Friday News & Notes

Friendship and camaraderie goals. Photo by JJ Sillman.

Whenever a non-eventer asks me why I chose the sport of Eventing, aside from the obvious adrenaline rush of cross country, I always say it’s because of the people and the attitude at competitions. When you are walking out to cross country, it doesn’t matter if you’re at a 5* or a Beginner Novice, somebody on their way back from riding the course will tell you good luck, and nine times out of ten, give you tips on how the course rode. What other sport would offer competitors helping others? Not many, and certainly not many in the horse world. But in Eventing, you congratulate the winner and you mean it.

U.S. Weekend Preview

Morven Park International CCI4*-L (Leesburg, Va.): [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Schedule] [Volunteer]

Woodside International H.T. (Woodside, Ca.): [Website] [Volunteer] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]

Heritage Park H.T. (Olathe, Ks.): [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times] [Volunteer]

Hitching Post Farm H.T. (South Royalton, Vt.): [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times]

Poplar Place Farm H.T. (Hamilton, Ga.): [Website] [Entry Status] [Volunteer]

Radnor Hunt H.T. (Malvern, Pa.): [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]

WindRidge Farm H.T. (Mooresboro, Nc.): [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]

Major International Events

Military Boekelo Enschede CCIO4*-L & FEI Nations Cup of Eventing: [Website] [Info Hub] [Entries] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]

News From Around the Globe:

Ready to take a walk around the brand new Morven Park International CCI4*-L cross-country course? Derek di Grazia designed the 5,700-meter course set on the grounds of the historic Morven Park property. With 44 jumping efforts across 26 numbered fences and an optimum time of 10 minutes, di Grazia has built a true four-star test. [Fence by Fence Cross Country Walk at Morven 4*]

Sorocaima might have re-routed to Morven CCI4*-L instead of debuting at the 5* level in Maryland, but he still has a pretty cool story. Purchased as a four-year old out of Parx Racetrack by Matthew Bryner, then found his way to Nilsson Moreira de Silva’s barn, and after that to Jill Henneberg’s program for a young rider. Competing at the training level with that young rider, Jill called Buck Davidson in 2019, and told him that the horse had too much talent for her student, and he should seriously consider the gelding. Cam quickly climbed the levels with Buck, and within two years was competing competently at the Advanced level. [Ex-Racehorse Sorocaima Climbs the Levels]

The Maryland Horse Trials at Loch Moy Farm hosted the 2021 Area II Championships over the October 1-3 weekend. With nine different championship levels offered in addition to their regular horse trial divisions, Loch Moy was bursting at the seams with horse and rider pairs all weekend long. Reporters from the USEA caught up with some of the Area II Champions to recap their experience at this year’s season finale and to share their thoughts on their equine partners that helped make their victory gallops possible. [Riders Recap: Area II Championships]

We want your spooky halloween horse stories! From the haunted steed of the Headless Horseman to the ghost riders in the sky, horses have always figured prominently in our favorite hair-raising tales we love to tell this time of year. Horses have the power to invoke our deepest emotions, and when you take a horse with mane and tail a-blowing in a chill October breeze as the sun dips down beneath the horizon and the air grows suddenly cool, the shadows playing tricks on your eyes, you have the perfect recipe for a ghost story for the ages. And we want to hear yours! Whether you have an old tale that’s been passed down in your barn family or you conjure up the best spooky story in your mind and put it down on paper, we’re calling for your best horsey Halloween tales for our second annual short story contest. We’ll publish the best around Halloween. [Fifth Annual Horse Nation Halloween Short Story Contest]