Week in Review - U.S. Equestrian

The Saddle Club, United States Equestrian Federation^® and United States Pony Clubs Prince Philip Games Join Forces to Celebrate Young Riders and Promote Equestrian Sport

The Saddle Club, the world's most popular television series about girls and horses, has joined forces with the United States Equestrian Federation®, Inc. (USEF), and the United States Pony Clubs, Inc., to produce a series of special features for public television stations that promote equestrian sport and celebrate the commitment, teamwork and friendship of young riders at their national finals.

The Saddle Club video journals feature young riders at the United States Pony Clubs Prince Philip Games, the 2006 North American Junior and Young Riders Championships and the 2006 USEF Pony Finals National Championships, competing in pony races, dressage, show jumping and cross-country. The special features, included with episodes of the series on public television stations, will begin airing December 3, 2006.

AMHA’s Caitlin Novotny Named USEF Youth Sportsman’s Charter Award Winner

In a nod to the importance of youth in the present and future of the equestrian landscape, the United States Equestrian Federation® has awarded the inaugural USEF Youth Sportsman’s Charter Award to Oklahoma City’s Caitlin Novotny, a member of the American Morgan Horse Association (AMHA) and a freshman at Oklahoma State University.

Novotny beat out 42 other young equestrians to be awarded an all-expense paid career workshop (June 23-29, 2007). She will be invited to the USEF headquarters in Lexington, KY, for a weeklong apprenticeship, in which she will be exposed to the inner workings of the various departments and functions of the Federation. The opportunity will open doors to Novotny and allow her access to industry professionals. In addition to the apprenticeship, Novotny will receive a $1,000 scholarship, lifetime membership to the USEF and a trophy.

Once again, the USEF is offering the continuation of the successful Outreach Grant Program. This has been a valuable assistance to financially challenged breed shows that applied in 2006. Competitions must meet certain prerequisites and grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

A total of $125,000 has been budgeted for 2007. Each grant request will be evaluated by the National Affiliates staff with final approval by the Executive offices. An approved grant of up to $1,000 per competition must be used for specific expenses, such as EMTs, stewards, insurance and/or veterinarians. Upon conclusion of the event, the competition must submit to the Federation office how the money was used.

Transfer balances while leaving the interest payments behind, with the United States Equestrian Federation® Visa Platinum Card, now offering…

Wrap up great holiday memories with this unique card, knowing you’ll pay no interest on balance transfers until next winter. The U.S. Equestrian Federation Visa is perfect for stuffing stockings at home, or for taking the whole family to grandma’s house. Plus, you’ll benefit our international teams and earn great rewards with every purchase!

The U.S. Equestrian Federation® Visa Platinum Card also provides great benefits, including:

This Visa Platinum card issued by U.S. Bank is now the only card that supports the U.S. Equestrian Federation. Upon receiving your new card, the U.S. Equestrian Federation receives a payment from U.S. Bank and then we will continue to receive a percentage of each net purchase you make on your card. This helps us fund our international teams.

The creditor and issuer of the Visa Platinum card is the U.S. Bank National Association ND.

Owner and rider Sergio Campos of Longwood, FL, became the man to chase in the opening Welcome Stake of the Fall Series presented by Essex Classics at the Atlanta Fall Classics. Partnered with Shakira Do Jacare, a nine-year-old Brazilian mare bred at his family’s home in Brazil, Campos beat out a field of 24 nationally and internationally ranked competitors to take the victory.

The 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival Hosts Show Jumping Hall of Fame Year End Championships

Once again, the nation’s best equestrians will converge on Wellington, FL, for the 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival, beginning on November 29, 2006. The show is proud to host the best of the best from the amateur-owner jumper and junior jumper divisions.

The top-ranked riders from the year-long Show Jumping Hall of Fame Series (SJHOF) have once again been invited to compete in a head-to-head battle in Florida in their special year-end championships at the 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival. The Show Jumping Hall of Fame Junior and Amateur-Owner Jumper Championships each offer $15,000 in prize money. Each division, with three classes, offers a total of $25,000 in prize money.

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USEF members can now enjoy UPS discounts up to 30% off NEXT DAY and 2^ND DAY shipping and up to 5% off GROUND shipping services. To start to receive your savings, simply login to our specialized UPS website and select “Yes! Sign Me Up Now!” at www.savewithups.com/usef. Enter your information and your current UPS account number if you already have one. They will add our savings to your new Corporate UPS account. Once you have set up your account with the UPS discounts, you can use that account number at any UPS store and the discounts will apply. There is no code to take into UPS and receive discounts without setting up an account first. USEF is very happy to have such a great program with UPS to extend to its members.

Karin Offield of Offield Farms Offers USEF Members Interested in Dressage Free Membership to DressageDirect.com

Offield Farms has the opportunity to introduce all American dressage-interested USEF members to www.dressagedirect.com. Dressagedirect is dedicated to promoting the sport of dressage throughout the world.

In case you are not familiar with Dressagedirect, the service aims to provide its members with all international dressage show results on the grand prix level, along with interesting facts of the dressage community. This information is sent directly to the subscriber’s e-mail box shortly after each event.

For the full letter, click here.

The United States Equestrian Federation®, Inc. (USEF), as the National Equestrian Federation of the U.S., is the regulatory body for the Olympic and World Championship sports of dressage, driving, endurance, eventing, reining, show jumping, and vaulting, as well as 20 other breeds and disciplines of equestrian competition. As the country's largest multi-breed organization, the Federation has over 86,000 members and recognizes more than 2,800 competitions nationwide each year. It governs all aspects of competition, including educating and licensing all judges, stewards and technical delegates who officiate at these shows.

The vision of USEF is to provide leadership for equestrian sport in the United States of America, promoting the pursuit of excellence from the grass roots to the Olympic Games, based on a foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare of its horses, and embracing this vision, to be the best national equestrian federation in the world.