By Mary Creech Brandie Holloway and S&L So Be It, the winners of last week's $25,000 HITS Grand Prix, were the first to attempt the jump-off course. Holloway left all the rails up, stopping the timers in 37.87 seconds. A time that would end up giving her second place. Monica Rahman rode Cyrano to chase Holloway's time. They also posted a clear round, but a second shy with 38.85 seconds left them in third place. Next to go was Sharn Wordley aboard Mr. Flanagan. The pair took second place in last...

A clear round for Brandie Holloway on the little mare she fell in love with was all it took to win Sunday's $25,000 Grand Prix during the opening week of the HITS Arizona Winter Circuit. Out of a starting field of 25 horse-and-rider combinations, Holloway and S&L So Be It was the only pair to master Mike Gallaway's challenging first-round course. Gallaway's course was a sweeping series of combinations with a last line that included an oxer to a vertical to an oxer double-combination finish. A...

Richard Spooner couldn't catch his breath. The Indio Desert Circuit's all-time leading money winner had five mounts in the $30,000 Ariat Grand Prix, and he brought three into the jump-off. Quirino 3 delivered Spooner another victory, posting the jump-off's best time of 39.36. Ezrah also had a clean-round at 40.08 giving him second place in the competition. His third mount, Airtime, smacked into jump 12, a white and blue vertical jump near the end of the course, leaving him sixth. In the opening...

Aaron Vale and Serval, owned by The Serval Group, led the victory gallop in the $25,000 HITS Ocala Grand Prix on Sunday, January 29, posting the only double-clear round out of a class of 22 horse-and-rider combinations. Course Designer Jerry Dougherty set a first-round course that saw only four riders advance to the jump-off. Derek Petersen opened the jump-off with Heaven Bound, a 10-year-old former dressage horse he brought over from Germany in 2004. Had it not been for an unlucky rail at the...

The United States Eventing Association has announced that the 2006 Maui Jim Horse Trials in Wayne, IL, will again be part of the Adequan Gold Cup Series of events, thus designating it as one of the 12 “premier” eventing competitions in the United States. Maui Jim Horse Trials, who recently entered into a five-year sponsorship agreement with Maui Jim, Inc., the Peoria-based manufacturer of high-end sunglasses, will offer riders a new look for the July 7-9 competition. A long unused parcel of...

Langer Equestrian Group, Inc., jumped into the new year with record entries at the LAEC Opener, January 20-22. The USEF A-rated show attracted over 300 horses and riders to the first major show of the new year. "We've had really great weather, and I think that everyone could get their horses out and were looking forward to a nice show," said Langer Equestrian Group President Larry Langer. The new show season attracts new faces and new horses. Archie Cox found another winner to add to his string...

The Penn-Ohio Futurity offers a rare experience for a hands-on clinic with Jim Aikman. Aikman has been a leader in the Saddlebred community for decades and is undoubtedly one of, if not, the most successful colt man ever. Currently, he spends most of his time promoting his passion for American Saddlebred colts via the wildly successful All American Cup. He has won dozens of futurities and untold amounts of prize money. His technique is tried and true and works every time it's tried. Aikman...

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...

Danielle Torano, Alex Parrish, Tracy Kenly and Lauren Hester emerged as champions of the 2005 Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series. The Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series conducted its largest series ever in 2005, with classes at 94 horse shows across the nation. This gave competitors an abundance of opportunities to accumulate points throughout the year. The Series featured separate divisions for amateur owner and junior riders with separate standings kept for East and...

It is with great sadness that the USEF ParaEquestrian community acknowledges the tragic death of Margo O’Callahan, of Seattle, WA. O’Callahan was killed in a car accident on Sunday, December 18, near the Little Bit Therapeutic Riding Center, where she rode for much of her adult life. O’Callahan’s dog, Eddie, was also killed in the accident, which is still under investigation at this time. Overcoming multiple strokes and an accident which left her with a broken hip,...