Classic Eventing Nation

Nervous Riders and Overthinkers: Try This

By on Jun 4, 2024 10:00 am -

We’re pleased to introduce a new training series from our friends at Ride iQ! Be sure to check out the Ride iQ app for coaching in your ear, progressive series, podcasts, and much more here.

Picture this. For weeks, you’ve been preparing for the show, and even though you’ve spent ample amounts of time training, you still have some questionable thoughts running through your mind. Maybe they sound something like this:

“What if my horse spooks?”
“What if we stop at a jump?”
“What if I forget my course?”
“I don’t think I’m ready for this.”

If there’s anything we know about equestrian sports, it’s that fear, anxiety, and stress are quite common among most riders. Why is that? Put simply, individuals today are met with high demands both in and out of the saddle.

Described by transformative life coach Natalie Hummell as living outside your window of capacity, individuals are faced with recurring negative thoughts and emotions that take up real estate in your mind, making it difficult to focus and be in the present moment.

Photo by Leslie Wylie.

Natalie works with a range of clients from all riding levels in conquering fear, doubt, and overwhelm. She explains how anxiety and stress accumulated throughout your day can leave you feeling anything but calm, focused, and present when you arrive at the barn. This is where learning more about your nervous system is key.

Learning Your Nervous System

Your nervous system is designed to protect you from danger. When your mind perceives a threat, it enters into one of the following: flight, fight, or freeze.

An overactive mind is a side effect of living outside of your capacity, and you can become stuck here, constantly reacting from a state of fear. Sound familiar?

Here are some signs you are living with an overactive mind or outside your capacity:

  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Racing thoughts
  • Feeling overwhelmed
  • Irritability or mood swings
  • Sleep disturbances

When your nervous system is in hyperarousal, it makes it harder to stay on task and maintain usual levels of productivity. When you arrive at the barn in a state of hyperarousal and then add the stress of wanting to perform, you move out of your window of capacity and out of the present moment. In order to correct this, we must work to stretch the window of capacity by addressing the mind and body to minimize an overactive mind.

Creating Safety in the Body

When you’re faced with a trigger, your body will create a physiological response while your brain goes into problem solving mode in an effort to keep you safe. In order to stretch your window of capacity, you must create safety in the body by embracing your thoughts and emotions rather than resisting them. You should aim to feel your emotions without becoming them on a somatic level ( the level of your body). When you feel safe and regulated in your body, your mind automatically quiets down, and you’re able to focus better on the task at hand.

The next time you feel stressed, overwhelmed, fearful, or anxious, try Natalie’s somatic exercise to embrace the sensations, calm your mind, and create focus.

Watch the Ride iQ episode with Natalie Hummel on YouTube here.

Nervous System Reset – Somatic Exercise with Natalie Hummell

An important thing to remember through this exercise is that the nervous system heals through feeling versus thinking. Do the exercise as much as possible to build your window of capacity. You can also try completing this exercise during any transitions or tasks in your day, such as leaving the house for work or before beginning a training session.

If you complete this multiple times a day, you’ll start to notice that the things that once caused you stress, you now do with presence and focus.

Duration: 10 minutes

Tip: Find a quiet place with no distractions where you can sit or stand comfortably.

Take a look around your environment and find a glimmer: something neutral or pleasant that you can take a few grounding breaths with.

On your next exhale, close your eyes and allow yourself to tune in to the thoughts going through your mind.

Start to speak all the thoughts out loud without any judgment or analysis.

These can sound like “I’m so overwhelmed” or “I’m so tired.”

After you’ve spoken your thoughts out loud, take a moment to identify the emotions that are here.

Are you feeling anxious, excited, frustrated, or something entirely different?

Acknowledge these emotions without trying to change or suppress them.

Now try to notice where this emotion lives in your body.

Do you feel tightness in your chest? Butterflies in your stomach? Or tension in your shoulders?

Take a deep breath in, and as you exhale, imagine releasing the sensations. Continue breathing deeply and deliberately.

Focus on releasing any tension or discomfort in your body.

With every exhale, just let go. Bring your shoulders down and back.

Allow all sensations to be here.

Think of being the ocean floor, and any sensation, emotion, or thought is just a wave.

Don’t argue with it, but allow it. With every breath, just allow.

Now take a moment and notice how your body and mind feel.

You may notice you feel more relaxed, focused, and prepared to tackle the challenges ahead.

Note: If this was challenging for you, that is perfectly okay. Don’t let your mind create any meaning around it.

Want to learn more about healing your nervous system? Access Natalie’s entire Sports Psychology series by joining Ride iQ. Start your 2-week free trial at Ride-iQ.com. You can also check out some interviews with Natalie here.

Tuesday News & Notes from Kentucky Performance Products

By on Jun 4, 2024 7:27 am -


Yesterday felt like a momentous day in two very different ways, and as I sat with my morning coffee pondering them both, they began to make sense to me as something emblematic of the unique, often odd hamster wheel we all live within in this industry.

Before the announcement of the US Olympic team yesterday, I spent the latter half of the day in a sun-drenched field, raising a glass to the late, great Caroline March at a memorial service she’d helped to organise before choosing to call time on her stint on terra firma. It was a beautiful celebration of a spitfire of a woman: her favourite cider was plentiful, her favourite songs provided a poignant, but also often really funny, backdrop – there aren’t many memorials in which you’ll hear ‘Man, I Feel Like A Woman’, but nothing could have felt more right, really – and so many people who loved her gathered to toast, to laugh, to cry, to share stories of someone who left an indelible mark on everyone she encountered. I didn’t know Caroline particularly well; my attending of the memorial came more as a show of solidarity with her brother Tom and his wife, Piggy, who I do know well, and because, as someone who works in the media in the way that I do, you’re so intrinsically linked with the highs and the lows, and having been there at Burnham Market on the day Caroline had her career-ending fall, I wanted to show my respects. I left wishing I’d had more chances to cross paths with her, to laugh with her. It was yet another reminder to all of us, too, to chase what we love, to take joy in the little things, and never, ever, to take anything for granted.

