Category Archives: Contributors/Press

Blog writers, press releases and contributors

*Featured/Spotlights, Championships, Competitions, Contributors/Press, Disciplines, Driving, Events, FEI

FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2010 – Marathon

Leave a comment

Lucie Musy-Comune (SUI) won the World Championship marathon at Pratoni del Vivaro (c) Hippoevent

SWISS DOMINANCE AND GIRL-POWER IN THE MARATHON

31 July 2010 – Perfect conditions created a wonderful environment for the marathon of the FEI World Single Driving Championship in Pratoni del Vivaro, Italy. Undulating tracks on a green meadow and the obstacle site nicely embedded in the hilly landscape ensured great sport.

The eight obstacles built by Austria’s course designer Christian Iseli offered the competitors countless route options. Two of them included extra large water elements, built and flagged in a modern and horse friendly way.

Before the start of the World Championship, the possible hot weather conditions in the summer in Italy was much talked about, but it could not have been better today. Twenty-seven degrees Celsius was the highest temperature reached. The marathon was heavy, but fair and selective, absolutely ideal for World Championship competition.

Continue reading FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2010 – Marathon →

Contributors/Press, Rescue/Protection Sources

Lobby Group Will Urge Congress to Fund Export of Tainted Horse Meat

Leave a comment

July 31, 2010 – CHICAGO, (EWA) – The National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) has passed a resolution calling for the reinstatement of USDA inspectors for horse meat.

The NCSL is a non-governmental lobbyist organization which serves the nation’s 50 states legislators to advocate and lobby for the interests of states before Congress and federal agencies. The resolutions NCSL passes are not binding and merely allow them to lobby on behalf of the states.

Representative Sue Wallis (WY), who is vice chair of the NCSL’s Agriculture and Energy Committee, went on record asking that she be allowed to slaughter horses to feed Wyoming children, the poor and prison inmates without having the meat federally inspected for consumer safety. The Wyoming livestock board responded quickly by stating in no uncertain terms that “horse slaughter is not an option.”

The Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) strongly opposes the misuse of tax payer dollars to fund inspections for an industry that is not needed or wanted by the overwhelming majority of Americans.

Continue reading Lobby Group Will Urge Congress to Fund Export of Tainted Horse Meat →

Championships, Competitions, Contributors/Press, Disciplines, Dressage, Driving, Events, FEI

FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2010

Leave a comment

Thorsten Zarembowicz (GER) is the new Dressage World Champion in the Single Horse class. (c) Hippoevent

GERMANY LEADS AT WORLD SINGLE DRIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS IN PRATONI

31 July 2010 – Germany’s Thorsten Zarembowicz has set a new standard in the Single Horse Driving scene by putting down a wonderful score of 35,20 penalty points and taking the lead at the FEI World Single Driving Championships in Pratoni del Vivaro, Italy. The German Team is leading the Nations Cup after the first phase of the combined driving competition.

After two days of dressage in which the best 72 Single Horse drivers in the world showed their skills, Thorsten Zarembowicz is the new man to beat in dressage. Zarembowicz bettered the score of the title defender Jan van den Broek from the Netherlands by over six penalty points. The 31-year-old manager of the driving stable of former World Champion Michael Freund drove a wonderful test with the 8-year-old Holsteiner mare Sunrise. His test thrilled both the spectators and the judges.

Continue reading FEI World Singles Driving Championships 2010 →

Breeds, Community/Charity, Contributors/Press, Events, Racing

After the Finish Line Fundraiser to Benefit Thoroughbred Ex-racehorses, August 5th

1 Comment

Dear Equine Friends,

After the Finish Line presents their Annual Charity Fundraiser, “A Tribute to the Majesty of Thoroughbreds,” on Thursday, August 5th at the Hilton Hotel in Del Mar, CA. We will host a reception, silent & live auctions and dinner. ATFL is a funding non-profit dedicated to saving, rehabilitating and caring for rescued Thoroughbred horses who can no longer race or breed. For ticket information please contact Dawn Mellen at dawn@afterthefinishline.org or (858) 945-1371. Please consider a donation if you cannot attend.

