Category Archives: More/Other

Competitions, Events, JRPR, More/Other

US Claims Both Gold Medals at Saddle Seat World Cup

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The U.S. Five-Gaited Section Gold medalists (R. Millin)

Parys, South Africa – On Saturday, December 8, the Saddle Seat World Cup sponsored by Impondo Mining and Live 2 Learn concluded with second round performances from the Three-Gaited sections of the Saddle Seat World Cup teams. After a stellar presentation of rail work, the U.S. Three-Gaited team set the stage for leading pattern work scores in both groups. With strong performances all week, hopes were high that both the U.S. Three- and Five-Gaited sections would bring home the Gold medals.

The official results were announced at the Closing Ceremonies that evening, and since the rail work scores had not been posted, there was much anticipation of who would claim the Saddle Seat World Cup titles. The U.S. riders claimed the Gold medal in the Five-Gaited section, solidifying all of the hard work and support the riders had received over the past year. Coached by Sandra Currier (Belville, TX) and Brent Jacobs (Georgetown, KY), Hunter Chancellor (Evansville, IN), Angela Darrow (Hartland, WI), Drew Taylor Hewitt (Bermuda Run, NC), Ali Judah (Louisville, KY), and team captain Nick Maupin (Sussex, WI) took the podium to receive their Gold medals and the Five-Gaited World Cup trophy, sponsored by Saddle & Bridle magazine. The Republic of South Africa was awarded the Silver medal and Canada received the Bronze, while the teams from Germany and Sweden, in its first appearance at the World Cup since the 1990s, received honorary awards for their participation in the event.

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Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, USEF

US Riders Ready to Compete at Saddle Seat World Cup

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The U.S. Saddle Seat World Cup team in South Africa (R. Millin)

Parys, South Africa – Ten riders and four coaches will represent the U.S. at the Saddle Seat World Cup in Parys, South Africa on December 5-8. The team, made up of two sections, Three-Gaited and Five-Gaited, will compete against four other countries as they vie for top honors in saddle seat equitation.

The Three-Gaited section is made up of team members Brooke Boyer (Johnston, IA), Emily Chapman (Tucson, AZ), Brooke Jacobs (Georgetown, KY), Alexandra Lawson (North Salem, IN), and team captain Abigail Muturx (St. Louis, MO). Jacobs is a five-time member of the U.S. Saddle Seat World Cup team and was the 2011 UPHA Adult Challenge Cup Grand Champion. Mutrux, the 2012 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final Reserve Champion, was a member of the 2010 U.S. Saddle Seat World Cup Three-Gaited section. Lawson was the 2011 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final Champion while Boyer and Chapman have had several top ten placings at major competitions. The traveling alternate for the Three-Gaited section, Kristen Smith (Crestwood, KY), was the 2012 USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final Champion. This experienced group is coached by Kristen Cater (Dunbarton, NH) and Cindy Mugnier (Belchertown, MA).

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Driving, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, Phelps Media Group, Show Jumping, Western/Reining

Florida Gold Coast Quarter Horse Show Circuit Announces 2012 Dates and Schedule

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The Florida Gold Coast Quarter Horse Show Circuit will return to the Florida State Fairgrounds on December 27, 2012. Photo Courtesy of the Client

Tampa, FL – November 26, 2012 – The Florida Gold Coast Quarter Horse Show is pleased to announce that it will be returning to the Florida State Fairgrounds’ Bob Thomas Equestrian Center in Tampa, FL from December 27-31, 2012. In the past, the quarter horse event has been held through January, but this year the show ends on the 31st to help exhibitors take advantage of the six shows needed to accumulate points before the end of the year for the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA). The Florida Gold Coast Quarter Horse Circuit Show features five full days of events including hunters, equitation, AQHA reining, western pleasure, trail riding, driving, showmanship and halter classes.