And then the US team was announced – the first of the Paris eventing teams to be firmed up and put out into the world. And what an exciting team it is! I was personally thrilled to see my favourite of Boyd’s horses, the sweet and charismatic Fedarman B, named, not least because it allows Annie Goodwin – another rider we’ve lost before her time – to be represented at the very top of the sport, as she and her family deserve. No surprise, either, to see Will named with the stalwart Off The Record – “a kitchen table with a Ferrari engine”, as he once described him to me at Aachen.

It’s the two exceptional women on the list who caught me by surprise. I’ll admit I got this one wrong: I thought that Liz would be on the team, probably with Cooley Nutcracker but perhaps, instead, with Miks Master C, and I thought Caroline, on the form of her career, might still be relegated into the reserve slot with HSH Blake. Instead, it’s the other way around, and what an extraordinary thrill that is for Caroline and her team, who’ve really spent the last couple of years going back through every part of their system and seeing if it actually works. When Caroline, already a hugely successful rider in her own right, came to the UK a couple of seasons ago and ultimately ended up training with Pippa Funnell, she did something really difficult, and very admirable: she accepted that her way might not be the right way, and if Pippa wanted to change anything, she’d give it a go. That’s given her the edge and it’s a great reminder to all of us never to let our pride stop us from progressing. Caroline deserves this moment, and I can only begin to imagine how good the celebrations are going to be.

But poor Liz, too. I’m sure the last thing in the world she wants is anyone’s sympathy, and of course, being named as the reserve is still a huge honour – but it’s a tough position to be in. Liz will play a crucial role this summer, helping to keep the team calm, cool, and focused, but it’s got to be incredibly hard to keep yourself, too, ready to perform at your very best, while also reckoning with the fact that you may not need to at all. I hope that either which way, we see that ice in her veins drive her to something huge – a Maryland win, perhaps, or a victorious trip across the pond. That would be a great sweetener, a door opening to make up for another one not quite closing, but perhaps being pushed-to just a touch.

And then, in feeling for Liz, who’s done so much right and, in the old Olympic team format, would have been firmly on the roster, I circle back to square one again: to standing in a rare occurrence of golden hour sunshine, watching a video of Caroline March smiling broadly atop one of her beloved horses, popping fences as though she was born to do it. I circle back to Sunday at Bicton, just after lunchtime, when we were all still laughing and when I last spoke to Georgie Campbell, also smiling broadly as she so, so often did, as she cooled her first ride out from delivering one of the rare clears in that early section. Neither woman is here anymore; both women, though, lived in pursuit of what they loved. They weathered storms; they dealt with disappointments; they never, in any tangible way, would have seen what was around the corner for them. And so, suddenly, the crushing loss of a chance seems less like a cliff edge and more like a speed bump. A half-halt, if you like. A way to rebalance, to readjust, and to prepare to ride out of the corner into the best extended trot of your life. For all those riders who’ll get the call they’ve spent a lifetime dreaming of over the next couple of weeks: savour it. Celebrate it. You’ve done it. And for those who won’t? Rebalance and ride again, and never, ever lose sight of who you are, because that person is exceptional.

Events Opening Today: Silverwood Farm Summer H.T., Applewood Farm YEH & Mini Event, Horse Park of New Jersey Horse Trials II, Course Brook Farm Summer H.T., The Event at Rebecca Farm

Events Closing Today: Valinor Farm H.T., Loudoun Hunt Pony Club Summer H.T., Bucks County Horse Park H.T., Round Top H.T., Stable View Summer H.T., Midsouth Pony Club H.T., Fox River Valley Pony Club H.T.

Tuesday News & Notes from Around the World:

There’s a fair bit of furore over in the dressage world in the lead-up to Paris. That comes as the result of a bit of a qualifications snafu, which has seen Chile lose its individual slot after Brazil was downgraded from a team to an individual place. An objection is being lodged, and you can find out more about this fairly major oversight here.

You’ve no doubt seen Olivia Dutton’s name popping up more and more frequently on high-flying entry lists. And, of course, you probably watched her in action as the star of the Dutton show at Kentucky, where she contested the CCI4*-S in fine style in April. But who is this ultra-focused, softly-spoken young talent, really, and what is it that drives her? You can find out this, and much more, in this profile, originally published in Sidelines.

I love following blogs in the leadup to the RRP Thoroughbred Makeover. I think it’s because the folks writing them are so often people I can relate to: they’re usually juggling all sorts of ‘real life’ alongside their horses, which really speaks to me on a spiritual level. While COTH blogger Brit Vegas might be a pro, she’s also not immune to having life get in the way of horse-showing, as her latest entry shares. Get well soon, Seuss!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by KPPusa (@kentuckyperformanceproducts)

Sponsor Corner: Do you know your horse’s normal resting heart rate? It’s always a good idea to familiarize yourself with your horse’s baseline vitals. In an emergency situation, you’ll need to know your horse’s normal vitals, so you can compare their temperature, respiration, and pulse. Kentucky Performance Products has put together a great infographic to hang in your barn with all the pertinent information on vital signs for horses. Print it out and hang it in your barn aisle here.

