David Blake and Lisalba rode to the Wellington Turf Tour 1.30m-1.35m victory at IPC for Week 9 of the series. Wellington, Fla. - Ireland's David Blake and Lisalba rode to a blazing time of 26.307 seconds in the second 1.30m-1.35m Jumper class at the International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC) to snatch up the win. Not only did he secure the first place, but he also guided his other mount, Aischa to the second place finish. Linda Sheridan and Invitational rode to the first place finish in the...

Ali Tritschler and Helio Rouge (Sportfot) Wellington, Fla. - Sixteen-year-old Ali Tritschler of Southport, CT, and her own Helio Rouge bested a field of 42 riders in the Platinum Performance USEF Show Jumping Talent Search on Friday morning at the FTI WEF. Tritschler and Helio Rouge were called back on top of the order to test on the flat before ultimately winning the class. Victoria Colvin and Stallone VDL were second and Megan MacPherson rounded out the top three with Class Action. Tritschler...

Wellington, Fla. - Clear rounds were the order of the night on Friday evening as 12 teams went to task over Steve Stephen’s 12-obstacle track in the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup presented by G&C Farm, the feature competition Laura Kraut and Cedric (StockImageServices.com) of CSIO4* Wellington. The Hermès U.S. Show Jumping Team headed into the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center’s International Arena for the two-round competition, held in conjunction with the FTI...

Nayel Nassar and Lordan jump to a win in the $33,500 FEI HITS Desert Classic, presented by Zoetis, at HITS Thermal (Flying Horse Photography) Thermal, Calif. - It all came down to the gallop in the $33,500 FEI HITS Desert Classic, presented by Zoetis, at HITS Thermal on Thursday. With only two horses in the jump-off, Nayel Nassar put the speed of his nine-year-old Hanoverian gelding Lordan to the test and bested Bliss Heers by fractions of a second. Nassar of Santa Clara, California represents...

Todd Minikus and Quality Girl (Sportfot) Wellington, Fla. - Week three of the 2014 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (FTI WEF), sponsored by Fidelity Investments®, continued on Thursday afternoon with a shared victory for Todd Minikus (USA) and Quality Girl and Tiffany Foster (CAN) and Victor in the $34,000 Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Round 3. Held in a "California Split" due to the large number of entries, the competition awarded two sets of placings, each with $34,000...

Part 2 in a five-part series about the exciting new discipline of western dressage More and more western riders are thinking about trying the exciting new discipline of western dressage. While the progressive training principles of dressage can be a benefit to any horse's development, riders will discover that trotting down the centerline of a dressage arena is a very different experience than they may be used to for a western pleasure or reining show. The first and most obvious difference...

A five-part series to learn more about the exciting new discipline of Western Dressage Part 1: What is Western Dressage? When most equestrians think of "dressage", they envision the graceful harmony of beautiful horses with riders clad in top hats and tails, dancing together through musical freestyles in an Olympic stadium. But now, an increasing number of competitors entering dressage arenas will be wearing Western hats and boots with their horses outfitted in stock saddles. What's going...

Andrew Ramsay and Adamo van't Steenputje (McCool Photography) Las Vegas, N.V. - Saturday at the Las Vegas National was a spectacular display of show jumping at its finest, plus some sky-high entertainment. The first of two highlight events was the $10,000 SmartPak Winning Round Classic, with forty-seven entries and the top ten returning for a lightning fast second round. Later in the evening, the $50,000 Markel Insurance Grand Prix CSI-W had forty-two entries with eight pairs going clean,...

Christian Heineking masters Leopoldo Palacio's course to win the $41,000 LEG Anniversary Grand Prix (Flying Horse Photography) Christian Heineking (GER) proved he was the only one who could answer Leopoldo Palacios’ questions in the $41,000 LEG Anniversary Grand Prix at the National Preview (Oct 30-Nov 3)—and he did it twice. Christian started the class with a bang aboard NKH Selena (NKH LLC, owner) and made the course look easy with a clear round within the time allowed. “I...

Elizabeth Halliday-Sharp and Fernhill By Night (Libby Law Photography) Lexington, Ky. - The U.S. horse-and rider combinations are poised for the FEI Nations Cup competition at the Military Boekelo CCIO3*, October 10-13, 2013 in Boekelo, The Netherlands. Elizabeth Halliday-Sharp, Lauren Kieffer, and Boyd Martin make up the team representing the U.S. Following the first horse inspection, 104 combinations from 11 nations are ready to contest the challenging three-day event, which is the seventh...