August 24, 2011 (Devon, PA) – The closing dates for both performance and breed classes at the 2011 Dressage at Devon have been extended until September 15 and late fees have been waived.
So enter now and enjoy the new, state of the art footing (Poels Sand Footing), in both the Dixon Oval and the Gold Ring. Come check out this significant improvement to Dressage at Devon and show off your wonderful horse under the lights. Schooling has also been extended in both rings in the early morning. Warm-up for all Grand Prix classes will be held in the Gold ring commencing one hour prior to the start of the class. For performance entry details, go to www.dressageatdevon.org or contact the Show Secretary, Monica Fitzgerald, at mon1206@aol.com.
Or, for breeders, has your two year old suddenly grow into their body? Is your colt amazing? Come showcase your incredible horses at Dressage at Devon and let your foal enjoy the attention and the new footing! You can enter on-line at www.horseshowoffice.com. Full details, including the prize list, are at www.dressageatdevon.org or contact the Show Secretary, Kathy Moffitt, at kmoffitt@optonline.net.
Devon, PA (August 24, 2011) – 2011 marks the 20th anniversary of the selection of Thorncroft Therapeutic Riding Inc. as the beneficiary of Dressage at Devon. Since 1991, Thorncroft has received more than $1,000,000 from Dressage at Devon. These funds have been used to support students with disabilities who have shown a dedication to the sport and the horses.
Steven Reed (left) is one such student. In 2004, when Steven Reed was 8 years old, his mom Linda, wanted to find an activity for her son that would help him grow and reach his goals. Knowing that Steven was an animal lover, Linda thought riding might appeal to him. Steven was hooked after just one visit.
For the next several years, Steven took weekly, then twice weekly lessons – first on a pony (Blossom), working his way up to the horses he rides (and jumps!) today. Steven’s dedication to the sport and the animals continues to grow. He volunteers in the barn in exchange for one of his lessons, a job he took on at age 13. Sundays, Steve can often be found cleaning stalls and doing other necessary barn work.
“Thorncroft is an amazing place. From the moment he started riding, Steven has not only learned horsemanship but has made many friends,” said Linda Reed.
Steven received his first scholarship just one year after he began riding. And, among other honors, this year Steven was the recipient of the Grace Levin Scholarship Award. His weekly lessons include individual training as well as practice sessions with the Thorncroft Mainstreamers.
ECCLES AND LOOSER MAINTAIN SUPREMACY AND GERMANY CLAIMS DOUBLE TEAM GOLD by Louise Parkes
Great Britain's Joanne Eccles showing the spectacular style that helped her win her second consecutive Senior Female Individual title at the FEI Open European Vaulting Championships for Seniors and Juniors. Photo: FEI/ www.pixbank.org
Lausanne (SUI), 24 August 2011 – Great Britain’s Joanne Eccles and Switzerland’s Patrick Looser maintained the form that clinched their 2010 world titles when winning the Female and Male Individual gold medals at the FEI Open European Vaulting Championships 2011 at Le Mans, France last weekend. German vaulters were strong however, taking both Senior and Junior Team gold, and the Pas de Deux and Junior Male titles, while Italy’s Silvia Stoppazzine claimed the Junior Female Individual honours.
Over 200 competitors from 19 countries – Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia, Denmark, Netherlands, France, Italy, Hungary, Great Britain, Russia, Republic of South Africa, Mauritius, Belgium, Czech Republic, Norway, Poland, Finland and Sweden – gathered at Le Mans for the 15th edition of these Championships. The success of the Vaulting competitions at last year’s Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Kentucky, USA has led to a tremendous upsurge of interest in this sport which originally emerged from ancient Greece, where warriors were trained to ride independently of their horses as they brandished weapons. Today it is a competitive discipline, open to both men and women, in which both dynamic and static gymnastic elements are combined and performed on a catering horse. It demands outstanding physical fitness from the vaulter and a harmonious relationship with the horse and longeur.
SENIORS
Germany got off to a great start when pipping Switzerland in Thursday’s Senior Team Compulsory Test, but the result was reversed on Saturday when it was the Swiss who came out on top in the Freestyle while, once again, Austria slotted into third. And it was a close-fought affair in Sunday’s decider with the judging panel of Veronique Girard, Elzbieta Dolinska, Gaby Benz, Heddy Boelsma Den Hartog, Ute Schoenian and Anna Kull unafraid to award high marks where appropriate. The biggest score of the day came from Ute Schoenian, at E, who awarded 9.773 to the German side whose longeur Jessica Schmitz and horse Arkansas 51 rounded up a great performance. The final German total of 8.300 left them just .053 clear of the Swiss silver medallists, while Austria completed in bronze medal position with 7.980 on the board.
