Classic Eventing Nation

Galloping On to the Paris Olympic Games

By on Jun 29, 2024 9:30 am -

We are in the final countdown to the start of the equestrian events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the excitement is mounting with every moment.

The three Olympic disciplines of Dressage, Eventing and Jumping will take centre stage in the beautiful gardens of the Palace of Versailles from July 26 to August 6, so here are some things you might like to know when marking your calendar and making your plan to follow it from start to finish, whether you are traveling to the French capital or watching the action from afar.

The Venue

Initially built as a simple hunting lodge, the magnificent Château de Versailles was home to the court of Louis XIV in 1682 and became the epicentre of French royalty. In 1883 it became a national museum open to the public and it was the first French site to be awarded UNESCO World Heritage status in 1979.

The Paris 2024 equestrian events will play out over its 2,000 acres of parkland, and a temporary outdoor arena, flanked by several stands, has been created on the Etoile Royale esplanade to the west of the Grand Canal at the heart of the palace’s gardens. The Eventing cross-country course will take competitors across the Canal and along both sides of it, with the Château providing the most stunning backdrop.

Despite challenging weather conditions works on site are well up to speed with all major infrastructure in place including field of play, warm-up, training arenas and stable tents. Right now internal fit-out is underway including stable boxes, the veterinary clinic, the media centre and the judge’s tower. The main cross-country obstacle features such as water jumps, banks and ditches have been completed for some time, and other obstacles will be brought in as pre-constructed portable jumps and positioned by the course designer in the coming weeks.

It won’t be long until all the facilities are buzzing with even more activity when the horses begin to arrive on 24 July.

Eventing

Eventing will stand alone in that the entire competition will run, without interruption, on consecutive days between 26 and 29 of July.

It will begin with the First Horse Inspection on Friday 26 July at 09.30, and the following day 65 horse-and-rider combinations will line out in the Dressage phase, also starting at 09.30 local time.

Cross country is bound to attract a massive audience on Sunday, July 28 as the sound of galloping hooves will thunder out across the royal turf beginning at 10.30 in the morning and running right through to 15.00.

And on Monday July 29, following the Second Horse Inspection at 08.00, both the Team and Individual medals will be awarded following the final Jumping phase back in the arena. The Team medals will be decided in the round that begins at 11.00, and at 15.00 the top-25 will battle it out for the Individual title.

The Dressage Test for Eventing will be the 2024 Olympic Games 5* test (short), the cross country course will be a maximum of 5,800 metres long with a maximum time of 10 minutes. And the height of fences in the final Jumping phase will be 1.25m for the Team competition and 1.30m for the Individuals.

Officials for Eventing will include:

Technical Delegate – Marcin Konarski (POL)
Ground Jury President – Christina Klingspor (SWE)
Ground Jury Member – Xavier Le Sauce (FRA)
Ground Jury Member – Robert Stevenson (USA)
Assistant Technical Delegate – Gaston Bileitczuk (FRA)
Course Designer – Pierre le Goupil (FRA)

A total of 16 Teams and 48 athletes will compete for the Team medals including the hosts from France along with Germany, New Zealand, Great Britain, USA, Ireland, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Japan and Italy. Team athletes also compete for the Individual medals.

An additional 17 Individual quota places are allocated through the FEI Olympic Groups and the overall FEI Olympic ranking. The regional distribution covers North Western Europe, South Western Europe, Central & Eastern Europe, Central Asia, North America, Central & South America, Africa and the Middle East, South East Asia and Oceania.

Dressage

The first Horse Inspection for Dressage will be held on Sunday July 28 at 08.00, and at 11.00 on Tuesday morning July 20, the first 30 horse-and-rider combinations will compete in the Grand Prix while the remaining 30 will do their tests on Wednesday the 31.

The top ten ranked Teams in the Grand Prix, including those tied for tenth place, will qualify for the FEI Grand Prix Special which will begin at 10.00 on August 3 and will decide the Team medals.

The second Dressage Horse Inspection will take place at 08.00 on August 4 and will be followed at 10.00 by the Grand Prix Freestyle. This is the Individual Final Competition which is open to 18 combinations qualified from the FEI Grand Prix. The Individual medal ceremony is scheduled for 13.30 on Sunday afternoon.

There will be a total of 15 Teams and 45 athletes along with 15 Individual competitors. The qualified Teams are France, Denmark, Great Britain, Germany, Sweden, Netherlands, USA, Austria, Belgium, Spain, Poland, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Finland.

Another 15 countries will be represented by Individuals. Places are allocated through FEI Olympic Groups, qualification events and the FEI Olympic Ranking list.

