Professional Auction Services, Inc., returns as manager of the American Hunter Pony Classic, the industry's premier auction of hunter ponies, for the tenth year. The record setting auction will be held in conjunction with the USEF Pony Finals to be held this year at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, August 10-13, with the auction taking place on August 9. The 2005 sale features 100 ponies, including seven ponies that are qualified for the 2005 Pony Finals. Other feature ponies include:...

The Vermont Summer Festival is New England's largest 'AA' rated hunter-jumper horse show, and is now sanctioned by Equine Canada, the national body for equestrian sport in Canada. As per tradition, the Vermont Summer Festival will feature a $10,000 Mini Prix every Friday, as well as a $30,000 Grand Prix held each Sunday for the first four weeks. New for 2005, the Vermont Summer Festival will conclude with a grand finale, the $50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix. Each of the five weeks...

The 2005 American Shetland Pony National Championship Congress show is set to kick-off August 3-6 at the Gordyville Arena in Gifford, IL. Last year's Shetland Pony Congress show drew record participation with over 500 entries from all over the United States. "We were pleased by the increased entries last year," said ASPC Executive Director Zona Schneider. "Shetland ponies are very versatile and compete in a variety of open competitions, so it is especially gratifying when we can draw a large...

Over 200 top horses in the region are expected to compete in the annual Morven Park Summer Dressage Classic on July 30-31, 2005, at the Morven Park International Equestrian Center in Leesburg, VA. The dramatic highlight of the competition is the exciting Musical Freestyle--the $10,000 Pas de Deux Challenge Cup, which will begin at 1 p.m. on Sunday, July 31. This “dancing horse” musical freestyle matches choreographed movements to the beat of specially selected music, similar to synchronized...

The multi-U.S. National Champion Andalusian stallion, Davido MC, died on May 2, 2005, of an aortic aneurism, while breeding a mare at Selwood Park Stable, in Elkhorn, WI. Davido MC was owned by Gareth A. Selwood for 12 of the horse's 15 years and was bred by Music City Andalusians of Nashville, TN. He was sired by the imported 2000 USEF Leading Andalusian Sire, Ofendido VII, and out of the imported Poseido V daughter, Huerfana. Davido MC qualified for and showed at a record 11 consecutive...

Pony Club teams from across the nation will be traveling to Virginia to compete in the United States Pony Club (USPC) Championships, held August 3-7 in Lexington, VA, at the Virginia Horse Center. Pony Club members qualified to compete by attaining top scores at rallies in 43 different regions in the disciplines of dressage, eventing, mounted games, polocrosse (a combination of polo and lacrosse), show jumping, tetrathlon (riding, running, swimming and marksmanship) and quiz, an unmounted...

Christian Rogge on board Monaco for owner Robert Skib of Tulsa, OK, won the $25,000 Juan Hernandez Memorial Grand Prix on July 16 at the Biltmore Estate Summer Classic. Rogge and the 11-year-old Selle Francais gelding had the first clear round among the starting field of 22 riders with a time of 77.453. During the jump-off, owner/rider Michael Tokaruk and Lord Byron of Cordova, TN, were edged into second place by a mere 0.07 seconds in the only other clean round of the jump-off. Course designer...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it has issued a license to Fort Dodge Laboratories, Inc., of Fort Dodge, Iowa, a division of Wyeth, for a vaccine to protect horses from viremia caused by the West Nile virus (WNV). The horse vaccine, which was developed through a collaboration of the Centers for Disease Control and Fort Dodge, is the first fully licensed WNV DNA vaccine for animals in the United States. The vaccine contains genes for two WNV proteins, and therefore, does...

Sharn Wordley returned to the 2005 Woodside Summer Circuit and once again captured all three major jumper classes. At the Woodside Circuit Opener, held June 23-26, he galloped to the first three spots in the $10,000 Woodside Jumper Classic aboard Cody in first, Gorki in second and Octupus in third. During the Bay Area Festival, held June 29-July 3, Cody once again led the victory gallop in the $20,000 Bayfest Grand Prix. “He is just an awesome machine,” said Wordley of the 18-year-old grey...

On October 20, 2005, the American Riding Instructors Association (ARIA) will host an American Riding Instructors Certification Program (ARICP) Test Center in conjunction with its National Riding Instructors Convention in Orlando, FL. The convention, October 20-23, features seminars, workshops and one-on-one consultations for instructors, equine business managers, stable owners, trainers and coaches. Those registering for both the convention and the ARICP Test Center pay a discount rate. The...