Watch This:

Take a walk around Versailles’s hallowed grounds with this episode of FEI TV’s RIDE magazine show. Can you feel the butterflies yet? We certainly can.

US Equestrian Announces U.S. Olympic Eventing Team Ahead of Paris 2024 Olympic Games

By on Jun 3, 2024 6:05 pm -

US Equestrian is pleased to announce the athlete-and-horse combinations selected to represent the U.S. Olympic Eventing Team at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games hosted from July 26 – August 11, 2024. Eventing competition will be the first equestrian discipline on the overall Paris 2024 sporting schedule and held at the equestrian grounds of Versailles, beginning on Saturday, July 27, and concluding on Monday, July 29.

The U.S. Olympic Eventing Team will be led by Chef d’Equipe Bobby Costello alongside Team Leader Gemma Stobbs, and supported by team veterinarian Dr. Susan Johns, team equine physiotherapist Linda Vegher, team human physiotherapist Jennifer Mitchell, and team farrier Beck Ratte.

“This was a very thorough selection process and after speaking with each of our team members named to this Olympic team, I can say there is a palpable sense of optimism and determination as we enter these final six weeks of meticulous preparation heading into Paris,” said Chef d’Equipe Bobby Costello. “We have firm but realistic expectations together as a team to continue pushing the needle forward for this program. Let’s go USA!”

The following combinations have been selected to represent the U.S. Olympic Eventing Team and are listed in alphabetical order.

William Coleman (Ocala, Fla.) and Off The Record, a 2009 Irish Sport Horse gelding (Arkansas x Ard Ohio) owned by the Off The Record Syndicate and cared for by Hailey Burlock

  • Direct Reserve: Diabolo, a 2012 Holsteiner gelding (Diarado x Aljano 2) owned by the Diabolo Group and cared for by Hailey Burlock & Erin Jarboe

Boyd Martin (Cochranville, Pa.) and Fedarman B, a 2010 KWPN gelding (Eurocommerce Washington x Fedor) owned by the Annie Goodwin Syndicate and cared for by Stephanie Simpson

  • Direct Reserve: Commando 3, a 2013 Holsteiner gelding (Conner 48 x Amigo XX) owned by Yankee Creek Ranch LLC and cared for by Stephanie Simpson

Caroline Pamukcu (Springtown, Pa.) and HSH Blake, a 2015 Irish Sport Horse gelding (Tolan R. x Kannan) owned by Mollie Hoff, Sherrie Martin, Caroline Pamukcu, and Deniz Pamukcu and cared for by Chloe Teahan

The following combination has been selected as the traveling reserves. 

Elisabeth Halliday (Lexington, Ky.) and Cooley Nutcracker, a 2014 Irish Sport Horse gelding (Tolan R. x Cobra) owned by Chris Desino, Rob Desino, Deborah Halliday, Liz Halliday, and Renee Lane and cared for by Abby Steger

The following combination has been selected as first alternates.

Sydney Elliott (Hoffman, N.C.) and QC Diamantaire, a 2010 Oldenburg gelding (Diarado x Sandro Hit) owned by Carol Stephens and cared for by Caitlin Martin

The following combinations have been selected as team alternates and are listed in alphabetical order. 

James Alliston (San Ramon, Calif.) and Karma, a 2014 Oldenburg mare owned by Alliston Equestrian & Ric Plummer

Jennie Brannigan (West Grove, Pa.) and FE Lifestyle, 2010 Deutches Sportferd gelding owned by Nina & Timothy Gardner

Will Faudree (Southern Pines, N.C.) and Mama’s Magic Way, 2011 Hanoverian gelding owned by Jennifer Mosing & Sterling Silver Stables

Elisabeth Halliday (Lexington, Ky.) and Miks Master C, 2012 Swedish Warmblood gelding owned by Ocala Horse Properties and Deborah Palmer

Elisabeth Halliday (Lexington, Ky.) and Shanroe Cooley, a 2015 Irish Sport Horse gelding owned by Ocala Horse Properties

The U.S. Olympic Eventing Team will participate in a Mandatory Outing in Aiken, S.C. from June 21-23, 2024, at the Stable View Summer HT, before heading to Europe to begin their final preparations ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

View more of EN’s coverage of the Paris Olympics here.

Sara Kozumplik Takes Top Honors in Open Intermediate at 2024 Essex Horse Trials

By on Jun 3, 2024 11:00 am -

Sara Kozumplik and Rubens d’Ysieux. Photo by AK Dragoo Photography.

Sara Kozumplik and Rubens D’ysieux put all the pieces together this weekend to secure the win of the Open Intermediate division at the 2024 Essex Horse Trials. Sara and the 19-year-old Selle Francais gelding, owned by Edith Ramekia, jumped clear over Morgan Rowsell’s Cross-Country course to clinch the title on a final score of 28.9.

“Rubens (aka, The Unicorn) felt great. He cruised around and jumped everything out of stride. We know each other really well so we had a great time. He trotted up sound after, and wasn’t breathing too hard.”, Sara said of her partner.

Lillian Heard Wood and Bassett Olympus finished the division in second on a 33.4 with just a bit of time on cross country, followed by Maya Clarkson and Clueso to round out the top three in Open Intermediate.

Lillian continued her good day with Bellines Quality Lady, a 2016 Irish Sport Horse owned by the Bellines Quality Lady Syndicate, to clinch the win in the Open Preliminary to finish on her dressage score of 26.3.

Lillian Heard Wood and Bellines Quality Lady. Photo by AK Dragoo Photography.

Lillian said of the mare, “Foxy is green at the level so this was a great course for her. It was a hard course but not crazy hard. And she’s fast, so its fun to be able to make the time on her.” She continued saying, “The tracks were amazing and were developed to give the horses confidence. It was the best footing so far this year. It was like running on a cloud.”