Jumping

The Jumping horses arrive on July 30 and their First Horse Inspection takes place the next day, followed by an evening Training session from 17.15 to 20.00.

The Team Qualifier on Thursday August 1 begins at 11.00 and is open to 20 teams consisting of three athletes per team with all three scores counting.

The Team Final, which kicks off on Friday August 2 at 14.00, is open to the ten best placed teams in Thursday’s competition including those tied for tenth place. Teams that withdraw before the start on Friday will not be replaced, and all teams taking part in the Team Final re-start with zero penalties.

The contest for the Individual medals will take place over two days beginning on Monday August 5 with 75 starters from which the top-30 will go through to the Individual Final on Tuesday August 6, running in reverse order of classification and all starting again on a zero scoreline.

The Final competition, which will begin at 10.00, will be conducted under Jumping Rules Art. 238.2.2, with one round against the clock with a jump-off in case of a tie on penalties for first place and will bring the equestrian events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games to a close.

The 20 qualified Teams are France, Sweden, Netherlands, Great Britain, Ireland, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Spain, Switzerland, Israel, Poland, USA, Canada, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Australia, Japan and Brazil.

Another 15 countries will be represented by Individuals and again places are allocated through FEI Olympic Groups, qualification events and the FEI Olympic Ranking list.

Monday, July 8 is the deadline for Definite Entries. By then we will have the full list of horses and athletes in all disciplines, including those on the reserve lists.

The full Paris 2024 timetable for equestrian sports can be found here.

Saturday Links from World Equestrian Brands

By on Jun 29, 2024 12:01 am -

I’ve been enjoying watching U.S. Olympic Trials for various disciplines (gymnastics is on this weekend!) including track & field earlier this week where I’ve had two revelations. #1 There’s a human steeplechase, which to me is super silly looking (they have a water fence!) though incredibly testing, I’m sure, so no disrespect. And #2 I actually really enjoy Snoop Dog’s commentary. He joined the NBC broadcast team out at Hayward Field and in fact, here he is commentating on the men’s steeplechase.

Of course, dressage had a viral moment last Olympics (in case you need a refresher, just watch the video above) when Snoop dubbed Steffen Peters’ Suppenkasper as ‘Rave Horse’. Snoop has recently said he hopes to meet the Rave Horse in person this year and lucky for him Steffan and “Moxie” have indeed been selected for their second consecutive Olympics, so we’d love to see that happen!

U.S. Weekend Action

Bouckaert Equestrian H.T. and Area III Eventing Championships (Chattahoochee Hills, GA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

Full Moon Farm HT (Finksburg, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Inavale Farm HT (Philomath, OR) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer][Scoring]

Larkin Hill H.T. (North Chatham, NY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Summer Coconino H.T. I (Flagstaff, AZ) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Twin Rivers Summer H.T. (Paso Robles, CA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

European International Events

SemaLease Kilguilkey House International 1 (Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Scoring]

Links to Start Your Weekend:

François Lucas calls for an increase to 100,000 spectators for the cross-country Olympics (Google translate needed!)

Connemara Sport Horse No May Moon Fulfills Winter’s Dream of International Eventing Success

Part 2: Where Have All The Eventing Volunteers Gone?

Oldest Team GB member Carl Hester ready for Paris 2024

Feeding the Senior Horse With Dental Problems

To celebrate the launch of Canter Culture’s first riding top, the Alice Sun Shirt, Canter Culture is giving away an entire outfit! For your chance to win an Alice Sun Shirt, one pair of Athletic Breeches, Boot Socks, and a Double Circle Belt, all you have to do is sign up for our newsletter and fill out the form in the 7/1 ICYMI Newsletter! Winner will select color options & sizing. Canter Culture seamlessly blends style & sport, so all that’s left to do is enjoy the ride. Stay tuned — we’ll announce the winner in our weekly newsletter on 7/1! Sign up for our newsletter here.

Sponsor Corner: Feeling the heat? So is your horse! The Equilibrium Quick Chill Rug is perfect for those hot summer days. Simply wet the rug, wring out excess water, and place it on the horse like normal. As the water evaporates, the rug creates a cooling effect. More information here.

Morning Viewing: Get ready for the Olympics with Off The Record.

Diego Farje & EQ Scorpio: Building a Solid Equine Citizen

By on Jun 28, 2024 1:00 pm -

This series is supported by Equestly.

Older horses who are solid equine citizens are the equivalent of a middle-aged 9 to 5-er. In terms of the human world, these are the horses who pay their taxes on time, they work when they’re supposed to, are home for dinner, and take the kids to soccer practice.

