Each year, every one of the 10 USEA Area programs hosts their own Championships where the best riders have the opportunity to be crowned the Area Champion at their level. Each Area maintains slightly different qualification requirements for their respective Championships and offers Championship classes through either Preliminary or Intermediate level. Those details can be found here. This year’s Area Championship season began with the Area III Championships at Chattahoochee Hills on July 8-9 and concluded with the Area II Championships at the Virginia Horse Trials and the Area V Championships at Holly Hill during the final weekend of October. Last month, we highlighted the winners of the Area Championships that took place in August and September, and as the 2017 competition season draws to a close, we’d like to take a moment to recognize the winners of the Area Championships that took place in October.
Area IV’s Championships took place at Heritage Park Horse Trials for Beginner Novice through Preliminary levels on October 6-8, as did the Area IX Championships for Beginner Novice through Preliminary levels at The Event at Skyline. Las Cruces Horse Trials hosted the Area X Championships for Beginner Novice through Preliminary on October 14-15. The Area VI Championships were hosted by Fresno County Horse Park for Beginner Novice through Intermediate on October 20-22. The USEA Area Championships wrapped up over the weekend of October 28-29 with the Beginner Novice through Intermediate Area II Championships at the Virginia Horse Trials and the Area V Training, Preliminary, and Intermediate Championships at Holly Hill Horse Trials.
Congratulations to these Area Championship winners!
Area II Championships – Virginia Horse Trials, October 26-29, 2017
Click here for Area II Championships complete results.
Area IV Championships – Heritage Park Horse Trials, October 6-8, 2017
Rebecca Hunt and Snowflake Lane, winner of the Area IV Adult Rider Low Score Award & the Novice Championship division at Heritage Park Horse Trials. Photo courtesy of the USEA Area IV Facebook page.
Click here for Area IV Championships complete results.
Area V Championships – Holly Hill Horse Trials, October 28-29, 2017
Click here for Area V Championships complete results.
Area VI Championships – Fresno County Horse Park Horse Trials, October 20-22, 2017
One of the many riders in the Area VI Championships taking their photo in front of the backdrop provided by Fresno County Horse Park. Photo courtesy of the Fresno County Horse Park Facebook page.
Area VI Intermediate Champions Hilary Niemann and Undercover's cross-country round. Video courtesy of Ride On Video.
Click here for Area VI Championships complete results.
Area IX Championships – The Event at Skyline, October 6-8, 2017
Click here for Area IX Championships complete results.
Area X Championships – Las Cruces Horse Trials, October 14-15, 2017
Karissa Oliver on FDF Recherche, winners of the Area X Training Championship at Las Cruces Horse Trials. Photo courtesy of the Las Cruces Horse Trials Facebook page.
Click here for Area X Championships complete results.
What’s a Hunter Pace? The Sherwood Forest Equestrian Center's Hunter Pace is a cross-country-style course around Sherwood Forest over various natural obstacles/terrain. The course ends with a final treat for riders to take in stunning views of Mt. Hood with a loop through the old Far Hill Farms field. The beginning of the course will first start with a warm-up loop around show jumping obstacles in the outdoor ring at Sherwood Forest and then riders will continue directly onto the course. Sign up as a solo rider, pair, or team.
Claire Allen remembers when she was 11 years old, having just made the switch from the hunter/jumper ring to three-day eventing. She told her new eventing trainer that her goal was to one day compete in the United States Equestrian Federation’s Eventing Young Rider Championships.
As he was finishing tacking up his horse in preparation to navigate the cross-country course at the 2024 Twin Rivers Summer Horse Trials, James Alliston expressed concern about navigating the 101 Freeway. That’s because as soon as he crossed the finish line aboard Intermediate level winner Addyson (Ampere x Nickerbocker) at 10:38 a.m. on Saturday—his fifth cross-country round of the morning with three at Preliminary and two at Intermediate—the West Coast-based five-star rider had to drive 185 miles on the 101 Freeway from Twin Rivers Ranch in Paso Robles, California, to San Francisco International Airport to catch a 4:35 p.m. flight to Frankfurt, Germany.
There is so much more to proper grooming than keeping your horse picture-perfect for the horse inspection. Good grooming practices are critical to proper horse management, no matter if you are planning for your next FEI appearance or your Starter level debut. To help you maximize your knowledge of grooming practices, we opened up the opportunity for USEA members to submit any questions they might have on our Instagram and Facebook stories. In this week's episode, Host Nicole Brown sits down with three of the highest-regarded grooms in this industry, Max Corcoran, Emma Ford, and Stephanie Simpson, and asks them all of your questions and more to help you perfect the art of grooming.