Coming in as draw 22 on Boom Shernic, by Boomernic out of She And Chic Dunit, Craig Schmersal knew the leading score was a 227. From the moment he and the six-year-old stallion ran to the dirt-churning stop, the crowd's attention was riveted. When the score—a 228—was announced, the hoots, hollers, and whistles were deafening. The waiting began at the National Reining Breeders Classic (NRBC) in the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, TX. Jordan Larson and Stop Like A Dream...

Tracy Fenney earned top honors in the $25,000 Grand Prix of Dallas on Sunday riding MTM Centano, owned by MTM Farm. Sunday's victory marks Fenney's third consecutive Dallas Harvest Grand Prix win, as well as her eighth time winning the class overall. The 2009 Dallas Harvest Horse Show concluded on Sunday following a successful week of competition at the Texas Rose Horse Park in beautiful Tyler, TX. The Dallas Harvest Horse Show is a very active supporter of Habitat for Horses, one of the...

Brazilian superstar Rodrigo Pessoa headed the winning line-up of international riders in Sunday's $75,000 Grand Prix de Penn National on the final day of the 64th Pennsylvania National Horse Show. Pessoa, Olympic Gold medalist and three-time World Cup winner, aboard Let's Fly, was the eighth rider on course and the first to navigate the course designed by Steve Stephens without a rail down. "I have been riding him for a little over a year and a half," said Pessoa. "I started him in the bigger...

Molly Rosin and Havarah's Charly Hold their Lead (Shannon Brinkman) Elkton, MD ¬– The temperatures dropped overnight but the competition continued to heat up at the 2008 Dansko Fair Hill International which is playing host to the 2008 USEF National CCI** and CCI*** Eventing Championships. The second day of dressage unfolded without a change to the top of the leaderboard in the CCI**. Local rider Molly Rosin and Havarah’s Charly staved off a charge from the Californian...

Lexington, KY - Gold medals from this summer’s CN FEI North American Junior/Young Riders Championship at the Colorado Horse Park Presented by Gotham North spelled good things for competitors Sir Neel and Sophie Benjamin (Jennifer Wenzel/Rein Photography) in the 2008 Platinum Performance/USEF Talent Search Finals. Talent Search Final-East winner Sophie Benjamin followed in her teammate Hannah Selleck’s (who won the West Coast Final two weeks ago) footsteps by winning the East Coast...

June 15th, the second day of the Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF Dressage Festival of Champions, got underway with the Brentina Cup. Organized for young adults and named for Debbie McDonald's World Cup Champion mare, the Brentina Cup is open to Steffen Peters (phelpsphoto.com) riders 21-25 years of age. Performing the Intermediaire II test, the horses in the Brentina Cup are developing their skills for the highest level of dressage competition. The second horse of the day filled up the ring with...

PhelpsPhotos.com/USEF Archives (Kaitlin Campbell on Rockette during the 2006 USEF Pony Finals National Championships.) Lexington, KY – At the close of what was the longest and largest USEF Pony Finals National Championships to date, Kaitlin Campbell of Upper Black Eddy, PA, was one happy camper. The 14-year-old Campbell rode five ponies at this year’s event and ended her sixth year at Pony Finals with the Overall Grand Champion title in the Wild Horsefeathers/USEF National Hunter...

As I sift through weekly e-mails and phone messages, I’m beginning to realize the United States Equestrian Federation’s best kept secret is no longer a best kept secret. Only a few months from its conception, and already, details of the USEF purchasing program are running through the rumor mill faster than juicy tabloid gossip. I should hardly be surprised. When money is involved, especially this much money, news tends to spread fast; and while we’re not working overtime to keep the news under...

One step out of the ring, internationally renowned equestrian Lynn Seidemann and Phoenix B knew they had put on a good show. Slated to ride second to last in the line-up, the pair pulled out all the stops to wow the judges with a spectacular performance Thursday. Make that a Silver medal-winning performance that surprised even Lynn. “It was a good day,” Lynn said modestly after the news started to filter back through the time zones into the States. With a Silver medal in tow and a...

San Juan Capistrano, CA - Robert Dover and FBW Kennedy were even better today than they were last weekend. Just prior to Dover’s ride, Guenter Seidel on Aragon and Steffen Peters on Floriano had exceptional rides creating a super-charged atmosphere, but Dover and Kennedy marched down the center line, saluted and never looked back. Their score of 78.917% kept them firmly in the lead. Seidel and Aragon were second with 74.167%, Peters and Floriano were third with 71.875%, Leslie Morse and...