United States Eventing Association

The 2023 Woodside Spring H.T. served as a celebration of the successes of the West Coast eventers that competed in the Kentucky Three-Day Event, as well as what’s in store for the future of the sport in California. On the eve of competition on Thursday, organizers at the Woodside Horse Trials held a party in honor of both Tamie Smith’s historic win in the Kentucky five-star and the team of cross country builders led by Bert Wood that unveiled new courses at The Horse Park. Derek di Grazia designed the new Advanced and Intermediate tracks, with Wood designing the new tracks for Preliminary through Starter.

The final tally for the seventh annual USEA Intercollegiate Championships came down to the wire with the show jumping phase proving influential. After the very last fence was cleared, it was the small, but mighty contingent from the University of South Carolina - Aiken that came out on the top of the podium.

Chants of “War Eagle” were heard from end to end of the White Oak cross-country course as the overnight leaders and defending champions from Auburn University tore between the red and white flags Saturday to remain atop the leaderboard of the 2023 Intercollegiate Eventing Championship at the Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC).

The last three years have been a time of great change throughout the country for homes, businesses and industries. Rising costs of living, shrinking of assistance and changes in demographics have affected so much of our world, and that includes the equine industry. However, not all of the changes are easy to identify. This is why the American Horse Council (AHC), together with the U.S. Equestrian Federation, has kicked off what could be one of the biggest studies in more than 50 years with the 2023 National Economic Impact Study (EIS) for the equine industry.

Are you following along with the action from home this weekend? Or maybe you're competing at an event and need information fast. Either way, we’ve got you covered! Check out the USEA’s Weekend Quick Links for links to information including the prize list, ride times, live scores, and more for all the events running this weekend.

The U.S. Eventing Association (USEA) Board of Governors (BOG) recently approved a change to the USEA Eventing Coaches Program (ECP) levels.

In 2021, the ECP, then known as the Instructors Certification Program, changed levels to align with FEI competition levels. Since then, the ECP Committee has learned that having certification levels that included more than one competition level was making it difficult for coaches to achieve eligibility to obtain certification at Level I and II due to the requirement that a coach have at least three students competing at the top level of certification.

The United States Eventing Association’s (USEA) Area IV is comprised of the Heartland states of Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. Area IV Chair Jill Wagenknecht says that eventing in the Area makes up the heart of what the sport of eventing represents: community, dedication, as well as having fun. Area IV will host 16 USEA-recognized events (including one USEA-recognized combined test) in 2023 during a concentrated season that begins with the Catalpa Corner May Madness Horse Trials in Iowa City, Iowa, on May 6 and concludes with the Windermere Run H.T in Kansas City, Missouri, on October 20-22.

USEA podcast host Nicole Brown calls this "one of my favorite shows of the entire season" because "it's the time of year that so many of us wish we could go back to college days." That's right, it's the week of the Intercollegiate Eventing Championship! The panel of Leslie Threlkeld (co-chair of the Intercollegiate Committee), Stephanie James Counts (a new committee member and coach for the Auburn University team), and Hannah Warner (president of the University of Kentucky team) get you ready for the big event taking place at the Tryon International Equestrian Center on May 26-28.

Olympic medalist and steeplechase jockey Kevin Freeman said he had the best of both worlds he occupied simultaneously in the 1960s and ‘70s, explaining that his heart belonged at once to both eventing and jump racing.

“But I loved steeplechase best of all.”

Freeman said that, at surface level, the two bear little resemblance. But dig a little deeper, and there’s a lot the same, with plenty of cross-pollination between the two.

Riders from around the U.S. and abroad have become familiar with The Event at Rebecca Farm as one of the top competition venues in the world. From the stunning scenery of Kalispell, Montana, to the immaculately prepared footing and courses, to the genuine hospitality, The Event at Rebecca Farm is known for giving riders their most positive experiences in the sport.