United States Eventing Association

In April of 2002, a Thoroughbred filly by Frisk Me Now and out of Teetawk, bred by Jim Plemmons, was born in Kentucky and given the Jockey Club registered name Cupid’s Tart. Cupid’s Tart never raced, however, and when she was 3 years old, the breeding farm where she’d been living gave her to Irish equestrian Alec Kennedy as a sport horse prospect.

Bub and Janet Dillon used to race sailboats, and when their daughter, Olivia, was old enough to tag along, she would accompany her parents on sailboat races. For Olivia’s birthday one year, Bub and Janet rented out the “Pony Pavilion” where Olivia met an old pony named Lightning.

It’s not every day that you see siblings competing against each other in any sport, but twins Jack and Sam Curtis have been doing just that in eventing since they were both about 12 years old. Horses run in their blood as their mother grew up riding, and she wanted her sons to learn as well.

“Exercise out of the saddle is very important because our bodies can get used to doing the same simple things in the tack,” explained five-star eventer Lisa Barry. “Horses and our sport are unpredictable, so the more fit and strong you can be out of the saddle the better off you’ll be to perform at your best when things are going well, not to mention when they’re not.”

The USEA is saddened to share the news of the passing of Northern Spy (All Fair x Lavender Fair VII), Heidi White’s English Thoroughbred gelding, at the age of 27. Together, White and “Farley” competed successfully at the highest levels of the sport for many years and represented the United States on the world stage.

The USEA is saddened to share the news that Arthur (Brandenburg’s Windstar x Kelly), the Arthur Syndicate’s Irish Sport Horse gelding, passed away suddenly at the age of 21. Well-known as a dressage powerhouse and talented jumper, Arthur, with his rider Allison Springer, competed successfully at the highest levels of the sport for 10 years.

“This individual shows good refinement,” said Chris Ryan as he began his assessment of this 3-year-old Hanoverian/Arabian cross. “You can see obvious quality at first glance. The horse’s near fore should ideally be placed further forward to show the horse to best advantage. The way she stands here puts her on the forehand.”

This past weekend, the footing of the new arenas at the Fair Hill Special Event Zone saw its very first hoofprints as competitors in the CCI3*-S at Fair Hill International also participated in the Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill Test Event. The new Fair Hill Special Event Zone, which has been specially designed with the Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill in mind, consists of three brand-new arenas on the infield of the recently upgraded iconic turf track and a new cross-country course designed by Ian Stark.

If your farm has the space to set up a cross-country schooling course, it can be to your advantage to have cross-country jumps available for schooling purposes. Safety should be the number one priority when designing and building cross-country jumps, and an expert should be consulted whenever possible.

The Whidbey Island Horse Trials take place in Oak Harbor, Washington (Area VII) in early July of each year and offer Beginner Novice through Advanced/Intermediate horse trials. The Whidbey Island Horse Trials lost their venue in 2019 but are working on finalizing a new venue for 2021.