Week in Review - U.S. Equestrian

The Countdown to Aachen Begins as USEF Announces Eventing Squad and Endurance Team; Greatest Equestrian Showdown in the World Begins August 20, with 500,000 Expected to Attend

With just over four weeks to go until the kickoff of the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Aachen, Germany, the U.S. teams in all seven disciplines are nearly finalized and looking stronger than ever. The disciplines at the FEI World Equestrian Games are dressage, vaulting, show jumping, reining, driving, endurance and eventing. The Games will begin August 20 and will run through September 3. Over 400,000 tickets have already been sold and nearly 1,000 athletes from 61 countries are polishing their tack and preparing for the greatest equestrian showdown in the world.

For the full story and a list of the U.S. athletes, click here.

The United States Equestrian Federation® is pleased to announce the endurance team for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games. Five horse-and-rider combinations and one replacement horse were selected to represent the U.S. at the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany, August 20-September 3. The endurance competition will take place on August 21.

USEF Announces U.S. Eventing Athletes to Travel to England and Train for 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games

The United States Equestrian Federation® (USEF) announced today that eight horse/rider combinations were selected to travel to England and train with Chef d’Equipe Captain Mark Phillips in preparation for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games. From this list of horses and riders a complete squad of six horse/rider combinations will eventually be named. Four of the squad members were named today, as well as four replacement combinations. The two remaining positions on the squad will be selected from the list of replacements.

Top U.S. Eventing Athletes Ride Their Final Test Before the Short-Listed Team Heads Overseas for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games

On a day when most people would do anything to remain indoors in the air conditioning, 11 of the United States’ top eventing horse-and-rider combinations were at the Horse Park of New Jersey in 100+ degree weather performing all three phases of the mandatory short list outing for their spot on the team that will head to Aachen, Germany, for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games. Amy Tryon and Poggio II were the only horse-and-rider team not present. Tryon rode at the mandatory final outing at Barbury Castle in England last week.

Good News for Equestrian Fans: 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games Tickets Still Available

Further tickets are on sale for the FEI World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany, for 2006. Tickets are even available for the extremely popular dressage and show jumping finals. Up-to-date information can be obtained under www.aachen2006.de and tickets can be ordered from the hotline +49 (0)241-917-1111.

USEF Names Ed Young as Chef d’Equipe for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games Four-In-Hand Driving Team

The United States Equestrian Federation® (USEF) announced today that Ed Young of Geneseo, NY, will serve as the chef d’equipe for its 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games Four-in-Hand Driving Team in Aachen, Germany. His experience includes officiating as a technical delegate, scoring, organizing, competing and volunteering. He also assumes the position of show manager for the Walnut Hill Driving Competition in Pittsford, NY. He holds credentials as a technical delegate for combined driving with the International Equestrian Federation (FEI), USEF and the American Driving Society (ADS) and is also carded as a pleasure driving technical delegate and course designer with the USEF and ADS.

United States Equestrian Federation's Choice Hotels International Discount and More

How would you like to win a MILLION DOLLARS this summer? Visit choicehotels.com between June 1 and August 17 and enter the Key-to-a-Million Sweepstakes! You just might be the winner! Additionally, as a USEF member, you are able to take advantage of a 20% discount at over 5,000 participating Comfort®, Quality®, Sleep®, Clarion®, Econo Lodge®, Rodeway®, MainStay Suites® and Suburban Extended Stay Hotel® properties worldwide. Make reservations via www.choicehotels.com or (800) 258-2847. Book in advance and reference the USEF Special Rate Identification Number 00207740. To get news about promotions, Choice Hotels International property information, new www.choicehotels.com features and more, subscribe to Choice's e-newsletter, the SOS Sentinel. Send an e-mail to ndija_kakumba@choicehotels.com to be added to the SOS Sentinel subscription list. Use the subject 'Subscribe' and don't forget to note that you are a USEF member.

Six was the magic number for Brooke Jacobs of Georgetown, KY. Jacobs has entered the USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final every year since its inception in 2001, and this year she took home the Gold medal with a unanimous vote from the judges. Her mount was Callaway’s Show Me When, an 11-year-old American Saddlebred gelding owned by Werk Way Stables. The championship was especially sweet for Jacobs who was on home turf and had a large family presence, including her trainer father, Brent Jacobs.

