Lexington, Ky. - Patti Blackmore (Louisiana, Mo., Region 4) placed third at last year's Finals in the First Level Adult Amateur division, and this year she improved upon that performance to claim the Second Level Adult Amateur Championship aboard her own Hanoverian gelding Rubico (by Rotspon). As the only combination to break seventy percent, they earned a decisive win with a total score of 71.905%. "I breathed a sigh of relief after our counter canter portion of the test," laughed...

Shelburne, Vt. - The best of the best in the Morgan breed was celebrated in Oklahoma City for the 2014 edition of the Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show®, October 11-18. Since 1973, this show has represented the pinnacle of achievement in the Morgan horse world. More than 1,000 of the world's finest Morgan horses from across the United States, Canada, and Europe met in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to compete in over 300 classes for $400,000-plus in prize money. Matt...

Caroline Passarelli and Little Black Pearl (Shawn McMillen Photography) Washington, D.C. - On Sunday, the young riders competed in the WIHS Pony Equitation Finals with a win for 13-year-old Caroline Passarelli of High Falls, NY. Trained by Robin Greenwood, Passarelli rode Little Black Pearl to the high score of 87 over fences and came out on top after the ride-off under saddle. She was presented the winning Jane Marshall Dillon Memorial Perpetual Trophy, donated by the friends and students of...

Davidas (Horalas *Pg*E* - Abdullah *Pg*E*) during the free-jumping phase of the 2014 Trakehner Verband stallion inspection in Neumünster, Germany, last week. He was named “Best Jumper” by the inspection team and approved as a premium stallion (Holders Hill Photography) The American bred and foaled Trakehner stallion Davidas jumped his way into the history books last weekend when he was approved as a premium stallion by the German Trakehner Verband at their annual stallion inspection and auction...

Washington, D.C. - The $15,000 Ambassador’s Cup High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic, sponsored by Ellen and Daniel Crown, saw a win for Victoria Colvin (17) and Karen Long Dwight’s Chanel B 2 on Saturday afternoon at WIHS. Colvin, of Loxahatchee, FL, rode the nine-year-old Mecklenburg mare (Cellestial x C-Indoctro) to victory to earn The Ambassador’s Cup Perpetual Trophy donated by Ambassador and Mrs. Marion H. Smoak. The Ambassador’s Cup saw 21 entries with six to...

Lexington, Ky. - The Washington International Horse Show, an iconic horse show in the heart of the nation’s capital since 1958, has been honored with the United States Equestrian Federation’s designation as a USEF Heritage Competition. The Heritage Competition title is the highest honor currently held by any Federation horse show. The designation of a USEF Heritage Competition is reserved for those competitions that have been in existence for a quarter-century or more, promoted and...

The Col. Bengt Ljungquist Memorial Championships return to the Virginia Horse Center, Oct. 16-19, 2014 Lexington, Va. - The Col. Bengt Ljungquist Memorial (CBLM) Championship is one of the oldest, most historic dressage championships in the United States, and this weekend, the annual show returns to the Virginia Horse Center for its 32nd year. The show runs Thurs., Oct. 16 through Sun., Oct. 19 in conjunction with the Virginia Area Dressage Association's (VADA) Fall Competition. Highlight...

Lexington, Ky. - After years of debate and development, last fall's inaugural US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan® were a resounding success. Since then, enthusiasm has continued to spread across the country for this year's Finals which will return to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, November 6 - 9, 2014, and recent nomination figures as reported by the United States Dressage Federation (USDF) have far exceeded expectations. The nomination phase is the second step of the...

Misdee Wrigley Miller (Picsofyou.com) Lexington, Ky. - The last USEF National Combined Driving Champions of 2014 were crowned during the final day at the Kentucky Classic CDE as drivers guided their horses and ponies through Richard Nicoll's 20-obstacle cones course at the Kentucky Horse Park. USEF National Pairs Championship Misdee Wrigley Miller (Lakewood Ranch, Fla.) earned her second USEF National Pairs Championship title. Maneuvering her pair through the course with a single ball down...

Misdee Wrigley Miller (Picsofyou.com) Lexington, Ky. - The exciting marathon phase took place Saturday at the Kentucky Classic CDE, the host of the final USEF National Combined Driving Championship competitions of 2014. Drivers demonstrated their skill through seven-obstacles on the marathon track at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky. USEF National Pairs Championship By expertly guiding her pair through the tough obstacles, Misdee Wrigley Miller (Lakewood Ranch, Fla.) stayed atop the...