John French entered last week’s $10,000 Devoucoux Hunter Derby as a heavy favorite, and during the popular two-round classic, he showed exactly why when he captured the top two places in the class to conclude a fabulous week during Desert Circuit V at the HITS Desert Horse Park, in Thermal, CA. French, from Gilroy, CA, took the top placing aboard Lisa Martinez-Bates' Brego and was also second aboard Yellow Dog, LLC's Crown Affair en route to collecting $5,000 in prize money for the afternoon....

Steffen Peters and Ravel Won the 2009 FEI World Cup Final in Las Vegas (Shannon Brinkman/USEF Archive ) Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) has announced the seven horse/rider combinations that have been named to represent the United States at the Exquis World Dressage Masters in Wellington, FL February 4-6, 2010. The group of seven includes Steffen Peters and Ravel, the 2009 USEF Equestrian and Horse of the Year and the reigning FEI World Cup Champions and Leslie...

Slide Into the World Equestrian Games (Waltenberry/ USEF Archive) Lexington, KY – With 239 days to go (and counting) until the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, all eyes in the world of reining turn to qualifying efforts. Without exception, the highly contested four seats and one alternate named to represent the United States are on the line as top reiners from coast to coast scurry for qualifying opportunities. The remaining four scheduled CRIs in the United States, which will count for...

At its Annual Membership and Board Meeting, the Paso Fino Horse Association (PFHA) Board of Directors approved the relocation of its headquarters and outsourcing of selected administrative functions to the United States Equestrian Federations headquarters in Lexington, KY. The Paso Fino Horse Association was founded in 1972 and has been located in Plant City, FL, since 1995. The Board represents a membership of 5,800 individuals located throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, Switzerland,...

Equine Canada is pleased to announce that three FEI Para-Dressage courses will be held in conjunction with the WindReach International Para-Dressage CPEDI3*, which is being held May 28–30, 2010 in Ashburn, ON, and we are pleased to invite individuals from your National Federation to participate. An FEI para-dressage judge course, an FEI para-dressage steward course, and an FEI para-dressage classifier course will be offered onsite at the event. The courses promise to provide a wealth of...

Photo by Ken Braddick (Steffen Peters and Ravel) Lexington, KY – Talk about busy. 2009 has been a whirlwind, new champions of all kinds, title defenders, legends and innovators made headlines this year. The line between winning and losing has become increasingly fine as all the USEF competitors in every discipline continue to up their game, hone their skills and make the US Team proud both locally and across the globe. With the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG) looming on the...

The Appaloosa Horse Club (ApHC) would like to congratulate Leslie Foxvog of Phelan, CA, the 2009 recipient of the George Hatley Award. The George Hatley Award, named in honor of one of the ApHC’s founders, is decided annually by the Board of Directors in an effort to recognize an individual in the Appaloosa industry who contributed significantly to the growth and promotion of the Appaloosa breed within the past year. Foxvog has been an ApHC member for over 10 years, and actively promotes the...

The highly lauded trainer and rider Geoff Teall will be conducting an equitation clinic entitled "Back to Basics" on January 12 at 3:45 p.m. at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. Teall's clinic will be the first of a series of clinics sponsored by the Palm Beach Riding Academy in an effort to allow both riders and spectators access to some of the industry's top professionals. Participation in the clinic will be open to both junior and adult riders currently competing in a minimum...

The American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) has been researching and studying the sport of dressage for the past nine years. Through the efforts of countless individuals, including input from staff at the United States Dressage Federation (USDF) and the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF), dressage will become an AQHA-approved event beginning January 1, 2010. AQHA-registered horses, shown by exhibitors who are current individual members of AQHA, will be eligible to earn points at...

Stephen Rojek and Kathy Brunjes at the President’s Cup in Abu Dhabi (Kathy Brunjes Photo) Endurance athlete Stephen Rojek was named the recipient of the 2009 Maggy Price Endurance Excellence Award. The award, sponsored by Gold Medal Farm's Larry and Valerie Kanavy, is given out annually to the Endurance Rider who earns the most points in a competition year at designated FEI Endurance competitions. Rojek (South Woodstock, VT) won the Ocala CEI3* with Sambet and had top 10 finishes at the...