A young horse is more like a rebellious teenager combined with a toddler going through the terrible twos. Sometimes there’s more dinner on the walls than in their stomachs, there are random tantrums in the supermarket aisle for reasons unknown to the rest of us, and they may say, “God, mom, whatever” more than we’d all like.

Unfortunately for Diego Farje, at only four years-old, his horse EQ Scorpio, owned by Equestly, is still working on learning how to become a solid citizen. Diego hoofed it down to Wellington, Florida for the off-season to fill in the holes in Scorpio’s foundation and give the young horse a little more life experience.

EQ Scorpio and Diego Farje. Photo credit to Carlos Hernandez

His hope was that by filling the holes in Scorpio’s foundation, a lot of the reactivity the young Argentinian Warmblood feels at shows will be reduced before the 2024 season kicks off. “We train a lot and sometimes we do so well at home but then we go to a competition and it looks like we haven’t ridden in two years, you know? At shows, we’re dealing with more pressure, we get more tense, it’s a new environment. So the goal is that you’re riding at the show just as good as you are at home because the horse thinks that it’s just another training session.”

Diego decided to build Scorpio’s foundation by breaking down the sport of eventing completely. As a matter of fact, he didn’t do any horse trials this winter, but instead focused on show jumping and dressage as individual pieces of the puzzle. “I’m separating the disciplines right now so I can look into them a little bit deeper,” Diego said. “It’s good for a young horse to get a taste of the different disciplines and deal with different situations, different environments.”

Scorpio is not only learning how to be a good eventer under saddle, but he’s learning how to be a solid citizen on the ground, too. “We had a Canadian cowboy that came to teach us ground work, which was really helpful for me. There’s a lot of stuff that I need to deal with with Scorpio, as he’s so sensitive.”

Most notably, Scorpio was deeply prejudiced against trailers after his long trip from Argentina to the States. He was notoriously difficult to handle on the ground for barn staff, and was originally hard to catch in the pasture. While Diego has been hard at work on these issues, learning a new perspective on groundwork from this Canadian cowboy really sealed the deal for this pair. “Within a week or so, I was standing in the middle of a circle and Scorpio was lunging around me. All I had to do was move the lunge line to follow his motion.”

EQ Scorpio and Diego Farje. Photo credit to Carlos Hernandez

Not only did the groundwork improve Scorpio’s obedience and sense of feel, it also improved his mindset about discovering new things. “The groundwork exercises we did were really nice because they helped build Scorpio’s curiosity about new things,” said Diego. “Instead of, “Oh my god, what is THAT?!” Now it’s more, “Oh that’s interesting, what is that?”

Developing Scorpio’s sense of curiosity has paid off in dividends when it came to loading into the trailer. “He’s started loading by himself. I’m standing outside and he’s inside, looking around, so calm. He goes into trailers super easy now.”

Still, teaching Scorpio to be a solid equine citizen isn’t all sunshine and roses. Diego’s winter base was only a 20-minute hack from Wellington International, which is under construction. Diego was able to hack to the show and just flat around, simply to desensitize Scorpio to new and busy environments, which has come with its challenges. “It’s 10 times the number of horses we’re used to in a 10 times smaller place. At one point we were walking by a ring and someone crashed into a jump and Scorpio reacted as though the world was falling down, so we had to work through that,” Diego said.

Getting to the show was a trial in and of itself, as our highway rider hits the roads once again. Diego has to hack the reactive and sensitive Scorpio through construction to get to the show. Diego says the key to getting through the tough area of their hack is to stay calm and try to keep Scorpio’s focus.

EQ Scorpio and Diego Farje. Photo credit to Carlos Hernandez

“I try to move him around and try to pretend that we’re doing a groundwork exercise. A little bit of moving the shoulders, not making him face the construction and not kicking or anything, but just using enough pressure for him to know I’m here. I’m here with him. And ask him to try to focus on me,” Diego said. “Even if he gives me just 40 percent of his focus, then we can try to deal with what’s happening around us. But at least he’s not 100 percent focused on the construction.”

“Once he gives me a good feeling and tells me that he’s relaxed and thinking, ‘Okay, I know something is happening over there, but nothing is gonna happen to me.’ That’s where I can release, and move on like nothing is happening.”

After the construction, Scorpio and Diego faced a triple threat of crossing a road, a brightly dressed crossing guard waving his arms to stop traffic, and several tractors covered with a flapping tarp. “Everyone’s waiting for you to cross and then the horse gets a little bit upset. I try to be patient and stay really connected and just keep going,” Diego said.

