This week, it finally got hot in Virginia. I mean, not Florida hot, but sunburn and tank top hot, so we were all very excited. My mother asked me if it was time to send the winter blankets off to the blanket lady (you know, that lady who takes all your gross blankets and cleans and repairs them every spring) but of course, I looked at the weather forecast. April is too risky, you could very well need your heavy blankets soon. Sure enough, the weather goes from eighty degrees to thirty-five degrees. Maybe we can send the blankets off in June.
U.S. Weekend Preview
Stable View Spring 2/3/4* and H.T. (Aiken, SC) [Website] [Entries] [Volunteer] [Scoring]
CDCTA Spring H.T. (Ruckersville, VA) [Website] [Volunteer][Scoring]
Pine Hill Spring H.T (Belleville, TX) [Website] [Entries / Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]
Rocking Horse Spring H.T (Altoona, FL) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]
News From Around the Globe:
Are you attending Stable View’s FEI & H.T. this weekend? If you’re around Friday afternoon, be sure to join us along with FEI course designer Capt. Mark Phillips and Boyd Martin for an exclusive behind the scenes cross country preview of the CCI4*-S. We’ll meet on the cross country side of the Hunt Boxes on site at 4:30 p.m. on Friday afternoon. See you there!
Speaking of Stable View, have you read our CCI4*-S Form Guide? We’re all set up and ready for the $60,000 Stable View FEI & H.T., where a strong field of 4*-S contenders comprised of multiple Kentucky-bound pairs are set to duke it out for $30,000 in prize money. We’ll have much more coming your way all weekend from Stable View, but for now you can take a few minutes to get familiar with the pairings we’ll see over the next two days. [CCI4* Form Guide]
Get to know the team behind the cross country at Kentucky! Cross-Country day of the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event consistently ranks as the highlight of the weekend each year. But few people understand the time, effort, creativity, craftsmanship and artistry that goes into creating the course. Nearly 150 years of combined experience from the LRK3DE course crew goes into the design, layout and build. [Meet the Cross Country Dream Team]
Podcast of the Day: Inside Kentucky: The Early Call
A new study found that bullying and racial discrimination are commonplace in British Eventing. Bullying is “commonplace” in areas of British equestrianism and racialised experiences “emerged strongly”, a hard-hitting report commissioned by the sport’s national governing body has found. The research study carried out by AKD Solutions found that 24% of those who participated in the project felt racial discrimination adversely affected their ability to fully access and benefit from equestrian activity. While 33% of white respondents agreed working in an equestrian environment was a viable career option, figures from black, Asian or mixed background were 6%, 10% and 16% respectively. [Discrimination within Eventing]
We will all be sad to miss Ingrid in the Freestyle today at the World Cup. Ingrid Klimke has withdrawn her partner Franziskus FRH from the FEI Dressage World Cup Final freestyle that takes place today in Omaha, Nebraska. She reported that the Hanoverian stallion (Fidertanz 2—Antara, Alabaster 29) took a misstep. “I am sad that we cannot compete in the freestyle tomorrow,” said Klimke. “The welfare of Franziskus is a priority to me. Considering the coming outdoor season, we have withdrawn him from the freestyle.” [Ingrid Withdraws from World Cup Freestyle]