All posts by Associate Editor

Community/Charity, Conferences, Products/Services, WHIN

P. J. Stegen to Speak at WHIN’s 3rd Annual Business Networking Expo

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Nashville, TN – The Women’s Horse Industry Network has announced that P. J. Stegen will be a featured speaker at the event.

The event takes place in Nashville, Tennessee October 6-8 and includes a variety of events. On October 6, the group will host the 1st Annual WHINNY awards. The event includes live country music, the presentation of the awards and a silent auction to benefit equine charities. All events take place at the Radisson Hotel Opryland. Complete details are on WHIN’s website. The event starts at 6 PM and is open to the public.  To order tickets please click here!

The conference with exhibitors and panels starts on Friday, the 7th and runs through Saturday, the 8th. P. J. Stegen will be speaking at the “Making Your Business Profitable” on Saturday, October 8th.

P. J. Stegen spent over 35 years in business, and has been a non-profit management professional since 1989. P. J. served as Executive Director of four industry trade associations: Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), Fibre Channel Association, The ATM Forum, and Gaming Standards Association. She worked with 1,000+ corporate member companies and 2,000 individual corporate volunteers developing and promoting technical standards for the Personal Computing (PC), Video & High Definition, System Storage, Telecommunications and Gaming Industries. P. J. has also served on the Core Group/Board of Directors of the above and several other non-profits including The Ilan Lael Foundation, In-Reach Foundation, and the Rainshadow Charter High School. She has also been instrumental in producing and hosting personal development seminars for trainers such as Wayne Dyer, Depak Chopra, Yogi Bahjan, Larry Dossey, Pia Mellody and others through her association with the Palo Also Community Church as their Director of Volunteers and Special Events.

Continue reading P. J. Stegen to Speak at WHIN’s 3rd Annual Business Networking Expo →

Championships, Competitions, Events, FEI, FEI, Show Jumping

Host Nation Spain Drawn First to Go in FEI European Jumping Championships

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Madrid (ESP), 13 September 2011 – Host nation Spain will be hoping to stay out in front after being drawn number one of 16 nations at today’s draw for the starting order in the FEI European Jumping Championships. The Spanish have never won the European Jumping title and are keen to reverse that trend on their home turf at Club de Campo de Villa Madrid this week.

Defending title holders Switzerland are fourth to go; France – the country of reigning individual champion Kevin Staut – are in 13th; and Germany, leaders in the FEI European Championship gold medal tally with six team titles, will start 14th.

The order of go for the FEI European Jumping Championships: 1, Spain; 2, Great Britain; 3, Poland; 4, Switzerland; 5, Ireland; 6, Netherlands; 7, Sweden; 8, Norway; 9, Italy; 10, Belgium; 11, Denmark; 12, Portugal; 13, France; 14, Germany; 15, Hungary; 16, Austria.

“Now I know what a warm welcome really means,” said Stephan Ellenbruch (GER), President of the Ground Jury, as temperatures soared and the Spanish summer returned to Club de Campo de Villa Madrid. Speaking at today’s draw, Stephan Ellenbruch said: “Maybe I should give the timetable for the swimming pool before we go into the draw!”

Show director Alfonso Segovia, who competed at both the Munich and Montreal Olympic Games, conducted the draw with FEI Jumping Committee Acting Chair, John Madden.

Continue reading Host Nation Spain Drawn First to Go in FEI European Jumping Championships →

Breeds, Community/Charity, JRPR

Interagro Lusitanos Offers Buyers Private Visits to World-Famous Farm in Brazil

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Interagro Lusitanos is now offering private visits to the Brazilian farm for horse enthusiasts wishing to purchase an Interagro Lusitano. (Photo courtesy of JRPR)

Wellington, FL (September 13, 2011) – Peter van Borst, International Sales Director for Interagro Lusitanos of Brazil, has been traveling to the Brazilian farm for the past 20 years and said each time he drives through the former coffee plantation’s rolling lush hills, now home of the world’s finest Lusitano horses, he feels as if he has discovered the “hidden valley of Lusitanos.” The exclusive, world-renown farm, situated on 1,200 acres outside of the small town of Itapira, about an hour and a half from São Paulo, is now offering private visits to the Brazilian farm for horse enthusiasts wishing to purchase an Interagro Lusitano.

“I travel to Interagro often and now interested buyers can accompany me, stay at the farm and experience the magic first-hand,” van Borst said. “The Interagro Lusitano farm is like no other place on earth. It wasn’t built to impress the public, in fact the only way you can visit the farm is through private invitation. I will say it is quite emotional when you come around the bend and view the farm for the first time.”