Our auctioneer is Hall of Fame trainer Jack Van Berg. Our guest speaker is Katherine Brooks, the writer/director of The Boys Club, www.theboysclubmovie.com. We will also show a heart warming video about a rescued Thoroughbred ex-racehorse.

Please forward this message to your equine friends and those concerned with the welfare of animals. It will be a FUN evening supporting a worthy cause!

Disregard the RSVP date on the invitation. A late fee will not be charged. If you can attend, please print the invitation and return it with your payment. We also accept PayPal through our website, www.afterthefinishline.org.

Sincerely,

Dawn Mellen, President/Founder

After the Finish Line

10153 Riverside Drive, Suite 397

Toluca Lake, CA 91602

dawn@afterthefinishline.org

www.afterthefinishline.org

Breeds, Contributors/Press, Events, Wild Horse Sources

It’s Official! The Mustangs Are Going to Be in the Rose Bowl Parade on New Years Day!

1 Comment

Saving America’s Mustangs is thrilled to officially announce that the mustangs will be in the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year’s Day! Please watch on Saturday, January 1, 2011 at 8 a.m. (PST), along with 53 million spectators from around the world, as we celebrate the New Year at the 122nd Rose Parade. The parade is well-known for amazing floral floats, high-stepping equestrians, and spirited bands. We will get double the exposure as our national icons are featured in the equestrian side as well as the float side of the parade!

Accompanying our mustangs in the parade will be: our retired military service dogs, members of several Native American tribes, dancers, Active Military Personnel, Wounded Soldiers, and Veterans! A very patriotic tribute to our American heritage!

Please share this with your friends and family. We would love to wave to you in the stands as we trot by, but if you can’t make the parade in person, please watch it live on television!

Continue reading It’s Official! The Mustangs Are Going to Be in the Rose Bowl Parade on New Years Day! →

*Featured/Spotlights, Contributors/Press, Rescue/Protection Sources

House Committee on Transportation Unanimously Approves Horse Transportation Safety Act

Leave a comment

House Bill to Ban Hauling Horses on Double Deck Trailers

(Washington, DC) – The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds Chairman James Oberstar (D-MN), of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for bringing the Horse Transportation Safety Act (H.R. 305) before his Committee and supporting its swift unanimous passage.

“We are especially grateful for the leadership and commitment of the bill’s sponsors Congressman Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN).  Both have been incredible champions for the welfare of America’s horses,” noted Christine Sequenzia, AWI federal policy advisor.

Several bipartisan cosponsors spoke in support of H.R. 305 during the hearing, including a poignant opening statement by Congressman Cohen.  H.R. 305 passed by a voice vote with no amendments and is now headed to the House floor.

Continue reading House Committee on Transportation Unanimously Approves Horse Transportation Safety Act →

Contributors/Press, Racing, Rescue/Protection Sources

Unwanted Horse Coalition Media Roundup

1 Comment

July 30, 2010 – Edition 11 – This Unwanted Horse Coalition news summary is provided as an educational service to those interested in the issue of the unwanted horse. The articles do not reflect the opinions of the Unwanted Horse Coalition or any of its employees. The listing of events does not constitute an endorsement of a particular event. If you see an article or event that may be appropriate for inclusion in Media Roundup, please e-mail it to ecaslin@horsecouncil.org.

1,600 Unwanted Horses Receive Spring Vaccinations
This spring the Unwanted Horse Veterinary Relief Campaign (UHVRC) vaccinated 1,600 unwanted horses against critical equine diseases. Established in December 2008, UHVRC provides qualifying equine rescue and retirement facilities with complimentary equine vaccines for horses in their care. To date, more than 4,000 horses across the United States have received vaccines through the program.
Read More…

Continue reading Unwanted Horse Coalition Media Roundup →

Contributors/Press, Rescue/Protection Sources

A Slick in the Night, by Valerie James-Patton

Leave a comment

July 29, 2010 – We keep hearing the upsetting stories from our wild horse advocates living in Nevada near the BLM wild horse holding facilities about wild horses being hauled in the middle of the night and disappearing. We hear it often.

