by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 13, 2025
Do you know how to handle an emergency involving your horse?
You can get some helpful tips at “Emergencies, Pasture and Pain…Oh My!” the Horse Management Seminar hosted by the Rutgers Equine Science Center and Rutgers Cooperative Extension. The seminar is scheduled from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb, 1. It also will be available on line. A virtual series is set for Feb. 11, 18 and 25.
“This year, I have looked back at a few years of previous seminar evaluations and selected a few of the common requested themes,” said Dr. Carey Williams, extension equine specialist and associate director of extension for the Rutgers Equine Science Center.
“We have so many experts in these fields surrounding us, I am very excited to be able to have them share their expertise with you. Our goal for this face-to-face seminar is to bring in the leading experts in each of these topic areas. This includes emergency preparedness, small farm pasture management, evaluating pain, saddle fit and caring for the senior horse,” she explained.
Presenters who are recognized as the leading experts in their field will offer perspectives and personal insight. The morning will start with “Emergency Preparedness: Many Teams…One Mission” by Eric Martin, Middlesex County Office of Emergency Management’s operations and training office. Also in the morning, Laura Kenny, a Penn State cooperative extension educator, will present “Small Farm Pasture Management”.
The last talk before lunch will be on “Evaluating Pain in Horses” from Dr. Kris Hiney, the equine extension specialist from Oklahoma State University.
“Dr. Hiney has some great information from some research she has done on behavior in horses,” stated Carey.
The afternoon will start off with Dr. Hiney’s second talk, “Evaluating Pain in Horses while Riding”, followed by certified saddle fitter Beth Rera, who owns Journeyman Saddle Solutions. Her talk is titled “Basic Saddle Fitting to Reduce Pain in Horses”.
Closing out the day will be a presentation on “Health & Management of U.S. Senior Horses” from Dr. Alisa Herbst of Rutgers University, with her latest research information on the older horse population.
In addition to these presentations, the seminar will feature informational displays, networking opportunities with industry companies and area organizations, ample time for one-on-one discussions with the day’s presenters and door prizes.
The complete program, registration information, and seminar brochure are posted on the Rutgers Equine Science Center website at esc.rutgers.edu, as well as the registration site at: https://go.rutgers.edu/2025HMSLiveReg
For any questions, contact Carey Williams at 848-932-5529, or carey.williams@rutgers.edu.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 24, 2025
Eventer Liz Halliday was honored with the International Equestrian of the Year title by the U.S. Equestrian Federation in Kentucky on Thursday night, while hunter ring star Nick Haness earned national honors.The winners were selected by a vote of the membership.
Liz Halliday.
Liz is in a rehabilitation center for the traumatic brain injury she suffered in August when her horse fell with her on cross-country at the American Eventing Championships. She had been the reserve rider for the U.S. eventing team at the Paris Olympics, but stepped up to compete on the squad when Will Coleman had to drop out. She finished nineteenth overall.
Nick Haness may be based in California, but he is a nationwide phenomenon who was saluted with USEF’s Naitonal Equestrian of the Year trophy.
Nick Haness
The leading hunter rider at Devon two years in a row, Nick kept his winning form throughout 2024 to be a standout in major competitions. They included winning winning the $100,000 USHJA WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular, and the $100,000 WCHR West Coast Hunter Spectacular, as well as earning the leading hunter rider title at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show.
Haness was one of the riders of McQueen, who was named National Horse of the Year.
Owned by Walkenbach Equestrian, he also was shown successfully in the amateur ranks by Lanie Walkenbach.
The International Horse of the Year title went to Signe Ostby’s Caracole de la Roque, ridden by Ostby’s son, Karl Cook, to the Olympic team silver medal. That duo also won the prestigious Rolex Grand Prix of Rome.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Lendon Gray, an Olympic team member in dressage who these days is better known for her contributions to sport beyond her riding.
An A-rated Pony Clubber while she was growing up in Maine, she was recognized for taking non-traditional mounts to the top of the sport. One of her most famous partners was Seldom Seen, a Connemara/Thoroughbred cross who stood just 14.2 hands but bested his larger competition up through Grand Prix level.
Seeking to foster the development of good all-around horsemanship in the younger generations of equestrians, Gray created the Youth Dressage Festival in 1999. In addition to a traditional dressage test, competitors at the Festival are also tasked with completing a written test on riding theory and stable management and a group equitation test. In line with Gray’s mission, all three sections carry equal weight for the overall results.
The Festival marked the beginning of Dressage4Kids (D4K) which provides dressage athletes, coaches, and officials with opportunities and support as they advance in the sport. D4K has grown over the years to encompass educational programs and professional development for instructors and other adults in the industry in addition to the youth-focused training and mentoring opportunities. Through its scholarship program, D4K provides financial assistance for youth and amateur riders, as well as new professionals to access training, competition, and educational resources.