Mr. van Borst said the trips will give prospective buyers a chance to experience the life and culture of Interagro Lusitanos and take home the horse of their dreams. “They will stay at the farm, enjoy the joyous Brazilian culture and the lifestyle of the farm, as well as have the chance to see the horses, ride and drive them and become part of the Interagro family.  It really is an incredible opportunity, and of course I can’t say enough about the quality of the Interagro horses. The cross-selection of Lusitano bloodlines that Interagro offers, as well as the selection of lineages, is something you won’t be able to find anywhere else in the world.”

The lineages at Interagro include Andrade, Coudelaria Nacional, Veiga and other bloodlines. “Interagro breeds for a competitive style of Lusitano.  The result is a scopier, elegant, and athletic horse that is suitable for amateur and professional riders alike,” Mr. van Borst said. “Interagro’s horses are bred to meet the demand for modern Iberian horses in the competitive world.”

Continue reading Interagro Lusitanos Offers Buyers Private Visits to World-Famous Farm in Brazil →

Rescue/Protection Sources

Protect America’s Horses and Promote Responsible Government!

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Please tell your Senators to Support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act

Turn on the news and much of what you will hear from our elected officials in Washington, D.C. is “cut federal spending,” “stop wasteful federal programs,” or “decrease federal regulation.”  For those truly interested in cutting waste, we have a winning issue: banning horse slaughter.  Not only does the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (S. 1176) help end the abuse of over 100,000 American horses being hauled to and slaughtered in Mexico and Canada for human consumption, but this bill would also eliminate a federal program while saving the American taxpayer millions of dollars a year.

Amazingly, however, while some in Congress talk about cuts, a few of the same politicians are quietly trying to restore a USDA program that was eliminated six years ago.  At the time Congress shut this program down, it was costing taxpayers $5 million a year, almost exclusively for the benefit of foreign interests.  Restoring it now would cost much more — and require an increase in federal bureaucracy to boot.  It is time for the American people to stand up for horses while taking  a stand against those in Congress working both sides of the issue when it comes to federal spending.

Contact your Senators TODAY in support of S. 1176, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act.  For more background on the issue and the legislation, please visit www.awionline.org/horseslaughter.

What You Can Do:
Call both of your Senators today and urge them to help end horse slaughter, while saving the American taxpayer millions of dollars a year, by cosponsoring S. 1176, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act.

Continue reading Protect America’s Horses and Promote Responsible Government! →

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

Samantha Schaefer and Lyn Pedersen’s Mahalo Win the Inaugural Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final

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© ESI Photography. Samantha Schaefer and Lyn Pedersen's Mahalo on course during the Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final.

SAUGERTIES, NEW YORK (September 13, 2011) – All bets were off Sunday morning as judges’ cards were wiped clean from Saturday’s first two rounds of the Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final and the top 25 riders advanced to the final two rounds in the Strongid C 2X Grand Prix Stadium at HITS-on-the-Hudson. With an impressive fourth-round score of 92.33 and a total score of 178.08, junior Samantha Schaefer of Westminster, Maryland piloted Lyn Pedersen’s Mahalo to victory.

Schaefer finished Saturday’s rounds in the top four and was looking forward to “having some fun” on Sunday. Despite the rain that fell throughout most of the Diamond Mills Hunter Prix Final, Schaefer was all smiles when she received her first-place ribbon and $150,000 check.

“I didn’t ride any differently than I usually do, I just did my best,” said Schaefer. “After it was over I saw the check and thought, wow, that’s a lot of money!”

The Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final was developed by HITS President and CEO Tom Struzzieri. The class welcomed professionals, amateurs and juniors to participate on a range of horses from pre-green to seasoned hunters. It has, in turn, revolutionized the Hunter discipline and welcomed all levels of horses and riders from all over the country to compete for serious prize money.

Of the 63 who competed in the class, 25 were chosen to compete in the third round on Sunday, and the top four moved on to the fourth and final round.

Continue reading Samantha Schaefer and Lyn Pedersen’s Mahalo Win the Inaugural Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final →

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

Aiken Fall Festival Kicks Off to Gorgeous Weather and a Week Packed with Special Events

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Marksman and Liza Boyd. All pictures by Shawn McMillen

