Shawn Casady Leads the 2013 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby Series. (Emily Riden/PMG) exington, KY - Shawn Casady has upheld his lead in the 2013 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby standings for several weeks, and a top three finish in last week's $5,000 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby further widened the gap between himslef and the second place position. The Hallway Feeds Series consists of seven national hunter derby events to be held during the 2013 show series...

Hickstead, England- The U.S. Dressage Team continued to show their resurgence on the international stage, cruising to a second place finish in FEI Nations Cup competition at the CDIO3* Hickstead. Sunday’s competition utilized a new format using the Freestyle to determine Nations Cup results rather than the traditional Grand Prix Test. Leading the U.S. was Kathleen Raine (Murrieta, CA) and Markel/ USEF Young Horse Dressage Program graduate Breanna. The combination who were awarded a USET...

July 31 through August 4 Murieta Equestrian Center in Rancho Murieta California will be the site for the 2013 “Gold N Grand Cowboy Dressage Show.” The show sports 42 classes with competitive divisions for open, amateur and youth riders who will be riding walk/jog and walk/jog/lope and Cowboy Challenge tests. As of this writing, there were 165 rides scheduled in three days! Such a fabulous turnout for Cowboy Dressage in Northern California. Show official Michele Dodge will oversee 3...

Lexington, KY - The U.S. Dressage Team heads to the Hickstead CDIO3* with high expectations this week as they look to continue the momentum that has been building throughout the summer. Four talented riders; Shelly Francis, Arlene “Tuny” Page, Kathleen Raine and Guenter Seidel Shelly Francis and Doktor (SusanJStickle.com) compose the Nations Cup team, while David Blake will ride in Grand Prix competition as an individual. Katherine Bateson-Chandler and Francis will also ride...

As you know I occasionally receive a story from a Western Dressage rider and this week I would like to share with you the story behind a beautiful magazine cover photo that appeared recently in Paint Horse Journal and which featured coverage of Western Dressage. The photo was of Katrina Sanders and her Paint horse Pirate. Here is what Katrina shares with western dressage enthusiasts this week: “Thank you so much for offering to feature my photo in your blog! I am honored and so grateful...

Thanks to everyone who took the time to send emails to USEF and for sharing your thoughts and feelings about the direction Western Dressage should take. It is so important to hear and listen to different ideas from all directions as the discipline develops. At this point all there is to do is continue to ride and train and show, and most important, to have fun with our horses. With another show coming up this weekend for us, I have put a lot of thought into the questions the last show brought...

Houston, TX – In the saddle is a natural place to be for Keely McIntosh, a vibrant young woman with a passion for horses, equestrian sports, and a full life ahead of her. Keely has ridden since before she could walk and competed in Pony Club before she could read. Older girls had to read her the written Pony Club ratings tests, and her family jokes that Keely learned her letters from the dressage arena. By age 6, Keely was showing in the Hunter ring in Welsh Pony classes. Her riding...

Sacramento, CA – Dressage athletes from around the country and close to home have arrived at Murieta Equestrian Center in Rancho Murieta for four days of competition from June 13 to 16, including the Golden State CDI3* Y-J-U-25 – CPEDI3* and the Golden State Dressage Classic. National and international organizations recognizing this week’s competition are the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF), United States Dressage Federation (USDF), California Dressage Society...

Silva Martin and Fortissimo B (Picsofyou.com) Lexington, KY – The best young dressage horses on the East Coast delivered top performances at the 2013 Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Eastern Selection Trial in Leesburg, Virginia. Held in conjunction with the VADA/NOVA Summer June Dressage Show, these five- and six-year-old horses aimed for a spot to represent the U.S. at the FEI World Breeding Championships for Dressage Young Horses in Verden, Germany in August, as well as a spot on the...

Birmingham, AL - From an early age, the importance of sportsmanship has been impressed upon Georgia equestrian student-athlete Carly Anthony. Her mother, Cara, is the head trainer at Potcreek Meadow Farm in Redmond, Wash., which, for the past 14 years has sponsored the Junior Sportsmanship Award at the Thermal Horse Show, and recently began supporting the award at the World Equestrian Festival. Anthony felt it would be equally important to bring a similar award to the National Collegiate...