Double Olympic Gold medalist Beezie Madden won her first grand prix of the 2009 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) on Thursday, March 12, aboard Onlight in Round X of the $30,000 Braman Motorcars WEF Challenge Cup Series. Madden of Cazenovia, NY, and Onlight, owned by Team Onlight, were the only double-clear round from the initial 49 entries for the class in the DeNemethy arena. Only four combinations made it to the jump-off on the the course designed by Guilherme Jorge of Brazil. The time by...

The United States Hunter Jumper Association (USHJA) along with title sponsor SmartPak will offer a Trainers Symposium, May 1-3, 2009, at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA. Top industry professionals, Candice King, Patricia Griffith and Val Renihan will headline the event giving riders and trainers the opportunity to participate in practical training sessions and roundtable discussions. The USHJA first introduced the Trainers Symposiums in the fall of 2006 as a means to...

The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation is pleased to announce a very special opportunity for equestrians. The Gold Medal Olympic Show Jumping Clinic Series will be held at the historic training facility at Hamilton Farm in Gladstone, NJ. The series will offer a spring clinic with 1984 U.S. Olympic Team Gold medalist Joe Fargis and will continue in the fall with 2004 and 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Gold medalist McLain Ward. The clinics will benefit the USET Foundation in their pursuit...

The 2009 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) opened Wednesday to rave reviews for the $10-million makeover of the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. Opening day in almost perfect weather with temperatures reaching a high of about 80 degrees F (27 degrees Celsius) saw 854 hunter and jumper trips in 10 competition arenas. The annual George H. Morris Horsemanship Clinic filled another arena. Although the premiere jumper rings, International, DeNemethy and Mogavero arenas drew 231 entries...

If horses could talk, humans would certainly hear some amazing tales. The stories told by Jamaica, the 17-year-old combined driving horse that helped his owner Chester Weber win a Silver medal at the FEI World Championships in The Netherlands, would be some of the most inspiring. At first glance, the high-spirited champion combined driving horse bears little resemblance to the carriage horse in the childhood story Black Beauty . That’s until you learn that the gelding was rescued from a...

Caitlin Houlihan and Little Joe (Janice Hischer, owner and trainer) took home the championship ribbon from the first Riding for Reading class in Arizona, and earned some money for her school’s library along the way. Collman Equestrian Productions held the class as part of the Scottsdale Fall Preview (October 16-19). Earlier in the day, Houlihan won the Low Junior/Amateur Jumper Classic on her own Double O Seven. The Riding for Reading class marked her first time showing on the flat. "I wanted...

2008 was the 25th anniversary for the National Show Horse (NSH) Finals. The show was held September 17-20 in Springfield, IL. The weather could not have been better, and with over $200,000 in prize money available, you can almost always guarantee a good time with a lot of quality horses. This year was no exception. The judges were Cari Bartz, Gayle Lampe and Richard Petty. The National Show Horse Registry (NSHR) was very pleased with the addition of the Hackney Futurity, Hackney Pony and...

The Capital Challenge Horse Show is proud to open the 2008 show with the prestigious Monarch International Equitation Weekend. The Monarch International Equitation Weekend will take place on Saturday, September 27 and Sunday, September 28, kicking off the nine-day show held September 27-October 5 at the Prince George’s Equestrian Center in Upper Marlboro, MD. The best hunt seat equitation riders in the country will come together to compete in flat and over-fence classes. Saturday’s events will...

U.S. four-in-hand driving champion Chester Weber maintained a full schedule at the World Equestrian Festival held July 1-6 in Aachen, Germany. In addition to competing successfully, Weber spent time signing autographs at the Life Data Labs, Inc.®, display. Fresh off another undefeated year in the United States, Weber traveled to Europe in June to begin preparations for his European tour including CHIO Aachen, CAI-A Riesenbeck July 31- August 3, and culminating with the World Championship Teams...

Powerful winds and rain on the final day of the Kentucky Spring Horse Show instigated a change of plans for the $55,000 Commonwealth Grand Prix CSI***. Originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. in the Sheila C. Johnson Arena, early announcements informed exhibitors that the grand prix would be held in the indoor arena at 2:30 p.m. This alteration did not daunt Hidden Creek's Pamina L, who Margie Engle maneuvered flawlessly for an expeditious grand prix win. Out of 34 starters, 13 horses completed...