Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation is now accepting bids from photographers who would like to be named “Official Photographer for the 2006 USEF Pony Finals.” The ever-popular finals will once again be surrounded by the idyllic backdrop of the beautiful Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. To request a bid document, please contact Marion Maybank at (859) 225-2033 or via e-mail at [email protected] by the close of business on Wednesday, January 4, 2006. Any...

HITS is pleased to announce the 2006 Indio Desert Circuit in Indio, CA. Now in its 15th consecutive year, the Indio Desert Circuit will once again offer an exciting six weeks of hunter/jumper competitions. In addition to the excellence in show management that equestrians have come to expect from HITS, 2006 brings some changes sure to please competitors. Most importantly, in 2006 HITS is switching over to EuroFelt footing in all the rings in Indio, and making some positive changes to the layout...

After discussion with trainers and the USEF, show management has decided to reduce the Great Southwest Fall Classic in Katy, TX, to a four-day event. This change will hopefully allow for an easier and safer return to the Houston area for some people and their horses. The show will start on Thursday, September 29, at 7:30 a.m. and finish on Sunday. There are a few changes, which are highlighted below. 1) The $25,000 Katy Fall Grand Prix will be canceled this week. We will be adding a $10,000...

Craig Schmersal and Tidal Wave Jack, Winners of the 2005 Adequan/USEF Open Reining Championship (Waltenberry Photography) Lexington, KY – With swift and calculated moves, amazing 360-degree spins and stop-on-a-dime sliding stops that left an unabashed crowd going wild, Craig Schmersal and Tidal Wave Jack claimed their landmark USEF Gold medal and trophy in one fell swoop at the 2005 Adequan/USEF Open Reining Championship on Saturday, August 27, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington....

Michael Bowling (Carlswald Prince's Dominoe and Lionel Ferreira) Carlswald Prince's Dominoe, trained and ridden by Lionel Ferreira, defeated 11 others in Wednesday night's Five-Gaited Gelding Stake, a class in which defending Five-Gaited World's Grand Champion CH Boucheron did not place, at the Saddlebred World's Championship Horse Show. Carlswald Prince's Dominoe won the Lexington Junior League Horse Show Five-Gaited Grand Championship in July. CH Boucheron had not shown...

President Bush has signed into law the $300 billion federal highway funding bill, known as SAFETEA-LU, approved by Congress just before it broke for the August-Labor Day recess. The controversial legislation took over two years to agree to and enact, requiring numerous Continuing Resolutions extending the prior federal highway bill past its expiration. Recreational Trails Program Funding Favorable funding for the Recreational Trails Program (RTP) was included in the legislation. The total...

Annie Davidson Wins the 2005 USEF Pony Medal Championship 8 Year Old Lillie Keenan Makes Dreams Come True for Others (Lexington, KY) – In the blistering summer heat, Annie Davidson, age 12 of Newtown, Pennsylvania was named Grand Champion of the 2005 Pony Medal Championship held at the Kentucky Horse Park yesterday. The Championship was held as part of the USEF Pony Finals August 10-13. Annie received the Easter Sunday Memorial Perpetual Trophy, a cooler and tack trunk donated by Oakcroft Tack...

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture is protecting Kentucky's multi-billion-dollar stake in its equine and cattle industries from an outbreak of vesicular stomatitis (VS) that has spread through four southwestern states. The Department has expanded its VS embargo to 20 counties in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah. Four counties were added to Kentucky's embargo on July 27 after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed cases in La Plata and Mesa counties in Colorado, Rio Arriba...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it has issued a license to Fort Dodge Laboratories, Inc., of Fort Dodge, Iowa, a division of Wyeth, for a vaccine to protect horses from viremia caused by the West Nile virus (WNV). The horse vaccine, which was developed through a collaboration of the Centers for Disease Control and Fort Dodge, is the first fully licensed WNV DNA vaccine for animals in the United States. The vaccine contains genes for two WNV proteins, and therefore, does...

Lexington, KY – A recent study profiling the USEF membership (18 and over) provides data important for advertising sales for the Federation’s publications, and is a tremendous asset in USEF efforts to obtain more sponsorship and commercial participation for equestrian sport. These efforts help fund current USEF programs; create new programs; and fund the international teams. Sport sponsorship is a hugely competitive arena and the USEF now has its own proprietary data to assist in...