Chester Weber Wins Katydid CDE Four-In-Hand with New Team of Horses

Chester Weber drove away as the winner of the Four-In-Hand Advanced Horse Teams with a new team of horses during the 2011 Katydid CDE. (Photo courtesy of PicsofYou.com)

Aiken, SC (November 10, 2011) – Chester Weber, the eight-time USEF National Four-In-Hand Combined Driving Champion, drove away as the winner of the Four-In-Hand Advanced Horse Teams with a new team of horses during the 2011 Katydid CDE in Aiken, South Carolina. Weber’s new team, including three horses owned by Jane Forbes Clark and two by Weber, proved their future star power by winning the dressage, marathon and cones during the event.

Weber, who has proven he can dominate the Four-In-Hand field regardless of the horses he is driving, said he was pleased with the effort his new team gave. “Boris W is a five-year-old that I have had in training in Ocala for a year. This was his first show and I have high hopes for him. I drove him in the left lead in dressage and cones,” Weber said. “Caletta is an eight-year-old Austrian bred mare owned by Jane Clark and I drove her all three days in the right wheel. Caletta previously competed at the World Equestrian Games with Jim Fairclough.”

Caletta’s full sister, Celina, also made the team and the 10-year-old competed all three days in the left wheel. “The other two were Boy W and Jane Clark’s Splash and I drove them together in the lead of the marathon,” Weber said, adding that he feels he has added great depth to his stable with the combined talents of Team Weber and Team Clark.

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Alltech National Horse Show Wrap Up: November 2-7, 2011

Lexington, KY – November 8, 2011 – Open Jumper action at the Alltech National Horse Show, 128th Edition, wrapped up on Saturday night with a fast-paced jump-off during the Alltech National Horse Show $250,000 Grand Prix CSI-W. Richard Spooner and Cristallo set the pace with tidy inside turns and a clear effort, beating Great Britain’s Nick Skelton aboard Carlo 273 by just three-tenths of a second. Jessica Springsteen and Cincinatti Le Silla rounded out the three as the fastest four-fault combination during the short course.

Spooner and Cristallo, owned by Show Jumping Syndicates of Agua Dulce, CA, were the first to master the technical course and qualify for the speed phase. The “Master of Faster” did not disappoint when he returned to the ring with his veteran mount. He made a very nice inside turn to the first wide oxer, and followed it with another very tight turn to the wall before galloping home over the double combination and final oxer. Although it almost seemed that the turn to the wall would be too much, Cristallo leapt over it without a rub and the pair broke the beam at 37.970 seconds with all the rails intact. The pair set a pace that no other horse and rider combinations would be able to catch, and eventually led the night’s victory gallop.

Skelton was the last to challenge the short course with Carlo 273, and the speedy duo produced the only other fault-free round. They also managed to catch all the inside turns, and although they had a fast gallop through the end of the course, a slow start proved costly when they tripped the timers at 38.33 to place second.

Continue reading Alltech National Horse Show Wrap Up: November 2-7, 2011

Chester Weber Donates Carriage Ride to Silent Auction at Sebastian Ferrero Foundation 2011 Noche de Gala

Combined Driver Chester Weber donated a carriage ride to the silent auction at the Sebastian Ferrero Foundation’s 4th annual fundraising event, Noche de Gala. (Photo courtesy of My Elisabeth Weber)

Ocala, FL (November 8, 2011) – Horst and Luisa Ferrero, founders of the Sebastian Ferrero Foundation, will soon enjoy a carriage ride with world champion combined driver Chester Weber at his scenic Live Oak Farm in Ocala, Florida. Weber, the eight-time USEF National Four-In-Hand Champion, donated a carriage ride to the silent auction at the Sebastian Ferrero Foundation’s 4th annual fundraising event, Noche de Gala, and the Ferreros won the bid to spend an afternoon driving with the Four-In-Hand Champion.

The 4th Annual Noche de Gala “Enchanted” was held Saturday, October 22nd at Besilu Collection in Micanopy, Florida, benefiting the Shands Hospital for Children at the University of Florida. The evening proved to be a success and a night to remember, with more than 1,000 guests, 120 sponsors and over 150 volunteers.

Thanks to the support of the community, the Sebastian Ferrero Foundation was proud to give a $1.5 million gift to support the next phase of the children’s hospital — the pediatric intensive care unit.

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La Dolfina Wins 2011 Hurlingham Open Final, Argentina, in a Dramatic 19-18 Win

La Dolfina and Ellerstina faced off, once again, in an Open Championship Final for the second time in one month. Following a closely fought Tortugas Open Final, where Ellerstina snatched victory away from La Dolfina with a last-second goal, the two teams were ready for a repeat match.

The first two chukkas saw both teams go head-to-head, with all eight players displaying enormously high levels of skill and class in a closely fought competition. It wasn’t until the third chukka that La Dolfina broke away following a string of goals from Adolfo Cambiaso and Pablo MacDonough.

Leading the next four chukkas, La Dolfina extended their lead to 19-14 in the final chukka, and looked certain to secure their first Open Final win of 2011. However, when Ellerstina’s, Facundo Pieres, scored four goals La Dolfina’s lead was reduced to 19-18. With only seconds remaining La Dolfina defended the ball deep in their own half following wave after wave of attacks from Ellerstina to win the match at the final bell.

