Dressage

Wayne, Ill. – The final day of the 2026 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions got off to a wet start with rain in Wayne, Ill. but the competition at the HITS Lamplight Equestrian Center could not be dampened. Four new national champions were crowned across both arenas, including the USEF Dressage Seat Medal Final 14-18, the Markel/USEF 6- and 7-Year-Old Dressage National Championships, as well as the Aspen Leaf Farm/USEF Children Dressage National Championship. USEF Dressage Seat Medal...

Some horses are purchased, but some are priceless. Pedro was rescued for $900 out of a neglect situation, and more than a decade later, he's carried two generations of the same family to national competition, most recently finishing sixth in the Aspen Leaf Farm/USEF Pony Rider Dressage National Championship with 15-year-old Zoe Lewis of Elgin, Texas, in the irons. Pedro and Zoe Lewis with her mother, Marsha (left) and older sister, Ruby (right). (©US Equestrian) Pedro, a 2003 Appaloosa...

Adam Steffens-Smienk made the move from his native Minnesota to Wellington, Fla. at the age of 16 to chase his dreams. This week, that leap of faith has led him all the way to the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions at HITS Lamplight Equestrian Center. When Steffens-Smienk made the move, he had to start from the ground up, putting in lots of early mornings. He had started dressage lessons aboard Arabians in Minnesota and made the leap to Florida to accept a working student position at...

Wayne, Ill. – Competition continued at the HITS Lamplight Equestrian Center on Saturday with four new champions crowned in the Markel/USEF Developing Horse Prix St. Georges Dressage National Championship, Adequan®?/USEF Junior Dressage National Championship, and the Markel/USEF 4- and 5-Year-Old Dressage National Championships. The Children division began in the HITS Grand Prix Arena for their first day of testing as part of the Aspen Leaf Farm/USEF Children Dressage National...

Wayne, Ill. – Competition continued Friday at the U.S. Dressage National Championships, hosted at HITS Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Ill. Three new national champions topped the podium in the Markel/USEF Developing Horse Grand Prix National Championship, Aspen Leaf Farm/USEF Pony Rider Dressage National Championship, and the USEF Dressage Medal Seat Final 13 & Under. Six- and 7-year-old horses entered the HITS Arena for the first time this week, marking the start of both the...

Elan Stremmel of Cazanozia, N.Y., is making her first appearance at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions this week, riding her longtime partner Bitsy's Itsy, an 11-year-old Connemara-Oldenburg-Thoroughbred cross (Wasabi x Bitsy), in the Aspen Leaf Farm/USEF Pony Rider Dressage National Championship. Stremmel and Itsy with George Williams, US Equestrian Dressage Youth Coach and High Performance & Pathway Development Advisor (©US Equestrian) "She loves to work, and she loves to do...

Wayne, Ill. – Three new national champions were recognized on the fourth day of the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions at the HITS Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Ill. The Developing PSG and Young Horses also took their first turns down the centerline in the Markel/USEF Developing Horse Prix St. Georges National Championship, as well as the Markel/USEF Four-Year-Old and Five-Year-Old National Championships, all taking place in the HITS Arena on Thursday afternoon. The...

Wayne, Ill. – Two new national champions were crowned today at the 2026 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions. The Adequan®/USEF Para Dressage National Championships came to a conclusion in the HITS Grand Prix Arena with Maura Wamsley and Arteon earning the Adequan®/USEF Grand Prix Para Dressage National Championship title, and Elizabeth Welch and Baltico BRH securing the Adequan®/USEF Intermediaire I Para Dressage National Championship title. The Markel/USEF Developing Horse...

Practically raised in the dressage saddle, Cassie Benson grew up riding alongside her family members at Hilltop Dressage, located in Heber City, Utah. Eventually, Benson took over her grandmother’s role in the business as a trainer alongside her aunt, Margo Gogan. As a child, the farm was a haven for Benson. Whether she was frustrated or sad, horses were her safe space, and you could always find her down at the barn. ©Impulsion Images “Being with them, hearing them eat, their...

An impromptu shopping trip for a student turned into Tillie Jones finding her now up-and-coming Grand Prix partner, Cilla Franchesca. “Coco,” as she’s known in the barn, came into Jones’ life when she least expected it, and the pair has blossomed into serious competitors and partners. Finding her way to the saddle at 7, Jones became enamored with the sport after her family surprised her with a horseback riding lesson. “They blindfolded me, took me out to a barn, I...

Wayne, Ill. – The 2026 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions opened Monday at HITS Lamplight Equestrian Center, with the first tests underway for the Brentina Cup, Intermediaire I, and Adequan®/USEF U.S. Para Dressage National Championships. Competition follows a clean bill of health for the combinations. Every horse entered across the three championship divisions passed the veterinary inspection held Sunday afternoon in the Grand Prix Arena, clearing the way for this week's...

In June, the US Equestrian Board approved changes to DR121 Saddlery and Equipment, tracking 144.25, which removes the option to use double bridles at Third Level, beginning Dec. 1, 2026. (You can find all rule changes approved in June, including this one here .) It’s a change that’s garnered a lot of conversation, and you may be wondering how it came about. “This discussion has been in the committees for at least 15 years, so it’s not a knee-jerk reaction,” said...