D4K’s Horse Donation Program matches competitive dressage horse and ponies with dedicated young athletes who have committed to the lifelong care of their horse. Horses and riders are carefully matched, ensuring positive outcomes for both. Horses leased through the program compete across the country at all levels, including at championship events.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 22, 2025
Rebecca Hart and Kat Fuqua were recognized for their sporting achievements by the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation at its Gold Medal Club reception in Florida this month. Kat received the Lionel Gerrand-Hermes Trophy, while Becca was awarded the Whitney Stone Trophy.
Becca rode Floratina, a 17-year-old Hanoverian mare to a clean sweep of gold medals in Paris, marking the rider’s fifth consecutive Paralympic Games. She rode to a personal best score of 83.53 percent in the freestyle test to end the Games with three gold medals.
“I am incredibly honored to be selected for this trophy,” said Becca.
“It is an incredible testament to just how far para dressage has come as a discipline. I have loved helping to bring adaptive sport forward and hope to be able to continue to do so. It’s an honor and a privilege to represent the USET Foundation, USEF (the U.S. Equestrian Federation), and my owners and sponsors on the field of play.
“I’d like to acknowledge my personal support team and the amazing horse owner and sponsor, Rowan O’Riley,” stated Becca.
“We wouldn’t have enjoyed these results without her dedication not only to me, but the entire discipline of para dressage. Team success comes when we plan and work together, and Rowan was an integral part of that.”
Becca Hart with USET Foundation President Kristi Mitchem and Chairman Jim McNerney. (Photo Jump Media)
“When I first started in para, we didn’t have access to the support and programs that we do now,” she explained.
“I love that we have been able to develop this program so much with the help of the USET Foundation. I have watched this discipline grow from a struggling fledgling sport into having the number one-ranked team in the world. The financial and structural support from the USET Foundation and USEF — on top of the huge amount of effort from sponsors, owners, and my fellow teammates — are what made these results possible.
“I want to see more para riders coming into high performance sport,” she said. “Disability is often considered a weakness, but it’s actually a strength. When we embrace our differences and change our perspectives, the entire community becomes stronger.
“My advice to any aspiring Paralympian is to figure out how to make your body work for you and find a solid support team; one that can think outside of the box. You can teach your horse a language that is unique to you and your abilities. Be organized and persistent in working towards your goals.”
The Whitney Stone Cup is given in memory of the late Whitney Stone, who served as president and chairman of the board of the USET, and was instrumental in creation of a civilian team when the Army no longer fielded teams in competitive horse sports after 1948.
Other winners of the award have included show jumper Michael Matz in 1980, dressage rider Debbie McDonald in 2004 and eventer Boyd Martin in 2020.
Previous winners of the Hermes Trophy include Olympic medalists Greg Best and McLain Ward, which prompted Kat to say, “I’m really excited because the riders that have received the award previously have gone on to achieve unbelievable accomplishments as professionals. The fact that I’m on that list alongside those athletes is really special.”
Kat claimed triple Young Rider dressage gold at the FEI North American Youth Championships (NAYC) riding Dreamgirl. She is eighth on the FEI Dressage World Youth rankings with Dreamgirl and was named the 2024 U.S. Dressage Federation Young Rider of the Year.
The 17-year-old athlete rode on the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s European Young Rider Dressage Tour. Also a jumper rider, she competed internationally in both her disciplines at the same show, Hagen in Germany.
Kat Fuqua and Dreamgirl at Aachen. (Roya Brinkman Photo)
She trains primarily with her mother, Shereen Fuqua, and U.S. Equestrian Dressage Youth Coach George Williams.
“I started in hunters and came up through the ponies and junior hunters, and the championships in the hunter ring taught me a lot about how to deal with larger competitions. The European Young Rider Dressage Tour, which I went on in 2023 and 2024, was one of the most transformational programs for my career. Competing on a team at NAYC taught me about working well with other riders, even if I didn’t know them,” she said.
“It highlighted the importance of teamwork and prepared me for the pressure of competing on a team. NAYC couldn’t have been a better experience because my goal is to be selected to Nations Cup senior teams. This is the perfect stepping stone.
“I’d like to thank the USET Foundation and USEF for supporting me and my career along the pathway,” added Fuqua. “Also, thank you to my parents and my groom Pepe, who has been with us since I was nine and is Dreamgirl’s best friend.”
“If you’re ever invited to anything, like a pathway program, even if it feels like a lot of work, just do it,” she advised. “It might be an open window to something you don’t see now. You could meet someone who could completely change your career, or you could learn something that will help you transform your riding.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 16, 2025
Just before the Wellington, Fla., Planning, Zoning and Adjustment board was going to vote on the Isla Carroll housing project late Wednesday night, the developer asked for a 30-day postponement to address issues raised at the hearing—and by the Equestrian Preserve Committee as well last week.
