Week in Review - U.S. Equestrian

Florida’s Alexandra Flynn Takes Top Honor at 2006 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final

Alexandra Flynn, age 17, of Tampa, FL, riding Kalu’s Can’t Stop the Magic, was crowned champion of the 2006 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final, held November 18, as part of the UPHA/American Royal National Championship Horse Show in Kansas City, MO.

The USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final was determined through a two-phase competition that required both rail work and patterns. Twenty-eight riders competed in the morning round, and 12 of them were invited back to compete for the title.

The United States Equestrian Federation® has announced the nomination criteria for its Heroes for Horses Award, to be presented at the 2007 Pegasus Awards, January 12, in Louisville, KY. It is the second year that the prestigious award will be given.

This award is presented to an individual(s) or organization(s) that have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the protection and welfare of horses over a period of many years and/or have saved equines through an act of courage and resolve during a crisis situation.

USEF Outreach Program is Now Accepting Applications for the 2007 Competition Year; Submit your Request by December 15

The United States Equestrian Federation® (USEF) again asks our competition organizers and managers to consider becoming or continuing to be a part of the very successful Outreach Program which was initiated in 2005. This program has continued to build a productive bridge between the USEF staff, competition organizers, show managers and exhibitors/competitors. This gives USEF staff first-hand experience in observing and helping our licensed events, and the opportunity to learn about the issues facing our shows. This will ultimately allow us to better serve our members.

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.

United States Equestrian Team Foundation Awards Gladstone and Markham Trophies to Gina Miles and Emilee Libby at USEF CCI*** Championship

The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation was pleased to award the Gladstone and Markham Trophies this year to Gina Miles and Emilee Libby, two deserving three-day event riders.

On October 19-22, 2006, the prestigious Fair Hill Festival in Elkton, MD, hosted the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) CCI*** Championship, which is one of two three-star competitions in the country. The highest-placed American rider at Fair Hill was awarded the Gladstone Trophy by the USET Foundation. The top young rider at the USEF CCI*** Championship is awarded the Markham Trophy, which went to Emilee Libby on Cahir, who finished 12th in the CCI*** event.

The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation was proud to award this year’s Moore Trophy to driver Alan Aulson of Bronson, FL. This was the first time that Aulson has won the trophy.

Aulson and his team of Morgans, Nordby Coalie Duke and Meddo's Chief George, won the 2006 USEF National Pairs Championship on October 6-8, 2006, at the Shady Oaks CDE in Lodi, CA. Another career highlight for Aulson was his participation as a member of Team USA at the 2005 FEI World Pairs Driving Championships held in Salzburg, Austria. He is a Massachusetts native and owns the Black Prong Equestrian Center in Bronson, FL.

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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.

As the FEI Nations Cup series concluded in Buenos Aires, Argentina, last weekend, Belgium's promotion to the Samsung Super League in 2007 was confirmed. Having accumulated points from 13 of the 19 Nations Cup legs, which began in Wellington, FL, last March, Belgium finished with a total of 79.5 points, while Denmark slotted into second with 73 ahead of Italy in third with 71.5 points.

For the first time in almost three decades of history of the American Grand Prix Association (AGA) Series of Show Jumping, two top riders finished the season tied for 2006 AGA Rider of the Year honors with equal points. Margie Engle, of Wellington, FL, and Kent Farrington of Greenwich, CT, each finished the season with 120 points and a tie atop the leaderboard for the coveted AGA honors. The tiebreaker that secured Engle an unprecedented 10th Rider of the Year title was the number of clean rounds produced over the course of the season. Engle had 13 clear performances, while Farrington’s perfect performances totaled 11.

Roberto Teran and Jamestown Kick Off Week Two of the Atlanta Fall Classics With a Win

Roberto Teran riding Jamestown for owner King Ridge Stables, based in Reddick, FL, during the winter and Ontario, Canada, during the summer, won the Welcome Stake sponsored by John Deere on November 16.

The Nation’s Top Hunters Return to Florida for 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival

The 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival (NHS) will be held on November 29-December 3, 2006, at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, FL. The horse show is the finale for a year of competition, and many of the best hunters in the nation travel to South Florida to compete against each other.

Stellar Roster of Riders Highlights Fifth Annual Zada Enterprises, LLC, Dressage at the National

A star-studded roster of riders will compete for three days, December 1-3, 2006, in the Fifth Annual Zada Enterprises, LLC, Dressage at the National in Wellington, FL. The prestigious dressage show is featured, along with the country’s top hunters and jumpers at the 123rd National Horse Show and Family Festival, which runs November 29-December 3 at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club.

Nearly 1,000 Appaloosas from around the world converged in Fort Worth, TX, at the Will Rogers Memorial Center to compete at the 2006 World Championship Appaloosa Show October 27-November 4.

The nine-day event showcased the world’s top Appaloosas competing for world championship titles in 147 classes, including cattle, Western, English, jumping, games and halter. The show accumulated more than 2,299 class entries in both the non-pro and open divisions.

When Beezie Madden and Maggie McAlary galloped into the Washington International Horse Show (WIHS) indoor arena side-by-side donned with ribbons and glowing smiles on Saturday afternoon, October 28, McAlary thought she was having a dream.

“It was kind of unreal,” she later commented. She recalled thinking, “Oh my God, I am on a team with Beezie Madden, and we just won!”

American Saddlebred Horse Association Expands Age Group for Youth Conference

With planning underway for the 2007 American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA) Annual Meeting and Youth Conference, the ASHA has expanded the age group for its youth conference. All youth under 21 years of age are eligible to register for the 2007 ASHA Youth Conference, which will be held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting, Thursday through Saturday, February 15-17, at the Embassy Suites in Lexington, KY. The Annual Saddlebred Ball at the Keeneland Entertainment Center on Saturday night at 8 p.m. tops off the weekend.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the “Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act” (S. 3880) by voice vote on November 13. The bill clarifies that it is a crime to damage or interfere with a legitimate, legal animal enterprise.

As defined by the bill, “animal enterprise” includes commercial and academic enterprises that use or sell animals or animal products for profit, food, agriculture, education, research and testing. This definition also includes equine activities such as rodeos, horse shows and similar lawful equine events.

The HorseTV Channel’s December programming lineup features the first annual Northern Ireland International Horse Show, world premieres of the FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG) 2006 dressage, driving and show jumping competitions, a holiday marathon and a special January episode sneak peek.

The new International Friesian Show Horse Association (IFSHA) Board of Directors was installed at the recent General Meeting held on November 9, 2006, prior to the start of the IFSHA Grand Nationals.

It’s a big world of equestrian sport out there. And those who call it their passion are as different and important as the innumerable disciplines and breeds that make up the big picture.

Some, more than others, find themselves at a loss when they try to see themselves in the pictures and stories broadcast by the media and publications—the same ones that are supposed to portray “the whole of the sport.”

This feature article serves as testament to the power of one person raising her voice to ask a question or make a suggestion.

The subject line of a recent Letter to the Editor to EQUESTRIAN magazine was written in all caps: A SUGGESTION FROM A USEF OUTSIDER.

EQUESTRIAN magazine receives countless letters, e-mails and phone calls each
month regarding a wide spectrum of issues—from content to suggestions for future issues to countless press releases regarding a dizzying array of horse shows and horse happenings. However, the content of this particular e-mail stood out and spoke to a topic that had yet to be featured in the Federation’s almost seven decades of producing a monthly communiqué to its members.

The writer of the e-mail explained, quite eloquently, that every time she read a
horse-related magazine, she felt excluded. Every time she searched the magazine
racks for a publication that represented the world of horses that she lived in, she left empty-handed.

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.