What is the next frontier in the equestrian world? According to Dr. Jim Warson, Equestrian Medicine Specialist and author of The Rider’s Pain Free Back , “its rider health and development. The horses are as good as they are going to be in our lifetimes, so this is where the action is. Rider health and conditioning make us worthy of the horses that we spend so much time and money on”. Dr. Jim Warson with his beautiful horse, Gallahad Golden Warrior, “Trigger” Dr....

What is the equestrian demographic in North America? Surveys reveal it consists of women who, after a career, raising children, or both, have either returned to riding or are pursuing it as a life long dream. I fall into this demographic, having returned after both a career and children, and once again after major surgery. But where do we go to find training, a supportive community and a purpose in this endeavor? After much exploration, I was lucky enough to find Western Dressage through the...

Alexandra Lawson is a 19-year-old freshman at Purdue University from North Salem, Indiana. She is a member of the three-gaited section of the 2012 U.S. Saddle Seat World Cup Team. I've spent most of my life in the small farm communities of Danville and North Salem, Indiana. My parents and maternal grandparents are grain farmers - farming about 5,000 acres in the surrounding area. When you grow up in farm country, you just naturally get involved with FFA and 4-H, and it was through 4-H that...

Emily Chapman is an 18-year-old from Tucson, Arizona who will be attending the University of Kentucky in the Spring of 2013. She is a member of the three-gaited section of the 2012 U.S. Saddle Seat World Cup Team. There is a misconception that equitation is easy, and that the riders who show in this division simply “sit pretty” on a horse. So people often ask why I chose to compete in the equitation division over other divisions. Well, because one of the primary goals of equitation...

Tulsa, OK – The Global Reining Sport Group, proud owners and producers of the Ariat Tulsa Reining Classic are thrilled to announce that the 2012 ATRC will once again play host to the highly-esteemed 2012 Adequan/USEF National Reining Championship. Offering major prize money, fabulous national championship trophies and awards, and major bragging rights as the 2012 US National Champion in the sport of Reining, the Adequan/USEF National Reining Championship is a welcome addition to the 2012...

I knew, when accepting this job in December, 2011 that I was under-qualified. My writing credentials are fine enough, I have editing experience, a media background, and a good education. My deficiency was that I knew very little about horses and even less about equestrian sports. Compared to my USEF colleagues, I was in a state of almost complete ignorance. I’ve twice been on group trail rides in western Colorado. Adding that to the rest of my riding experience I’d been on a horse...

Sponsorship Benefits USEF Members with Discount on Horseware Products through SmartPak Lexington, KY - An agreement signed on April 12th between the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and Horseware Products, Ltd., has made Horseware the "Official Blanket of U.S. High Performance Teams." As part of the relationship, Horseware will provide custom "U.S.A" branded blankets for teams representing the United States and commemorative coolers for U.S. equestrian athletes competing at the 2012...

Steffen Peters and Ravel at the 2011 Festival of Champions (Susan J. Stickle) Lexington, KY - The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) announced today that Steffen Peters (San Diego, CA) has submitted a request to not attend the USEF Selection Trials for the 2012 U.S. Dressage Team for the 2012 Olympic Games with Four Winds Farm's Ravel. These Trials will be held as part of the USEF Festival of Champions in Gladstone, NJ. The USEF Dressage Selectors met on May 24, 2012 and approved...

Aiken, SC - The United States Equestrian Team Foundation is pleased to announce that Phillip and Evie Dutton will be hosting their fourth annual Olympic Gala in Aiken, SC on Friday, March 16, 2012 at 7 pm at Bridle Creek, their winter training facility. The night will bring the Aiken community together to enjoy a cocktails, a buffet, dancing, and a silent auction while supporting the U.S. Eventing High Performance programs with a portion of the proceeds going to the USET Foundation. "We are...

(Left to Right: USA Chef d'Equipe Missy Ransehousen, Dale Dedrick, MD, Rebecca Hart, Mary Jordan, Jonathan Wentz, and Kai Handt (Lindsay McCall) Wellington, FL - Over two weeks, Para-Equestrian Dressage riders competed in front of F.E.I. judges Katherine Lucheschi (ITA), Hanneke Gerritsen (NED), and Carlos Lopes (POR), and Marc Urban (BEL) at two CPEDI3* events . This was the first time that Noreen O'Sullivan and her staff graciously hosted two consecutive CPEDI3* competitions (Gold Coast...