A couple weeks ago a friend and I attended a WSH Dressage Show halfway across the state to ride the NAWD tests. The weather was gorgeous, the drive uneventful, the horses well behaved. The show was at a beautiful facility, with a qualified judge I trust to evaluate our western dressage horses. My stallion was perfectly behaved even in the warm-up area with the little ponies and their tiny children. Sounds like a perfect horse show weekend huh? It was, but for one thing. I was confused! For the...

Lexington, KY – Entries are currently being taken for the 19th Annual Pony Finals Auction held Saturday, August 10, 2013 in conjunction with the US Pony Finals in Lexington, Kentucky at the Kentucky Horse Park. The Pony Finals Auction has long been regarded as the premier auction in the world for buying ponies to compete at the highest levels. It has produced numerous ponies that have gone on to win championships at the Pony Finals and other major shows around the country. Auction Date -...

As with all new things, as they develop, there are certain glitches and bugs that inevitably crop up. NAWD reviewed its 2012 tests for 2013 and has corrected errors and last week the WDAA announced that there were errors in calculating the point totals on some of their tests. An important notice to competitors who have ridden USEF Morgan Tests at 2013 shows came out in the WDAA newsletter and emails to members. They “…discovered minor errors in preparing the WDAA Western Dressage...

South Carolina's Western team pulled the only upset of the day Friday and kept the Gamecocks in contention for the overall National Championship (Cory Burkarth) Waco, TX - The top teams at the NCEA Championship showed their strength Friday during the quarterfinal round of the NCEA National Championship Tournament. The only upset of the day was a minor one, and it belonged to the fifth seeded South Carolina Western team which took a 5-3 descision over fourth seeded TCU. The Gamecocks jumped out...

Lexington, KY – Land Rover and the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event are increasing their partnership as Land Rover becomes the presenting sponsor of the prestigious equestrian event. The company will continue to be title sponsor of the Land Rover Tailgate and presenting sponsor of the NBC telecast of the Rolex Equestrian Championships presented by Land Rover. In its new role as presenting sponsor of the event, it will honor the top U.S. rider who comes closest to the optimum time on the...

Last week I gave you some wonderful numbers that show the tremendous growth we have seen in Western Dressage over the last year. Almost 200 shows and events are already scheduled for 2013… 200! All those events are the brainchildren of people who want to help develop WD in their area. Most riders start by going to audit or participate in a clinic first or by becoming familiar with different philosophies and approaches to western dressage via the FaceBook pages or investigating the...

Facebook is an unending super highway of material for use in a myriad of applications. I am always amazed by several things. First, how we can consider people we have never seen or maybe even spoken to directly as “friends.” Second, how we are able to use social networking to very positive effects from fund raising for good causes to arranging emergency transportation for rescue horses. Third, how easy it is to learn from so many people who are willing to share really great...

How do good ideas happen? By great people putting their minds together – and that’s what happened when Frances Carbonnel, Cliff Swanson, and Neide Cooley got together last August to work on the Educational Program for the Western Dressage Association® of Colorado. I had the pleasure of speaking with Frances about how the Train The Trainers clinic came into being. “We decided we needed some videos to help people understand what the gaits are for Western Dressage,”...

Westport, CT - The EQUUS Foundation and the American Association of Equine Practioners (AAEP) Foundation joinly established the EQUUS Foundation Research Fellowship program in 2011 to emphasize the importance of equine research, to reward researchers for their contributions, and to meet the increasing need to train future equine veterinary researchers. Two equine researchers were presented with the 2012 EQUUS Foundation Research Fellows for their work to advance veterinary knowledge during the...

The twenty fourth in a series of blog posts from Michelle Binder North American Western Dressage receives all kinds of questions at the website and on our FaceBook page. Last week Jen Johnson shared the following in a post and it generated a huge amount of material for consideration. She posted: “I received an email last night from a **** judge who had the following concerns about Western Dressage..... “The problem is that the western horse is going to have to be much quicker in...