EQ Scorpio and Diego Farje. Photo credit to Carlos Hernandez

Nothing brings my heart rate up more than struggling with a young horse in front of a crowd. Diego says it’s important to remember that you’re dealing with a young horse when you find yourself in tough situations like this. “A young horse needs to follow you, they need to focus on you. But it’s harder for them than it is for an older horse, because everything is still so new. They don’t know how to react to situations like an older horse does. With a young horse, you need to always make sure that you are there for them.”

When I asked Diego how he expects all of his hard work to translate to returning to his home base in Pennsylvania, he said he thinks the young horse will do well. After all of their training on how to handle new and busy environments, Scorpio is “way calmer than he was before.”

For more stories about Diego as he teaches his young Argentinian Warmblood to be an eventer, check out our Equestly Stories Column.

The Debrief: Seven CCI5* Completions for Emily Hamel and Corvett

By on Jun 28, 2024 10:30 am -

Welcome to The Debrief, where we’ll recap the experience of a rider or equestrian following a big result or otherwise memorable competition or achievement. Click here to read more editions of The Debrief.

Corvett is Emily Hamel’s horse of a lifetime, and they have gone up the levels together over the years. After finishing in the top 20 at Luhmühlen this year, Emily and “Barry” have completed seven CCI5*-L competitions, and is two more away from completing all seven 5* events in the world (she’s just missing Pau and Adelaide – let’s get her there!). We caught up with her to learn about her journey up to this point, what she’s learned in her career so far, and where she’ll go from here.

Emily Hamel and Corvett at Luhmühlen. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

How does it feel to have completed seven CCI5*-L competitions with Corvett (aka Barry)?

It feels a bit surreal! It was such a big goal of mine to just complete one, so now having done seven with the same horse– it’s pretty special. I never really had a set number of 5*s that I wanted to do, but Barry is so special and I want to do as much as I can with him. It’s been great that I’ve been able to do seven at this point and I hope to continue to do more with him.

What made you want to compete Barry at the top level of the sport?

I’ve always known he was a very talented and athletic horse and I’ve always thought he was really quite something. It’s nice to get him to the top level so that other people can see just how cool he is! One of the coolest things to me is his fanbase– I would say he’s almost more popular than I am at this point! Everyone is always saying “Oh, you’re the one who rides Corvett.” I love that everyone else appreciates how talented he is and I think having him at this level gives him an opportunity to show off his talent to the world. That’s pretty important to me because I want other people to know how truly amazing he is.

Emily Hamel and Corvett. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Besides what people know from social media, what is Barry like in the barn everyday?

He’s a really funny horse; I think he’s hilarious. He can be a little annoying because he’s definitely a mama’s boy. So, he can be difficult for others in the barn about certain things– he’s a very particular horse. He likes things done a certain way and he’s not afraid to tell you what he thinks.

Tell us about your support system.

I have a great team in general and there’s been people who have joined along the way, but my parents have been there from the beginning. I convinced them to buy Barry as an investment horse to eventually sell in a few years. I fell in love with him and luckily they let me keep him. They are the original Team Barry. As we’ve evolved throughout the years, I’ve had lots of trainers help me along the way. My core group right now would still be my parents; as well as my boyfriend, Dave Repko; my business partner and traveling groom, Jeanna Epping (she was awesome flying back and forth to Europe around three times while I was over there for different competitions); and then the girls at the barn: Rachel Russell, Edina Ban, and Jillian Treu– they keep things going on a daily basis so that I can focus on Barry. My vets and farriers are also huge supporters which makes it easier for me to be successful.

 

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What was it like completing your first 5*?

Completing my first 5* at Kentucky in 2021 was really a dream come true. It was what I wanted to do since I was 10 years old. I was familiar with the horse park just from going as a spectator over the years, so the first time competing there was unforgettable. I was also relieved to have done it well since it was the first one. You never really know how it’s going to go and you hope for the best. It was a proud moment having worked hard and having it pay off.

How does that compare finishing your first 5* to now, finishing your most recent one?

Going into our first 5*, there was so much that was unknown because you don’t know if you have a 5* horse until you’ve done it. Now that we’ve completed our seventh 5* I feel very confident going in because of our skill set we’ve built along the way. There is always a sense of the unknown because there are so many factors involved and things that are out of your control, but at this point, I feel very confident in our abilities as a team. I know that we can handle whatever is thrown at us… like the dog chasing us into the water at Luhmühlen. All of our experience together has led to a complete trust in our partnership which is what it’s really about.

Emily Hamel and Corvette. Photo by Shelby Allen.

What is the biggest thing you’ve learned so far in your career?

