2008 was the 25th anniversary for the National Show Horse (NSH) Finals. The show was held September 17-20 in Springfield, IL. The weather could not have been better, and with over $200,000 in prize money available, you can almost always guarantee a good time with a lot of quality horses. This year was no exception. The judges were Cari Bartz, Gayle Lampe and Richard Petty. The National Show Horse Registry (NSHR) was very pleased with the addition of the Hackney Futurity, Hackney Pony and...

Nineteen-year-old Western Star Galaxy (Georgetown Starlight x Cedarvale Splendora) won big at last week's Eastern States Exposition Big E Horse Show in West Springfield, MA. In a class of nine, "Alex" won the New England Horseman's Council's Junior Western Reining Seat Medal Finals with Stephanie Miranda of Assonet, MA, in the saddle. Alex is the only Morgan to ever win the finals to date. Owned by Michelle Cravenho of Kingston, MA, Alex was the only Morgan in the class that included Paints,...

Lexington, KY— In the newly created 2008 United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) National Developing Horse Dressage Championship sponsored by the Dutta Corporation and Performance Sales International, Guenter Seidel and U II had a strong showing Sunday to win the championship with a total score of 70.873. Similar to the Young Horse championship, the competitors faced high winds which made their rides difficult and a spooky environment for the horses. Seidel felt he was lucky to draw an...

The theme for the Dressage at Devon Preview Party was "Be Part of the Magic," and a magical evening it was. The affair took place in the lovely gardens of Jane MacElree’s historic Fairy Hill estate in Newtown Square, PA. The weather was perfect, the flowers were blooming in a riot of color, and guests were treated to a stellar musical freestyle by Chris Hickey on Bugatti Hilltop. Approximately 150 supporters of Dressage at Devon were on the guest list. To boogie woogie music that was...

International dressage trainer Susan Dutta has stayed busy over the summer accumulating many blue ribbons during the hot Florida summer. In an effort to stay in top form before Dressage at Devon, Dutta has competed at the Summer Sizzler I and the Summer Sizzler II held in Newberry, FL. Golden Choice DC, Currency DC, and Manette DC have all thrived in the competition arena this summer with Dutta, showing that they are ready for the difficult tests that lay ahead. At the Summer Sizzler I in July,...

Two lucky youths won big with a small equine prize. At the American Shetland Pony Congress this month, two American Shetland ponies were awarded to winners of two youth essay contests. Youths from around the country exercised their writing skills for the chance to win one of these amazing Shetland ponies. Entries were numbered and judged anonymously. Kimberly Cotter was the lucky winner of E’s Sir Nite and Kasey Waxler of Pennsylvania was awarded Cross Country’s Mr. Banker. Kimberly Cotter, the...

Jimmy Torano could not have been happier with his winning performance in the $10,000 Escada/Theory Open Welcome Stake, Presented by Manchester Designer Outlets, on Friday, August 1, at the Vermont Summer Festival in East Dorset, VT. Magic Cruise, an eight-year-old Belgian-bred mare owned by SCNC Investments, Inc., has been knocking on the door of the “big” classes for some time now. According to Torano, Friday’s win marked a highlight for this special mare. “She is a very straightforward horse....

Morton, IL- The Hong Kong Equestrian Federation (HKEF) in conjunction with the Hong Kong Jockey Club and ING Corporation, hosted an extraordinary “Hand- Over” ceremony on July 10th in Hong Kong to receive two ponies the American Shetland Pony Club (ASPC) donated to salute Hong Kong’s efforts in hosting the 2008 Equestrian Olympics. ASPC Marketing Director Johnny Robb was on hand to make a speech at the ceremony and to answer questions for the media. ASPC Director of Operations Zona Schneider...

At the Oaks Blenheim Classic, Karen Healey's riders were major players and very successful. Starting with the jumpers, in the $5,000 1.45m classic, Hannah Selleck of Thousand Oaks, CA, and her horse Bauer rode their way to victory. In addition, her name has been added to the Young Riders team for Zone 10 at the 2008 North American Junior and Young Rider Championships (NAJYRC). Shelby Wakeman of Westlake Village, CA, and Pandoer, were named as the alternates for the junior team. They finished...

The University of Kentucky’s (UK) College of Agriculture is celebrating national championships by two of its collegiate equine teams. Riders from its equestrian and dressage teams nabbed top honors in their respective competitions. The UK equestrian team bested 17 other hunt seat teams from across the country at the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) National Championships, May 8-11, in Burbank, CA, to take home UK’s first team championship. This was only the second year the team’s...