(Lexington, KY) – The USEF Board of Directors met in Lexington, KY, on July 11 and addressed a relatively light agenda with few proposed bylaw or rule changes. In their respective reports, USEF President David O’Connor and Chief Executive Officer John Long announced that a new strategic planning process will begin in the next several months with the objective of guiding the Federation for the next decade. It will address such issues as grassroots support and development; the rule creation and...

FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG) teammates McLain Ward of Brewster, NY, and Margie Engle of Wellington, FL, took the two featured classes on opening day of the 29th Annual I Love New York Horse Show. Ward, a Team Gold medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, topped a huge field of 83 horses, riding Galant to victory in the WPTZ-TV News Channel 5 1.35m Jump-off. Riding fourth in the order at the North Elba Showgrounds, the 30-year-old Ward set the early mark to beat when he rode clean and then...

The finals for the Long Island Horse Show Series for Riders with Disabilities (LIHSSRD) will be held on Monday, August 28, of the Hampton Classic Horse Show. The LIHSSRD finals mark the first time in the horse show’s three-decade history that competition will be held on Monday. Admission will be free on this day when all of the shops in the Hampton Classic’s popular Boutique Garden and Stable Row will be open for business. The show series, created by HorseAbility, was founded to provide riders...

How to increase funding for equine research was the primary focus of a collaborative equine research summit held in Lexington, KY, April 19-20. Hosted by the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Foundation, Inc., over 35 leading researchers, industry leaders and funding agencies gathered to develop a blueprint for future success in the equine research field. While the amount of money dedicated to equine research by the racing industry, private foundations, universities and...

Two American Saddlebred geldings, Kobada’s Jacq Of Times and Canyonleigh Stargazer, have been sold to the members of the ruling family of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Kobada’s Jacq Of Times (nicknamed JT) was sold by Australian Kevin Sayer of Mountain Breeze Stud, Mount Hunter, New South Wales, to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, supreme ruler of Dubai. The 15.3-hand bay gelding is presently in quarantine in northern Australia. His record in 2004 and 2005 includes winning...

Susan Summers, riding Mags Motivator, finished first in a ride time of 9:54:59 at the CEI*** 100-mile endurance ride in Ashland, MT, on Sunday, June 11. Her average ride time of 10.48 miles per hour put her four minutes ahead of second-place finisher, Heather Stevens, riding RSA Count Laquen. Forty riders took the trail in the 4:30 a.m. eastern Montana dawn. The trail would take them over ranch land and through the Custer National Forest. Twenty-six FEI riders began this third and last...

International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Sir Philip Craven and International Equestrian Federation (FEI) President HRH The Infanta Doña Pilar de Borbón have signed an agreement for the transfer of governance of equestrian for persons with a physical disability from the IPC to the FEI. The transfer ceremony took place at the FEI General Assembly in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on May 2 and will come into full effect on July 1 with the IPC Governing Board accepting the provisional membership...

In September 2005, a dedicated group of Egyptian Arabian enthusiasts met in Lexington, VA, at the Arabian Sport Horse Nationals. Realizing the need for an organization that would meet the needs of owners, breeders and trainers of the Egyptian Arabian sport horse, they formed the Egyptian Arabian Sport Horse Alliance, Inc. (EASHA). One of EASHA's main goals is to increase public awareness of the Egyptian Arabian's athletic ability. The organization will offer encouragement to local association...

The World Equestrian Festival, perhaps the largest single week's horse show in the world, began Wednesday in Aachen, Germany, with the United States announcing a top team for the Samsung Super League. Aachen CHIO has added championship vaulting to the lineup of show jumping, dressage and four-in-hand driving that will be contested by 145 athletes from 23 nations on more than 400 horses, in front of what is expected to be well above 300,000 spectators during the five days of competition. For...

With the victory gallop at Rolex now in the past, the East Coast eventing scene’s focus shifted to the final preparations for the New Jersey CCI** and CCI*** in early June and the Virginia Horse Park’s CCI* in mid-May. Many riders chose to have a final tune-up at the Maryland Combined Training Association (MCTA) Horse Trials located at Shawan Downs. Although MCTA Horse Trials are long time veterans of the spring eventing schedule, the organizers added both intermediate and advanced levels to...