Cora’s four-star win with James Alliston in the mare’s first event at the level, along with Tamie Smith’s victories with her veterans Mai Baum at Intermediate and Kynan in the three-star, were highlights of the 2024 Twin Rivers Fall International in Paso Robles, California. Also, Get Wild and Gabriella Ringer won the CCI2*-S after capturing the CCI2*-L at this year’s Twin Rivers Spring International. Lauren Burnell returned to FEI competition with a victory in the CCI1*-S aboard Freedom Hill after what she described as “a pretty intense hip surgery last October.” And, in the USEA’s Young Event Horse (YEH) qualifiers, Andrea Baxter and MBF Dig Deep won the 4-year-old division, and Amber Birtcil was one-two in the 5-year-old division with Zippity Doodah and Orpheus.
The Bert Wood Novice Stakes at the Woodside Summer Horse Trials brought out what the Novice level of eventing is all about—showcasing promising new horses in the sport, providing young riders with an opportunity to gain foundational experience, and celebrating the adult amateur riders that are an integral part of hosting successful events.
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.
The Bert Wood Novice Stakes will bring FEI-level prize money and a big-event atmosphere to eventing’s Novice level, as well as honor the extensive contributions that cross-country builder and designer Bert Wood has made on the sport, at the Woodside Summer Horse Trials from Aug. 9-11.
The Horse Park at Woodside created a five-star atmosphere for the inaugural Laughing Monk Modified Match that took place at the 2024 Woodside Spring Horse Trials. The goal of the Modified Match was to spotlight the Modified level that was introduced to competition at The Horse Park in 2023 and has made a significant impact on the progression of eventing’s rising stars since the level was introduced to the sport in 2017.
After the first competition at Modified was held at The Horse Park at Woodside in California in 2023, the level will be under an even bigger spotlight with the Modified Match that will be offered at the 2024 Woodside Spring Horse Trials that will take place from May 24-26.
Veterans and young riders shined at the Twin Rivers Spring International in Paso Robles, California, during the event from April 11-14. The weekend's competition featured the largest field for the international levels of eventing in the history of Twin Rivers with a total of 70 FEI level entries.
The 2024 Twin Rivers Winter Horse Trials in Paso Robles, California, showed how much there is to be excited about for the future of West Coast eventing.
Tommy Greengard said he was “a little excited, a little nervous” before competing in both his and his horse Joshuay MBF’s first four-star at the Twin Rivers Fall International in September. They finished third, and that experience set them up for what would then be their first four-star victory as one of the West’s top up-and-coming eventing pairs two weeks later in the Woodside Fall International.
Karma is developing into one of the fastest and most-reliable cross-country horses in the West. The 9-year-old bay Oldenburg mare and James Alliston won their third-straight blue ribbon together at either the four-star or Advanced level in the CCI4*-S at the Twin Rivers Fall International in Paso Robles, California, with the only double-clear cross-country round on Saturday.
Fresh off winning the first-ever international gold medal in eventing for Puerto Rico at the 2023 Central American and Caribbean Games in El Salvador, Lauren Billys Shady and Can Be Sweet returned to their home base of California to win the Intermediate level at the Woodside Summer Horse Trials.