The EPC unanimously voted down the project, and it looked like the PZAB was headed in that direction when the request for a delay was made.
“I don’t believe in the concept,” said Michael Drahos, a board member and former councilman, who mentioned “the only comparison I have is Equestrian Club Estates, which failed.”
The 79.171-acre Isla Carroll property, adjacent to the National Polo Center included polo fields. After being purchased by Frank McCourt, a plan to build 40 homes there with Discovery Land Co. needed an equestrian element, a requirement because developers were seeking a Planned Unit Development in the Equestrian Overlay Zoning District. It called for 35 houses on one-third of an acre, rather than two acres, and five properties of 1.5 acres where horses could be kept, with room for a paddock, stalls and a sand ring.
The master plan for Isla Carroll.
The equestrian portion of the club community involves 14 acres for paddocks, an indoor arena, an outdoor ring and a 24-stall stable that would be renovated inside, while keeping the character of the exterior. The presentation to the board stated stalls would be occupied by rescue horses in transition to permanent homes, and retired horses. The activities envisioned at the site included a mish-mash of everything from vaulting to hunter/jumper, dressage, trail riding and Pony Club.
School trips would be hosted at the stable so children could learn about horse care, and for club members, lessons would be available with the idea that beginners could get some instruction before heading for a private stable if they wished to continue in the sport.
Skepticism about whether that concept is realistic was expressed at both hearings. (Click here to read about the first hearing).
Homeowners’ horses could only get a stall on site if there were vacancies among what amounts to school horses. There would be a club for 300 families, with approximately 260 coming from outside the community, raising concern about traffic. Other amenities planned include two swimming pools, a pickleball court, a fitness center and several restaurants.
Several members of the advisory panels and residents who spoke during both meetings were skeptical about the plan, and it was suggested more than once that the equestrian aspect existed only to justify the zoning change in the Equestrian Preserve. When the Village Council last year approved building a golf community in the Equestrian Preserve at the site now being used for dressage shows, a number of people warned that this would pave the way for more development in the preserve. There were those on the council who contended the circumstances of the first project were so unusual that no one would try for more development in the preserve. And then came the Isla Carroll proposal.
“The precedent that this Village is attempting to establish is that these are compelling decisions. We have to be convinced this is an equestrian amenity and that this isn’t just a housing community with an equestrian label on it,” said Drahos.
“It sounds good today, but how are we going to guarantee that this is forever? And I think forever is the standard we should be living by, because you’re asking us to remove EOZD protections forever, and once that’s done, you can’t return it. If it’s left to the homeowners or another company, there are no guarantees. There should be remarkable evidence to insure that what we’re doing is worth the sacrifice.”
Commenting on social media about building in the EOZD, area resident Jill Renick Townsend stated, “It just keeps getting easier with each property removed. If this goes through, all land between Pierson and Lake Worth Road east of Southshore will eventually become developments.”
Over and over, Wellington residents have expressed concern that continuing development will erode the equestrian character of the village, billed as the Winter Equestrian Capital of the world and home of the Winter Equestrian Festival at the Wellington International showgrounds.
When PZAB member Jeffrey Robbert said, “I don’t think the equestrian club plan can succeed,” that was the final straw for the developers, who said they needed more time to work on the concept.
“It’s something we ought to take under advisement and perhaps come back to you with a clear understanding of how this is going to be operated in perpetuity, put those guaranties in place.”
The PZAB is scheduled to hear the matter again on Feb. 19. The Equestrian Preserve Committee and PZAB play only an advisory role in land use decisions. The Village Council is the body that decides whether to approve such projects.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 17, 2025
In the age of Social License to Operate, some equestrians are nervous about how expansion of the federal government’s Horse Protection Act will affect competitions and horse sales.
Others haven’t even heard about revised regulations going into effect Feb. 1, because there has been little publicity. But any time the government gets involved with sport, it raises questions.
At HPA’s inception in 1970, attention focused on stopping the soring of breeds such as Tennessee walking horses and racking horses with a variety of caustic substances. That practice, in conjunction with the use of action devices, has led to horrific abuse by some in creating the “Big Lick” type of striding valued in walking horse competitions. But as U.S. Equestrian Federation CEO Bill Moroney pointed out, even the original act covered soring in all types of horses, though equestrians involved with other breeds may not have realized it.
Now, however, “there have been some amendments (to HPA) that require a little more work by people,” he said.
The amended act is so broad-ranging that it has “really raised everyone’s attention” about regulation of all “covered breeds” at “covered events,” including shows offering everything from hunters to costume classes, dressage and polo. Competitions based on speed, such as show jumping, eventing cross-country, horse racing or rodeo, aren’t subject to the HPA.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture summarizes that “The Horse Protection Act makes it unlawful for any person to show, exhibit, sell, or transport sore horses, or to use prohibited equipment or substances in these activities.”
