United States Eventing Association

Are you heading to the AEC this year with a special horse or a cool story? Email Lindsay at [email protected] for a chance to be featured.

My daughter Kimber Hanks is 12 years old—the same age as her Pony of the Americas, RQT Equity In Gold (RY Diamond Equity x Cels Miners Taffy), or "Honey." They were born the same year, growing up together on our cattle farm in West Tennessee. In the case of Kimber and a spicy pony named Honey, the story begins even before my daughter was old enough to say the word “canter.”

Kimber was riding before she could walk—or at least it feels that way when you grow up on a cattle farm. Horses aren’t a hobby, they’re part of the landscape, part of the rhythm of the day, part of the family.

An eventer myself, I put the foundation on Honey, but Kimber is the one who brought her up the levels. From the very beginning, this partnership has belonged to my girl.

In 2016, my mother Kim Willis spotted a 2-year-old filly at the Tennessee POA sale and trusted her gut. She brought the little mare home to Hurricane Creek Farms in Drummonds, Tennessee.

Honey is, in the most loving way possible, a classic naughty pony. She will find the exact limit of your patience, balance, and faith in the process. When Kimber set her goal in the summer of 2025 to qualify for the 2026 USEA American Eventing Championships, Honey decided that goal was going to require some earning.

The path to the AEC was never a straight line.

At the Middle Tennessee Pony Club Horse Trials—just their second-ever Starter event—dressage was rocky, but they came out fighting. Clean show jumping. Clean cross-country. Whatever the score said, they finished the day as a team that had figured something out.

And they kept going.

By November 2025 at the Texas Rose Horse Trials, something had changed. Kimber and Honey laid down a beautiful dressage test, the kind that makes a mom smile. A clear show jumping round pushed them to second place. Then, in true Honey fashion, the little mare pulled off a run-out on one of the smallest fences on course. Just like that, the placing slipped away.

Tears poured down my daughter’s face. She turned to me and asked the most heartbreaking question a young rider can ask:

“Why did she do that, Mom?”

Sometimes ponies are ponies. Sometimes the sport is tough, and the fences don’t care how hard you’ve worked. But I knew, the way moms always know, that this moment wasn’t the end of something, it was the making of something. The riders who come back from the tears are the ones who go to the AEC.

Kimber came back, and she came back swinging.

At Spring Bay Horse Trials in 2026, they emerged from the off-season like they had something to prove. Tied for first after dressage. A clean show jumping round, and they were still right at the top. Then, another run-out on cross-country.

Two steps forward, one heartbreaking step back. But here’s what the scorecards don’t show: a girl who got back on every single time. A pony who is complicated and maddening but worth every single tear. They are a team. They kept trusting the process even when the process wasn’t pretty.

So, they pointed at May-Daze Horse Trials with one goal: steady and clean. Against tough competition they sat tied for fifth after dressage—not flashy, but solid. Clean show jumping moved them up to a tie for fourth. Time penalties on cross-country, but they crossed the finish line clean. They ended up sixth out of 15.

At a USEA Interscholastic Eventing League competition, Kimber finished fourth out of 16 competitors in a field of professionals and adults. What she didn’t know was that USEA’s upgrade placing rule translated her finish to second in the standings, earning her a final qualifying round for the AEC. She went home not knowing she’d qualified.

And that’s when Honey decided to pop the question.

Equestrian photographer Laura Ayres was already coming to Hurricane Creek Farms for family pictures when I had an idea: why not let the pony do the asking?

The setup was last-minute. The execution was perfect. Honey, that spotted, opinionated, occasionally infuriating, completely beloved pony, officially asked Kimber to go to the AEC with her.

Kimber was stunned. Then overwhelmed. Then absolutely, completely over the moon. Of course she said yes.

What makes this story even sweeter is that three generations of eventers and Pony Club members share the same dream and are headed to AEC. This August, Kimber and Honey head to the Kentucky Horse Park for the USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds. My mother Kim will be watching. I will be the groom. My son Willis and my husband will be cheering them on.

