Show jumping fans from around the world gathered for opening day of the final week of action at the 2006 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) in Wellington and were greeted with beautiful sunny skies and mild temperatures. The CN Wellington Finale CSIO*****, the last week of show jumping before the festival moves on to Tampa for the final two weeks of competition, got underway on Wednesday at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club. Wednesday’s mid-morning featured event was the 1.45 m Time First Round...

In a brilliant display of skill and finesse, Sara Schmitt, of Glen Gardner, NJ, drove her Morgan stallion, High Country Doc, to one of only a few clean and clear rounds in the cones phase at The Laurels at Landhope and her first national championship. The last in the order of go on Sunday, September 11, Schmitt had some wiggle room. Ahead by only four points under the new rules where a ball down is now a three-point penalty instead of five. This gave her a small margin of error, one that could...

Stadium Jumping, Inc., the management company for the 2006 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF), is pleased to announce that FTI Consulting of Annapolis, MD, is sponsoring the $200,000 FTI Rider Challenge. The FTI Rider Challenge will be held during the 2006 WEF, from January 25 to March 12 at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, FL. The FTI Rider Challenge will be a rider bonus pool for $200,000 in which the riders will receive points based on the number of riders in the seven...

Aachen, Germany - Aug. 25 – The United States show jumping team claimed a victory and a fourth place finish Thursday on the eve of the Samsung Super League Nations Cup competition at the World Equestrian Festival. Jeffrey Welles, of Ridgefield, CT, piloted his nine-year-old Holsteiner gelding, Sampras, to victory in the Youngsters Cup, while Laura Kraut of Oconomowoc, WI, finished fourth on the Dutch Warmblood gelding, Anthem, in the Preis von Nordrhein-Westfalen. Welles and Sampras finished in...

As the 2005 Samsung Super League series moves to Dublin, Ireland, next Friday the home side lie last on the leaderboard despite a gallant effort in Hickstead last week. The Dutch are only 0.5 points ahead of them while the Belgians have just a single-point advantage. So much could change after this sixth leg of the series, which is drawing to an exciting climax. Following last Friday''s bruising encounter at the British fixture, it is the Germans who hold pole position, and they are likely to...

Britain has been experiencing a heat wave in recent weeks, but the temperature is set to rise even further next week when the 2005 Samsung Super League series resumes at Hickstead on Friday, July 29. It's been a fascinating season so far, with the Americans dominating at the opening leg in La Baule and the British showing their class in Rome. The double Super League champions from France headed the line-up in St. Gallen, and then the Swiss swept to victory in Rotterdam before the series took a...

St. Gallen in Switzerland plays host to the third leg of the 2005 Samsung Super League series on Friday, June 3, and the Swiss team will be keen to keep the home supporters happy with a good result there. Lying fifth on the leaderboard after the first two legs of the series in La Baule and Rome, they have coped well so far in this, their first Super League season, and Chef d'Equipe Rolf Grass will choose his side from Fabio Crotta, Markus Fuchs, Christina Liebherr, Beat Mandli and Niklaus...

Lexington, KY – The United States Equestrian Federation has announced the team for the second European show jumping tour—a series of three international competitions, including a stop on the 2005 Samsung Super League circuit. This team will compete in the Super League competition at CSIO Rotterdam, The Netherlands (June 16 – 19); CSIO Lummen, Belgium (June 30 –July 3) and CSIO Falsterbo, Sweden (July 7 – 10). The team members are listed below in alphabetical order....

The United States Dressage Federation (USDF) has announced that ten USDF members successfully completed the USDF "L" Education Program in March and April 2005. The USDF "L" Education Program is designed not only to prepare candidates for and fulfill the requirement to enter the United States Equestrian Federation "r" Judges Training Program, but also to qualify individuals to judge schooling shows; to give competitors, trainers and instructors greater insight into the evaluative techniques of...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced that Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) are once again available through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). These grants are available to livestock facilities, including horse farms, ranches and other equine operations. CIG is a voluntary program intended to stimulate innovative conservation projects in conjunction with agricultural production. CIG enables NRCS to work with public and private entities to promote the use of...