The USEF issued a press release in October that included information about the regulations, but Moroney thinks many people may not have read it. The federation has been proactive in dealing with the amendments, as has the American Horse Council.
A national association representing the horse industry in Washington, D.C., AHC has a variety of member organizations including USEF. the American Quarter Horse Association, the American Paint Horse Association and many others. It has asked for a 60-day extension in activating the revised HPA, in order to eliminate confusion in several areas, including the scope of the regulations. AHC has yet to receive an answer from the USDA, according to its president, Julie Broadway. The USDA also did not reply to an inquiry from this website on the status of the extension request.
Broadway said AHC is reconsidering its support of the revised regulations, noting USDA “is not cooperating” as the council tries to get things clarified “and make certain we are comfortable with what they are trying to do.”
There’s not as much overreach in the old regulations as the new regulations, Broadway observed. At the moment, she added “it’s just an absolute mess.” AHC has been in touch with the transition team for the new presidential administration about the issue. She said at this point, USDA can’t withdraw the revised HPA, and Congress doesn’t have the power to turn it around, but the new secretary of agriculture could withdraw it.
“We’re continuing to work every possible angle that we can,” Broadway commented.
She said some show organizers are “really frustrated, really anxious. They’re calling us and asking us, `What do we do?’” She suggests the shows just go ahead and notify USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Information Service as required that organizers will be holding their events. Broadway noted APHIS hasn’t gotten more money or personnel to enforce the act, and that the concentration remains on Tennessee Walking Horses.
“So the chances of them coming to a quarter horse show near you are really, really slim.”
USEF is handling notification of APHIS for all of its licensed competitions, which means their managers don’t have to deal with it. Concerns have been raised about other facets of the regulations, including the requirement that Horse Protection Inspectors have free access to show records, sale records, event information, barns, tack rooms, horse trailers, stables, stalls, arenas, and other areas on the showgrounds.
That sounds ominous, but Moroney’s conclusions are similar to those reached by Broadway. He maintained, “The immediate reaction has to be measured against the reality of the resources of the USDA/APHIS with regard to enforcement of the act. They have a limited budget and historically have gone to about 50 events a year.”
USEF has 2,100 licensed competitions (none of which are walking horse shows), and there are thousands more shows connected with other equestrian organizations across the country.
“There is no way for them to get everywhere,” said Moroney of the inspectors.
“They have historically gone to places where they feel this action is happening; the propensity to sore horses is the highest,” he said.
“We’re feeling as good as we can feel about it from a USEF perspective, because we have rules and regulations. We have a regulatory system that will penalize people for doing things outside the rules. We have a system of stewards, technical delegates, judges etc. where horses have a level of oversight over them.
“Come on, people out there,” he said.
“Do the right thing and you won’t have to call on regulation at the end of the day. The best way for something to not affect you is to do the right thing.”
Derek Braun, who runs the Split Rock Show Jumping Tour, isn’t worried about the expanded regulations.
He said he needs to look into them further for the details, but noted the provision that horses should be examined before they go in the ring and after they leave sounds to him like FEI (international equestrian federation) requirements.
If they have their own people coming in and inspecting, he continued, “that would be a little more concerning,” but he thinks inspection similar to what is done for FEI horses would be okay, “as long as it’s used for a good reason.”
Braun added, “I think the intention is probably correct for extreme circumstances. I think it’s no problem holding these trainers and exhibitors accountable if there is an extreme circumstance. While that’s what the show stewards, “are there for,” as far as having an inspector also take a look, “I can’t see that as a bad thing if it’s warranted.”
Joe Norick, the HITS’ show series chief customer officer, said that self-policing means “if we see something that looks inappropriate, we’ll bring it up.”
He added, “I think you have to employ good staff at the show, people that are educated, from the horse show vet on down. Depending on who these individual (inspectors) are and how they are coming to look at this, education is a big factor. That’s why a strong steward, horse show vet or manager is going to have take the lead, to be proactive on this. I also do think we have to think of the care, the quality of the barns, that’s why we have enough emphasis that horse care is a good place to start. I think we’re going to be fine.”
Meanwhile, however, the Western Justice Legislative Fund has taken an aggressive stance against the revised HPA with a petition drive. It cites many concerns, contending animal rights extremists are “seeking to expand the definition of `soring’ to encompass as much of the horse industry as possible. The recent revisions to the law are the result. The lead USDA veterinarian, Dr. Aaron Rhyner, even went so far as to say that he could see how just riding a horse could be considered to be a type of soring.”