About the USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC)

The USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC) presented by Nutrena Feeds is the pinnacle of the sport at the national levels. Held annually, the best junior, adult amateur, and professional competitors gather to vie for national championship titles at every level from Starter to Advanced. This ultimate test of horse and rider draws hundreds of combinations from around the country to compete for fabulous prizes, a piece of the substantial prize money, and the chance to be named the National Champion at their respective levels. In fact, the 2021 AEC garnered over 1,000 entries and now stands as the largest eventing competition in North American history. The 2026 USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds will be held on Aug. 25-30 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. Click here to learn more about the USEA American Eventing Championships.

The USEA would like to thank Presenting Sponsor: Nutrena Feeds; Advanced Final Title Sponsor: Adequan; Platinum Level Sponsors: Bates Saddles, Marshall+Sterling Equine Insurance; Gold Level Sponsors: ARMA, Gallaghers Water, PulseVet, Schneiders Saddlery, SmartPak, Standlee; Silver Level Sponsors: Auburn Labs, Kerrits, The Jockey Club Thoroughbred Incentive Program, Rood & Riddle; Bronze Level Sponsors: 70°, Antech Diagnostics, Athletux, The Chronicle of the Horse, Devoucoux, D.G. Stackhouse & Ellis, Dubarry of Ireland, Equestrian Team Apparel, Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, John Deere, Retired Racehorse Project, Ride EquiSafe, Santa Cruz Animal Health; Contributing Level Sponsors: AnimaSol, CrossCountry App, Foxhollow Farm, Georgetown/Scott County Tourism, Kentucky Equine Research, Kentucky Horse Park Foundation, Lexmark, LV Harkness, Only Fools and Horses, #WeRideTogether, YETI; and Prize Level Sponsors: ARRO Helmets, The Dad Den, Dandy Products, Equiluxe Tack, Equine IMED, Fair Hill Saddlery, FLAIR Equine Nasal Strips, I Love My Horse Boutique, The Infused Equestrian, Love Equestrian, Majyk Equipe, Mare Modern Goods, Natalie Hummel Coaching, Neighborly Tack, Outlaw Nutrition, Parkmore Supplements, Peak Performance Equine Spa, Poseidon Animal Health, Rachel Dory Fine Art, Right Path Equestrian, Saddle Bird Boutique, Sidelines Magazine, Strides For Equality Equestrians, STRIDER, Stylish in the Saddle, VTO Saddlery, and XLR8 Equine.

About the $60,000 Adequan USEA Advanced Final

The $60,000 Adequan® USEA Advanced Final will take place at the 2026 USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky on Aug. 26-28. Thanks to Adequan’s amazing support, the Adequan® USEA Advanced Final will bring together the country’s top riders to vie for $60,000 in prize money and the title of Adequan® Champion. To qualify for the $60,000 Adequan® USEA Advanced Final at the AEC in 2026, competitors will need to complete a minimum of two events without cross-country jump penalties at any USEA recognized Advanced horse trials, CCI4*-S, CCI4*-L , CCI5*-L, World Championships, or Olympic Games. Click here to learn more about the $60,000 Adequan® USEA Advanced Final.

About the Adams Horse Supply USEA Adult Team Championships

The Adams Horse Supply USEA Adult Team Championships, which debuted in 2014, is the capstone event for the USEA Area Adult Team Challenges, providing adults the chance to compete as a team and represent their Area of the country in a friendly and fun environment. Historically, adult riders had three regional Team Challenges in which to compete with fellow adults in a team environment, with the locations changing each year. In 2013, the USEA Adult Rider Coordinators voted to move to support Adult Team Challenges taking place in all 10 Areas across the country, with the finale being the ATC at the USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds. Each Area can send up to nine teams and 39 riders for the BN, N, T, and M levels, plus an additional eight members if they are at the Starter level only. Adult Riders know how to have a good time, and there is no doubt that they bring an increased level of excitement and camaraderie to the AEC! Click here to learn more about the USEA Adult Team Championships.

The USEA would like to thank ATC Title Sponsor, Adams Horse Supply, and contributing sponsors ARMA, Bates Saddles, The Chronicle of the Horse, FarmVet, FLAIR Equine Nasal Strips, Gallagher’s Water, Kerrits, Marshall+Sterling, Nutrena Feeds, PulseVet, Schneiders Saddlery, Sidelines Magazine, SmartPak, and Santa Cruz Animal Health for sponsoring the Adult Team Championships.