2009 USEF Farnam/Platform Horse of the Year (Shannon Brinkman/USEF Archives) Louisville, KY – Annually, five of the USEF’s 130,000 registered horses achieve so much in a year that they are named USEF Horses of Honor and enter the running for the title of Farnam®/Platform™ Horse of the Year. In 2009 all five of these horses were nothing short of remarkable. But one forever changed the face of his sport, and with that, Ravel was voted the 2009 USEF Farnam®/Platform™ Horse of the Year. It began in...

The United States Dressage Federation (USDF) elected a new president and treasurer for three-year terms. George Williams of Delaware, OH, who was vice president of the federation for nine years and a United States high-performance rider, takes the helm as president from Dr. Samuel Barish. Steve Schubert of Methuen, MA, replaces Barb Tuohino Funk as treasurer. Williams also appointed Melissa Creswick of Clovis, CA, as interim vice president for a one-year term. George Williams is currently a...

The final shows have been posted and the 2009 Performance Horse Registry’s (PHR) Silver Stirrup Award winners have been announced. One of the Hunter winners include Krishna Buyalos’s beautiful two-year-old filly, Outstanding. This bay filly is by Popeye K and out of Delilah. She was bred in California by Leslie Nelson. She is the winner of the Hunter Breeding Award. The Anglo-Trakehner gelding Unbelievable (Zarr x Rhapsody II) took home the award for the best Green Working Hunter. The Jumper...

Recently, Brookwood Farm hosted a unique five-day clinic with renowned rider and trainer Ray Texel that featured many different learning techniques. The clinic was held November 18-22, 2009, and while many clinics are two or three days, this longer format gave Texel and the participants more time to develop a unique rapport while working through many different challenges. Brookwood Farm is owned by trainers Rush and Caroline Weeden, who also hosted the 2009 $25,000 Chicago Hunter Derby. "One...

Photo by PMG/Ken Kraus (Jennifer Waxman and Venturo) The United States Equestrian Team Foundation (USET) is pleased to announce that 18-year-old Jennifer Waxman of Chagrin Falls, OH, has been awarded the Lionel Guerrand-Hermès Trophy, recognizing a Junior/Young Rider who exemplifies the USET Foundation's ideals of sportsmanship and horsemanship. The award was established in 1983 by Patrick Guerrand-Hermès in memory of his son Lionel, an Olympic hopeful trained by U.S. Eventing...

During the weekend of November 5-8, 25-year-old Kerry Tracey of Watkinsville, GA, led the victory gallop at the final SmartPak Equine/United States Eventing Association (USEA) Training Three-Day Event aboard her homebred Thoroughbred/Appaloosa gelding Chasing The Music. Although the entries were low for this long-format division, which was held in conjunction with the Rocking Horse Fall Horse Trials (Altoona, FL), the competition was fierce, and Tracey moved up from fourth after dressage to...

Dressage at Devon, one of the nation's most important dressage and sport horse breeding shows, has awarded more than $51,000 to owners and breeders in the Born in the USA Breeders Awards series since its inception in 2003. Developed by the Dressage at Devon Committee to recognize and reward the achievements of American breeders, the awards are distributed in 14 divisions, and include prize money, rosettes and other prizes. Each year the program has grown and now the Born in the USA Breeders...

Tracy Fenney earned top honors in the $25,000 Grand Prix of Dallas on Sunday riding MTM Centano, owned by MTM Farm. Sunday's victory marks Fenney's third consecutive Dallas Harvest Grand Prix win, as well as her eighth time winning the class overall. The 2009 Dallas Harvest Horse Show concluded on Sunday following a successful week of competition at the Texas Rose Horse Park in beautiful Tyler, TX. The Dallas Harvest Horse Show is a very active supporter of Habitat for Horses, one of the...

On December 14, 2009, Equestrian Professional.com continues its horse business seminar series with “What Every Equine Business Person Needs to Know About the Law.” The guest speaker will be renowned equine law expert and author Julie I. Fershtman, attorney at law. Julie I. Fershtman is one of the most experienced and accomplished Equine Law practitioners in the nation. Crossing virtually all equine breeds and disciplines, her law practice serves a clientele of stables, industry professionals,...

The program for the USET Foundation Holiday Gala Fundraiser is shaping up to be big as many of the country’s top riders have now signed on to participate. A pioneer among women in the equine industry, Lynn Palm Pittion-Rossillon, has announced that she will perform her famous Bridleless Musical Exhibition during the weekend’s events. German vaulter Kai Vorberg has also been added to the list of participants and will perform an exciting vaulting demonstration. SUCCEED® and Wellington Classic...