Texas Commissioner of Agriculture Sid Miller is another voice against the revised HPA. He maintans, “This rule isn’t about protecting horses; it’s about federal bureaucrats grabbing more control over an industry they clearly don’t understand. The United States Department of Agriculture’s new rule is so absurd that it makes using fly spray on a horse a potential violation. That’s not a joke—they can’t be serious!”
The Federal Rule for the Act specifically states “soring” is defined as:
- An irritating or blistering agent applied, internally or externally, by a person to any limb of a horse;
- Any burn, cut, or laceration inflicted by a person on any limb of a horse;
- Any tack, nail, screw, or chemical agent injected by a person into or used by a person on any limb of a horse; or
- Any other substance or device used by a person on any limb of a horse, or a person has engaged in a practice involving a horse and as a result of such application, infliction, injection, use, or practice, such horse suffers, or can reasonably be expected to suffer, physical pain or distress, inflammation, or lameness when walking, trotting, or otherwise moving, except that such term does not include such an application, infliction, injection, use, or practice in connection with the therapeutic treatment of a horse by or under the supervision of a person licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the State in which such treatment is given.
click here to read about the revised HPA from the Federal Register.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 15, 2025
The Essex Horse Trials in New Jersey has lived several lives since its founding in the late 1960s, and now it’s about to embark on yet another.
This year, it will run on Sunday, June 1, for one day rather than two; hold everything at a single venue, Moorland Farm in Far Hills, instead of two locations and offer Starter level for the first time, while dropping Intermediate, which wasn’t well-attended at the other end of the scale. The highest level this spring will be Preliminary.
Despite the fact that the 2024 event made money, there was a question of whether Essex could be held in 2025 because the two-venue concept proved to be very difficult and a strain to organize and facilitate.
Then Marilyn Payne stepped up to become the organizer and board president, suggesting the new, more compact, concept. Few know the sport as well she does. She has ridden at Essex since its early days at the Haller family’s Hoopstick Farm in Bedminster, down the road from Moorland and the U.S. Equestrian Team.
Marilyn Payne is a longtime eventing competitor in addition to her credentials as a teacher and judge. Photo © by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Essex was a major fixture on the eventing circuit from the late 1960s through 1998, when it last ran at the USET in Gladstone. After some of the USET property was sold, it was no longer optimal for the cross-country phase, so the event didn’t go again for 18 years. In 2004, the Essex organization was dissolved and its funds were dispersed, “ending faint hopes that one of the country’s best-known 2-star eventing tests could make a comeback,” as I wrote in a column that year.
Roger Haller told me sorrowfully, “the countryside has been changing and there’s not the critical mass to sustain what was there before.”
But there were many who remembered Essex and missed it. An opportunity to stage all phases at Moorland, also home of the popular Far Hills Race Meeting each October, led to its revival in 2017.
Sadly, Roger had died the year before the return, which was greeted with great fanfare. However, weather problems and date changes hindered growth. A continuing difficulty was the lack of an all-weather ring at Moorland for dressage and jumping. One rainy edition of the event in which footing was far from optimal prompted a move three years ago to the USET Foundation and its all-weather arena for those segments, with cross-country the next day at Moorland.
Essex has attracted some big names over the years, including Lillian Heard Wood. (Photo © 2021 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“Having it at two sites is very, very cumbersome and very expensive,” said Guy Torsilieri, who manages Moorland with Ron Kennedy. Consolidation of the competition in one location for 2025 provided an answer to that problem.
Marilyn, twice an Olympic judge, runs her own Hunterdon County farm that offers lessons, clinics and shows, but despite the demands on her time, she felt Essex should be a priority.
Marilyn judging at the 2008 Olympics. (Photo © 2008 by Nancy Jaffer)
“It’s so important to continue, not only for the riders and the sport, but because we’re losing events all over the country and we don’t want to lose another event,” she commented.
Discussing Moorland, she observed, “It’s a fabulous facility. It’s great for the local people, to get them more involved and let them see what eventing is all about. Let them enjoy it. You’ve got to spread the word, and the best way to spread the word is to have a competition and invite people to come. A lot of people just want to go to one place and in and out on one day.”
She emphasized, “We’re refocusing on the lower levels,” and unlike the higher levels, those participants are not as picky about footing. But Marilyn noted that while she doesn’t expect early June to see the torrential rains that caused a problem when the date was later in the month, there also is a Plan B site for show jumping and dressage at Moorland if mud becomes an issue.
A cocktail party will be held Saturday night before the event, with cross-country course designer Morgan Rowsell giving a guided walk of his route. (He also will be designing the show jumping phase of the event.) With the event on a Sunday, riders are able to come the day before and walk the course. There will be a vendor village offering shops and food.
With the addition of the Starter level, Marilyn expects families to turn out to watch their relatives, so there should be a good crowd, some of whom can take the opportunity to view cross-country from tailgating spots.
