lacking a jump-off but not lacking in excitement, tonight’s class was judged under Table III, with faults being converted into seconds and then added to the competitor’s time. Tonight’s event was also distinguished by the fact that riders were competing individually while representing their USEF zones. Winner Kessler hails from Zone 2, which encompasses New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Frances Land, who earned tonight’s second place ribbon, comes from the southern states’ Zone 4, while Nora Laue will take her third place ribbon back to Zone 5 in the Midwest.

Continue reading Reed Kessler Flies into First during $7,500 Randolph College/USEF Jr. Jumper Championship Welcome at Harrisburg →

*Featured/Spotlights, Championships, Competitions, Dressage, Eventing/H.T., Events, USEF

Martin & Beebee Lead USEF National Eventing Championships as Dressage Concludes

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Boyd Martin and Ying Yang Yo (Shannon Brinkman Photo)

Elkton, MD – Riders completing their dressage tests Friday at the 2011 Dankso Fair Hill International put in impressive efforts as scores dipped lower and lower into the 40s and spectators and riders alike were subject again to intermittent rain showers throughout the day. Heading the field in their respective CCI divisions and the USEF National Eventing Championships, which are held in conjunction with the Dankso Fair Hill International, are Boyd Martin and Susan Beebee.

Martin and Ying Yang Yo lead the CCI3*, while Beebee and Wolf head to the cross country out in front in the CCI2*.

Full scores are available here: http://www.evententries.com/livescoring/14839.html.

2011 USEF National CCI3* Eventing Championship

Martin (West Grove, PA) rode in a deluge of rain Friday afternoon but that did not stop him from piloting his own and Faye Woolf’s Ying Yang Yo to the top of the leaderboard. The ground jury of David Lee, Sue Baxter and Christian Landholt rewarded the 15-year-old Australian Thoroughbred gelding with a score of 40.4.

Continue reading Martin & Beebee Lead USEF National Eventing Championships as Dressage Concludes →