Essex Horse Trials also gave out two other awards, the Jean and Elliott Haller Perpetual Trophy for Horsemanship and The Golden Nugget Memorial Trophy.

2024 Jean and Elliott Haller Perpetual Trophy Winner, Sara Kelson, with Morgan Rowsell and Sally Ike. Photo by AK Dragoo Photography.

The Jean and Elliott Haller Perpetual Trophy for Horsemanship was presented to the rider who demonstrates good horsemanship and a superior partnership between horse and rider regardless of their division. Jean and Elliot Haller were the owners of Hoopstick Farm, the site of the first Essex Horse Trials. In addition, they were the parents of Roger Haller, an icon in the sport of Eventing. As a family, they loved their horses and equestrian sport. This trophy was donated by Mrs. Ann David, a close friend of the Hallers and the owner of Hoopstick Farm for over 40 years. Our 2024 Winner was Sara Kelson!

2024 Golden Nugget Award Winner, Olivia Hicok pictured with trainer, Clarissa Wilmerding. Photo by AK Dragoo Photography.

The Golden Nugget Award was donated by Clarissa Wilmerding to encourage the development of young riders as well-rounded horsemen with an appreciation for Eventing and a commitment to good sportsmanship. Clarissa grew up fox hunting with the Essex Fox Hounds and was an active member of the Somerset Hills Pony Club. Her partnership with her first pony, Golden Nugget, fostered the determination and perseverance essential to Eventing. As a professional rider, Clarissa continues to teach and mentor pony clubbers. The trophy was awarded to the lowest-scoring member of pony club aged 18 or younger in any division. Our 2024 winner was Olivia Hicok, who finished 3rd in the Beginner Novice B Division aboard Huckleberry, on a 29.1.

14 year-old Olivia was thrilled with her day and thankful for this award saying, “Huckleberry was amazing and jumped everything like a pro. It’s very special to win my trainer’s trophy. I want to thank my mom for helping me, supporting me, and getting me to all my lessons that has made all my hard work pay off.”

Additional information on the Essex Horse Trials is available at https://www.essexhorsetrials.org. Proceeds of the event benefit the Greater Newark Life Camp which brings 300 inner city youth to summer day camp in the country in Somerset County for six weeks for an enriching educational experience. For more information on the Greater Newark Life Camp please visit https://greaternewarklifecamp.org.

Essex H.T. (Gladstone, NJ): [Website] [Results]

Defender U.S. Eventing Team Finishes in Second Place at FEI Eventing Nations Cup™ Ireland CCIO4*-NC-S

By on Jun 3, 2024 9:00 am -

Team USA on the Millstreet Nations Cup podium. From L to R: Development coach and Chef d’equipe Leslie Law, Jenny Caras, Alyssa Phillips, Emily Hamel, Caroline Pamukcu. Photo by Libby Law Photography.

The Defender U.S. Eventing Team concluded a successful outing at the FEI Eventing Nations Cup CCIO4*-NC-S – Ireland on Sunday, securing a team second-place finish at the event held at the Millstreet International Horse Trials. Millstreet is part of the European Development Tour, which is intended to give up-and-coming combinations experience competing overseas in a team environment.

All U.S. combinations finished in the top half of the division, which saw 51 starters from seven countries.

Caroline Pamukcu (Springtown, Pa.) with King’s Especiale, a 2015 KWPN gelding owned by Redfield King’s HX Group, posted the top individual score for the team, finishing on a 37.1 after adding only 0.8 cross-country time penalties to their dressage score. Jenny Caras (Buckhead, Ga.) and Sommersby, the 2012 Holsteiner gelding she co-owns with Jerry Hollis, also turned in a double-clear show jumping round with just two time penalties from cross-country to finish on a score of 38.2.

Alyssa Phillips (Fort Worth, Texas) and her own and Julie Phillips’s 2009 Holstener gelding, Oskar, had a phenomenal dressage test with a score of 30.8, which put them in seventh place after the first phase. With one rail in show jumping and 3.6 cross-country time penalties, they completed with a 38.4. Emily Hamel (Aiken, S.C.) and Corvett, a 2007. Holsteiner gelding owned by Black Flag Option, went double-clear in the show jumping phase and added 8 time penalties from cross-country to their dressage score, finishing with a 44.2.

Molly Duda (Menlo Park, Calif.) and her own Disco Traveler, a 2010 Oldenburg gelding, competed as an individual combination for the U.S. and completed on a score of 41.8 to finish in 23rd place.

“Overall the team did extremely well,” said Chef d’Equipe Leslie Law. “I think everybody was good in the dressage. In the show jumping, I thought the riders were really great. We had a lot of clear rounds.

“I thought they rode extremely well this morning [in cross-country],” said Law. “The ground was very soft and heavy and not the type of going they’re used to. The Europeans get more practice on that type of ground, and even they felt the ground was heavy. So for them to go out and ride the way they did on the going and on top of that, to post really good, fast rounds to stay competitive, and finish second, I think that says a lot. They really rose to the challenge in conditions that they aren’t used to. They’ve done a fantastic job.”

The team came into Millstreet after having had a last-minute schedule change. The intended first stop on the development tour was the Chatsworth International Horse Trials in Great Britain, which was cancelled due to extremely rainy conditions. Several of the U.S. combinations rerouted to last weekend’s Bicton International Horse Trials to run the dressage and jumping phases.