Amy Gregonis and Julie Berman, who both were involved previously with the event, are working with sponsors. Marilyn is looking for volunteers to work at the event. Those interested in sponsoring or volunteering may contact her at applewoodfarm@comcast.net.
The car show, held in the past at Moorland on cross-country day, is moving to a September date, which allows all the focus to be on Essex. The event’s beneficiary is the LifeCamp in Pottersville, a century-old venture that provides a day camp each summer for 300 kids ages six through 14 from the greater Newark area.
A visit to the cross-country course is an enjoyable field trip for the campers and their parents. They picnic by the water complex, really getting into watching the horses splash through.
Guy hadn’t been optimistic about the event’s future before Marilyn took over.
“I was very saddened to say it’s going to go away again, because I don’t think it would come back. I think it’s important to keep equestrian activities in the area. Ron and I are thrilled they are going to give it another whirl,” Guy commented.
Guy Torsilieri and Ralph Jones. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“I think it’s a good plan, I think it will be successful. With the new model, the budget is less than half of what it was last year. I think they’ll get a lot of support at the lower level.”
Of Marilyn, he said, “I was amazed and impressed how dynamic she is and what she wants to do. She’s getting a lot of enthusiasm locally.”
Guy also commented on the tenacity of Ralph Jones, a former co-organizer of the event, who was an advocate for keeping it going. He remains on the board as treasurer and is looking forward to working with Marilyn.
“She’s hoping to make it more of a local effort than trying to get the big professionals. It was our best chance of keeping it alive,” Ralph pointed out.
“I give Marilyn a lot of credit. She’s good. It’s going to be more low-key this year. Riders didn’t like the two-day format.” He appreciate’s Guy’s suggestion to “make it a big backyard barbecue. We feel good about it – it’s on its third life.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 9, 2025
During a four-week competition-free window at the Wellington International showgrounds in Florida, a lot of improvements have been accomplished—but more are to come once showing is over for the season.
Murray Kessler, Wellington International’s CEO, gave a report on progress at the facility to the Village’s Equestrian Preserve Committee Wednesday night.
The retired executive and former U.S. Equestrian Federation president took his post last fall because he was “concerned with the direction it might go” following the showgrounds’ purchase by its former owners. Since then, more investors are joining the group.
The venue, the home of the Winter Equestrian Festival, employs 500 people during the height of the show season, when 2,700 horses are competing weekly. The “root problem” of the horse show is that the grounds were built for a third of the number of horses that are there today, Murray said.
He believes Wellington International, formerly known as the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, is “the anchor of this community and it can’t be a healthy community unless the horse show is healthy. I care about the horses first and I care about the sport first and everything else good that will happen to Wellington will happen on that basis.”
Murray Kessler addressing Wellington’s Equestrian Preserve Committee.
His vision is “to keep Wellington International the premier horse sports destination in the world.”
Murray noted that is not to say it’s the best horse show individually in the world, pointing out there are some great ones. But “there’s nothing like Wellington anywhere else in the world where there’s 1,000 horse farms in close proximity.”
A key improvement will be the addition of additional land from “Pod F” to expand Wellington International and enable dressage to move from its current home at the Global grounds a half-mile away, where a golf community will be built. Murray doesn’t expect that to happen before 2027 and it could be 2028. That’s the deadline for completing work on Pod F, as it becomes an operating part of the showgrounds and takes 1,000 horses off the area of what is the current facility, leaving room for dressage and hunters to have their own space.
In the meantime, three rings have been built on Pod F to give riders a place where they can work their horses away from the crowded main showgrounds. FEI stabling is set to expand to 14 acres.
There will be a better opportunity to grow sponsors and hospitality when there is a better design for a unified showgrounds. Murray noted at the moment, there is no hunter VIP, and he criticized the VIP arrangement for dressage at Global, where the food must be driven to the site from a small kitchen at Wellington International.
“Believe it or not, we don’t make money on entries,” he stated. “We make money on sponsors and hospitality.” While the existing grounds is profitable, money for improvements is self-generating.
There has been a flurry of cleaning, painting and landscaping at the showgrounds, where 3,000 stalls were power-washed. Bathrooms are being cleaned around the clock, eight tractor-trailer loads of junk have been taken off the premises.
“While we still have a long way to go, the property is in better shape than it’s been in a very long time,” Murray reported. He has appointed an advisory committee with reps from hunters, jumpers, dressage and para-dressage to be his “eyes and ears” about what is needed at the showgrounds.
The entrance to the International arena at Wellington International.
Improvements that have been installed at Wellington International since he came on board include new stadium LED lighting, which makes the setting in the International Arena as bright as daylight, and offers flexibility in terms of special effects that can be created. With the old vapor lights, once they were turned off, it took a half-hour to get them going again, and the illumination they offered was “gray,” which Murray deemed to be getting unsafe. A new jumbotron will do split screens and replays with graphics that are “terrific.”
