Todd Minikus and Macoemba. (ManciniPhotos) Wellington, FL -Equestrian Sport Productions, the management company of the FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF), hosted its ESP Fall III Horse Show this weekend on October 26-28, 2012. Competing in the International Arena at the beautiful Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington, FL, Todd Minikus and Macoemba were the winners of the $25,000 ESP Fall III Grand Prix on Sunday, October 28. The ESP Fall III Horse Show hosted "A"...

2012 is nearly over. Show season is winding down and Western dressage organizations are gathering feedback from judges and competitors alike about tests, rules, shows and all things western dressage. Late fall is time for annual meetings for everyone and WD is on agendas all over the country. NAWD and WDAA are busy analyzing data and perfecting tests and rulebooks before the 2013 show season starts so more news will be coming from these fronts very soon. USEF and USDF will have more information...

Major equestrian competitions attended by U.S. athletes, both domestic and overseas, are listed in this weekly preview. Please look below to find competition listings by discipline* and breed. We hope you will follow the competitions that most interest you, but check Equestrian Weekly on Monday for a report of any top finishes by U.S. Equestrians. *lists of competitions in all international disciplines will include only FEI competitions or USEF Championships within the USA and international FEI...

Gladstone, NJ - The prestigious 2012 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals East got underway Saturday with the flat phase and gymnastics phase. Held at the beautiful USET Foundation Headquarters in Gladstone, New Jersey, 92 competitors competed in the first two phases of the event, vying for the coveted winning title. Seventeen-year-old Jacob Pope of Columbia, MD, is currently atop the leader board after winning today's gymnastics phase with a score 95.5, and also...

Monsieur du Reverdy and Victoria Colvin. (Shawn McMillen Photography) Upper Marlboro, MD – The $10,000 North American Junior/Amateur-Owner Challenge Cup Final Round highlighted the evening session Saturday at the Capital Challenge Horse Show. Fourteen-year-old Victoria Colvin of Loxahatchee, FL, sped to the win in the jump-off on Monsieur du Reverdy and captured first place, despite finishing the course with no stirrups. That also gave her the overall win for the North American...

Woodside, CA - Derek di Grazia has done a substantial redesign of his cross-country course for the Woodside International Horse Trials, which will take place on Oct. 5-7, presented by Professional’s Choice and Equine Insurance of California. Di Grazia says he’s changed five combinations on the course for the featured CIC3* division, and he’s also made numerous alterations for the CIC2* and CIC1* divisions. “Because we did quite a bit last year, when Woodside became an...

The fourteenth in a series of guest blog posts from Michelle Binder The last several weeks I’ve talked about how to get started in western dressage. If you are curious, you’ve checked out the website, taken advantage of the free basic membership by becoming a member, read the rules, reviewed the tests, read the articles, participated in the Forum discussions, found WD groups on Facebook, visited YouTube and chatted with your friends about it. Maybe you’ve contacted your local...

Major equestrian competitions attended by U.S. athletes, both domestic and overseas, are listed in this weekly preview. Please look below to find competition listings by discipline* and breed. We hope you will follow the competitions that most interest you, but check Equestrian Weekly on Monday for a report of any top finishes by U.S. Equestrians. *lists of competitions in all international disciplines will include only FEI competitions or USEF Championships within the USA and international FEI...

Team Germany, Hans Dieter Dreher, Daniel Deußer, Philipp Weishaupt andChristian Ahlmann, this year’s winner of the BMO Nations’ cup. (Spruce Meadows Media Services) Calgary, AB - In front of record crowds, the fourth day of the 2012 Spruce Meadows saw both the American and German flag fly above the international ring. With the sun was shining and 80,961 spectators watching in the stands, 25 horse/rider combinations saddled up for the Suncor Energy Winning Round, spread over 495 meters with 15...

The twelveth in a series of guest blog posts from Michelle Binder Every day I field calls from people wanting to know more about Western Dressage. What is it? How do I find out more about it? Can anyone do it? Is it hard? Who teaches Western Dressage? Are there shows? Last weekend a few of our riders were invited to do a Western Dressage demonstration at the local dressage show. What struck me was the feeling of being out of place amongst my dressage friends because we were wearing our western...