“Bicton was not in our plans at all previously, but with them having CCI4*-S down there, we thought it would be very useful to get them into the ring doing a dressage test and having a show jumping round,” said Law. “It turned out to be a very useful exercise because part of Great Britain’s probable Olympic team was there. To go and compete at that level and against that standard—they posted some really good results in the dressage. When you look at what some of those experienced combinations were doing, our results were very comparable. It turned out to be a very good exercise in the end, and it gave them a chance to get in the ring and settled their nerves. After that, we were able to come here and move forward as planned.”

In addition to the Nations Cup, three U.S. athletes completed the CCI4*-L at Millstreet. U.S. Cosby Green (Lexington, Ky.), a U.S. Eventing emerging athlete, finished in second place with Highly Suspicious, a 2010 Irish Sport Horse gelding owned by Edie and Clay Green. Caroline Pamukcu and She’s The One, a 2015 Anglo European mare she co-owns with Sherrie Martin, Mollie Hoff, and Andy Hoff, earned the top dressage score in the division—an impressive 28.2— and finished in fourth place overall. UK-based Rowan Laird rode his own Irish Sport Horse stallion Sceilig Concordio to finish in seventh place in his CCI4*-L debut.

Millstreet International Horse Trials (Nations Cup) (Co. Cork, Ireland) [Website] [Scoes] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Dressage 1] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Dressage 2] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Show Jumping] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Cross Country] [Complete Live Stream Replays – CMH]

Monday News & Notes from FutureTrack

By on Jun 3, 2024 6:16 am -

Here we are, folks: it’s Monday once again, and that means we’ve all made it through a whole week since Bicton. I hope that that week has been a kind and gentle one for you; one in which you’ve been able to slow down, process, and lean on friends and family while you figure out how you feel and how you want to move forward.

Nobody will be ‘back to normal’ quite yet, and nor should they expect to be, but together, we’re going to start taking some steps back into something like ‘ordinary’ life. We might not have a wholly gung-ho start to proceedings; this week’s competition coverage at Bramham will be slightly modified with a weekend-heavy focus, and as a team, we’ll be continuing our conversations behind the scenes on how we can best contribute to the ongoing safety work being done in our sport, as well as lending our hand to the collective healing that’s happening in the wake of Georgie Campbell’s passing.

Today, the day of Caroline March’s celebration of life service, feels as good a day as any to call for a moment of reflection – a reflection on the lives we’ve lost, both human and equine, and a reflection on what safety means and how we can all play a part in furthering it, for ourselves and the community around us. I’m so thrilled that we’ve largely moved on from even just fifteen years ago or so, when I was a working student and riding without a helmet was a way to ‘keep up’ with the ‘cool kids’. But are we doing enough? Is your hat properly fitted and new enough not to have suffered from internal decay or compression? Is your chin strap adjusted correctly? Are you wearing a vest every time you jump solid fences? Have you checked your tack to make sure that your girth straps, your stirrup leathers, your reins are fit for purpose? And, more broadly, are you taking part in the wider conversations on safety in the sport? Not everyone has access to a platform that’ll allow them to contribute to change on a global level, but if this is something you feel strongly about and you’d like to be involved with, we can’t recommend enough getting in touch with your local eventing group, whether that’s your Area committee or a state-wide unrecognised show circuit, and bringing your voice and your observations to the table.

You’ll see a little more from us this week, and a lot more over the coming weeks as we ramp up towards the Olympics. But always, always at the heart of it is a knowledge of what it all means, and what it has cost so many. We don’t want our sport to ever cost so much again.

I’ll also reshare our list of support resources here for anyone who needs it. Go well today, wear your purple and white ribbons, and in the words of Jesse Campbell, “please just smile at each other, don’t feel awkward about laughing, and above all, try and love everything and everyone.”

U.S. Weekend Action

Carriage House Farm Combined Test (Hugo, MN): [Website]  [Results]

Equestrians’ Institute H.T. (Cle Elum, WA): [Website] [Results]

Essex H.T. (Gladstone, NJ): [Website] [Results]

Genesee Valley Riding & Driving Club Spring H.T. (Geneseo, NY): [Website] [Results]

GMHA June H.T. (South Woodstock, VT): [Website] [Results]

IEA Horse Trials (Edinburgh, IN): [Website] [Results]

MCTA H.T. at Shawan Downs (Cockeysville, MD): [Website] [Results]

Ocala Summer H.T. I (Ocala, FL): [Website] [Results]

Poplar Place June H.T. (Hamilton, GA): [Website] [Results]

The Spring Event at Archer (Cheyenne, WY): [Website] [Results]

European International Events

Millstreet International Horse Trials (Nations Cup) (Co. Cork, Ireland): [Website] [Results] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 1] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 2] [Free Live Stream NC Show Jumping] [Free Live Stream NC Cross Country] [Complete Live Stream – CMH]

Outdoor Horst (Kronenberg, The Netherlands): [Website] [Results] [Live Stream]

Your Monday Reading List:

The continuing onslaught of violence in the Gaza Strip is affecting every single person living there. But it’s also having an enormous impact on animals – including the horses of Aljawad Club, a riding school and community centre in the heart of the city. Find out more about the centre, its people and horses, and its future in this piece from the Chronicle. Ceasefire now.

Tamie Smith and her team have made the difficult decision to withdraw Mai Baum, who had been heavily favored to contribute to a medal or two for the U.S. in Paris this summer, from Olympic consideration. The decision comes on the heels of a minor setback experienced ahead of the gelding’s scheduled competition in the CCI4*-S at Kentucky in April, and Tamie says there will not be sufficient time for proper training and conditioning ahead of the team’s Mandatory Outing at Stable View in a few weeks’ time. We are obviously disappointed, but always have his best interest at heart and will be looking to aim him for an exciting fall competition. Mai Baum will instead aim for July’s Rebecca Farm event in Kalispell, MT.

