The USEA is sad to share the news that Daniel Starck passed away on December 13, 2020 at the age of 69 due to a rare form of liver cancer (Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma).
Dan had been a cross-country course builder since 1985, when he helped build the courses at the Kentucky Three-Day Event. Since then, he built courses all over the East and Midwest, including North Georgia, Foxhall, Virginia Horse Center, Poplar Place, Chattahoochee Hills, Maui Jim, Wayne, and the 2007-2010 USEA American Eventing Championships.
Dan was the co-chair of the USEA Designers and Builders Committee. He was the 2005 recipient of the USEA’s “Posthole Digger” award and was the author of the Frangible Pin Handbook. Dan was very generous with his time and held course building seminars at the AEC as well as donating fences to the event site.
Originally from Aurora, Illinois, Dan settled in Carbondale, Illinois where he attended Southern Illinois University in the early 1970s. He was also known for his fine wood craftsmanship, stained glass, historic restoration, and home building/renovations.
Dan is survived by his fiancé Jan Zwak, daughter Ellie Burkey, granddaughters Zeppelynn Burkey and Josselynn Burkey, and step-daughters and step-granddaughters Alyss, Camilla, Sophia, and Kiera Zwak.
The USEA sends sincere condolences to Dan's family, friends, and connections.
Until this past May, qualifying for the USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds let alone actually making plans to compete, seemed like a far-off dream. Going into this show season the AEC was a goal I had set in the back of my mind but maybe only said out loud a few times.
The Millbrook Horse Trials kicked off on July 25 with lower level dressage at Riga Meadow Equestrian Center at Coole Park in Millbrook, New York. There are more than 400 total entries competing at Millbrook, from Beginner Novice to Advanced level. Today the upper level horses cantered down the centerline, while the lower levels headed out on cross-country.
The United States Eventing Association, Inc. (USEA) is thrilled to announce Adams Horse Supply as the new title sponsor of the USEA Adult Team Championships (ATC) at the American Eventing Championships (AEC). The ATC will now be titled “The Adams Horse Supply USEA Adult Team Championships at the AEC.”
The world’s best eventing horses and riders will be first out of the starting blocks when the equestrian action gets underway at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Versailles, France, tomorrow morning with the opening dressage test.