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Here you can find our archive of stories from Equestrian Weekly, our once-a-week look at affiliate news, international competition, amateur profiles, horse care tips, and more. You’ll also find stories from the USEF Insider, a twice-monthly email newsletter packed with features about USEF people and programs, including our drugs and medications program, regulations, and competitions departments.

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Horses Inspire Smiles, Build Strength

by Glenye Cain Oakford | June 12, 2018

Ethan Simmons and his mother Maria Cristina Velasquez Simmons know better than most how horses can transform a person’s life. Ethan Simmons and an equine friend. Photo: Courtesy of Cristina Simmons Ethan, a six-year-old in Miami, Fla., was diagnosed with autism when he was three. He would not speak and, Cristina says, “He had a general poor development curve, so he had issues from the very beginning with walking and with balance.” From an early age, activities that required

Devon: A Driver’s Delight

by Glenye and Christopher Oakford | May 29, 2018

The Devon Horse Show and Country Fair , streaming live now on USEF Network , is one of the nation’s most prestigious venues for hunters, jumpers, and saddle seat riders. But for the American driving community, it’s both a historic, world-class competition and a homecoming. The show—the United States’ oldest and largest outdoor multi-breed competition—is famous for the variety of world-class competition it offers. But for those in the sport of carriage pleasure

“I Get to Share Their Joy, and They Get to Share Mine”

by Glenye Cain Oakford | May 8, 2018

Carlyn Nuyda-Calloway and her daughters Eloise and Faye. “It’s made us so much closer as a family,” Carlyn said of their life together with horses. Photo credit: Gina Falcone/Courtesy of Carlyn Nuyda-Calloway In families where parents and children both ride, that experience can be especially fulfilling. That’s what California-based fashion designer and Meditation Studio owner Carlyn Nuyda-Calloway and her daughters, Eloise and Faye, have found. The three are the latest

All About Sarcoids

by Glenye Cain Oakford | May 1, 2018

Sarcoids are the most common skin tumors diagnosed in horses and ponies. Although they’re not usually regarded as life-threatening, they can be unsightly and uncomfortable for the horse, depending partly on the tumor’s location. Sarcoids vary widely in size and appearance. Photo: Dr. Liz Barrett “They’ll infiltrate the local tissue and skin, but they’re not like a tumor that will metastasize and spread to the lungs or liver or different organ systems,” said

Helpful Hints: Checking Your Points

by US Equestrian Communications Department | May 1, 2018

Have you been receiving emails from US Equestrian asking you to check your points? This is a new feature that we have implemented, giving our members an easier way to keep up with any bad points they may have earned at USEF Competitions! For every competition, points are split into two categories: “good” and “bad.” Bad points don’t count towards Horse of the Year awards or qualifications for championships or shows. A horse can accumulate bad points for a number of

“It Takes Two”

by Glenye Cain Oakford | April 27, 2018

International eventing athlete Will Faudree made his Kentucky Three-Day Event debut in 2003 with Antigua and has ridden there numerous times since then, most recently in 2017 on Pfun. Last year’s event was a remarkable comeback for Faudree, who was returning to four-star competition after sustaining a broken neck two years earlier. Will Faudree on Pfun after completing their show jumping round at the 2017 Kentucky Three-Day Event. Photo: Taylor Pence In addition to riding at Kentucky,

Sunday’s US Equestrian Sponsor Activities at LRK3DE

by Dana Rossmeier and Ivy Johnson | April 26, 2018

Instagram-famous Patrick the Miniature Horse (RedBayStock.com) Make sure to check out the many US Equestrian sponsor booths while at the LRK3DE. On Sunday, visit the Land Rover “Ultimate Stable” and meet U.S. Olympian Phillip Dutton as well as Instagram-famous Patrick the Miniature Horse. Patrick will also be available for a meet-and-greet on Sunday at the Absorbine booth. US Equestrian Sponsor Booths Absorbine Sponsor Village: Booth 19 Patrick the Miniature Horse –11 a.m.

What You Need to Know About the Changes to FEI Eventing Dressage Scoring

by Ashley Swift | April 25, 2018

Every year, fans of the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event are in for at least one new experience, and that’s part of what makes this CCI4* competition’s motto—“The Best Weekend All Year”—ring true: between the thrills of competition, special events, and changes in the sport, the event and the sport are ever-evolving. Photo by RedBayStock.com This year, one important change involves scoring: the dressage phase is kicking off the competition with revamped

What is a Dressage Test Ride? Why Does it Matter?

by Ashley Swift | April 25, 2018

The first day of competition at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 26, with the dressage phase at Rolex Stadium. Before the dressage tests can get underway, an essential step in preparing the Ground Jury for two days of dressage judging is the dressage test ride, sponsored this year by Hylofit. Photo by RedBayStock.com The dressage test ride is an FEI standard for all CCI events. The horse-and-rider combination that performs the test

Five Things to Know About the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event

by Glenye Cain Oakford | April 24, 2018

The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event (LRK3DE), which also hosts the Land Rover/USEF CCI4* Eventing National Championship, kicks off this week. This iconic American sporting event, which takes place April 26-29, annually draws top international horses and riders to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky., for world-class eventing competition. We’ll be streaming all three phases—dressage, cross-country, and show jumping—live on USEF Network , so be sure to check out the

Collegiate Equestrian Programs See Growth During Spring Championship Season

by Glenye Cain Oakford | April 24, 2018

There’s plenty of good news about intercollegiate equestrian programs, with new teams getting involved and national championship season now underway. The SCAD equestrian team’s (left to right) Hannah Hlopak, assistant coach Abbie Gibson (standing), Sarah Gordon, Adam Edgar, head coach Ashley Henry (standing), and Madelyn Keck celebrate the team’s fourth ANRC National Intercollegiate Equitation Championship. Photo credit: Giana Terranova Photography In California, UC Davis

“The People’s Pony”: Honoring Theodore O’Connor at LRK3DE

by Ashley Swift | April 24, 2018

Famed eventer Theodore O’Connor might have been small of stature, but the 14.1-hand Thoroughbred/ Arabian / Shetland -cross eventing pony certainly had an outsized impact. Bred by Wynn Norman and owned by the Theodore O’Connor Syndicate, “Teddy” was an unexpected star who set the eventing world on fire with multi-time Olympic, Pan American, and World Equestrian Games veteran, Karen O’Connor. She began riding him in 2005 after young rider Christan Trainor competed