The first and third day of the horse show will feature matching schedules that focus on hunters and equitation, including youth, rookie, novice, and amateur divisions. Riders will have the opportunity to showcase their mounts over fences and under saddle. On the second and fourth day of the competition, there will be additional hunter seat and equitation under saddle classes, as well as four driving classes, and western pleasure classes including walk/trot, rookie, novice, amateur, and youth divisions.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Championships, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, USEF

Hunter Chancellor Claims USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final Title

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Hunter Chancellor, winner of the 2012 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final, riding Imagine My Surprise. (Howard Schatzberg)

Kansas City, MO – In an extremely competitive USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final at the United Professional Horsemen’s Association (UPHA) American Royal National Championship, Hunter Chancellor (Evansville, IN) demonstrated precise equitation skills in her rail and pattern work on Steven Chancellor’s Imagine My Surprise to take the Championship title. After earning Reserve Champion honors in 2011, Chancellor received the Gold medal from the judging panel comprised of Michael Craghead (Fresno, CA), Marilyn Mac Farlane (Simpsonville, KY), and Nancy Troutman (Salem, VA).

For taking top honors, Chancellor’s name will be engraved on the Adrian Van Sinderen Trophy and the Helen K. Crabtree Perpetual Bronze. She also received a USEF custom leather travel bag, USEF medal, rose bundle, Triple Crown Custom/Horseware Ireland cooler, and an engraved stable halter for her mount.

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Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, USEF

USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final Set to Begin at UPHA American Royal National Championship

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Alexandra Lawson, winner of the 2011 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final, aboard Imagine My Surprise (Howard Schatzberg)

Kansas City, MO – The USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final will be held Saturday, November 17, at the United Professional Horsemen’s Association’s American Royal National Championship in Kansas City, MO. This medal final brings together the best saddle seat equitation riders from across the country who will perform for a judging panel comprised of Michael Craghead (Fresno, CA), Marilyn MacFarlane (Simpsonville, KY), and Nancy Troutman (Salem, VA).

Four of the riders competing in the medal final are members of the U.S. Saddle Seat World Cup Team, which will compete next month in Parys, South Africa. Those members are Brooke Boyer (Johnston, IA), Hunter Chancellor (Evansville, IN), Emily Chapman (Tucson, AZ), and Abigail Mutrux (St. Louis, MO).

To qualify for the competition, competitors must be 17 years or under and have placed first or second in qualifying classes during the qualification period. The USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final is held in two phases beginning with a preliminary round where all entries complete rail work in groups of 15 or less and perform an individual pattern. The judging panel will select finalists who will then compete in the closing round which is comprised of additional rail work and a second individual pattern. The preliminary rail work, preliminary workout, final rail work, and final workout each count equally toward the outcome of the class.

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Breeds, Competitions, Events, More/Other, National Horse Show, Phelps Media Group

American Saddlebreds Create Excitement at Alltech National Horse Show

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David Rudder and Phind the Treasure. Photos By: Brooke Jacobs with Jacobs Photography

Lexington, KY – November 3, 2012 – Saturday night at the 129th Edition of the Alltech National Horse Show, the American Saddlebred Divisions concluded their amateur division championships of Three Gaited, Park Horse and Five Gaited. The return of the Saddle Horses to the Alltech National Horse Show at the Alltech Arena in Lexington, KY has been met with much enthusiasm.

Kentucky is a hub of some of the most celebrated trainers in the American Saddlebred world and it is only natural that with the move of the Alltech National Horse Show to the area, that the American Saddlebreds return to the fold of the tradition rich show.

The crowd was keyed up after enjoying the extremely exciting $250,000 Alltech Grand Prix, a spectacular FEI World Cup qualifier. When the jumps were cleared and the ring was dragged the $1,500 Park Horse Amateur Championship began.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, National Horse Show, Phelps Media Group, Show Jumping

Tim Gredley and Unex Valente Soar to Top of $50,000 Puissance at Alltech National Horse Show

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Tim Gredley and Unex Valente. Photos By: Rebecca Walton

Lexington, KY – November 2, 2012 – Great Britain’s Tim Gredley proved to be one of the world’s bravest riders this evening when he galloped up to a 7’6″ wall aboard his talented mount Unex Valente. The pair was already champions of the $50,000 Puissance at Alltech National Horse Show, 129th edition after being the only horse and rider combination to clear the 7″ wall. Although they were unsuccessful during their final attempt, the crowd was on their feet to cheer on the brave rider at the Alltech Arena in Lexington, KY.