USEF Now Accepting Nominations for 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award – The Jimmy A. Williams Trophy

The United States Equestrian Federation® is now accepting nominations for the 2006 USEF Lifetime Achievement Award. The USEF Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual whose “lifetime experience and accomplishments exemplify uncommon devotion to the sport of competition with horses and whose equestrian career and horsemanship have continually elevated the sport’s excellence.” This year’s honoree will be presented the Jimmy A. Williams trophy during the 2007 USEF Annual Meeting in Louisville, KY.

USEF Mid-Year Board Meeting: New Strategic Plan to Be Developed and Changes to Mileage Rule Passed

The USEF Board of Directors met in Lexington, KY, on July 11 and addressed a relatively light agenda with few proposed bylaw or rule changes.

In their respective reports, USEF President David O’Connor and Chief Executive Officer John Long announced that a new strategic planning process will begin in the next several months with the objective of guiding the Federation for the next decade. It will address such issues as grassroots support and development; the rule creation and change process; the size and content of the Rule Book; and technological advancements to better support members, competitions and connect the equestrian community. Long said upgrades in software and hardware technology will be introduced at the USEF starting this year.

Marion Maybank has been promoted to the position of Director of Hunter and Collegiate Activities for the United States Equestrian Federation®. She assumes the position vacated by Andrea Ice, who had been with USEF since 1993 and is moving overseas. Maybank’s duties will include oversight of the Hunter Department, under the supervision of Karen Homer-Brown, Managing Director, National Affiliates. In addition, Maybank will continue her efforts in developing and implementing collegiate equestrian programs with the NCAA. Among the major championship programs that she will direct are the 2006 USEF Pony Finals National Championships, the 2006 Pessoa/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final presented by Becker College, the 2006 Show Circuit Magazine/USEF National Junior Hunter Championship – East and West Coast, as well as the 2006 Sallie B. Wheeler/USEF National Hunter Breeding Championship presented by Vita-Flex – Eastern and Western phases.

Dressage Young Horses Countdown to the USEF/Markel National Young Horse Dressage Championships

A record number of 120 horses have been nominated to compete in the 2006 USEF/Markel National Young Horse Dressage Championships, which will be held at the Kentucky Horse Park, September 8-10 in Lexington, KY. Please note the complete nomination list is now posted on the USEF/Markel Young Horse Dressage Program page at www.usef.org/content/equestrianSports/disciplines/international/2004-YH-Program.php.

For the full story, click here.

The Youth National Arabian and Half-Arabian Championship Horse Show (Youth Nationals) will celebrate its 14th anniversary in Albuquerque, NM, when it returns to Expo New Mexico, July 22-29, 2006. The Arabian Horse Association (AHA) of Aurora, CO, produces the weeklong event that features top-level horse show competition, a shopping expo, annual youth convention and many exciting activities.

Third Year in a Row for Margie Engle and Hidden Creek’s Wapino at Merrill Lynch Cleveland Grand Prix

For the eighth time in her career, and for the third year in a row on Hidden Creek’s Wapino, Margie Engle raced to victory in the $65,000 Merrill Lynch Cleveland Grand Prix, the nation’s oldest show jumping classic. The class is still held at the beautiful Metropark Polo Field in Moreland Hills, OH, the site of the original Cleveland Grand Prix, first held in 1965.

Beginning January 1, 2007, the Appaloosa Horse Club (ApHC) will issue Performance Permits to ApHC-registered, non-characteristic (N) Appaloosas. Permits allow all non-characteristic Appaloosas, regardless of parentage or age, to show in ApHC-approved and sponsored events, as well as race with results counting toward ApHC race awards. Once a permit is issued, it remains in effect for the life of the horse, regardless of ownership changes.

Horses Ship by FedEx to Europe for FEI World Equestrian Games

The United States Equestrian Federation would like to thank FedEx for providing discounted fares for our horses shipping abroad for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games. For more information on shipping your horse with FedEx, please contact the FedEx Live Animal Desk at (800) 405-9052.