2010 Champ Bon Chance Returns for More in 2011 (Photo: Fire&Earth Photography)
Lexington, KY – The future of dressage in the United States will be on full display this weekend in Wayne, IL, as many of the nation’s top up-and-coming horses vie for coveted USEF National Championship titles. Champions will be crowned at the Lamplight Equestrian Center in six separate divisions. In the 2011 Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championships the top 4-, 5- and 6-year-olds in the country will be recognized. Seven- to 9-year-olds will stake their claim on the USEF National Developing Horse Dressage Championship sponsored by the Dutta Corporation and Performance Sales International. Finally, the USEF Dressage Seat Medal Finals presented by Dressage Today is split by age categories, and two championships will be awarded: 13 & under and 14-18 divisions.
The Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championships will showcase the most promising 4-, 5- and 6-year-olds that U.S. dressage has to offer. In the 4-year-old division, 15 of the most exciting horses from the 2007 foal crop will vie for top honors. In this championship is Melissa Mulchahey’s Furst Fiorano, who topped the final rankings of the 2011 Markel/USEF National Young Horse Ranking List four-year-old division with an overall average of 8.460.
Last year’s 4-year-old champion, DG Brendo, and Reserve Champion, DG Banta, return to the Lamplight Equestrian Center to try to repeat their 2010 efforts. They and 13 challengers will contest the five-year-old championship to make for a strong competition between 15 horses. In the 6-year-old division, seven separate breeds are represented in the field of 15; American Warmblood, Andalusian, Dutch Warmblood, Friesian, Hanoverian, Oldenburg and Royal Dutch Warmblood. Champion, Bon Chance, and Reserve Championship, Adje, from last year’s 5-year-old division are among the contenders in the 2011 6-year-old championship.
BRITAIN CLAIMS TEAM TITLE, GERMANY’S FULLGRAEBE IS INDIVIDUAL CHAMPION by Louise Parkes
Germany's Freya Fullgraebe and Oje Oje claimed individual gold at the FEI European Young Riders Eventing Championship at Blair Castle (GBR). Photo: FEI/John Grassick.
Lausanne (SUI), 23 August 2011 – Great Britain secured team gold, while Germany’s Freya Fullgraebe took the individual title at the FEI European Young Riders Eventing Championship 2011 which was staged against the spectacular backdrop of Blair Castle in Scotland (GBR) over the weekend.
The British record in these Championships in more than impressive, with six team titles in the last seven years and joint-victory with Germany in 2010. This time around it came down to an exciting climax on the final afternoon when they held off a strong challenge from the Irish who had to settle for silver, while Germany took bronze.
Fullgraebe’s individual success was well-deserved as she was the only competitor, from 57 starters, to finish on her dressage score.
A total of eight nations lined out in the Team Championship and seven fielded full teams including the host country, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, France and Poland while Russia sent out just three riders. Russia’s team chances were dashed when Elizabeta Radionova and Rafiner were eliminated.
The cross-country course proved influential as expected, with 10 eliminations and only four horse-and-rider partnerships returning within the time allowed. The arrowhead at 9c proved the most influential fence on Roland Alexander’s track.
Reigning World Champion Harrie Verstappen (NED) will defend his gold medal in Conty. Image: Rinaldo de Craen/FEI.
The Driving world will gather in the Picardie region in France this week (24-28 August), when the Ateliers du Val de Selle will host the 15th FEI World Pairs Driving Championship in Conty. Sixty-nine competitors from 24 nations, will battle against each other for the individual and team medals, with 18 nations fielding teams and six countries sending individuals.
Amongst the competitors is reigning World Champion Harrie Verstappen (NED), who will not only defend his individual gold medal, but also help defend the Dutch team title, won at the 2009 FEI World Pair Driving Championship in Kecskemét (HUN). The 2009 silver medallist Beat Schenk (SUI) is one of the many medal favourites, as well as Vilmos Lazar (HUN), who has just recovered from several broken ribs.
The youngest competitor in Conty is the 15-year-old Anna Sandmann (GER), daughter of successful international four-in-hand driver Christoph Sandmann, who will act as her navigator in the marathon. Anna is competing as an individual.
The course design in Conty is in the capable hands of Barry Hunter (GBR), who is making his World Championship debut. Barry has been an international course designer since 2004 and has worked in the UK and the USA, including Lowther, Sandringham, Royal Windsor, Erddig, British National Championships, Live Oak, Sunshine State and Katydid events.
The Ground Jury is chaired by Dr Klaus Christ (GER) and the members are Anne-Marie Turbe (FRA), Bert Jambon (BEL), Hanspeter Rüschlin (SUI) and Diana Brownlie (GBR).
Lausanne (SUI), 23 August 2011 – Clarke Johnstone (NZL) was celebrating with a large bottle of champagne, part of his spoils from Haras du Pin (FRA), where he finally sealed victory in the FEI World Cup Eventing 2011.
“I’ve just flown five horses from New Zealand to England, so I’m not really in credit at the moment!” joked Johnstone. “But this is a very satisfying result and I’m going to enjoy it.”
Johnstone is perennially successful in FEI World Cup Eventing – he finished fifth overall last year – but this time the 24-year-old World team bronze medallist set an unmatchable target right from the start of the season. He scored a win and a third place in his native New Zealand, at Kihikihi, and when he also triumphed in the next event in the series, at Sydney (AUS), the dye was cast.