Eight entries gathered for tonight’s class to jump the wall built by Richard Jeffery of Bournemouth, England, the first time this show had hosted the event in 11 years. For the first round the jump was set at 5’9″, but as the height rose the number of riders left continued to dwindle. First it went up to 6’3″, then 6’6″ and finally for a brave final three, 7′.

Having successfully completed all three of the first heights, Gredley was the first to make the daunting gallop towards the in-gate with Unex Valente, owned by Unex Competition Yard. The pair made it look easy, clearing the wall with all the pieces intact.

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Breeds, Competitions, Events, More/Other, National Horse Show, Phelps Media Group

Deknatel and CH The Daily Lottery Rock the Rack to Win the Five-Gaited Amateur Stake

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Heir to a Kiss and Dr. Merrell Magelli. Photos By: Brooke Jacobs with Jacobs Photography

Lexington, KY – November 1, 2012 – The American Saddlebreds made a triumphant return into the fold of the Alltech National Horse Show on Wednesday night to the delight of the spectators. The favorite breed of enthusiasts like William Shatner and Carson Kressley, the breed is known for its style, stamina and its bold, high-stepping way of moving.

Thursday evening at the Alltech National Horse Show, American Saddlebreds showed in Three-Gaited, Park Horse and Five-Gaited classes.

“They’re both three-gaited – walk, trot and canter,” said Marie Billings with the American Saddlebred Museum at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY about the difference between Three-Gaited and Park Horse classes. “The Three Gaited horses are shown with a roached mane. They are the ultimate in beauty and refinement with their graceful head carriage and the animation and action of their movement.”

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Breeds, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, National Horse Show, Phelps Media Group, Show Jumping

High Stepping and High Jumping at the 2012 Alltech National Horse Show

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Misdee Wrigley Miller and WGC Grande Gil. Photo credit Doug Shiflet

Lexington, KY – August 13, 2012 – The Alltech National Horse Show announced today that this year’s show has added a variety of exhilarating American Saddlebred events to the agenda for the 2012 show, joining the top flight show jumpers and world-class hunters classes already on the schedule.

Following a successful debut last year, the second edition of the Alltech National Horse Show in Lexington, Kentucky, is set for October 30 through November 4, 2012. The show will once again be held at the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park.

The Saddlebred Horse division at the Alltech National Horse Show will feature four sections: Amateur and Open classes for Five and Three Gaited Horses, Fine Harness Horses and Amateur classes for Three Gaited Park Horses.

In addition to those Saddlebred classes, in what should be a tremendous crowd pleasing favorite, the dynamic Roadster Horses will compete in one electrifying class for a huge prize money jackpot in the $25,000 Equine Services Roadster Cup sponsored by Walsh Harness and Equine Services LLC.

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Championships, Competitions, Events, Hunter/Equitation, More/Other, USEF

Kristen Smith Takes Top Honors at the USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final

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Kristen Smith, the winner of the 2012 USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final, riding Who Needs Mama (Howard Schatzberg)

Lexington, KY – Kristen Smith of Smithfield, KY rode Stephens College’s Who Needs Mama through heavy downpours to the championship win in the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final, under the tutelage of Zubrod Stables. The Final took place Friday the 13th as part of the Lexington Junior League Charity Horse Show at the historic Red Mile Race Track in Lexington, KY.

“It was very wet, but definitely worth it in the end,” said Smith, a member of 2012 U. S. Saddle Seat World Cup Team heading to Parys, South Africa in December. She added, “It was really important to me to do well in the class. I felt very rewarded after the hard work I put in to receive such a high honor.”

A very talented group of riders from across the country performed on the rail as a group and completed an individual pattern created by the judges. The judging panel was Lisa Waller from Heiskell, Tennessee, Bill Waller from Heiskell, Tennessee, and Paul Boone from Concord, North Carolina.

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