An abundance of high-performance riders will call HITS Culpeper home this week as show jumping for the United States Grand Prix League (USGPL) Finals began on September 24 with the $100,000 USGPL Invitational Grand Prix taking the stage on Sunday. Headlining the feature class is Canadian Olympian Jill Henselwood who comes to the USGPL Finals with the Silver medal she earned as a member of Team Canada during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Hong Kong. The well-decorated grand prix rider won the...

Final preparations for the 15th annual Capital Challenge Horse Show are under way at the Prince George’s Equestrian Center in Upper Marlboro, MD. The show begins on Saturday, September 27, continuing through Sunday, October 5. The first weekend features the Taylor Harris Insurance Services National Children’s Medal Finals and the Monarch International North American Junior and Adult Equitation Championships. Horses and riders are streaming in from all parts of the country to join in the...

Tickets for the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games will go on sale one year from today, on September 25, 2009. The announcement of ticket sales comes at the “Halfway There” Celebration with two years to go until the Games. “We are excited to announce the much-anticipated on-sale date for tickets to the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games,” said Ruth Mason, Director of Ticketing. “With a high demand for tickets, we have created a ticket program that will be accessible and affordable for...

One of the most exciting American Saddlebred promotions of the year will take place at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, October 24, 2008, at the Verizon Center in downtown Washington D.C. The Washington International Horse Show (WIHS) will be celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. In honor of this event, the American Saddlebreds have been invited back once again to perform in Washington, D.C., as they did 36 years ago. American Saddlebreds will perform an exciting exhibition before a spectator...

The United States Hunter Jumper Association’s “Building For Growth” Capital Campaign will officially launch on Thursday, September 25, at the Kentucky Horse Park (KHP) from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The launch event will be held at the historic “Farmhouse” on the grounds of the Kentucky Horse Park. This event will kick off the USHJA’s Capital Campaign to raise all funds necessary to construct and maintain a nationally recognized headquarters at the Kentucky Horse Park, the epicenter of equestrian...

New products will be available at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games online merchandise store in time for the "Halfway There" celebration marking two years to go in the countdown to the 2010 Games. New merchandise will include "Halfway There" T-shirts, which continues a line of horseshoe designs from the "Three Years to Go" celebration in 2007. In addition, vanity license plates, plate frames, and car decals will be available for purchase at the Games online store for the first time during...

There was a short press briefing at CSIO Barcelona on September 20 during which the FEI's First Vice-President Sven Holmberg and FEI Jumping Director John Roche answered questions relating to the new-formula FEI Nations Cup series 2009. By way of background, Holmberg explained that the current contract stipulated that negotiations with a new sponsor should not begin until January 1, 2008, and that this was a short time considering what needed to be done including creating a new product, finding...

Already an active supporter of horse shows from the local to national levels and spanning from hunter/jumper and dressage to reining and Western pleasure, SmartPak™ announced that they have partnered with HITS for their upcoming winter circuits. The partnership spans both coasts with a sponsorship of the HITS Ocala Winter Circuit in Florida and a sponsorship of the HITS Desert Circuit in Thermal, CA, two of the biggest horse show circuits in the United States. In preparation for the eight-week...

Tickets are now available for EQUUS "Deal or No Deal" event at the Syracuse Invitational Sporthorse Tournament on Friday, October 31, 2008. Hosted by Bates Saddles, The EQUUS Foundation will feature the top junior equitation riders competing at the show as the Deal or No Deal Suitcase Models. The event, which will held in the OnCenter Ballroom from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m, will take place simultaneously with the Bates Equitation Meeting where equitation riders, trainers and parents will have the...

Two water towers in Shelby County will soon showcase its biggest tourist attraction—American Saddlebreds, as reported by Nathan L. McBroom in the Shelbyville (Kentucky) Sentinel-News . The Shelbyville Water and Sewer Commission voted Monday night, September 15, 2008, to allow the Shelbyville Horse Show to paint Saddlebred murals on the water towers in downtown Shelbyville and at Weissinger Hills Golf Course. The Horse Show will paint the murals on the towers at its expense. The...