Just sitting watching some dressage, as the best 15 horses and riders in the world groove before a packed house. These days have been incredibly long, and different from any other championship I have ever been to because even though it is home turf, it is such a big venue – getting around getting things done takes seemingly longer than anticipated. The jumpers have arrived. Sapphire, Cedric, Quick Study, Urico and Davos walked off the truck like they owned the place. Cedric is very, very flea...

Steffen Peters and Ravel. (Photo by Shannon Brinkman for USEF.) Lexington, KY - The U.S. Dressage Team has finished fourth in the FEI World Dressage Championship. This was the Team Grand Prix competition, and today's riders - Tina Konyot on Calecto V, owned by Tina Konyot, and Steffen Peters with Ravel, owned by Four Winds Farm and Akiko Yamazaki - completed tests that helped the team finish fourth. The two other combinations rounding out the team are Katherine Bateson-Chandler on Nartan, and...

Hillary Dobbs and Marengo (Jon Kassel/Hampton Classic Photo) Driving The second of two Mandatory Outings for the drivers on the Short List for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games was held Wednesday-Friday at Cedar Lane Farm in Oldwick, NJ. The informal competition format included dressage, a shortened version of the marathon and a challenging cones course. Tucker Johnson, Chester Weber, Jim Fairclough, Josh Rector and David Saunders participated in the Outing which was overseen by US Driving...

Driving The first of two Mandatory Outings for the drivers on the Short List for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games was held over the weekend at the Carolina Horse Park in Southern Pines, NC. Drivers Bill Long, Cindy O'Reilly, Gary Stover, and Casey Zubek worked under the guidance of US Coaches Peter Tischer and Michael Freund in a competition format. International Judge Johan Lange was also on hand to lend his expertise. All teams passed the vet check and proved over the three days that...

Jamie Pestana and Winzalot (SusanJStickle.com Photo) Gladstone, NJ – Tina Konyot (Palm Beach City, FL) had a lock on the National Grand Prix Dressage Championship over the first weekend, winning both the Grand Prix and the Grand Prix Special handily. She made it very clear in the Grand Prix on Friday of the second weekend that she wasn’t going to give up her top spot without a fight. Her score of 71.319% with her beloved Calecto V was a reward from another consistent performance for the pair...

Harrisburg, PA--August 9, 2010--The 65th Annual Pennsylvania National Horse Show, which returns to the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Exhibition Center in Harrisburg, PA, October 14-23, is pleased to invite Girl Scouts (in grades 4 and 5) and 4-H members in Pennsylvania to attend the horse show free of charge on Saturday, October 16, 2010. The horse show will host a series of classes and give Girl Scouts an opportunity to complete some of the requirements towards earning the Horse Fan...

Photo Courtesy SHN Payback, Inc. (Novalis, by Jus De Pomme and out of a G Ramiro Z daughter, is one of the champion Stallions available through the SHN Payback program at half price.) The SHN Payback program offers 350 champion stallions at half price, and awards cash prizes for Sport Horses. The SHN Payback program is in full swing for its third year, offering donated stallion services at half price to raise money for Sport Horse prize money. Every stallion in the program is a champion, or the...

As a member of the press, I especially enjoy press conferences. Of course, prior to these events I try to think of things that I’d like to ask or have explained in more detail than what is on the surface. Today, the World Equestrian Games Foundation held a press conference during a lunch break of the first day of dressage at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event to bring the press up-to-date on preparations for the big event. One thing I especially enjoy about press conferences is the...

The 2010 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) has concluded, following its 12th week of competition on March 31-April 4. The week featured the $50,000 Chronicle of the Horse /United States Hunter Jumper Association (USHJA) International Hunter Derby, along with a full schedule of hunter, jumper, and equitation classes. The week twelve title sponsor was Lifestyle Lift®. Louise Serio rode to the biggest victory of her career when she piloted Castlerock, owned by Bryan Baldwin, to the win in the...

Lebanon, OH-based Wilhelm Genn has done it again, winning both the $25,000 Nordic Lights Grand Prix and the $25,000 Budweiser Grand Prix during the fifth week of the 2010 Gulf Coast Winter Classics. International great Dave Ballard took up the reins of course designing for the double prix week. For Thursday’s $25,000 Nordic Lights event the co-creator of the 2008 Olympic layouts built a 15-effort test full of curves that had some riders struggling to keep the horses balanced, add to this...