Karl Cook and Basimodo on their way to win the $75,000 Sunshine Series Grand Prix, at National Sunshine Series Week I (ESI Photography) Thermal, Calif. - With an enthusiastic crowd in attendance at HITS Desert Horse Park, Karl Cook and Basimodo won Saturday’s $75,000 Sunshine Series Grand Prix. Suspense grew amongst spectators as four entered the jump off, but Cook was confident in his partner, knowing the best is yet to come. “I loved how Basimodo rode tonight. He has a lot of...

Temecula, Calif. - Barbara Crabo rode Eveready II to victory in the CCI3* at the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event, scoring 53.2 penalties. Her faultless show jumping around pushed her to the top when leader Buck Davidson lowered one rail with Copper Beech to finish second (54.0). Maya Black and Doesn’t Play Fair finished third (59.2). For Crabo, of Scottsdale, Ariz., Galway Downs was her first victory in a CCI3*, and for it she received a check for $7,000. “I’m...

Temecula, Calif. - Nicci Guzetta, on Queen of Spades, and Tamra Smith, on Irish Blend, won divisions of the Training Level Three-Day Event at the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event. Smith, of Murrieta, Calif., and Irish Blend added nothing to their dressage score of 38.3 to win division A, over Kristen Schalk on Comet’s Flight (38.6) and Max Gerdes on Rhythm Royale (40.4). Guzetta, of San Jose, Calif., stood third after two days, but a faultless show jumping round vaulted her to...

Lexington, Ky. - In front of a pumped up Saturday night crowd at the 131st National Horse Show in Lexington, Kentucky, Olympic teammates Beezie Madden and McLain Ward did battle once again. In this skirmish it was Madden and Cortes 'C' edging out Ward and Rothchild by a single second to claim the title in the $250,000 Canadian Pacific Grand Prix CSI4*-W, presented by the Harrison Family. Madden had the advantage of going last and ripped across the finish line in a sensational time of 34....

Spencer Smith (Al Cook Photo) Harrisburg, Pa. - After a full day of competition at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show the Pessoa/US Hunter Seat Medal Finals presented by Randolph College came to a historic conclusion, as Spencer Smith topped the field of 241 competitors to claim the 2014 National Title and in doing so became the first male rider to do so in 12 years. Smith (Wellington, Fla.) was among the 25 competitors to come back for a work-off and then in the final five rider test that...

Auburn, Ala. - No. 6 South Carolina picked up its first win of the season on Friday, upsetting No. 3 Auburn, 10-9, at the Auburn University Horse Center. The Gamecocks are now 1-2 overall, 1-1 in SEC play, while Auburn drops to 1-1 overall, and 0-1 in conference action. Friday's win marks South Carolina's fifth straight win over the Tigers, dating back to the 2013 Southeastern Conference Championship. The Gamecocks have outscored Auburn, 54-36 in that span. "This was a great win for us...

The winning Hermes U.S. Show Jumping Team (Nacho Olano) Barcelona, Spain - The Hermès U.S. Show Jumping Team entered Friday’s Challenge Cup competition at the 2014 Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup Jumping Final looking for redemption after a ninth-place finish in the First Competition. Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland led the determined team of McLain Ward, Margie Engle, Lauren Hough, and Beezie Madden, who delivered throughout the afternoon that saw them beat out the Australian team in...

Lexington, Ky. - After years of debate and development, last fall's inaugural US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan® were a resounding success. Since then, enthusiasm has continued to spread across the country for this year's Finals which will return to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, November 6 - 9, 2014, and recent nomination figures as reported by the United States Dressage Federation (USDF) have far exceeded expectations. The nomination phase is the second step of the...

Devon, Pa. - The rides on Sunday at Dressage at Devon, were of top quality, and featured the Young Rider Freestyle, the Grand Prix Freestyle (ages 16-25), the fantastic Grand Prix Special, and the Intermediaire 1 Freestyle. Allison Brock and Rosevelt, a black stallion owned by Claudine and Fritz Kundrum, won the FEI Grand Prix Special. It was Alison’s second trip to Devon, but the first time she rode in the Grand Prix. She was thrilled that Rosevelt handled Devon’s charged...

Beezie Madden and Cortes 'C' (SusanJStickle.com) Caen, France - The United States sent two combinations into the d’Ornano Stadium for the Third Individual Qualifier of the FEI World Individual Jumping Championship, held as part of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, and came within a 3/10th of a point of qualifying both riders for the Final Four. Beezie Madden and McLain Ward were among the field of 29 that took on Frédéric Cottier’s 12-obstacle first round course,...