Jordan Gibbs and her pony Party Time caught spectators’ attention when they debuted together at the 2017 USEF Pony Finals presented by Collecting Gaits Farm, thanks in large part to Party Time’s flashy looks. The 15-year-old chestnut pony’s liberal splashes of white and his blue eyes made him a striking companion for his nine-year-old rider. But he’s more than that. He’s also Jordan’s best friend. Photo: Taylor Pence/US Equestrian Gibbs came from Colorado...

Equestrians never forget their first ponies. Woolly or sleek, magnificent or mischievous, they are the teachers who reveal the most fundamental and enduring wisdom about life with horses: that it is joyous, that it is hard work, that it is a partnership which demands compromise but also makes us stronger. These special animals arrive from a remarkable variety of sources—sometimes handed down from siblings, sometimes expensively acquired, often bought cheaply from an auction or an ad or...

North Salem, N.Y. – The USHJA North American Show Jumping Individual Qualifying Competitions took place across the children’s, junior and young rider divisions on Thursday at the Adequan®/FEI North American Youth Championships (NAYC) presented by Gotham North. With the focus on speed and handiness, The United States’s Mia Albelo (Children’s, Zone 4) and Daisy Farish (Young Rider, Zone 5) as well as Puerto Rico’s Claudia Villamil (Junior) topped their respective...

It is with great sadness that US Equestrian learned of the passing of Harry Chapman (Wilsonville, Ore.) in early June. Survived by his wife and beloved partner Mollie Chapman, he passed away at the age of 82 due to complications from a stroke. His legacy in horse ownership is well established, with horses such as Flexible, McGuinness, Reno, Zlano, Amos, and others. Chapman’s dedication to horsemanship was equaled only by his love for equestrian sport and the people to whom he entrusted...

Lexington, Ky. – It was a Cinderella story for the Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team at the 2018 FEI Eventing Nations Cup™ Great Britain. The team comprising Katherine Coleman and 2018 Karen Stives Endowment Fund Grant recipients Caroline Martin and Hallie Coon clinched the silver medal under the guidance of Chef d’Equipe Leslie Law with a score of 109.1 during the second leg of the 2018 FEI Nations Cup series. The Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team won the silver medal in the FEI...

Representatives from the United States Equestrian Federation’s 29 breed and discipline affiliates convened Friday at the Annual Meeting in Lexington, Ky., for a vibrant Affiliate Roundtable discussion on a broad range of topics. The Roundtable agenda was based on feedback from the affiliates, who submitted topics of interest they’d like to discuss. The meeting covered such subjects as opportunities for collaboration, growing membership, and sponsorship ways to improve communications...

As reports of abuse roil other sports, US Equestrian invited the U.S. Center for SafeSport’s chief operating officer, Malia Arrington to discuss the SafeSport initiative and how its policies and training are fighting emotional, physical, and sexual misconduct—including bullying, cyberbullying, hazing, harassment, and abuse—in equestrian sports and in the other Olympic and Paralympic disciplines. The SafeSport intiative provides information, resources, and a protocol that helps...

Kansas City, Mo. – Saturday, November 11, brought a rigorous challenge for the country’s top saddle seat equitation riders in the 2017 USEF Saddle Seat Medal Finals at the United Professional Horseman’s Association (UPHA)/American Royal National Championship Horse Show. Only 12 of the 21 horse-and-rider combinations in the preliminary ride-offs were called back for the final round of competition by judges Josh Greer (Ky.), Suzy Shiflet (N.C.), and John Whalen (Mass.). The...

Good pasture management can also help reduce intestinal parasites. (physyk/Adobe Stock) Here’s the bad news: worms are becoming resistant to our efforts to kill them, thanks in part to traditional deworming protocols that called for dosing horses every two months. That was the thinking when the first broad-spectrum dewormers (also called anthelmintics) hit the market back in the 1960s, but over the decades that protocol helped the worms become less sensitive to the medicine. “And...

Fair Hill, Md. – The show jumping phase proved influential for CCI3* competitors on Sunday at the 2017 The Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International Three-Day Event, with Will Coleman and Tight Lines claiming the title of The Dutta Corp./USEF CCI3* Eventing National Champions. Tamra Smith and Sunsprite Syrius remained unaffected by the challenging show jumping phase to close out a start-to-finish win of the CCI2* division. Will Coleman and Tight Lines (Photo by: Shannon Brinkman) In the CCI3*,...