Can you believe that the AECs are less than 30 days away?! I don’t know about you but to me it feels like 2013 has flown by abnormally quickly. According to the US Eventing website, the USEA is finalizing preparations for the big event which will be hosted at the Texas Rose Horse Park for the first time. This year $90,000 in prize money will be distributed among winners at all levels, along with the hundreds of prizes that have been collected from event sponsors. In addition to the competition there are a lot of non-riding activities planned, including the big Saturday night competitors’ party (two words: beer truck). Over the last year Texas Rose has added 48 new cross country fences (that total includes a newly constructed Advanced course) and they are prepared a large turnout. Already 350 entries have been submitted from riders coming all the way from states like Maine and Washington. Typing all this makes me depressed that I can’t go. Click for more info, and remember to get your entries in ASAP. Go (championship) Eventing. [US Eventing]
Weekend Preview:
KY Classique H.T. [Ride Times] [Website]
Town Hill Farm Horse Trials [Website]
Steepleview Labor Day Horse Trials [Website]
Loudoun Hunt Pony Club Fall H.T. [Entry Status/Times] [Website]
Corona Del Sol H.T. [Entry Status/Times]
Northern Colorado H.T. [Website]
Chattahoochee Hills H.T. [Entry Status] [Website]
Stanton Farms H.T. [Entry Status/Ride Times] [Website]
Silverwood Farm Fall H.T. [Entry Status] [Website]
Last weekend Lucinda Fredericks won the CIC3* at Blair International Horse Trials in Scotland. She rode her Olympic partner Flying Finish and lead the division start to finish, as they were the only pair to earn a dressage score in the thirties (38.6, to be exact). They added only 5.2 time faults to secure the win over Lucy Wiegersma and Mr Chunky. Nicola Wilson was third aboard Opposition Buzz, and William Fox-Pitt finished fourth on his newish mount (and Doug Payne’s former 4* partner) Running Order. [Horse and Country]
Blenheim is shaping up to be quite a competition this year. The Fidelity Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials will run from September 12 to 15, and so far there are more than 150 top riders representing 16 nations entered between the two main events. These are the feature Blenheim CCI3* event and the increasingly competitive Blenheim 8/9 year old horse championship, a CIC3*. Pippa Funnell is vying for her fifth Blenheim win, and William Fox-Pitt will ride either Running Order (who finished 4th in the CIC3* at Blair last weekend, as mentioned above) or Before Time. [Horsetalk]
This week on Ask the Vet: understanding the importance of carb consistency. Dr. Lydia Gray explains why controlling the sugars and starches in your horse’s diet is important, particularly for horses with certain medical conditions like gastric ulcers and equine metabolic syndrome. Click to read her full answer. [SmartPak Blog]
A new study undertaken by University of Guelph researchers finds that equine ear position while jumping may be an indicator of the jump’s outcome. The study found that horses that kept their ears forward while in the air cleared the obstacle cleanly more often than those who had their ears pointed backwards or turned towards the rider. Ear position on approach to the jump did not appear to indicate any clear pattern. [Horsetalk]
While Miley Cyrus has devoted herself to somewhat scandalous extracurriculars, her sisters have picked something a little closer to all of our hearts: riding. Wylie got the scoop from a Teen Vogue interview with thirteen-year-old Noah Cyrus, who dreams of riding in the Olympics one day. She credits her love of horses to her older sister, Brandi, who competes in hunter jumpers as an adult amateur. [Horse Nation]
Save the date: the 2014 International Eventing Forum will take place at Hartpury on February 3. This year the forum will join forces with British Eventing in order to create “an even deeper learning experience.” The IEF’s demonstrations will be combined with a selection of coaching seminars, under the banner “Raise the Game.” [British Eventing]
Best of Blogs: Tamra Smith discusses eventing in the Northwest.
Check out video highlights from Richland Park, courtesy of the USEA.