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The Rolex One to Watch – November 2011

Albert Voorn riding Eurocommerce Lexington at the CSI2* Valkenswaard (NED). Photo: SPORTFOT/Rolex

The Rolex One to Watch for November 2011 is Dutch rider, Albert Voorn. Based at Golden Dream Stables, situated approximately 45 kms from Eindhoven (NED), the 55-year-old jumped from number 342 to 225 during October – a move up the Rolex Rankings of 117 places.

The Rolex One to Watch is an initiative which identifies the rider who has made the biggest jump within or into the Top 250 of the Rolex Rankings the previous month.

Born on 23 May 1956, and brought up in Hilversum – a small town in the province of North Holland – Voorn started to ride when he was eight years old. Voorn bought a New Forest pony foal called Marinette from his own savings, which he learned to ride with the help of his neighbour when the pony was old enough. It was with Marinette that Voorn rode his first competition, and went on to compete internationally. Voorn sold Marinette to the Vermeulen family in Breukelen, and with this money he bought a three-year-old horse.

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$5,000 Grant to Be Awarded to the USEF/EQUUS Foundation Humanitarian Award Recipient

WESTPORT, CT – November 8, 2011 – The nominations deadline for the USEF/EQUUS Foundation Humanitarian Award is November 14, 2011. The award will be presented at the Pegasus Awards Dinner during the United States Equestrian Federation’s Annual Meeting on Saturday, January 14, 2012. The recipient of the Humanitarian Award will receive a $5,000 grant from The EQUUS Foundation to be awarded to the equestrian or horse-related charity of his or her choice.

The EQUUS Foundation Humanitarian Award was jointly established by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and the The EQUUS Foundation in 2009 to celebrate the humanitarian achievements made by a member of the equine community. Specifically, the goal of this humanitarian honor is to spotlight and exalt the selfless dedication one individual or a group of individuals has made, whether on a regional or national scale.

From improving the health and welfare of the horse to promoting and expanding the general public’s appreciation and respect of the diverse role of horses not just in equestrian sports but also as aides to the general public, the recipient of this award will be someone who has devoted considerable personal time to making the quality of life of our equine partners paramount.

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Can Equine Therapy Improve Sports Performance? by Claire Dorotik

While equine therapy has many fans and many purported benefits, is it possible that this alternative form of therapy can be used to improve sports performance?

Looking to a “head guy” to help with the much sought after perfect golf shot, basketball game, or even ski run is nothing new; these mental specialists have only recently donned their breeches and boots and strode into the equine competition arena. As they have, psych strategies that have long been popular in other sports have made their way onto the back of a horse. Stress reduction strategies such as progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing, and cognitive rehearsal have been among these. Now, even popular riders, such as Jane Savoie (www.janesavoie.com), employ the use of visualization techniques to cement the perfect ride.

Yet with the emergence of sports psychology in the horse world, can our horses actually help us to improve our performance, and possibly ride them better?

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Motivation from Moshi 81, by Jane Savoie

There’s a whole lot that goes on in this world that we never hear about. Some of it is bad, but a lot of it is good. If you could measure the bad against the good, you’d find that the good stuff far outweighs the bad stuff. How do I know? As a horse, I’m very connected to the energy of the planet. I can feel what’s going on because I am totally present. I spend little or no time in the past or future, I’m just NOW. And I can feel the positive pulse of the earth. Well-being abounds!

What if well-being isn’t showing up in YOUR life as much as you like? Then I’d ask, what are you thinking about? Where are you putting your mental energy? Are you looking for the things that are WRONG in your world, or are you looking for the things that are RIGHT? Which is it? You get MORE of whatever you put your energy into. So if things are bad, well… Think about that! Just for today, look for something that is great about you or your most pressing situation. Then spend some time feeling the wonderful feelings that thought brings to you.

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In Memoriam: Wolfgang Niggli (SUI)

Wolfgang Niggli, one of the most eminent figures in international Dressage, is remembered for his services to the international equestrian community © Elisabeth Weiland

Lausanne (SUI), 8 November 2011 – Wolfgang Niggli (SUI), one of the most eminent figures in international Dressage, passed away on Sunday 30 October at the age of 89.

Wolfgang Niggli won his first junior Dressage competition in 1937. He went on to compete in Jumping as a teenager and rode in Steeplechases before studying engineering at the Zurich Technological Institute and becoming a part-time riding officer in the Swiss cavalry.

In 1947, he took the opportunity of being based close to France’s prestigious military equestrian school in Fontainebleau to perfect his riding and competed in many Jumping and Dressage competitions, as well as Steeplechasing.

After working in the USA for several years as an engineer, Wolfgang Niggli returned to Switzerland where he became Vice President (Construction) of the North Eastern Swiss Power Company, but still found time to indulge his passion for equestrian sport.

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USEF and USET Foundation Set to Host Six Olympic Games Preparation Dressage Clinics

Anne Gribbons at a 2011 Training Session (Photo: USEF Archives)

Lexington, KY – Beginning in December, the USEF and USET Foundation will host six Olympic Games Preparation Dressage training sessions/clinics. Riders will have the unique opportunity to work with USEF Technical Advisor Anne Gribbons and U.S. Olympic, World Equestrian Games and Pan American Games medalist Steffen Peters. These clinics will focus on preparing potential team riders for the 2012 Olympic Games Selection Trials and Olympic Games.

The clinics are by invitation only, based on criteria set forth by the USEF High Performance Dressage Committee and concentrating on athlete/horse combinations with international competition experience and the prospect of contributing to a Team or Individual medal at the 2012 Olympic Games. For more information please see the USEF website. Clinics will take place December 2011 – April 2012 with three being held in California and three in Florida.

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