Nancy Jaffer
EQUESTRIAN SPORTS
NEWS AND FEATURES
FROM NEW JERSEY AND BEYOND
The future is present at the national dressage championships
How is the U.S. pipeline working to supply top dressage horses for future international competition? A good barometer could be found during the USEF National Dressage Championships at the Lamplight Equestrian Center over the last seven days, where a wide range of...
How cool is this? A gymnast takes on Burghley
Take a look at how British champion gymnast Joe Fraser takes a unique approach to checking out the cross-country course for the Defender Burghley 5-star in England. His unorthodox approach without a horse may not be within the rules of competition (ya think?) but it...
Get set for the Tewksbury Trail Pace
The Tewksbury Trail Association will return to Christie Hoffman Farm Park in Tewksbury for its annual Trail Pace Sept. 17. There are opportunities for riders at all levels and ages to participate. TTA President Jeannie Shuster said an eight-mile course will offer both...
An opportunity in memory of a special horseman
Richard Picken always wanted to help. He was a friend and trainer to many top riders before he died of cancer in August 2022 at the age of 53. He enjoyed coaching young riders and training inexperienced horses as much as he thrived under the pressure of an...
Pan Am eventing squad selected
The U.S. eventing team for this autumn's Pan American Games in Chile includes a mixture of experience and rising stars. Named to the squad are Sydney Elliott and QC Diamantaire; 2022 world championships veteran Liz Halliday and Miks Master C, third at Land Rover...
How much is too much?
Should there be a limit on how many times a horse can compete at each show? It's a question that often comes up during the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association's Town Hall forums, as it did again on Monday night. "Each barn, each trainer, each owner is going to have their...
The derby was a “comeback” for inaugural victor John French
It was as close to a photo finish as you can get in the finals of the $223,350 Platinum Performance/ USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship. The overnight leader, John French on Paradigm, finished just 0.25 points ahead of Geoffrey Hesslink on Drumroll to take...
It isn’t just US
A letter to the editor in Great Britain's Horse & Hound magazine last week caught my eye, because it reflects what I hear from many people in the U.S. They obviously are not alone. Reader Carolyn Selley of Devon (England, not Pennsylvania) wrote that she has "a...
Have fun and do good at the same time
Red Tail Farm in Bedminster, N.J., is sponsoring an evening of freestyles Sept. 8 to benefit Mane Stream, a facility down the road in Oldwick that offers therapeutic riding and more. The fun begins at 5 p.m. at 1100 Rattlesnake Bridge Road. Spectators may bring...
It’s way past time for horse soring to end
The Horse Protection Act, passed in 1970, is in need of a thorough review. It was intended to end soring, a practice that has been all too common with Tennessee Walking Horses and a few other breeds. A fatal error enabled the industry to police itself by training its...
