The Sonoma (Calif.) Horse Park announced it will hold six 2022 hunter/jumper shows from May to September under the auspices of the National Snaffle Bit Association, rather than the U.S. Equestrian Federation.
“Sonoma Horse Park has withdrawn all licenses and applications that have been submitted to the USEF for 2022,” USEF said in a statement today. It added, “Notably, the Split Rock Jumping license for Split Rock Sonoma 9/7/22-9/11/22, is still on the calendar and has not been withdrawn by the licensee.”
USEF had been seeking clarification from Sonoma in respect to USEF-licensed events and pending mileage exemptions at the horse park.
Last week, word from the park was that it would not run USEF shows until that organization’s mileage rule, which currently requires 250 miles between shows in Sonoma’s region, instead permits shows within 50 miles of each other.
The circumstances brought to mind the situation between USEF and the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla., where the facility couldn’t get all the USEF hunter/jumper shows it wanted last winter and went with the NSBA instead. When WEC did get USEF dates for later in the year, it turned them down and signed up with NSBA again instead, a decision that also applied to WEC’s facility in Ohio.
Howard Herman, the Sonoma CEO, stated his case about the mileage situation at a Zoom meeting Nov. 15 that drew approximately 50 riders, owners, trainers and other interested parties.
“We have known about the mileage rule for 30 years, but I didn’t really understand it until I got involved in the process,” he said.
Former Sonoma manager Sally Hudson of Headlands Management, the license holder for a number of the Sonoma shows, took her licenses to Rancho Murieta’s Murieta Equestrian Center, the state’s largest equestrian facility.
Sonoma then applied for USEF show licenses for the same dates as those held by Headlands, as well as a new competition at Sonoma, MGMT Giant Steps Charity Classics, according to USEF.
Murieta is about 100 miles from Sonoma, too close for the park to qualify for its own shows on the same dates as the equestrian center without a mileage exemption. As a result of the applications being for the same dates for both facilities, a mileage conflict was created and the two Sonoma requests would have had to follow the mileage exemption processed contained in Chapter 3 of the USEF Rule Book if the Sonoma had wanted to continue pursuing USEF licensing.
Herman noted it is hard to plan without knowing well in advance which shows USEF will approve.
“Sponsors and vendors want to provide an adequate season,” he commented. Sonoma previously staged the Adequan/USEF Junior National Hunter Championship West and a week of World Championship Hunter Rider competition under USEF auspices.
“At 80 years old, I’ve been given a voice,” the CEO said, explaining he could not live with himself if people in his community were shortchanged because of the mileage situation.
He feels an area that is home to 13 million people should be entitled to more in the way of USEF shows. Herman cited how expensive it is for northern California residents and people from the Pacific Northwest to go to the Thermal circuit in Southern California.The Sonoma Horse Park presents a closer alternative.
With the NSBA shows, “We are committed to offering comparable prize money and special classes as we have in seasons past and a schedule that is consistent with what exhibitors and trainers have come to expect at shows that Sonoma Horse Park provides. We are looking forward to a new circuit, complete with circuit championships and prizes as per Sonoma Horse Park tradition,” stated Sonoma manager Sarah Appel.
A USEF statement released last week noted, “USEF staff held a Zoom meeting with Mr. Herman, Ashley Herman (Herman’s daughter) and Sarah Appel on November 4 to obtain additional information about their (miledate exemption) request. After Mr. Herman discussed multiple competition scenarios, Ms. Appel indicated she would provide USEF with a list of the competitions SHP wished to operate immediately after this meeting.” USEF never received the list from Appel.
The statement continued, “Even though Mr. Herman has publicly stated that SHP (Sonoma) is not interested in holding USEF licensed competitions until the rules governing mileage are changed to meet his needs, USEF has repeatedly communicated with SHP to confirm their interest in moving forward with the two active mileage exemption requests the.”
USEF said the park’s lack of response to USEF inquiries about the licenses impeded the federation’s ability to process the mileage exemption requests.
The USEF added, “The rules governing mileage cannot be amended upon demand of the SHP. Amendments to USEF rules must follow the procedures contained in the USEF Rule Book.”