For good measure, Johnstone completed Haras du Pin (FRA), the seventh and final event in the 2011 series, in sixth place on Kihikihi winner Orient Express, but his overall series victory was assured even before the competition started at the French venue.
Another of the younger riders, Christopher Burton (AUS), tracked Johnstone all the way, only finishing four points shy to take second place in the series.
Burton put up a magnificent fight. Having slotted into second at Kihikihi (NZL) and second and fifth at Sydney (AUS); riding the same two horses, Newsprint and Holstein Park Leilani, he then finished second and third at Haras du Pin to close the gap. But even if he had won the series climax, he would still have been an agonising one point in arrears behind Johnstone.
CULPEPER, VIRGINIA (August 22, 2011) — Patty Stovel and Shoal Creek Stables’ Kenya gained the momentum they needed in Culpeper to capture Saturday’s $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix to highlight a week of tough competition in the hunter rings of the Winston National at HITS Commonwealth Park in Culpeper, Virginia.
The duo’s latest victory marks their third triumph in a Devoucoux class this summer as they topped the field of 22 that showed over course designer Rian Beals’ first-round course. “Kenya is getting better as the summer goes on and that is a good thing,” said Stovel. “I am very fortunate to have a great owner who let us take our time with this horse.”
The last time the duo showed at HITS Culpeper they scored the blue at the Cavalier Classic in the featured class for hunters. Then, a few weeks ago, they struck glory again topping 70 starters at the NY Horse & Pony Show at HITS-on-the-Hudson in Saugerties, New York proving they are one of the teams to beat in the Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final.
Going into the weekend, Stovel and Kenya were eighth in the current Rider Rankings for the Diamond Mills Hunter Prix Final with 224 points. Saturday’s win will help to push them into the top five with only two qualifiers left before the big weekend on September 10-11 in Saugerties.
“I have said it before. This horse can win on any given day!” said Stovel. “There will be some great horses and great riders there and I am sure hoping that we are up for the challenge.”
Kyle King of Ocala, FL, and Capone I won the $50,000 CSI2* G2 Financial Group Grand Prix on August 20 at the Rocky Mountain Classic I in Calgary, AB. Photo credit - Cansport
Calgary, Alberta – Kyle King of Ocala, FL, kicked off the three-week Rocky Mountain Classic show jumping series by winning the $50,000 CSI2* G2 Financial Group Grand Prix on Saturday, August 20. The Rocky Mountain Classic show jumping tournaments are taking place at Anderson Ranch in Calgary, AB.
Course designer Werner Deeg of Germany ensured a thrilling jump-off when 10 of the 29 starters jumped his first round track clear to advance to the jump-off. King was the first rider through the gate with Capone I, and set a target time of 39.95 seconds that would prove unbeatable. In fact, King proved to be his own toughest competition when his other jump-off mount, Valentino, was clear in a time of 41.10 seconds for second place. Rocky Mountain tournament organizer, John Anderson of Calgary, AB, took third place with a time of 41.61 seconds riding Terrific.
“I went first and was a little conservative, but it turned out to be fine,” said King, who has been based at Anderson Ranch this summer. “They all had to chase me and it worked out. I had the class by a full second.”
For King and Capone I, the $50,000 CSI2* G2 Financial Group Grand Prix marked the pair’s first competition since winning the $125,000 CN World Cup Grand Prix during the Spruce Meadows “Continental” Tournament in June.
“It was great for Capone because it was challenging enough, but it wasn’t so huge and he didn’t have to try too hard,” said King of the 15-year-old Holsteiner stallion by Contender. “He jumped solid and was right on form.”
Joe Yoder winning the 2011 National Championship (Photo by Picsofyou.com)
Lexington, KY – The 2011 FEI World Pair Driving Championship get underway this week in Conty, France, and three American drivers are set to make their International Championships debut. Led by Chef d’Equipe Chester Weber and Coach Michael Freund, the U.S. will be represented by Katherin Dancer, Misdee Wrigley-Miller and Joe Yoder. These three drivers drove as a team at Reisenbeck CAI in July and earned valuable international experience which Weber believes will serve them well going into the World Championship.
Dancer, a German expatriate now lives in California where she runs a riding program – she drives a team of Warmblood horses and comes off a strong spring which featured a third place finish at the USEF National Pair Driving Championships at the Live Oak CDE in March. She is guided by her husband Scott, who serves as her navigator.
Wrigley-Miller is also driving on her first international team, but she is also hugely successful in the Saddlebred world. She drives a promising group of young warmbloods and with her pair, Wrigley-Miller had top finishes at the Live Oak CDE, Sunshine State CDE and at the German National Championships. She also competed at Great Britain’s Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2010.
She has one of the best navigators in the world, Dutch superstar Koos de Ronde, on her carriage for the marathon.
“We made that decision earlier in the year,” said Weber. “It seems to be going quite well. There was a small injury to one of her best marathon horses – but that horse is back for the World Championships and we are excited about that.”