I have learned that being flexible and open to different opportunities is really important. More specifically, when it comes to timelines and your horses, things rarely go according to plan or on your desired timeline. Being open to new plans and trusting that if you work hard and put the time in, eventually you’ll get to the destination.

Tell us about being named to the 2024 US Equestrian Developing Riders List.

It was a really special moment for me because that was my first time being named to any sort of list or program. It was a culmination of all the years I’ve put in and finally getting recognized. I think so highly of my horse and I love that he’s recognized. Along with that, just being part of the program has been really helpful in my development as a rider. Working with Leslie has been great and we got so many opportunities to learn how things are done overseas during the European Tour. I’m really grateful to the USEF for the opportunity to be in the program because it did allow me to compete at Luhmuhlen this year and get that seventh 5* competition.

Emily Hamel and Corvett at Burghley. Photo by Nico Morgan Media.

What are your plans going forward?

I would love to do Pau at some point, whether it’s this year or next year. Then, I would have done all the 5*s except for Adelaide. While I would love to compete at Adelaide, logistically, going to Pau would be more realistic. If I don’t do Pau, I’ll look forward to doing Maryland. Other than that, we’ll see what next year brings! Again, I want to make the most out of my time with Barry because I think it’ll be a while before I find another horse like him.

We’re wishing both Emily and Barry the best of luck and can’t wait to continue following their journey.

Friday News & Notes from Stable View

By on Jun 28, 2024 1:47 am -

 

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It’s been a busy few weeks over at Tom McEwen’s yard. It was announced yesterday that Tom would be part of the British contingent heading to Paris to defend their Olympic title, a decision that was no doubt aided by his recent CCI4*-S podium finish out in Luhmühlen with JL Dublin, fresh off the back of another podium finish in the 5* in Kentucky earlier this Spring (and last, for that matter).

It was a pretty successful trip to Germany for Tom and his horses – he also finished 2nd in the 5* with CHF Cooliser (“Eliza”), compensation for her eleventh hour withdrawal from Badminton in May. On top of all of this, Tom and his team welcomed an exciting new addition to the stable: Eliza’s first foal, born via embryo transfer. A lovely looking little boy, by top eventing stallion Diarado, who also happens to be the daddy of his Olympic ride, JL Dublin.

If this little dude manages to achieve even half of what his big bro has, Tom will be very happy indeed….and could well feature on a few more Olympic teams. Welcome to the world little one, and congratulations again to Tom on his Olympic selection. We hope you’ve had time to pop at least one cork in celebration of all that success!

U.S. Weekend Preview

Bouckaert Equestrian H.T. and Area III Eventing Championships (Chattahoochee Hills, GA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

Full Moon Farm HT (Finksburg, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Inavale Farm HT (Philomath, OR) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer][Scoring]

Larkin Hill H.T. (North Chatham, NY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Summer Coconino H.T. I (Flagstaff, AZ) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Twin Rivers Summer H.T. (Paso Robles, CA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

European International Events

SemaLease Kilguilkey House International 1 (Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Scoring]

Friday News and Reading

Time for another giveaway my friends! To celebrate the launch of Canter Culture’s first riding top, the Alice Sun Shirt, Canter Culture is giving away an entire outfit! For your chance to win an Alice Sun Shirt, one pair of Athletic Breeches, Boot Socks, and a Double Circle Belt, all you have to do is sign up for our newsletter and fill out the form in the 7/1 ICYMI Newsletter! Winner will select color options & sizing. Canter Culture seamlessly blends style & sport, so all that’s left to do is enjoy the ride. Stay tuned– we’ll announce the winner in our weekly newsletter on 7/1! Sign up for our newsletter here.

Can you help Austin O’Connor out? He and Colorado Blue have secured their place on the plane to Paris, but he is now on the look out for an extra ticket for the Games. So if you have one going spare (a long shot, I know), or know someone else who could help out, then get in touch with Austin. If nothing else you can claim you helped with his Olympic prep. I mean, it wouldn’t be a complete lie….

This week may have seen a whole load more Olympic Teams being announced for Paris – Great Britain, Italy and Poland to name but a few, but Team NZ has yet to be revealed. However, it would not be foolish to place a bet on Kiwi power couple Tim and Jonelle Price being selected to represent their country (again). A third games for Tim, and a fourth for Jonelle, surely team selection would make them the most indomitable couples in the sport, nay the world?!

I don’t know about you, but I love a good online quiz – the most useful procrastination tool, wouldn’t you agree?! This one is even better than normal – rather than telling you which Friends character you’d be, this one identifies what kind of Cross Country rider you are. Even better, you can then find out to develop your cross country riding skills, according to your results. Enjoy!