One of the most stressful parts of competing is navigating the hustle and bustle of the warm-up ring. It’s no surprise, then, that many generally well-behaved horses come undone in this tricky environment, leaving you to focus on simply managing their stress levels rather than working on coaxing out their very best work. Here are some great tips to help them settle, take a deep breath, and thrive.

You might have clocked Bubby Upton and Cola for the first time when they very nearly won Badminton this year after a horrendous injury. Or you might have been following this dynamic duo’s progress for years, like most of us here in the UK. Either way, now that they’ve been put on the British team longlist for Paris, you’ll definitely want to familiarise yourself with them. Here’s a good starting point.

Bad behaviour often stems from pain. Let me repeat that: bad behaviour often stems from pain. And in this case study, featuring a draft cross who got spicier and spicier into her teens, the naughtiness was coming from one source: a serious case of previously unsuspected kissing spines. This article is a fascinating primer into how this condition can affect horses.

Morning Viewing:

Rewatch all the action from Millstreet’s smoking hot CCIO4*-S Nations Cup cross-country:

Ireland is on Top of the World in Millstreet Nations Cup

By on Jun 2, 2024 7:00 pm -

The victorious Irish team (Jennifer Kuehnle, Patrick Whelan, Ian Cassells and Robbie Kearns) in the FEI Nations Cup™ leg held at Millstreet International Horse Trials, Co Cork, Ireland with team manager Dag Albert. Photo by Bit-Media.

The Irish National Anthem rang out not once, but twice in quick succession over the final day of the Millstreet International Horse Trials, Co Cork, as the home team secured victory in a high-class FEI Eventing Nations Cup™ and Sam Watson from Co Carlow clinched the Noel C Duggan Engineering CCI4*-L win on his own and wife Hannah ‘Sparkles’ Watson’s Irish Sport Horse Ballyneety Rocketman.

The FEI Eventing Nations Cup™ win was a great boost to Irish morale ahead of the Paris Olympic Games later this summer and team manager Dag Albert admitted the selectors had a greater choice than normal for the squad that will be announced later this month: “They’re a great bunch of riders and they really wanted to win this on home ground. The scoring was very tight but they came through in the jumping phases.”

Only 11.5 penalties separated the five teams, with the USA second, Australia third, Britain fourth and New Zealand, down to three riders with the withdrawal of Clarke Johnstone, fifth.

Jennifer Kuehnle, who was under pressure across country as the team anchorwoman, finished eighth individually on Polly Blue Eyes, Patrick Whelan was ninth on Altitiu, Ian Cassells was 19th on Millridge Atlantis and Robbie Kearns was 29th on Ballyvillane OBOS.

Technical delegate Neil Mackenzie-Hall from New Zealand said: “It was a brilliant competition and a great result. Eventing is about three disciplines and today cross-country proved the decider.”

Millstreet represented a first 4* win since 2020 for the 2018 world silver medallist Sam Watson, 38. “It’s taken a while to get Rocketman to this stage, but he’s here now and it’s great to fly the Irish flag,” he said.

The U.S. rising star Cosby Green, 23, who competed at Millstreet last year, achieved her best result so far on her 2024 European Development Tour; she finished second on the 14-year-old Highly Suspicious and put the pressure on Sam with a clear jumping round.

In a highly international line-up, the top placings remained unchanged after jumping, with Jonelle Price (NZL) third on Chilli’s Midnight Star, Caroline Pamukcu (USA) fourth on She’s The One and Ryuzo Kitajima (JAP) fifth on Corona Xtreme JRA fifth. Britain’s Rose Nesbitt rose two places to sixth with a clear on EG Michaelangelo.

The Australian Olympian Christopher Burton, who is currently combining top-level showjumping with eventing, scored his first win with new ride Shadow Man, having led throughout in the Connollys Red Mills CCI4*-S, which had incorporated the FEI Nations Cup™.

He finished 5 seconds within the optimum cross-country time of 6 minutes 11 seconds with a beautifully executed round. “That is the monkey off my back,” he joked. “This really is a special horse and I’m privileged to ride him.”

He also praised the cross country course team, and designer Mike Etherington-Smith, who he described as “the best in the world”, for their hard work overnight in re-routing the track for the CCI4*-S to achieve better ground after such a wet spring; by the time the class started, the going was perfect.

It was a good competition for Australia, with Kevin McNab second on Scuderia 1918 A Best Friend and sixth on Faro Imp, and Andrew Barnett, a first-time visitor to the northern hemisphere, fourth on Go Tosca. Japan’s Ryuzo Kitajima was third on Feroza Nieuwmoed and Ireland’s Ian Cassells, who rode four clear rounds in the class, finished best on Kellys Quality, fifth.

There was a British top four in the CCI3*-L: Sam Ecroyd was first and fourth on Bloomfield Manuscript and Boleybawn Lecrae, Tom Grant was the runner-up on the Irish Sport Horse Tommy Cruise and Emily King was fourth on Maserati de Landetta Z.

The Donagh Hickey Motors CCI2*-L was a victory for Samantha Lissington, who led from flagfall on Mr Cookie Time; the New Zealander had a particularly busy afternoon as she also dominated the Coral Cove Championship with a one-two on Nadal and Never Know MB.

Ireland was back on the podium for the Foran Equine CCI2*-S when Elizabeth Power show jumped clear on Balladeer Clintender to overhaul long-time leader Caitie Slater, who incurred four faults on Derena Super Star, and there were more home victories for Chloe Fagan, who captured the Carr & Davy & Martin CCI1*-Intro on the six-year-old Gervada by Vadamos, and Carla Williamson and Galco who headed the Pony CCI1*-L.

