Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation® is now accepting bids for both the 2007 and 2008 USEF Open Reining Championships, and the 2007 and 2008 USEF Youth Reining Championships, which run in conjunction with the USEF Open Reining Championship. The open reining event showcases the most talented U.S. reining athletes, both human and equine, as they compete for a national title. The youth championships offer exciting opportunities for a national title to future international...

Anticipation grows daily throughout Kentucky, the nation and the equestrian world, for the FEI Games, the World Equestrian Championships to be held in the fall of 2010 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. The World Games Foundation, the organizing committee for the 2010 Games, and the International Equestrian Federation (FEI, the organization representing equestrian sport internationally) took the first step in marketing the FEI Games by introducing the official name of the Games and...

USEF Rule GR342 outlines the procedure for submitting proposed rule changes for consideration at the January 2007 Annual Meeting. All proposals from the general membership must be submitted to the office of the Federation in writing on the official form for proposed rule changes by June 1. Proposed rule changes can be submitted online at www.usef.org/content/rules/RulesDisplay.php?page=3 . As an alternative, the form can be downloaded from this same online location, printed, and either faxed or...

Longtime American Saddlebred benefactor Joe Stopher, 91, of Louisville, KY, died Thursday April 27, 2006 at Baptist Hospital East. Stopher was the Kentucky State Fair Board Member in Charge of the World’s Championship Horse Show from 1968 to 1996; in that time, the show grew in size and prestige. He also served as a member of the American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA) Board of Directors, and as legal counsel for the Association. He was also a member of the board of directors for both the...

Lexington, KY - Shawn Flarida and Rowdy Yankee took Gold in the Adequan/USEF Open Reining Championship Qualifier at the National Reining Breeders Classic (NRBC) in Katy, TX, on April 21, 2006. The pair marked a 226.5 to win the qualifier as well as the NRBC’s $25,000 Added Open on Friday evening. Rowdy Yankee is a 12-year-old Quarter Horse stallion owned and bred by Keith Crawford. He was the 1997 National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Non-Pro Futurity Champion and the 1998 NRBC Non-Pro...

Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation® has finalized the list of breed events that will receive outreach grants through the new program announced in January. A total of $125,000 has been budgeted in 2006 for grants to financially challenged breed competitions which meet the grant requirements and are approved by the USEF. This program operates on a first-come, first-served basis. The maximum grant is $1,000. Each grant request was evaluated based on when it was received and on...

Lexington, KY - Mike McEntire won the 18th Annual Gordyville Breeders Cup aboard Robert LaPorta’s stallion Mr. Boomerjac. The championship, held in Gifford, IL on March 18, was the second of three qualifiers for the Adequan/USEF Open Reining Championships. With a score of 227.5, McEntire took the Gold medal over a field of 15 entries. Steve Schwartzenberger aboard Linda Wise’s stallion, Country Bay Berry, took the Silver. Shawn Flarida and Keith Crawford’s stallion, Rowdy Yankee, received the...

The U.S. Saddle Seat Equitation World Cup is pleased to announce the members of its teams for 2006. Twenty three-gaited and 10 five-gaited finalists competed for positions on the teams at William Woods University in Fulton, MO, over the weekend of March 17-19. Five riders and an alternate were selected for each of the teams. These outstanding riders will represent the United States at the 2006 International Saddle Seat Equitation World Cup event. The prestigious international competition will...

Stephen B. Macfarlane, 59, died following surgery in Louisville on January 11. Macfarlane had spent his lifetime as a multi-faceted horseman, winning championship titles in American Saddlebred, Roadster, Pony and coaching competitions. Macfarlane had just returned to Kentucky from his winter home in Ft. Meyers, FL. He had been taking blood-thinning medication for a diagnostic procedure scheduled later this week, when he suffered a head injury resulting in edema that could not be controlled...

(Lexington, KY) – The United States Equestrian Federation has established the Hurricane Equine Relief Fund to assist those agencies working directly with the equine victims and refugees from Hurricane Katrina. The money will be used to support efforts to deliver food, veterinary services, and shelter for horses and ponies in the hurricane stricken areas. All donations are tax deductible, and gifts of any size are appreciated. Donations can be made online at www.usef.org, click on the Hurricane...