This is me appealing to your charitable nature now. You’ll get something lovely back too – as well as good karma points! Can you help Charlotte and her pony Bits to further their training and competitive pursuits? This tiny rising star has come up with a creative way to raise funds for her equestrian lifestyle, with a jewellery side hustle. If you can spare the cash, why not buy a bracelet or two? Go on, you know you want to!

Last one from me, and then you can go and enjoy your weekend – and hopefully Go Eventing! It’s a good one to end on though…Applications are now open for the Annie Godwin Ring Star Grant. Check out this post for how to apply!

Sponsor Corner

 

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And that’s a wrap on Team USA’s last mandatory outing! The team took to Stable View’s Summer Horse Trials to tackle the challenging Advanced cross country course. Read the final report here.

Weekend Watching

The Olympics are just a few weeks away, and here at Eventing Nation, the excitement is through the roof. Yesterday saw the group chat descend into utter chaos as we all (im)patiently waited for the British Team to be announced – and it seems we weren’t the only ones slightly giddy with it all.

Nicole and Diarm of the EquiRatings Eventing Podcast went one step further, and shared their live reactions with the wider world, so enjoy their opinions on it all, and their thoughts on the upcoming games. Be warned, if you have managed to calm yourself down after yesterday’s flurry of Team Announcements, this might send you back over the edge….

Win a Whole New Look from Canter Culture

By on Jun 27, 2024 4:01 pm -

Being an eventer takes grit, determination, and hard work. Being a fashionable equestrian takes grit, determination, hard work, and a sense of style. Luckily, Canter Culture has you covered with a selection of breeches, sun shirts, and more that come off the rack with heapings of “I know how to look fabulous” vibes sewn directly into the seams.

You’ve probably seen Canter Culture’s iconic houndstooth breeches on your Instagram feed. What you may not know is that they’ve recently launched their Alice Sun Shirt. Named after co-founder Sarah Dahlberg’s daughter, the Alice Sun Shirt is crafted from ultra light-weight, super-silky fabric, features flattering seams that accentuate the female silhouette, and a sporty, modern neckline.

To celebrate the launch of their first ever riding top, Canter Culture has partnered up with Eventing Nation to give away an entire outfit. If you win this contest, you’ll be dripping in style from head to toe. The winner will receive an Alice Sun Shirt, a pair of Canter Culture’s iconic Athletic Breeches, one pair of boot socks, and one Double Circle Belt. This whole package is worth over $200+

Winning is easy! To enter the giveaway, sign up for our weekly ICYMI newsletter. Not only will you get access to the giveaway, you’ll get the hottest eventing news delivered right to your inbox once a week. Open our July 1st newsletter to fill out the form in the Giveaway section. And that’s it! The winner will be drawn at random on July 8th and announced later on that week.

Feeling lazy? Fill out the form here.

Good luck, eventers!

Unmarked Bills: In His Professor Era

By on Jun 27, 2024 1:00 pm -

Lots of love for Unmarked Bills. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

Unmarked Bills is a horse that took to eventing like a fish in water.

After a moderately successful career on the racetrack, where he raced 24 times and earned about $64,000, “Billy” was connected to Chris Talley, who quickly took a liking to the Thoroughbred gelding in a plain bay wrapper. A few months after he joined Chris’ program, he emerged as an event horse — and he never looked back.

“I said all along that I thought he was a five-star horse, but a lot of people didn’t see it,” Chris told EN. “He just stepped up to the plate and tried his heart out for me.”

Unmarked Bills would eventually become Chris’ first CCI5* horse, debuting at Kentucky in 2019 and finishing in the top 30. He and Chris would also travel to England and jump around the formidable cross country track at Burghley that fall, but cut their weekend short with a minor setback and withdrew ahead of show jumping.

Just as Chris was legging Billy back up for a return after some time off, COVID hit. “On the way home from Red Hills that year was COVID, and so the world kind of shut down,” he said. “And I was a little unsure of what to do with him. So I gave him a vacation, which was probably what I shouldn’t have done with him because Billy does not like to be on vacation! So he wound himself up in trouble and kind of had a couple of different injuries just from being away in the field and carrying on with his friends. And you know, that took time.”

Chris Talley and Unmarked Bills at Kentucky (2019). Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

In that time, Chris lost his CCI5* qualification, meaning he would have to go back and re-qualify through 4* competition with Billy. He tried several times and failed to obtain a qualifying score, either in the dressage or in the show jumping. Through that, Chris came to a realization. “And at that point, it was kind of more for my dreams of going back to the five-star rather than the horse,” he explained. “And he’s always kind of found the show jumping a little bit hard with the tension and stuff. And I just felt like he was getting older; he’s not that old, but he did just struggle with the tension. He did enough for me. You know, he kind of made my dreams come true. So I kind of wanted to step him down and let him make somebody else’s dreams come true.”