As Michael Stone, Wellington International’s president pointed out during a Thursday press conference, production values are being improved “so it becomes much more like any sort of major sporting event. By increasing the level, you’re going to enhance the sport, and enhancing the sport is going to attract more people to come. That’s why we need enhanced production, to show people this really is a top class sport, like the U.S. Open or the Masters.”
The last grand prix at WEF in March will be worth $750,000, a record for the show. It is the finale for a new series from Rolex, a longtime sponsor of Wellington International.
Still to be accomplished are more improvements to wi-fi, refurbishment of footing in the rings and other details that will happen during a break in the schedule.
Murray pointed out that equestrian is the biggest sport in Palm Beach County, with $400 million in economic impact. The next biggest sport in the county is minor league baseball at $60 million. Wellington International is the big time–there are 35 Olympic riders who will be showing at WEF and Global dressage, with eight of the world’s top 10 in show jumping scheduled to be on hand.
Murray is pleased at the feedback he’s getting for what has happened in a short amount of time. In the past, there has been an over-promise and under-deliver situation at the showgrounds, which didn’t have the resources or leadershp to fix things. Murray is operating on the opposite basis, and it’s working.
“I feel a sense of excitement from the community,’ the CEO said, stating the reaction is, “Wait a minute it’s turned a corner and the uncertainty is behind us.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 9, 2025
Allegations of horse abuse “involving numerous horses over an extensive period of time” has prompted the FEI (international equestrian federation) to provisionally suspend American eventer Andrew McConnon and open disciplinary hearings in his case. The suspension is reciprocal with the U.S. Equestrian Federation.
He finished twenty-seventh with Wakita 54 at the Burghley 5-star in September and seventeenth with the same Dutchbred mare in the Kentucky 5-star last May. McConnon also rode Ferrie’s Cello on the U.S. team in the eventing Nations Cup at Strzegom, Poland, in 2023, when he was twenty-sixth.
McConnon is not allowed to participate in any competitions or activities related to the FEI or USEF while on suspension. The FEI declined further comment on the case.
In order to ensure the integrity of the ongoing legal proceedings, the FEI will not provide further comment on this case at this time
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 13, 2025
How can the risk of devastating western wildfires be reduced in the future?
Could part of the solution be horses—wild horses?
There is so much blame to go around for the horrific fires raging in Los Angeles. From feckless governmental “leadership” at several levels, to an empty reservoir and fire department budget cuts, they all add up to lack of planning for the inevitable. Another case in point: diverting snow melt from the Sacramento River tributaries into the sea to help the delta smelt (fish), rather than making sure reservoirs are full.
The result is loss of lives, houses disintegrating to rubble and Armageddon for horses and other animals in what some have labeled the country’s biggest natural disaster.
There is concern about how the fires will affect plans for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The authoritative “Inside the Games” newsletter noted that the fires are, “raising alarm bells” for the Olympic committee, with several venues “under threat.”
On Thursday, the newsletter noted, “With fatality figures that alarm even the most skeptical, the land reduced to ash, and reconstruction costs estimated at an unfathomable $135 billion, the city’s ability to host the world’s largest sporting event is now subjected to thorough investigation.”
The current situation means that “the challenges of ensuring the Games’ safety are becoming increasingly apparent.”
Years of permitting delays on such forest management issues as thinning out brush and tree density, with controlled burns designed to stop the rapid spread of fire and toxic smoke, have been hampered by lawsuits from “climate activists.”
After the current blazes subside, it’s past time to do something that can decrease future devastation. A key step would be removing the brush and undergrowth that have acted as tinder. And that’s where the horses come in.
William Simpson of the Wild Horse Fire Brigade says he knows just how it should be done,
The former logger and rancher manages a wild horse herd on the border of California and Oregon, so every day, he sees the capability of these animals to clean up rough terrain where cattle and sheep don’t graze anymore, and herds of deer and elk have diminished.
William Simpson of the Wild Horse Fire Brigade with part of the wild horse herd that lives on the California Oregon border. (Photo courtesy Michelle Gough)
Mustangs have no problem navigating the undulating ground and consuming underbrush that acts as kindling for wildfires, when a spark hits and Santa Ana winds blow. He points out that unlike domestic horses, the mustangs are able to consume weeds and brush with no ill effects. Simpson characterizes them as gardeners, because seeds in manure are viable, which works for starting fresh growth instead of leaving ground barren. On the other hand, seeds are destroyed in the complex digestive systems of ruminant animals, such as cattle, he pointed out. And he contends wild horses do not share domestic horses’ fear of fire.
“We’re trying to get the LA fire department, the Malibu fire department, the Malibu homeowners association and the Palisades homeowners association to call me up and say, `You come down here and tell us how to do this’ and I would do it,” said Simpson.