September 12th, 2011 ~ The first week of competition for the 2011 Aiken Fall Festival came to a close yesterday.  The two week hunter jumper show series is managed by J. P. Godard and his Equus Events and took place September 8-11 at Highfields Event Center in Aiken, SC.  This week’s sold out show was jam packed with many special classes and events and the horse-centric town of Aiken makes it a prime stop on everyone’s calendar.  Exhibitors were delighted with the gorgeous weather and the Aiken Fall Festival really stepped it up to make all of its guests feel welcome with good southern hospitality and most importantly a well-organized event.  All attending were treated to nightly parties and daily hospitality including breakfast, daily snacks, and an ice cream party on Saturday all courtesy of the show’s hospitality sponsors; Allison Mills, Beaver River Farm, Booth Parker, Christison Stables, Willoughby Stables, DFG Stables, Debi Friedman, Gagne International, Gamboa Veterinary Services, John and Leslie Kasper, Liz Tarumianz, Summit Springs Farm, LLC, The Farm House, The Stables Restaurant, The Wilcox, Travinia Italian Kitchen, and Wendy Arndt and Team IEC.  While the VIP tent events are free to exhibitors, donations were taken for this week’s beneficiary Children’s Place of Aiken, SC (www.childrensplaceinc.org). “We are extremely excited with our turnout this year,” said show organizer J. P. Godard.  “We are completely sold out this week and even with putting up more stalls next week, we still have a waiting list. In these tough economic times I feel people are picking and choosing what shows to attend and Equus Events is really striving to put on events that are the benchmark in our area.”

The week kicked off on Thursday with the featured class being the $5,000 Open Welcome Jumper Stake.  Josh Dolan of Hilton Head, SC guided his Skylands Con Chino Z to the blue taking top honors over Christina Jason and her Tamino who finished second with Claire Lee White and High Roller finishing in third.  After the class everyone was invited to an Exhibitor Welcome Party at The Stables Restaurant and Beer Garden at the Rose Hill Estate in downtown Aiken.  The party featured food, libations, and the sounds of local Aiken band Preston and Weston with a few Aiken Fall Festival exhibitors even taking to the mic a time or two!  A great time was had by all and many thanks to The Stables Restaurant for the wonderful party.

Continue reading Aiken Fall Festival Kicks Off to Gorgeous Weather and a Week Packed with Special Events →

Contributors/Press, Equine Assisted Therapy, Publications/Media

Equine Therapy on 9/11, by Claire Dorotik

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If one thing is obvious on the ten year anniversary of 9/11, it is that the world has changed. Air travel takes longer, increased security procedures seem to pervade aspects of our lives we never thought they would, and we are still at war. But perhaps the most insidious effect of 9/11 is a pervasive mistrust that seems to underlie almost everything we do. We simply don’t know what to expect anymore. It is not surprising then that the rates of a host of disorders, from PTSD to depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorders, is up. While the need to find ways to calm and center ourselves is now more present than ever, these ways are few and far between. And what makes the situation perhaps even more challenging is that for many people, what they now feel, just feels normal. Like a collective PTSD, societal hypervigilance begins to simply feel like the ways things should be. And for many of us, the opportunity to become aware of just how we are functioning is also fleeting. We simply don’t have the time, or the place. However, there are some places where we also don’t have the choice to not become fully present. Working with a horse is one of those places.

Because a horse speaks to a person on the level of which they are not aware — that is what physiological energy they carry unconsciously — and responds to this, a person is literally forced to respond to it as well. For example, a horse who meets a person who himself is very anxious, but also quite capable of defending himself, the horse will often attempt to engage the person’s own self-preservation mechanisms, which usually decreases the anxiety. To do this, the horse may actually push, nip, or bully the person on the ground, as if to say, stop focusing on your worries, and stand up for yourself.

Continue reading Equine Therapy on 9/11, by Claire Dorotik →

Community/Charity, Contributors/Press, Publications/Media

NO SECRET SO CLOSE excerpt #35, by Claire Dorotik

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NO SECRET SO CLOSE is the story of a the most unthinkable betrayal humanly possible — at only 24 years old, Claire Dorotik’s father has been murdered, her mother arrested, and now, in a sinister twist of fate, Claire’s mother points the finger at Claire, accusing her of killing her own father. Battling the feelings of loss, abandonment, terror, and dissociation, and also learning about them, Claire struggles to stay in her master’s program for psychotherapy. However, when Claire’s brothers also betray her and side with her mother, Claire is left all alone to care for the 18 horses she and her mother owned. As the story unfolds, what is revealed is the horses’ amazing capacity for empathy in the face of human trauma, and the almost psychic ability to provide the author with what had been taken from her. Arising from these horrifying circumstances, the most unthinkable heroes — the horses — show Claire that life is still worth living.

