United States Eventing Association

Request for Expressions of Interest: USEA American Eventing Championships Host Sites

The USEA is accepting expressions of interest from potential host sites of the USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC) for three years, beginning in 2019.

Host site(s) should; be attractive and presentable venues, have consistently good footing, have the ability to promote to and accommodate large numbers of spectators and a media plan with demonstrated ability to successfully work with local media. The USEA strives to have the AEC serve as the pinnacle of the sport in America for riders of all skill levels.

Carolina Horse Park hosted the AEC from 2004-2006. USEA Photo.

The AEC, which is conducted over five days historically in the month of September, may be held anywhere in the United States. The AEC currently attracts over 650 horse and rider pairs and several thousand spectators annually. The championships cover six levels of competition from Beginner Novice to Advanced. The USEA intends to add a Modified division once qualifying events are active nationwide, and is also considering the addition of a CIC3* division to serve as the final for the newly rebranded USEF/USEA Gold Cup Signature Series. Under the USEA’s current AEC business model, the USEA licenses the rights to run the AEC to a host site/organizer and retains certain rights of control over the event.

Lamplight Equestrian Center was the site of the 2007-2009 AEC. USEA Photo.

Only organizers with an established relationship with a facility and proof of support for the expression of interest from the host site owners/operators, or the owner(s) and/or operator(s) of a prospective host site may nominate said venue for consideration. Expressions of interest should be submitted in the form of a letter and consist of no more than 800 words.

From 2010-2012 Chattahoochee Hills hosted the AEC. USEA/Hannah Bennett Photo.

All expressions of interest should also include the following:

1. address of proposed site(s),
2. a list of site features relevant to eventing competitions including but not limited to;
   1. the permanent and/or temporary stall capacity,
   2. the number of arenas (including dimensions and footing type),
   3. existing infrastructure and acreage available for cross-country,
   4. any other features of note, and
   5. the ability to run dressage, cross-country, and show jumping simultaneously without negatively impacting any of the phases,
3. contact information for the person or entity submitting the expression of interest,
4. proposed business/management model(s), and
5. indication of whether running the AEC at the site on the week preceding the Labor Day holiday is feasible (or) proposed alternative dates.

The possibility exists for the contract to extend beyond three years or held at multiple sites, depending on the venue and contractual terms required by the host site(s). All expressions should be submitted by August 10, 2017.

The AEC took place at Texas Rose Horse Park 2013-2015. USEA/Leslie Mintz Photo.

The AEC have previously been allocated to the following locations:

2004 – 2006 Raeford, N.C. (Carolina Horse Park)
2007 – 2009 Wayne, Ill. (Lamplight Equestrian Center)
2010 – 2012 Fairburn, Ga. (Chattahoochee Hills – Bouckaert Farm)
2013 – 2015 Tyler, Texas (Texas Rose Horse Park)
2016-2017 Mill Spring, N.C. (Tryon International Equestrian Center)
2018 Parker, Colo. (The Colorado Horse Park)

Please direct inquiries and expressions to the following contact:

Rob Burk, Chief Executive Officer
Phone: (703) 779-0440
Fax: (703) 779-0550
[email protected]