“I do everything I do for free. The bottom line is, we want to provide guidance to communities, legislators, to people who want to reduce toxic smoke and wildfires and stop these fires.”
All the approximately 39,000 horses remaining in the wild and the 70,000 or so living in cramped Bureau of Land Management holding facilities could be used in the project, he contended. Rewilding will “put them where they really belong and where they reduce fires,” Simpson maintained. He estimates each wild horse will eat 30 pounds of grass a day, or 5.5 tons a year on a mere 7 percent of land available for grazing.
Simpson said there is no conflict of interest on the land involved “no lithium mining, no cattle” but noted, “it (the dried vegetation) burns like crazy.” His own home was saved from destruction by fire in 2018 due to a fire break created by grazing wild horses.
“My goal, with our all-volunteer nonprofit, is to provide proper evolutionary-level genetic conservation of these relatively few remaining wild horses, which hold the last bastion of superior equine genetic vigor,” he said.
“If I put out one horse on every 300 acres for fuel reduction, I could re-wild every horse in America in a safe area where nobody is going to mess with them. I only need 3 million acres. Everybody wins. The horses get to be wild and free, they’re not stepping on anybody’s toes.”
You can learn more by watching a video about using horses for fire prevention from AM Best, the world’s oldest credit agency, specializing in the insurance industry. To see the video, click on this link
Numerous organizations are accepting donations connected with helping fire victims. Pets affected by the fire are being helped by the Pasadena Humane Organization
It is working to log every report of animals left behind and dispatching search and rescue teams as quickly as possible in areas that are safe to enter. They are prioritizing reports of animals seen alive in the area and in urgent need of medical attention, as well as cases in which owners have informed them they were forced to leave their pets behind. Fleet of Angels is geared to helping horses who are victims of disasters. The Equestrian Aid Foundation is also pitching in. This is a link to a private rescue seeking funds. Check to see whether your favorite charity also has a role in helping fire victims.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 11, 2025
The number one rider at the 2024 Adequan Global Dressage Festival started 2025 in Wellington, Fla.,with the same type of success, winning the showgrounds’ first FEI World Cup Grand Prix Freestyle Qualifier with a score of 78.20 percent.
Germany’s Felicitas Hendricks, who at 24 is still eligible for Under 25 classes, showed her capability aboard Drombusch. The Oldenburg who performed 20 one-tempi changes during her routine.
“He exceeded my expectations, like he does every time,” said Felicitas.
Felicitas Hendricks and Drombusch OLD (Susan J. Stickle photo)
“He leaves his heart in the ring. I can tell that he’s very happy to be back and he was loving the crowd. He was a little spicy, but in a good way.
“The main work we’ve been doing at home is still the same and won’t change—it’s very basic work of improving self-carriage and gaining more strength behind. I think that is a process that won’t ever stop, but I can tell that it’s really benefiting both of us.”
Less than one point behind on 77.28 percent was the USA’s Adrienne Lyle with Helix, the horse she started showing just a year ago. A three-time Olympian, Adrienne didn’t lose her poise when she had to re-start her freestyle after a problem with the music necessitated the do-over.
“They accidentally played the wrong (old) version of the music instead of the version I had uploaded for this show,” Adrienne explained.
“We had changed some of the choreography and music of the freestyle in the middle, so I didn’t know they were playing the wrong music until half way through, at which point I had to stop because I had to stick with my choreography on the floor plan I submitted and so I needed my correct music. I am very thankful to the judges and management who worked so swiftly to correct the error and allow us to start over and compete with the correct music.”
While she didn’t expect that snag, Helix was well-prepared for competing in front of a crowd under the lights.
“We’ve been getting him out at night and I’ve been riding him in the outdoor arena in the dark,” noted Adrienne.
Adrienne Lyle and Zen Elite Equestrian’s Helix. (Susan J. Stickle Photo)
“We’ve been playing applause music and doing all sorts of things to try to desensitize Helix, because he’s a very hot and sensitive horse. We’ve been trying to put in our due diligence to make sure that he was not overwhelmed in this environment.
“Considering the unconventional start to the test, I was really happy with him. He got a little excited at the beginning, so it wasn’t our most polished ride, but I’m very proud of him as this is a new experience for us,” she commented.
Third place went to Sweden’s Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén on Devanto, doing his popular “Puttin on the Ritz” routine, rewarded with a mark of 75.515 percent.
The U.S. judge at C, Janet Foy, was impressed with the quality of the rides. She said: “I think the top five were really super. They were interesting technically, the music was perfect for the horses, and they were wonderful to judge. I don’t think we’ve had such a high scoring opening show before—it’s an impressive start to the season.”
The class was also a qualifier for the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s dressage open championship, which has a final at California’s Desert Horse Park in November.
For results, click here.
