Another eventful day in Smartie’s world. It all started off pretty well, with me and Smartie both in a great mood. Smartie was especially happy because we got to graze her for a really long time. Since her middle name tends to be “Piggy,” she was very happy with her clover-filled breakfast. As the day went on, I began to get very excited. This made for a very long time of excitement since our class did not even start until 10 o’clock at night, but that didn’t stop...

Young Rider Individual Medalists, l-r: Brandi Roenick, Isabelle Leibler, Chase Hickok (Photo: SusanJStickle.com). Lexington, KY – The competitive action jumped into high gear on Day Two of the 2011 Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North, which got underway at the Kentucky Horse Park yesterday and will continue through Sunday. In the Rolex Stadium, it was a quest for Individual Gold for dressage competitors, then, later in the...

Terry Brown and Nice Take Home Performance Hunter Championship at Kentucky Summer Horse Show (Phot: Holly Whiteman/PMG). Lexington, KY - There was plenty of sunshine for the second day of the Kentucky Summer Horse Show at the Kentucky Horse Park during their World Champion Hunter Rider event. The professional divisions concluded today in the Stonelea Ring with the Green Working Hunters, Conformation Hunters, and Performance 3'6"-3'9" Hunters all awarding championship and reserve...

Louisville, KY - For the 108th year American Saddlebred Horses, Roadster Horses and Hackney/Harness Ponies will come to the Kentucky State Fair to compete in order to be called a World’s Champion, a World’s Champion of Champion, or the most desired title a World’s Grand Champion. The first show was in 1902 with the title of World’s Champion being designated in 1914. When the word Louisville is said to this group of people it doesn’t mean the Kentucky Derby, it...

Sophie Ruiz-Leimer, FEI Commercial Coordinator and John Young, President of the International Ground Jury at the top table with (below) Chefs d'Equipe Rob Hoekstra (GBR), Rob Ehrens (NED), George Morris (USA) and Henk Nooren (FRA) at the draw for the sixth leg of the FEI Nations Cup™ 2011 at Hickstead (GBR) (Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton). Hickstead, Great Britain - The defending champions from France will lead the way as the sixth leg of the FEI Nations Cup™ 2011 kicks off...

Jimmy Torano and Katina won the $5,000 Open Jumper Stake on Wednesday, July 27, at the Vermont Summer Festival in East Dorset, VT (David Mullinix Photography). East Dorset, VT — Following two days of rest and relaxation in the beautiful Green Mountains, horses and riders returned to the show grounds for the fourth week of competition at the Vermont Summer Festival in East Dorset, VT. The six-week equestrian competition is running at Harold Beebe Farm from July 6 through August...

Mija Paris on 6-year-old Andalusian Stallion, Kamiakan (Photo by Katie Hill). Lincoln, NE - The Dressage Foundation's Continuing Education for Dressage Instructors Fund has awarded a $1,250 grant to Mija Paris (OR) to help her attend the United States Dressage Federation's Instructor Certification Program. Mija said, "This funding will be used to attend Instructor Certification workshops, and will help expand my dressage education as a rider, trainer, instructor, and judge. It will...

Lexington, KY - Temperatures soared, but dressage competitors managed to keep their cool as the 2011 Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North kicked off today at the Kentucky Horse Park. This is the third year the championships have been held at the Kentucky venue, which was the site of the 2010 Alltech/FEI World Equestrian Games last fall. Region 5 Took the Gold medal in the Young Rider competition. Photo by SusanJStickle.com. The day began...

We arrived at the venue today! Our horses had already arrived, so we dove into our first day at the Kentucky Horse Park! We arranged team shirts, walked out our horses, and began organizing for the race this Friday. It was hard work, since we had just come back into the humidity, and I’d done a 120 kilometer race two days before, not to mention the jet lag! But the trip with the United States Endurance Team for the Trial Run of the Endurance World Championship was worth it! I ended up in...

Ashlee Bond and Chivas Z won the 1.40m Open Jumper class at the Kentucky Summer Horse Show (Photo: Kenneth Kraus/PhelpsSports.com). Lexington, KY - It was beautiful and sunny for the opening day of the Kentucky Summer Horse Shows at the Kentucky Horse Park. Today, riders gathered at the Walnut Ring to compete for top prizes in the Open Jumper classes. Ashlee Bond and Chivas Z were the big winners, claiming the victory in the 1.40m Open Jumper class with the fastest clear effort. In the 1.35m...