That someone else at first came in the form of Jessica Chappell, a former student of Chris’ whose horse was unable to compete in what would be her first CCI2*-L at Virginia Horse Center in 2022. Jessica “catch rode” Billy in two events, including that first 2*, where they finished in the top 25.

Anna Rose Erickson and Unmarked Bills. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Then in 2024, along came Anna Rose Erickson, a young rider who at first came to Chris’ farm to lease a different horse. When that least wound not up meant to be, Chris felt terrible — and he’d been impressed by the riding skills Anna Rose had shown. “She really impressed me, you know. She’s a good kid, she works hard,” Chris said. “And she was just so sweet when she came out to try that horse. She had dreams of doing Modified this year and Billy was just kind of in the field. I had been a little bit thinking of what to do with him.”

So out Billy came — unclipped, not quite 5* fit, and raring to go. “I promised her he really is beautiful!” Chris laughed. “But I had talked to [Anna Rose’s] mother before and I had said ‘I think I have a really special horse for you’.”

For her part, Anna Rose had competed up to Novice with her previous horse and through Training with another horse, but was looking for something to step up with. “Billy has been a life-changer for me,” she told me. She’d just finished her first Modified at VHC Eventing in Lexington, VA, and both she and her family were on a high. “I never even thought I would have been able to been able to do Training level this year. And it’s just crazy to be able to complete my first Modified now.”

Anna Rose and Billy finished inside the top 10 of that first Modified, and Chris was proud to be an onlooker for the event. “It’s rewarding for me because I’ve done my job for him to be able to be ridden by somebody else, but you always worry when you hand the reins over to somebody else. It’s like, did I do my job right? But she rides beautifully. It’s that kind of fine line with Billy — he’s but he tells you ‘let go of me, I know what I’m doing.’ And she does a perfect job, so it’s really special. She’s in such a short time kind of been able to really figure him out.”

Anna Rose Erickson and Unmarked Bills. Photo by Sally Spickard.

Anna Rose lives in North Carolina and trains with Michelle Hargreaves. She says she’d like to aim for Pony Club Championships in July, but beyond that, she’s mostly enjoying the ride with her very popular partner.

And she appreciates the innate challenge that is taking on a horse, especially one that is, as 5* horses go, on the quirkier side. “It is a little relieving that he didn’t always go perfectly for Chris,” she laughed. “Not in a bad way, but [Billy] is a little bit tricky, so it’s not like I’m being handed this horse that’s just so perfect that you just sit there. He makes me work for it a little, and that makes me feel good.”

“I couldn’t stop smiling afterwards,” Anna Rose said of her first Modified cross country — surely the phase anyone who’d get the lucky chance to take a spin on Billy would look forward to the most. “I was just like, beaming the whole way, and all of the support was so nice.”

Here’s to the horses who teach us along the way. Unmarked Bills has certainly made his mark on the sport of eventing, and on more than one person’s journey through life — and we’re sure this won’t be the last we’ll see of him! Go Eventing.

Tickets for Eventing at Aachen 2026 FEI World Championships On Sale 6/28

By on Jun 27, 2024 11:30 am -

Tamie Smith and Mai Baum at Aachen. Photo by Libby Law.

In 2026, the world of equestrian sport will return to the place where history has already been made several times at World and European Championships. During the FEI World Championships Aachen 2026, the battle will be on for gold, silver and bronze at the traditional showgrounds in front of the gates of the old imperial city again from August 11th-23rd.

Photo courtesy of Aachen 2026.

Want to experience these unforgettable moments? Then, don’t hesitate! Besides Show Jumping and Dressage tickets for the disciplines Eventing, Vaulting and Driving are available from 8am CEST on Friday, June 28.

Look forward to being there to sense that special tension, that tingle in the air, which can only be experienced in Aachen. Secure your tickets for the FEI World Championships Aachen 2026 here, from the hotline on +49 (0)241-9171111 or from the offices of the Aachen-Laurensberger Rennverein.

Thursday News & Notes from Ecogold

By on Jun 27, 2024 12:01 am -

The impossible choice of selecting the British Olympic eventing team has finally been made, but I can’t get over the fact that we’ve still been left in suspense as we don’t yet know which of these fantastic four will end up in the traveling reserve spot. Another impossible choice!

The other thing I can’t get over is the fact that they’ve had Ros stand on the edge of the fountain for their official photos at the Team GB kitting out day. That just really tickles me.

