Gladstone, N.J. - On Sunday, riders returned to the Dick and Jane Brown Arena at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation Headquarters for the final day of the 2013 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals East. For Phase III judges Ronnie Beard and Anne Kursinski set a demanding track that would determine which four riders would come back to contest the final phase. After showcasing their skill and poise throughout the weekend Michael Hughes, Mattias Tromp, Charlotte Jacobs, and...

Leslie Berndl (PicsofYou.com) Lexington, Kentucky - Leslie Berndl held a double digit lead entering the cones phase of the Kentucky Classic CDE Sunday. She and Uminco held onto that advantage and emerged from the rain as USEF National Single Horse Driving Champions. Berndl (Newcastle, California) earned an 11.00, good for third place in the phase, and finished with a 141.53 total score. She was second in the dressage phase, second on the marathon, and the most consistently good single horse...

Chester Weber, Ten Time USEF National FOur-in-Hand Driving Champion (Pics of You) Lexington, Kentucky - Rain fell for most of Sunday morning at the Kentucky Classic CDE, it fell so hard that Competition would eventually be stopped, but not before two individual drivers hit career milestones. Leslie Berndl earned her first USEF National Single Horse Driving Championship, and Chester Weber made it an official decade of dominance with his impressive and unprecedented tenth USEF National...

Mandy Porter and Con Capilot (Flying Horse Photography) Sacramento, California - October 5, 2013 - Audible gasps, cheers and applause were heard throughout the night as Murieta Equestrian Center hosted the 6th annual Sacramento International Grand Prix. Mandy Porter and Con Capilot were the only double clear out of a field of 35 horse and rider combinations. Heiko Wahler of Germany designed a challenging and highly technical course that asked some tough questions of both riders and horses. Out...

Springtown, Texas - It was a tale of two teams in Texas on Saturday as No.7 Baylor and No.8 Texas Christian met in an early season in-state clash. TCU had the better western team, and Baylor was the dominant hunt seat team. But the TCU reining team was the only squad able to secure an outright, 5-0, sweep. In doing so they made the difference in a hard fought 11-9 win. Baylor won equitation on the flat 3-2 and TCU edged out an equal 3-2 victory in horsemanship. TCU was able to pick up one point...

Manhattan, Kansas - The No.6 Texas A&M Aggies had a tough task awaiting them in Manhattan. It was their season opener and their opponent was a Kansas State's WIldcats team coming off of a confidence boosting win over rival Oklahoma State. “We made some early-season mistakes today and they cost us the meet,” Texas A&M Head Coach Tana McKay said , and she may have been right, but the lack of mistakes and overall good riding by the Wildcats had just as much to do with it....

Twisther and Reid Patton (Shawn McMillen Photography) Upper Marlboro, Maryland - The course itself was the biggest obstacle in the $10,000 North American Junior/Amateur-Owner Challenge Cup Final Round. There were 30 entries in tonight's final round, which was held in jump-off format. There was only one clear round over the course designed by Steve Stephens. It featured wide oxers and challenging distances; 18-year-old Reid Patton was the only rider to find the key to a clear on Twisther, a...

Gladstone, N.J. - The 2013 Platinum Performance/USEF Talent Search Finals East officially got underway on Saturday at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation Headquarters with competitors completing the first two phases of competition. In the morning, judges Ronnie Beard and Anne Kursinski tested riders on the flat in the Dick and Jane Brown Arena and in the afternoon competitors returned to demonstrate their skill over a gymnastics course. At the end of the first day of competition, Lillie Keenan...

Armani and Madeline Schaefer (Shawn McMillen Photography) Upper Marlboro, MD – Saturday of Capital Challenge Horse Show highlights the country's young rider talent with championships for pony, junior and children’s pony hunters. The Grand Pony Hunter Championship was awarded to Madeline Schaefer on Armani. Ashley Foster on Sin City and Samantha Sommers riding Small Affair picked up the top tricolors in the Small and Large 16-17 Hunters, respectively, while Sienna Pilla was the...

Woodside, California -D ebbie Rosen and The Alchemyst overtook Lauren Billys and Ballingowan Ginger to win the CIC3* at the Woodside International Horse Trials, presented by Professional’s Choice, Equine Insurance of California and Sunsprite Warmbloods. Rosen incurred 4.0 time penalties, for a final tally of 58.5, while Billys finished with 8.4 time penalties, for a final tally of 59.4, to relinquish the lead she’d gained in the first two phases on Friday. Helen Bouscaren rode Ben...