By Phelps Media Group The program was created by friends and family of Burr to promote and perpetuate good horsemanship in younger equestrians in 2002, and has been held at the USEF Pony Final National Championships solely until now. Children participating take a written horsemanship test, based on their age group. The winners of the written test in each age group then take a hands-on horsemanship test. The four winners, one from each age group, receive a monetary grant towards furthering their...

Sixty years ago, Farnam Companies, Inc., was a diamond in the rough--a name that was introduced as a small mail-order operation in the Midwest. Since 1946, the Farnam brand has become a premier provider of animal health care and nutritional products. In fact, the Farnam name is as ubiquitous in the equine industry as NIKE® is in the sports world. To celebrate 60 years of sharing its passion for animals with its customers, Farnam is holding a Customer Appreciation Sweepstakes to award several...

“Wow, this feels really good. I think I am still in shock,” said a proud Sandy Ferrell of Bernville, PA, after negotiating Sarah Chovnick’s Late Entry to win the 2006 AHJF Hunter Classic Spectacular at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, FL, on Saturday evening, February 18. A record crowd witnessed the 38-year-old professional negotiate the seven-year-old bay Hanoverian gelding to their first Hunter Classic victory. Started in 1997, the Hunter Classic was celebrating its 10th...

Wellington Dressage at the 2006 Winter Equestrian Festival wrapped up on Sunday, February 5, following four days of dressage competition at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, FL. More than 200 horses from across the country competed in the four-ring show, which included 60 classes encompassing Training Level through Grand Prix. Featured classes were the qualifying competitions for the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games Selection Trials, and qualifiers for the 2006 Collecting Gaits...

Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation, Inc. is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Scott Hassler as the National Young Horse Dressage Coach, as part of the highly successful Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Program. The establishment of this coaching position is an illustration of the Federation’s continuing initiatives to support and emphasize structured development of future FEI-level dressage horses and riders. Hassler is the Training Director at the...

The United States Eventing Association has announced that the 2006 Maui Jim Horse Trials in Wayne, IL, will again be part of the Adequan Gold Cup Series of events, thus designating it as one of the 12 “premier” eventing competitions in the United States. Maui Jim Horse Trials, who recently entered into a five-year sponsorship agreement with Maui Jim, Inc., the Peoria-based manufacturer of high-end sunglasses, will offer riders a new look for the July 7-9 competition. A long unused parcel of...

Wellington Equestrian Partners, LLC, in collaboration with Stadium Jumping, Inc., announced that they have purchased 277 acres of prime real estate in the heart of Wellington's horse country. An option for an additional 87 acres would bring the purchase total to over 364 acres. The majority of the land was purchased from Palm Beach Polo’s owner, Glenn Straub, by various entities controlled by Wellington real estate investor Mark Bellissimo. “The purchase will allow Stadium Jumping to enhance...

Local Weekend kicked off a week of Washington International Horse Show (WIHS) activities as riders competed at the Prince George Equestrian Center in Upper Marlboro, MD. Local Weekend, sponsored by The Tack Box, Inc., of Middleburg, VA, was a local horse show that allowed riders to qualify for local day finals at the WIHS. The WIHS began at the MCI Center on Tuesday, October 25, and continues through Sunday, October 30, 2005. The top six riders in each Pony Hunter, Children’s Hunter, and Adult...

There was only one clean round, and it was ridden by Richard Spooner on Quirino in the $50,000 HBO World Cup Grand Prix of Del Mar presented by Mary’s Tack and Feed, a World Cup qualifying event. Spooner rode three horses in the grand prix, but it was his outstanding clear round on Quirino, owned by Oscany, Inc., of Los Angeles, which won, and also gave Spooner valuable points towards a spot representing the United States in the World Cup Finals to be held in Malaysia in 2006. Mariano Alario on...

The West Coast Active Riders Organization kicked off the start of their World Cup qualifier season with the $50,000 Grand Prix of Showpark in Del Mar, CA, held on September 3, 2005. Mario Onate took top honors with his own mount, Banco Del Bajio Otelo. The United States riders who earned World Cup points include Gabriella Salick and her gray stallion, Sandstone Laurin, of Sandstone Horse Sales, LLC; Mike Endicott with Farrokh Moshar’s bay gelding, Lennongrad; and Joie Gatlin with Canyon...