During a highly competitive and successful weekend, Millstreet united with the international eventing community in holding a two-minute silence to remember British rider Georgie Campbell, who died after a fall at Bicton, UK, last weekend. As Sam Watson received his prize, he said: “Seeing my wife and kids watching me, my thoughts go straight to Jesse Campbell [husband]. Time is precious and I know the eventing world will wrap their arms around him.”

Millstreet International Horse Trials (Nations Cup) (Co. Cork, Ireland) [Website] [Scores] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Dressage 1] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Dressage 2] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Show Jumping] [Free Live Stream Replay NC Cross Country] [Complete Live Stream Replays – CMH]

Sunday Links from EcoVet

By on Jun 2, 2024 12:01 am -

It’s easy to allow yourself to become numb. I did some research last month on the number of fatalities, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal cord injuries that have occurred to eventers in the last few decades, and it was rather depressing, to say the least. My muggle job is at a physical medicine and rehabilitation hospital, where all of our patients are learning how to live again after surviving life-changing injuries or hospitalizations. My own (very minor) injury after a fall last month brought some of the sports medicine physicians I work with to ask lots of questions about equestrian sport, as it’s not very prevalent in our area. Between explaining the range of injuries caused from our sport to these doctors — from a fractured scapula to death — and the research I was doing to help explain these numbers to them, it became easy for me to say that people die in our sport — that not too long ago, eventing saw more fatal accidents than base jumping, bull riding, or motocross.

It’s easy to become numb to it, the reason we wear body protectors, why we shell out the money to get refill cartridges for our air vests, why we make the investment to purchase a new helmet after every fall — however begrudgingly. My barnmates and I always chuckle when our regular clinician reminds us of the number one rule in eventing: the thousand-pound animal traveling at speed towards a solid object must be able to see the jump — but despite the laughs, we understand its truth, and it’s the reason we make the investments: because it’s too easy to become numb to the dangers in our sport, and someone needs to be there reminding us.

It’s been a hard week for us all, but I just wanted to take this moment to remind ourselves that despite the numbness creeping in as the week comes to a close, as we stop seeing the Facebook posts and our social media moratorium lifts and we return to our worlds, to keep climbing fences to meet pretty horses. Keep remembering why we do this sport, and keep remembering why safety is paramount to our survival — as athletes and as little horse girls.

💜🤍🕊️ Go Eventing.

U.S. Weekend Action

Carriage House Farm Combined Test (Hugo, MN) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

Equestrians’ Institute H.T. (Cle Elum, WA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Essex H.T. (Gladstone, NJ) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Genesee Valley Riding & Driving Club Spring H.T. (Geneseo, NY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

GMHA June H.T. (South Woodstock, VT) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

IEA Horse Trials (Edinburgh, IN) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

MCTA H.T. at Shawan Downs (Cockeysville, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Ocala Summer H.T. I (Ocala, FL) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Poplar Place June H.T. (Hamilton, GA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

The Spring Event at Archer (Cheyenne, WY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]

European International Events

Millstreet International Horse Trials (Nations Cup) (Co. Cork, Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Timetable] [Scoring] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 1] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 2] [Free Live Stream NC Show Jumping] [Free Live Stream NC Cross Country] [Complete Live Stream – CMH]

Outdoor Horst (Kronenberg, The Netherlands) [Website] [Entries] [Timetable] [Scoring] [Live Stream]

Links to Start Your Sunday:

Audit Clinics With The Best, Even If You’re A Beginner — And Especially If You’re Not

Allison Springer is looking for a working student

What Being Horseless For Many Years Taught Me

The Angels of Africa

AMA: My Horse Gets Tense In The Warm-Up At Shows. How Do I Help Him?

Sponsor Corner: It’s giveaway time! EcoVet is giving away a bottle of their amazing fly spray. The first fatty-acid fly repellent for horses, this unique fly spray is Veterinarian-approved and used by 5* eventers across the USA.

Winning is easy! Simply fill out the form in our June 10th ICYMI newsletter. Sign up for our weekly newsletter [here] because free is every equestrian’s favorite price.

Morning Viewing: Hang out with Samantha Clark as they chat with Liz Halliday and take a stroll through her barns! Figure out exactly what Liz wanted for her farm’s design and how it came to life here:

Sam Watson Rockets to CCI4*-L Lead at Millstreet

By on Jun 1, 2024 6:49 pm -

Ireland’s Sam Watson takes the lead in the Noel C Duggan Engineering CCI4*-L at Millstreet International Horse Trials with a superb cross-country performance on Ballyneety Rocketman. Photo by Bit-Media.

Irish rider Sam Watson is renowned for not wasting time across country and he has soared up the rankings with a classy performance in the Noel C Duggan Engineering CCI4*-L at Millstreet International Horse Trials, Co Cork.

Riding the appropriately named Ballyneety Rocketman, the Co Carlow horseman has risen from ninth place after dressage to head the cross-country leaderboard, the only rider with time penalties in single figures.

He has a show jumping rail and time penalties in hand over Cosby Green, one of a large contingent of U.S. riders and joined by riders currently on the USEF European Developmental Tour; she was jointly second fastest with 20 time penalties on Highly Suspicious.

New Zealander Jonelle Price is third on Chilli’s Midnight Star and the dressage leaders, Caroline Pamukcu and She’s The One from the USA, are lying fourth after incurring 26.8 time penalties.

