U.S. Air Force veteran Derrick Perkins and Gallo del Poco Tivio, owned by Luke and Caleb Kelley competing in the Para-Reining competition at the 2013 AQHA World Championship Show (Lindsay Y. McCall) Oklahoma City, Okla. - November 17, 2013- The 2013 American Quarter Horse (AQHA) World Championship Show featured 3,401 entries, a total purse more than $2.4 million, riders from 49 states and 7 countries, and the best Reiners in the business. From November 8-23, equestrians competed in halter,...

Francois Mathy and Polinska Des Isles (Shawn McMillen Photography) Lexington, Ky. - Sometimes it is a rail, sometimes it is an inside turn and sometimes it is just one-tenth of a second separating the winner from the losers. That is exactly what happened during the Double H Farm $100,000 International Open Jumpers at the Alltech National Horse Show. Todd Minikus was aiming for his second win in a row with Quality Girl, completing a clear jump-off effort, when Belgium's Francois Mathy was...

Code Name and Sara Mittleider, winners of the 5-Year-Old USEA Young Event Horse West Coast Championships at the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event. (Amy McCool photo) Temecula, Calif. - The USEA Young Event Horse West Coast Championships crowned their 4- and 5-year-old winners at Galway Downs International Three-Day Event. In the 5-Year-Old class, Sara Mittleider and her own Code Name led from start to finish, while in the 4-Year-Old class, Jennifer McFall and Dragonfire Farm’s...

Meredith Darst and Soldier in their winning presentation. (Shawn McMillen Photography) Washington D.C. - The 2013 Hermès WIHS Equitation Finals concluded this evening with an exciting win for 16-year-old Meredith Darst of Lebanon, OH. Darst rode Elizabeth Gabler's Soldier, a seven-year-old Holsteiner gelding by Carolus II, through the first two phases of competition finishing with a score of 88.75 in the hunter phase and a 91 point total in the jumper phase. Returning for the final...

Woodside, California - Lauren Billys, of Sanger, Calif., guided Ballingowan Ginger to a four-fault show jumping round to grab the lead (51.0) in the CIC3* at the Woodside International Horse Trials. Debbie Rosen, of Calabasas, Calif., stands second on The Alchemyst (54.5), and Jolie Wentworth, of Crockett, Calif., stands third on Good Knight (58.2). The Woodside International Horse Trials are the first event in the 2013/2014 season of the Adequan/USEA Gold Cup Series. Billys, 25, and...

Liza Boyd, Brunello and Boyd's father and trainer Jack Towell sharing a moment following her win (Emily RIden) Lexington, KY - Liza Boyd and Brunello have consistently been top contenders at the USHJA International Hunter Derby Championships, but they have always come just short of the victory. Saturday night at the Kentucky Horse Park Boyd and Brunello made the shot when it really counted, finally securing the win and earning the title of 2013 USHJA International Hunter Derby Tier I Champions....

Hunt Tosh and Casanova (Emily Riden) Lexington, KY - "It was a pretty easy decision considering both horses were coming from the same barn," Dr. Betsee Parker of Middleburg, VA, owner of Casanova said. "They have both been so good, there really was nothing else to ask of them. They were fantastic both days." Tosh added: "The great owners made a good decision. That was my gut instinct, but I never even had to say anything. They both came into the schooling ring and said neither one of them are...

Jennifer Alfano and Candid (Phelps Media Group, Inc. International) Lexington, KY - The eyes of the hunter world are glued on the Bluegrass Festival Horse Show this week as the country's top horses and riders converge for the USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship Finals and the inaugural USHJA Pre-Green Incentive Program Championship. Today riders utilized the first day of the World Champion Hunter Rider (WCHR) week show, running now through Sunday, August 18, to prepare for the...

Welcome to a different kind of blog from WDAA! The purpose of this post is to allow the reader "into the heads" of both a trainer/judge/competitor, Karen Abbattista and her student, Deborah Herbert, a Florida WDAA member. We would like to share with you some moments in Deb's journey as she pursues her riding goals with her AQHA mare "GenuineArcticSpring", barn name "Belle". Please enjoy as you follow along with these posts that we consider interesting or challenging moments on their journey...

Ammeretto and David Beisel (Tricia Booker Photography) Traverse City, MI - David Beisel and Ammeretto saved their best for last. After winning the first class they contested during the 2013 Horse Shows by the Bay Series on July 4, they finally picked up their second blue ribbon today during the $30,000 D-Braider Cherry Capital Classic Grand Prix. "It was worth the wait, for sure," said Beisel, who also notched his first grand prix win aboard the 8-year-old Dutch Warmblood stallion (Numero...