2006 Biltmore Estate Summer Classics Provides Top Competition and Championships

With moderate temperatures, gentle breezes and an unparalleled view, it’s no surprise why the Biltmore Estate Summer Classics remain one of the season’s most popular events for competitors across the country. Improvements made to the stabling areas, roads and ring walkways were the icing on the cake for exhibitors this year.

Week One kicked off with top-notch hunter competition in the main ring. From the Baby Green division, it was veteran rider Harold Chopping riding Tarantella for owner Sandy Yancey taking championship honors, and emerging professional Michael Tokaruk partnered with Polaroid for owner Mary Haley Hamm receiving the tri-color ribbons in the Hopeful Hunter division. Encore, owned and ridden by Brandi Carpenter, was named Classic Hunter Champions for Week One.

Woodside Horse Park Marks 25th Year with Celebration and Reopening of Advanced-Level Cross-Country Course

The Horse Park at Woodside in Menlo Park, CA, will mark its 25th anniversary in August as a venue for the sport of three-day eventing with the reopening of its most challenging cross-country jumping course and a reception/fundraiser.

The August 11-13 Event at Woodside Summer is the first Horse Park event in a half decade to offer an advanced division; this level of three-day competition requires that horses jump obstacles up to four feet tall and six feet wide on a winding, and often hilly, cross-country course. As a United States Eventing Association (USEA) Gold Cup event, it is part of a series in which riders compete for $100,000 in prize money.

Americans Show Strong Presence at the Capital Classic Show Jumping Tournament in Canada

American Olympian Joe Fargis claimed the first win of the Capital Classic Show Jumping Tournament on Wednesday, July 12. The international show jumping tournament ran July 12-16 at the Nepean National Equestrian Park in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

A total of 41 horse-and-rider combinations took to the grass grand prix field to attempt the 1.40-m track set by renowned course designer Conrad Homfeld of the United States. Homfeld is one of five course designers currently being considered for the 2008 Olympic Games.

USDF Announces Dressage Teams for the 2006 North American Junior and Young Riders’ Championships

The United States Dressage Federation (USDF) announced the riders selected to represent the U.S. in dressage at the 2006 CN North American Junior and Young Riders’ Championships (NAJYRC) held August 1-6, at the Virginia Horse Center, in Lexington, VA. A total of 61 International Equestrian Federation (FEI) Junior and Young Riders will represent the nine USDF regions.

The NAJYRC is an exciting competition with a format similar to the Olympics, with teams of riders from the United States, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean Islands and Bermuda competing in dressage, eventing and show jumping. 2006 is the first year that FEI Junior Riders are competing at this Olympic-like event.

Steve Schaeffer and Winchester Out-Jump a Field of 20 to Win the $25,000 Grand Prix of Traverse City

Steve Schaefer of Maple Park, IL, and his horse, Winchester, out-jumped a field of 20 to win the $25,000 Grand Prix of Traverse City during Series I of Horse Shows by the Bay in Traverse City, MI. Eight horse-and-rider combinations returned to compete over the shortened course designed Sunday by international course designer Guilherme Jorge. Schaefer and Winchester crossed through the finish markers penalty-free and in a time of 46.486 seconds, almost two seconds faster than second-place finisher and local crowd favorite Melissa Anne Hirt and Mighty Mess of Northern Pines Farm.

The art of driving horses to carriages was borne of necessity: as everyone knows, the only options for getting anywhere before automobiles and trains came along were to either walk, ride a horse or drive a horse or pony with a carriage or wagon. There were horse-drawn vehicles for transporting people and goods and for taking leisurely or sporting drives in city parks or in the country.

Thus, the sport of carriage driving grew out of this necessity and flourished right alongside other horse sports and horse shows. Owners and drivers of fine horses and fancy carriages entered the various driving classes at horse shows, large and small, including New York’s famous National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden. Before and after the advent of the automobile, these competitors entered driving classes to show off the quality and performance of their horses, the proper and appropriate “turnout” of their carriages and themselves, or their skill in handling the reins. Still other groups of drivers would gather with other like-minded drivers to engage in “sporting” drives through the country or in large cities such as New York. In that earlier era, it was no doubt fairly common for a family’s fancy carriage horse or horses to be driven for work or play during the week and then in the local horse show on the weekend. The vestiges of these driving activities can still be seen in today’s driving sports.

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.