THERMAL, CA (February 28, 2012) – Nick Haness of San Clemente, California had a tremendous afternoon on Sunday at HITS Thermal when he piloted three horses to ribbons in the $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix, including the blue aboard Carolyn Mittler’s Cristiano to cap an action-packed week for hunter riders during Desert Circuit IV.
Haness was impressive in the popular hunter prix that featured more than 50 horse-and-rider combinations in the first round, over a course set by Rian Beals. The seasoned hunter rider brought home a score of 92 in the first round and set the stage for some tight competition. In the second round, Haness and Cristiano nailed down the victory in the Devoucoux class when they scored an 89 for a total score of 173 and the blue ribbon. More importantly, Haness looks like he will be a “shoo-in” to return for the Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final that will take place at HITS-on-the-Hudson in Saugerties, New York this fall. Last year, the rising star finished in second place aboard Jessica Singer’s Cruise and collected $90,000 in prize money.
Photo by Ann Taylor. Bethel's Peri and Grace Howard capture the blue in the Fenwick Equestrian Hunter Derby. Presenting is Wilhelmina McEwan of Fenwick and Maddie Godard
Aiken, SC based Equus Events, Inc. wrapped up its inaugural Camden Winter Classic horse show on Sunday. The show which took place February 24-26 at the South Carolina Equine Park in Camden, SC was a USEF sanctioned “A” rated event and included many exciting hunter and jumper classes. “We are extremely excited to be back in Camden,” said show organizer J. P. Godard of Equus Events, Inc. “The city of Camden and the South Carolina Equine Park and its staff have been extremely welcoming to us and we are looking forward to being back at the SCEP very soon.” The SCEP has recently gone through major renovations including footing by Bob Kiser (footing consultant for the 2010 World Equestrian Games), improved stabling with rubber mats in every stall, and many other structural and cosmetic updates throughout the entire park. They have also recently installed a new pavilion which is the perfect “party” spot or a relaxed area to watch the competition throughout the park.
Lausanne (SUI), 29 February 2012 – The FEI Bureau has initiated suspension proceedings against the International Dressage Riders Club (IDRC) as an FEI Associate Member due to the Club’s apparent lack of respect for the fundamental principles of good governance, in particular, the Club’s removal of two of its members without an opportunity to be heard and its ongoing refusal to reinstate them.
The Club filed an appeal with the FEI Tribunal last year, claiming that the FEI Statutes guaranteed that its proposed candidate should be appointed and that no other person or entity was authorised to propose candidates for the athlete representative on the Dressage Committee. The FEI Tribunal issued a decision on 7 November 2011 denying the IDRC’s appeal.
The IDRC passed new Statutes at its 30 October 2011 General Assembly allowing the IDRC General Assembly to remove IDRC members without an opportunity to be heard. These new Statutes had not been provided to members in advance of the General Assembly, nor had they been finalised at the time of the General Assembly.
Chester Weber will compete at Live Oak International’s 20th Anniversary. (Photo courtesy of My Weber)
Ocala, FL (February 28, 2012) – The 2012 Live Oak International, the premier Combined Driving event in North America that attracts competitors from around the world, has added Show Jumping to their exciting weekend of competition, which will also include the USEF National Championships for Four-In-Hand horses. Celebrating their 20th Anniversary, Live Oak International will be held at the 4,500-acre picturesque Live Oak Plantation in Ocala, Florida, from March 22nd to the 25th.
Combined Driver Chester Weber, the eight-time United States National Four-In-Hand Champion and three time Silver Medalist, is based out of Live Oak and will compete at the prestigious event. “It’s hard to believe that this is the show’s 20th year, but I am proud to say that each year the event gets better and better. My sister, Juliet W. Reid, has worked hard to develop show jumping at the event, and we are pleased to once again donate proceeds to the Marion Therapeutic Riding Association.”
Equine therapy studies are hard to find. And perhaps even more challenging to find are studies that utilize sound research protocol. Of course this leaves many well intentioned mental health practitioners to question the validity of equine therapy. On the other hand, there are many potential recipients of equine therapy who wish that there insurance company would cover equine work so that they may partake in it.
So, that being said, let’s take a look at a few good equine therapy studies:
Looking at the outcomes of 31 participants in an equine-assisted experiential therapy program, this article describes the intervention and the psychological measures that were completed prior to treatment, immediately following treatment and 6 months after treatment. After discussing the results of the study, the article also delves into the clinical implications and limitations of the study, and makes suggestions for further research.
OCALA, FL (February 27, 2012) – Rolling Acres Farm scored a huge victory on Sunday when professional rider Mary Lisa Leffler and Rolling Acres’ Gerona 92 captured the win in the $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix at the Ocala Masters. A returning Diamond Mills Hunter Prix rider, Leffler is well on her way to qualifying for the 2012 Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final.