The 10-year-old Ballyneety Rocketman, bred by James Hickey by Diamond Discovery, was sold by the Ryan family as a three-year-old at the Goresbridge for Gold sale. ‘It was 2018 and I was all fired up after the World Equestrian Games [where Ireland won team silver] so I bought him,’ explains Sam.

“He’s an old-fashioned horse, by a thoroughbred [Diamond Discovery] and very blood, and he is a work in progress, but when you look at Badminton and Burghley, I knew I was on the right track. The cross-country track here at Millstreet was very fair, but it was twisty in parts and once the horse opens up, it can be hard to bring him back.”

Team Ireland had a good day in the FEI Eventing Nations Cup TM as the only country to boast four clear jumping rounds (albeit with a couple of time penalties) and the team has risen to third behind New Zealand and the USA with a mere 8.9 penalties covering the five teams going into tomorrow’s cross-country finale.

Australia is now fourth, but two Aussies head the individual leaderboard for the Connollys Red Mills CCI4*-S: Christopher Burton retained his lead with a clear jumping round on Shadow Man and Kevin McNab (Scuderia 1918 A Best Friend) rose two places to second with a faultless performance.

The antipodean theme continued at 2* level with New Zealander Samantha Lissington retaining her lead in the Donal Hickey Motors CCI2*-L on Mr Cookie Time and scoring a one-two with Nadal and Never Know MB in the Coral Cove Young Horse Championship, while Australia’s Isobel English took the Foran Equine CCI2*-S on Jockeyhall Maximum Cruise.

It was also a good day to be called Sam, as Britain’s Sam Ecroyd was the man of the moment across the two 3*s, winning the Eventing Ireland CCI3*-S on Stewart and Vicky Irlam’s Chapel House, an Irish Sport horse bred by John O’Sullivan by Sibon W, and, with his partner Emily King, dominating the CCI3*-L, in which they hold four of the top five places after cross-country.

Sam, who only incurred 0.4 of a time penalty in three cross-country rounds, praised the Millstreet team led by course-designer Mike Etherington-Smith. ‘The course rode the best it could, considering the recent wet weather; the distances and fences had all been well adjusted to the conditions and it created good pictures,’ he said.

He leads the CCI3*-L on Bloomfield Manuscript and does not have a show jumping fence in hand over Emily, second on Sunny Side Up, but has a 4-penalty advantage over British rider Tom Grant (Tommy Cruise), who has risen from 11th after dressage to third after cross-country.

Emily is also lying fourth on Maserati de Landetta Z and Sam is fifth on Boleybawn Lecrae. Sarah Ennis is best of the home side, in sixth place on Onceuponatime.

For the home nation, Carla Williamson, daughter of former National Hunt jockey Norman Williamson, leads the Pony 1* after cross-country on Ardeo Fireman and Galco.

Sunday’s cross-country action starts with the FEI Nations CupTM at 9am and the tension is palpable with Olympic places at stake.

Millstreet International Horse Trials (Nations Cup) (Co. Cork, Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Timetable] [Scoring] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 1] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 2] [Free Live Stream NC Show Jumping] [Free Live Stream NC Cross Country] [Complete Live Stream – CMH]

Saturday Links from World Equestrian Brands

By on Jun 1, 2024 12:01 am -

Photo courtesy of GMHA Festival of Eventing.

As we usher in a new weekend of eventing, we aren’t quite finished remembering what happened last weekend (not that we’ll ever be finished remembering — that’s not how grief works.) Don’t forget that all USEA events and BE events running this weekend, as well as Millstreet in Ireland, will observe a moment of silence at 12 noon today in their applicable time zones.

Of course, you don’t have to be at an event to stop and take a moment to reflect. I’ll either be out hacking or otherwise at the barn at noon today. I’ll be thinking of Georgie and her family and friends and I’ll also be thinking of my own friends competing up at GMHA this weekend, where we lost Jeffie Chapin in 2019, a dear member our own barn family. I expect the moment of silence will hit particularly hard there as well.

U.S. Weekend Action

Carriage House Farm Combined Test (Hugo, MN) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

Equestrians’ Institute H.T. (Cle Elum, WA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Essex H.T. (Gladstone, NJ) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Genesee Valley Riding & Driving Club Spring H.T. (Geneseo, NY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

GMHA June H.T. (South Woodstock, VT) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

IEA Horse Trials (Edinburgh, IN) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

MCTA H.T. at Shawan Downs (Cockeysville, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Ocala Summer H.T. I (Ocala, FL) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Poplar Place June H.T. (Hamilton, GA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

The Spring Event at Archer (Cheyenne, WY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]

European International Events

Millstreet International Horse Trials (Nations Cup) (Co. Cork, Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Timetable] [Scoring] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 1] [Free Live Stream NC Dressage 2] [Free Live Stream NC Show Jumping] [Free Live Stream NC Cross Country] [Complete Live Stream – CMH]

Outdoor Horst (Kronenberg, The Netherlands) [Website] [Entries] [Timetable] [Scoring] [Live Stream]

Links to Start Your Weekend:

5 Ways to Support Your Local Events This Season

Race against time as nation fights for Olympic place after being dropped from Paris 2024

OTTB Training Toolkit Presented by Doc Lane’s Veterinary Pharmacy: How To Achieve Power Steering

A Long-Distance Friendship Brings The Story Of Palestinian Riding School Stateside

Sponsor Corner: Go behind the scenes to see how those gorgeous Sergio Grasso boots are made. Choose from hundreds of combinations to create your dream pair of custom tall boots. Sergio Grasso: combining the best technological innovations with style to match. Shop now!

Morning Viewing: Horse won’t stand in a bucket or boots for icing? Here’s how to use the next best thing: pocket boots.