We’ve been told by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), that’s to prevent the horses from getting overheated during the high temperatures in the hot summer months, but that doesn’t fly when we hear of it happening during the cold winter months.

When numbers from BLM reports don’t add up, and large numbers of horses are missing from the charts, all those stories of night-time hauls come to mind.

Continue reading A Slick in the Night, by Valerie James-Patton →

*Featured/Spotlights, Breeds, Contributors/Press, Wild Horse Sources

We’ve Heard You – Get on Board the Pony Express by September 1st!

Leave a comment

Dear Friends, Supporters, and Future Supporters,

We have heard you voice your complaints about the roundups.

We have listened to you share so many of your personal stories about your own adopted mustangs.

We have all sent thousands of letters via fax, email, and USPS to our Government officials, even to the point of their phone lines being unplugged and emails shut down due to the high volume of wild horse supporters on this issue.

We are doing all of these things daily, but there still has been NO change.

It’s time for the PONY EXPRESS!

I will personally hand deliver each and every letter that you write, via the Pony Express (one of our beautiful mustangs), to Washington DC. I am setting a goal of 20,000 individual letters to take with me. Americans, international supporters, animal activists, anyone who would like to tell President Obama, Secretary Salazar, and Bob Abbey that we aren’t going to sit by waiting until these roundups are over is encouraged to write. This is a very important issue to hundreds of thousands of people that have pleaded with our government to stop gathering our wild horses.  This way they cannot unplug their phones, make their website impossible to send a comment to, or delete emails. These are GOING to get to Washington. I promise you that!

Continue reading We’ve Heard You – Get on Board the Pony Express by September 1st! →

Community/Charity, Competitions, Contributors/Press, Disciplines, Events, Show Jumping, Sydney Masters-Durieux

News Bits about Hillary Dobbs, Liliane Stransky, and Roger Young Stables

Leave a comment

Photo by David Mullinix Photography

Hillary Dobbs
Hillary Dobbs hit the million dollar mark in winnings during the 41st annual Lake Placid Horse Shows.  The 22 year old Harvard graduate placed second aboard Marengo in the $30,000 Intercat, Inc. Open Jumper Classic CSI 2* pushed jumped her past the million dollar mark. Her victory in the $30,000 Battenkill Grand Prix, the 2nd year she has won it, also on Marengo at the Vermont Summer Festival WEEK 2 put her total earnings to date at $1,023,785.75.

Liliane Stransky/Stransky Mission Farms/Step by Step Foundation

Photo by Kathy Anderson

The tornado that slammed into the Olympic stadium may have delayed the XXI Central American and Caribbean Games in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, but it didn’t dampen the competition or spectators’ spirits. “You can plan for almost anything,” stated Liliane Stransky, the owner of Stransky’s Mission Farm and founder of the Step by Step charity. “I have learned the hard way, there is no plan with nature.  Every day is unexpected, and thank God no people, or horses, were seriously hurt.” Stransky celebrated the finishing of the Step by Step Foundation’s new Tipa Tipa Elementary School in Haiti with her 14 year old daughter Daniela by cheering on both Hector Florentino (Dominican Republic) riding their bay Ultimo, and Diego Muyshodndt (El Salvador) on their jumper Ikarus, in the CAC show jumping competitions. 31 nations were scheduled to participate.

Photo Courtesy of Roger Young Stables

Congratulations to rider, trainer, and judge Gary Young of Roger Young Stables and his lovely wife Michaela on the opening of Camden Equine Rehabilitation & Conditioning Center in South Carolina. Soon their two year old daughter Stella will be able to take the reins in the family business!

By Sydney Masters-Durieux