Forty-six horse-and-rider combinations prepared their Sunday best to compete over a first round course set by Ocala’s Doug Russell. After a first round score of 85 and a second round score of 84, Leffler, of Brookville, Maryland secured the win with a total of 169 points.
“This is one of the best classes offered each week in my opinion,” said Leffler, one of the most consistent and talented High-Performance riders to show in both hunters and jumpers. “It’s just a fun event for everyone – the riders, owners and the people that come and watch – everyone seems to enjoy it.”
Kent Farrington and Uceko won the 2011 $55,000 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix at the Kentucky Spring Classic. Photo: Rebecca Walton/PMG
Lexington, KY – February 28, 2012 – The Kentucky Spring Horse Shows are pleased to announce that their first week of competition, the Kentucky Spring Horse Show CSI3*, May 9-13, 2012, has been designated by USEF as a 2012 US Show Jumping Team Observation Event. The jumper highlights in the Rolex Stadium during the first week will include the $35,000 Welcome Cup on May 9th. This will be followed on Friday, May 11th by the $50,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic and on Sunday, May 13th by the $75,000 Commonwealth Grand Prix. These two major competitions are Observation Events for the US Show Jumping Team. Following the US Show Jumping Team Selection Trials in Wellington, FL in March, riders named to the long list must compete at two of the four designated observation events, one of which will be the Kentucky Spring Horse Show. In addition to the long listed riders many more top horse and rider combinations are expected to gather at the Kentucky Spring Horse Shows to vie for the winning title in these challenging events.
Chef d’Equipe George Morris commented, “I think that Kentucky is a premiere facility, they have hosted trials before, they know how to do it. It’s a lovely time of year, great footing, so it has to be a hit. The whole area is very horse friendly and very natural.”
Tinne Vilhemsen Silfan and Don Auriello were the winners of the Grand Prix during the 2011 Palm Beach Dressage Derby. (Photo courtesy of Susan J Stickle)
Wellington, FL (February 28, 2012) – National and International riders are gearing up for top-notch competition at the upcoming world-renowned $20,000 Palm Beach Dressage Derby CDIW, which takes place March 1-4, 2012. Riders from Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Canada, Colombia, Spain, Mexico, Argentina will join competitors from Hollywood, California to New Hope, Pennsylvania to Gate Mills, Ohio to Corpus Christy, Texas at the International Horse Sport (IHS) Palm Beach Champions Park in the Equestrian Estates in West Palm Beach to compete at “the Derby”, a USEF High Performance Qualifying Competition for this year’s 2012 World Cup and 2012 Olympic Games in London. “We have a record year for riders competing in the Grand Prix, and a wait-list as well,” stated Noreen O’Sullivan, Show Manager. Spectators can expect to see top competitors all weekend, including Sunday’s crowd-pleasing Musical Freestyles. “I have had competitors tell me that the Derby is their top show for the season.”
February 2012 has been a busy month for Shelly Temple and her ponies at Catalyst Driving Center. On February 17-20, Shelly participated in various events at the Salute to Driving benefit for the US Equestrian Team. Many of Shelly’s sponsors supported the event through donations including Omega Fields, Kentucky Equine Research, Leather Therapy, and ThinLine.
She participated in a clinic with long listed USEF drivers conducted by two-time world driving champion Tjeerd Velstra of the Netherlands. She also drove her Morgan pony, Cooper, in a pas de deux demonstration. Capping off the event was her driving of Duralin, a German Riding Pony owned by Edward and the late Anne Bliss. Duralin is competing in his first competitive season and Shelly is getting him out as much as possible to gain experience. Shelly’s most recent competition was February 23-26, 2012 at the Little Everglades International CDE in Dade City, Florida. In the FEI Single Pony class, Shelly and Cooper won the dressage competition with a score of 44.16. Duralin was competed in the preliminary single pony class out of official contention. Nonetheless, the pony had a strong showing with a 49.11 in dressage. Based on his performance, Duralin would have won the dressage phase of the class and been fourth overall. “I am pleased with Duralin’s performance in his young career. It is exciting to see the daily progress Duralin is making,” remarks Shelly. Next on Duralin’s competition schedule is the Live Oak International CDE in Ocala, Florida March 22-25.
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Lausanne (SUI), 29 February 2012 – The FEI Bureau has initiated suspension proceedings against the International Dressage Riders Club (IDRC) as an FEI Associate Member due to the Club’s apparent lack of respect for the fundamental principles of good governance, in particular, the Club’s removal of two of its members without an opportunity to be heard and its ongoing refusal to reinstate them.
