The twenty fourth in a series of blog posts from Michelle Binder North American Western Dressage receives all kinds of questions at the website and on our FaceBook page. Last week Jen Johnson shared the following in a post and it generated a huge amount of material for consideration. She posted: “I received an email last night from a **** judge who had the following concerns about Western Dressage..... “The problem is that the western horse is going to have to be much quicker in...

Will Letner wins Gold. Photo: Waltenberry Lexington, KY - Will Letner knew the bar was set high when fellow U.S. rider Laura Sumrall went out first into the Alltech Arena on Saturday - and came out with an impressive score of 217.5. Sumrall pumped her fists in the air, shouting, "Yes, yes!" at her first SmartPak Individual Reining Championships at the Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North. Letner's thought: "Well, where do I go from...

Ocala, Fla . – The Florida Spring Fling Combined Driving Event (CDE) played host to the 2020 USEF Preliminary Combined Driving National Championships and the exciting competition that unfolded at the Florida Horse Park. Four preliminary divisions had athletes take home their national championship titles. USEF Preliminary Single Horse Combined Driving National Championship Raymond Helmuth and Kendro (Picsofyou.com) Raymond Helmuth (Cambridge, Iowa) and Kendro earned the USEF Preliminary...

Meet the Beast.... The Beast is a very bad beastie as it has “done a leg” and gone on sit down strike a) right in front of our container and b) on the main horse walk in to the stables. To be more accurate, the Beast can easily be repaired if a) the AWOL driver could be found and b) the driver was given accreditation so he / she / it could access the venue and remove the Beast. I just hope that we are not contributing to the day rate for the Beast to be away from his / her Cave of...

Steffen Peters and Rosamunde (Terri Miller) San Juan Capistrano, Calif. – Anticipation was high as a crowd gathered for the CDI Grand Prix Freestyle (sponsored by Adventure Farms), the highlight class of the second day of competition at California Dreaming Productions' Festival of the Horse CDI 3*/Y/J/U-25 being held March 31-April 2 in San Juan Capistrano. All eyes were on U.S. Team veteran Steffen Peters and fan-favorite Rosamunde (Rheinlander mare Rock Forever x First Lady by...

• Is it required that I file my Medication Report Form (MRF) on-line? - No, paper forms will still be available at the competition and can be downloaded from the Drugs and Medications web page. • How do I sign the form? -Typing in your name will serve as an electronic signature. • How will I have a copy for my records? - When the form is submitted, an email will be sent back with a copy of the form for your records that can be retained electronically. • How do I get the...

Well fall is under way and I am trying to clear a little writer’s block. The last shows of the year are winding down. We are headed for the last ones in our area the last two weekends of the month. Fall is time to evaluate progress and prepare for next season. Some of us set goals for training, some for clinics, some for next year’s show season. We look at our feeding programs, exercise programs, breeding programs and whatever else we are running. I always find myself thinking ahead...

Today’s course must have been tricky. The time was tight. It started out at 82 seconds allowed, and Lauren was the first in the ring of today’s 119 riders—a TOUGH spot to be in. After Lauren’s round they upped the time allowed to 84 seconds, which was still quite tight for many riders. Rails were falling all over the course and many feet/hooves landed in the water. It was obviously tough and technical. So many of yesterday’s stars didn’t do so hot today. It...

Photo by Flashpoint Photography (Daniel Geitner and Sympa) Classic Company’s Atlanta Summer Finale week was chocked full of big action, but the highlight was the debut of the Open Musical Freestyle Equitation Classic on Saturday evening under the bright lights of the former Olympic arena. Horses, riders, and the masses watching were all tapping toes to the various beats. Brought to life by Classic Company President Bob Bell, the Musical Freestyle, open to both adults and juniors, gave...

Besides delighting my readers with scintillating stories (we writers like to use words like "scintillating" because we think it makes us sound writerly), my main purpose for being at Sport Horse Nationals here in beautiful, damp Kentucky is to help out (in other words, provide slave labor for) my good friend and mentor, Patience Prine-Carr. This means that I get a lot of mane pulling and braiding practice every day. While it's good for me to get the practice, it's frustrating because...