U.S. Weekend Preview

Bouckaert Equestrian H.T. and Area III Eventing Championships (Chattahoochee Hills, GA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

Full Moon Farm HT (Finksburg, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Inavale Farm HT (Philomath, OR) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer][Scoring]

Larkin Hill H.T. (North Chatham, NY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Summer Coconino H.T. I (Flagstaff, AZ) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Twin Rivers Summer H.T. (Paso Robles, CA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

UK International Events

Burgham International (Northumberland) [Website] [Entries] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

European International Events

SemaLease Kilguilkey House International 1 (Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Scoring]

Thursday News and Reading

To celebrate the launch of Canter Culture’s first riding top, the Alice Sun Shirt, Canter Culture is giving away an entire outfit! For your chance to win an Alice Sun Shirt, one pair of Athletic Breeches, Boot Socks, and a Double Circle Belt, all you have to do is sign up for our newsletter and fill out the form in the 7/1 ICYMI Newsletter! Winner will select color options & sizing. Canter Culture seamlessly blends style & sport, so all that’s left to do is enjoy the ride. Stay tuned — we’ll announce the winner in our weekly newsletter on 7/1! Sign up for our newsletter here.

The Annie Goodwin Rising Star Grant is now open to qualified applicants! Find out more here.

Meg Kepferle is spearheading a campaign to revamp the ditches at the Horse Park of New Jersey. The current ones at the lower levels are known to be a little tricky for greener horses and riders and $7,500 is the current fundraising goal for new ditches from the Starter through Preliminary levels. Here’s where to send donations and there’s also an air vest up for auction!

We all hear the many desperate calls for volunteers at events. So why are they seeming to fall on deaf ears? In this excellent first half of a two-part report, COTH spoke to several different event organizers to identify the problems they currently face in finding and retaining volunteers. Here’s what they had to say.

Researchers have recently published a study in the Equine Veterinary Journal using data recorded by StrideMASTER — a wearable tech used originally used to help time races more precisely — from 584 horses who ran in more than 5,000 races between 2011 and 2016. The data was compared to the horses’ records of orthopedic injuries and the results demonstrated a relationship between speed, stride, and risk of injury even as far as six races out from an injury.

Sponsor Corner: Few things look nicer than a fresh, clean, and white saddle pad. But how do you keep your white saddle pad actually white — not ivory, not cream, and certainly not yellow! Check out these tips from Ecogold!

Video Break: It’s all sure coming together now!

Italy Nominates Paris Olympic Eventing Entries

By on Jun 26, 2024 1:20 pm -

Arianna Schivo and Quefira de l’Ormeau. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Italy is the latest nation to nominate its entries for the upcoming Paris Olympics, putting forward eight horse and rider combinations ahead of the Definite Entries deadline of July 8. The Italian Federation will select its final team from the following list of riders:

  • Evelina Bertoli with Fidji Des Melezes (Aga Khan – Louna de Sainte-Ode, by Bayard D’Elle), owned by az. agricola di campello argenta and Evelina Bertoli
  • Daniele Bizzarro on Stormhill Riot (Downe Right Rebel – Stormhill Matilda), owned by the Rider and Alice Dazeley
  • Emiliano Portale on Scuderia 1918 Future (Fetcher N – Grace Keg, by Le Mistral), owned by Scuderia 1918 Capital srl and Emma McNab
  • Alessio Proia on Gatta Salta D’O (Hos D’O – Cassandra Van’t Cheikenshof, by Skippy II), owned by Rider and Gabriele Proia and Valerio Proia
  • Pietro Sandei on Rubis De Prere (Fedor de Seves – Cina du Logis, by Quandy du Mayne), owned by az.agr. Galanthus di Castellani S.
  • Arianna Schivo on Quefira De L’ormeau (Iolisco De Quinhon – Isabelle du Brulot, by Beausejour IV), owned by Rider and Thomas Bouquet
  • Paolo Torlonia on ESI Bethany Bay (OBOS Quality 004 – Catina, by Quasimodo van de Molendreef), owned by Kilpatrick T Limited and Emanuela Torlonia
  • Giovanni Ugolotti on Florencina (Verdi TN – Whitsuntide de Marsch, by Goodtimes), owned by Rider and Philip Hunt and Jo Preston-Hunt
    • Direct Reserve Horse: Swirly Temptress (For Ladies Only – Betty Barclay, by Brentano II), owned by Krin and Kristina Rausing

View more of EN’s coverage of the Paris Olympics here. We are pleased to bring you our Olympic coverage with support from Kentucky Performance Products.