Diana DeRosa (Lauren Hough and Casadora lead the American effort after Day One of show jumping.) Rio de Janeiro—Some 47 Pan American Games show jumpers entered the arena at Deodoro Stadium outside of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Thursday morning to begin the first of two days of team competition. Leading the way for Team USA was rider Lauren Hough aboard Casadora. The last of the four to go was Todd Minikus and Pavarotti. Team USA ended the day in a surprising overall fourth place after the...

Gabe Hutchins and Juiced Up Doc (Waltenberry) Lexington, KY – The 2007 Adequan/USEF National Open Reining Championship boasted a small but talented field, and there was a strong showing from the youths in the USEF Youth Reining National Championship presented by Hagyard Equine Medical Institute at the Kentucky Horse Park. When the dust settled, Gabe Hutchins and Juiced Up Doc were the clear winners bringing home the loot on a score of 226. In his first year of FEI competition and his...

Gladstone, NJ – Debbie McDonald is one of the most decorated American riders in recent years. With her beloved mare Brentina she picked up medals on three consecutive teams (2002 WEG, 2004 Olympics and 2006 WEG) and has become a household name in the dressage world. Organized by the US Olympic Committee, McDonald spoke about the value of sportsmanship to members of the Hoofbeats 4-H Club on Wednesday June 13 in Gladstone, NJ after the veterinary inspection at the Festival of Champions. Young...

The 33rd annual Dressage at Devon offers more than $50,000 in prize money and awards over six days of competition. The event, held at the historic Devon Showground September 25-30, 2007, is considered to be one of the most prestigious dressage and sport horse breeding shows outside of Europe. With competitors that include the likes of Olympians Carol Lavell, Lars Petersen and Robert Dover, Dressage at Devon draws more than 35,000 spectators and 700 horses each year, making it one of the largest...

Photo by Bob Langrish (Guenter Seidel and Aragon on the first day of dressage competition.) Aachen, Germany—Europeans know how to do dressage. Each country brought their best to the table today, including their fans. The crowd was filled with foam fingers, waving flags, funny hats and colorful scarves. It looked more like an American football game and sounded like it when certain competitors finished their test and left the stadium. The rain held off, the sun tried unsuccessfully to break...

The 30th Annual National Youth Horse Leaders Symposium, presented by the American Youth Horse Council (AYHC), will be held on March 9-11, 2007, in conjunction with the Rocky Mountain Horse Expo in Denver, CO. The 2007 event will boast more than two-dozen internationally and nationally respected presenters assembled to share their keys to successful youth horse programming and horse management. Attendees will find resources, referrals and networking to improve their ability to help kids connect...

SusanJStickle.com (Michelle Gibson on Lex Barker) Gladstone, NJ – The women ruled the scoreboards today taking all five classes with back-to-back wins for Rebecca Hart and Michelle Gibson. After the unexpected downpour during yesterday’s last class, the ideal weather set the tone for some spectacular rides at all levels. Local Ana Digironimo won the first class of the day, the FEI Young Rider Prix St. Georges Test with a score of 56.15%. Digironimo, of Turnersville, NJ, rode her...

Mara Dean on Nicki Henley during the dressage phase of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by Farnam. (Marc Manning) If there was one thing that stood out the first day of the 2006 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by Farnam – other than the international-level competitors and their beautiful mounts – it was the abundance of blue skies and sunshine that surprised even veteran Rolex attendees. Legions of fans of eventing came from around the world to watch the highest...

Updated standings for the Western Country Pleasure Invitational Class at the World’s Championship Horse Show are now online on the American Saddlebred Horse Association’s website at www.saddlebred.com. The standings can be found under the “About the Breed” menu on the “KSF World’s Championship” tab, or by going to www.saddlebred.com/wchs-results. The document is under the heading, “Western Country Pleasure Invitational Standings.” This is a new page dedicated to the World’s Championship Horse...

Christian Rogge on board Monaco for owner Robert Skib of Tulsa, OK, won the $25,000 Juan Hernandez Memorial Grand Prix on July 16 at the Biltmore Estate Summer Classic. Rogge and the 11-year-old Selle Francais gelding had the first clear round among the starting field of 22 riders with a time of 77.453. During the jump-off, owner/rider Michael Tokaruk and Lord Byron of Cordova, TN, were edged into second place by a mere 0.07 seconds in the only other clean round of the jump-off. Course designer...