Excerpt #35 from NO SECRET SO CLOSE:

“I only know one. But he’s very good.” Two years before I had been sued. I was trying to sell my first horse Cheers, when a woman and her daughter saw him at a horse show and asked if they could take him on trial. I was naïve, and they seemed nice. We wrote a contract on the back of a show entry and shook hands. “The buyer will have two weeks to try the horse, at the end of which time she can either purchase him for the agreed price of $10,000, or give him back.”  That’s what it said, word for word. It didn’t say that if I took my horse back when they didn’t buy him that it would result in “emotional damages” to her daughter. When the woman chased the hauler down the freeway in her Range Rover, honking and swearing at him, I thought he was the one who would suffer emotional damages. She wanted longer than two weeks, but didn’t want to pay for the horse. I just wanted my horse back. But she sued me anyway and hired a prestigious attorney. I had no money. I couldn’t even decipher the papers I had been served with. When I showed it to the trainer I was riding for at the time, she said, “You gotta call Mike, he’s the best.” I took the number and the papers and went to see him. When he saw the name of the woman’s attorney, he told me I was in trouble. But he took the case for $500. It was a pro-bono for him. I thought it was an act of sympathy.

Continue reading NO SECRET SO CLOSE excerpt #35, by Claire Dorotik →

Competitions, Eventing/H.T., Events, FEI, Olympic Games

Japan Secures Olympic Eventing Qualification for London 2012

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Japan secures qualification for Eventing at London 2012 at the Fidelity Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials (GBR). Photo: Fiona Scott-Maxwell/FEI.

Lausanne (SUI), 12 September 2011 – Japan has secured qualification for the Olympic Eventing next year following the London 2012 Eventing Team Qualifier for Asia-Pacific nations which took place at the Fidelity Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials (GBR) from 8-11 September.

New Zealand, led by Clarke Johnstone, finished first in the team competition, but they are already qualified for London 2012 after claiming team bronze at last year’s Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Kentucky (USA). The battle for the remaining slot was between Japan and Australia.

Japan fielded five riders, but their first, Yoshiaki Oiwa, was eliminated with a Cross Country fall. But Kenki Sato, Takeaki Tsuchiya and Atsushi Negishi all went clear and, at the end of Cross Country day, Japan had a four-penalty lead over Australia.

Australia became vulnerable after Lucinda Fredericks fell on the Cross Country and Bill Levett had a run-out, but the Australian their problems worsened when Brook Staples was eliminated for two refusals in the Jumping phase.

Japan’s best-placed rider, Kenki Sato, who was 16th overall in the CCI*** at Blenheim on Chippieh, said: “It’s a miracle. This is a dream come true for our country, and for my family, to qualify for the Olympics and go to Greenwich. I owe everything to my horse, and to Michael Jung [the German world champion with whom he is based] who trains me.”

Continue reading Japan Secures Olympic Eventing Qualification for London 2012 →

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

FEI European Junior Eventing Championships 2011 – Vale Sabroso (POR)

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BRITISH TAKE TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL GOLD by Louise Parkes

L to R - Kevin Seignier from France (Silver), Great Britain's Zoe Brenan (Gold) and David Doel, also from Great Britain (Bronze). Photo: FEI/Michael Steiger.

Lausanne (SUI), 12 September 2011 – Great Britain claimed team gold along with two of the three individual medals on offer at the FEI European Junior Eventing Championships 2011 at Vale Sabroso in Portugal over the weekend.  However the team silver medallists from Germany put up a spirited fight when the side was reduced to just three riders following last-minute injury problems and, leading through the dressage and cross-country phases, they were only pipped at the post in the final jumping test to finish ahead of the bronze medallists from France.

Zoe Brenan took individual gold for Britain riding Latino K while her compatriot, David Doel riding Kings Cross, scooped the bronze when finishing just 0.7 points behind Kevin Seigner and Or du Genet from France who slotted into individual silver spot.

The venue, in the beautiful Alcacer do Sol region, opened its gates to competitors from 15 nations – Italy, Spain, Sweden, Finland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Great Britain, France, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Ireland, Portugal, Switzerland and The Netherlands – with eight countries vying for the team medals and a total of 52 starters.

HELD THE LEAD
The German team of Franziska Dennersmann (Rantan Plan Z), Charlotte Hachmeister (Kassio) and Josephine Wilms (Corvette D) held the lead after the dressage phase, with Ireland in second and Great Britain in third ahead of France.  This was a particularly good result for the Irish who do not always shine in the dressage department, but normally tend to come into their own when the jumping phases get underway.  However the Irish Juniors have clearly raised their game, and on this occasion Tori Dixon and Shadow Light were sharing third place on the individual leaderboard with Belgium’s Valentine Gabriel and Chopin Van’T Kattekwaad going into cross-country day on a score of 45.0.  German team member, Wilms, was lying second with a mark of 44.0 while British individual, Emily King, led the way with a mark of 41.9 from Mr Hiho.

Continue reading FEI European Junior Eventing Championships 2011 – Vale Sabroso (POR) →