United States Eventing Association

Take a Trip Down Memory Lane: 2019 in Review

We’ve reached the end of another year – the 60^th year that the USEA has been in existence. The USEA was hard at work this year bringing you all sorts of educational content and important news and we wanted to take a moment to look back on the more than 850 articles published by the Association. The USEA covered topics ranging from horse health, rider fitness, and young horse training to event coverage from the biggest events in the country. Whether you’re a competitor, owner, breeder, volunteer, organizer, official, or supporter of the sport of eventing, the USEA has something for everyone!

As we enter a new decade let’s take a look back at some of the articles the USEA published in 2019.

The USEA continued to feature USEA recognized events in the USEA Events A-Z series. In 2017 we covered all events from A to E and 2018 featured articles about all the events from F to M. 2019 started with M and continued through S. Did you miss any? Be sure to check them out here: Majestic Oaks, MCTA, Midsouth, MeadowCreek Park, Middleburg, Morven Park, Marlborough, May Daze at the Park, New Jersey Region’s, Otter Creek Farm, Olney Farm, Ocala Jockey Club, Ocala, Pine Hill, Plantation Field, Penny Oaks, Powder Basin, Paradise Farm, Poplar Place, Pine Top, Queeny Park, Rocking Horse Stables, River Glen, The Event at Rebecca Farm, Red Hills International, Round Top, Radnor Hunt, Spokane Sport Horse Farm, The Event at Skyline, Surefire, Seneca Valley Pony Club, Stone Gate Farm, Stable View, Sporting Days, Sundance Farm, Shepherd Ranch, Spring Bay, St. Johns, Southern Pines, Silverwood Farm, and Twin Rivers.

Each month, the USEA honored one special horse with the USEA Horse of the Month article series. Meet the 2019 Horses of the Month: Eluca, Danito, Foxwood High, Windfall II, Things to Ponder, Clifton Peekachu, High Times, Valley Creek Carlin LeBeau, Royal Casino, Excel Star Time to Shine, and Madoc Mari.

The Through the Lens series continued to provide readers with a unique look at the essence of many of the events across the country. Take a look back through the USEA’s lens at some of the events we covered in 2019: Carolina International, Twin Rivers CCI and Horse Trials, Kentucky Three-Day Event, Jersey Fresh International, Intercollegiate Championships, Golden Spike Horse Trials, Coconino Horse Trials, The Event at Rebecca Farm, Plantation Field, Galway Downs International, and Ocala Jockey Club International.

We continued to break down the USEF Rules For Eventing for you – one rule at a time – and even included rule updates from the FEI in our Rule Refresher series: USEF Updates Rulebook with Extraordinary Rule Change, Qualifications for Horse Trials, FEI Rule Changes for 2019, Declaring Amateur Status, Rules for Eventing Tests, Introduction to Horse Trials, The Dressage Test, Entries, Dressage Scoring, The Cross-Country Test, Cross-Country Obstacles, Cross-Country Scoring, and The Jumping Test.

Volunteers are the heart of the sport, and we were so excited to feature a volunteer of the month each month of the year: Suzanne Adams, Joan Mayfield, Margaret Potorski, Cindi Carrell and Rick Resto, Volunteers of #LRK3DE, Jessie Quinlan, Melissa Rundt, Todd Killalea, Paige Ervin, Angie Leihy, John Bandrofchak, and Leah Fleming.

So many off-the-track Thoroughbreds find their second careers as eventers and with their power, strength, speed, and heart, they are a popular choice for riders looking for their next partner. Last year we partnered with Athletux Equine to critique these OTTBs on their suitability for second careers in eventing and continued the series this year: Anderboch Flier, Jax, Valhalla, Mr. Popps, Hugo Boss, Fleek, Noontime Badge, Brush Dance, Starlite Event, Point Nemo, Pedregal, and Bestavailable.

The USEA wouldn’t exist without you, our members, and we love sharing your stories! We highlighted several of our members and their stories this year in our Now on Course series: Jenny Lackey and Dallo de la Galerna, An Eventful Life, Like Mother, Like Son, Chasing Goals, A Dream Come True, A Roller Coaster of a Year, Taylor McFall and High Times, Things I Would Tell My 14-Year-Old Self, Danielle Poulsen Strikes Out on Her Own, A Fjord Helps Pryce Chrisman Go for the Blue, Guymon Wins P/T with a 14.1 Hand Quarter Horse Friesian Cross, Lisa Sires Has Found Big Things in Small Packages, In My Feelings Does Double Duty, From Birth to the Bluegrass State, Every Ride is Part of a Journey, and Abby’s Road – That Was Then, This is Now, and the Road to AEC series: A Surprise, A New Partner with a Familiar Face, Sight Unseen, An Opportunity, Destined for Eventing, Making Up for it With Heart, When the Stars Align, From a Parent’s Perspective, When One Door Closes Another Opens, Getting to Know Each Other, Under Pressure, From the Track to the Cross-Country Course, Coming Back Stronger, My Safe Haven, and A Surprising Opportunity.

Coach Daniel Stewart shared a new tip every month to help riders take charge of the mental side of the sport and bring their A-game. Take some time to re-read them as you prepare for the 2020 season: GPS for Your New Year’s Resolution, Distracting Distractions, Verbal Erasers, Conscious and Competent, Happy, Not Crappy, Memory Motivation, Admit, Accept, and Advance, Mirror Mirror, The Mess in Message, Get To, Want To, Like To, Love To . . . but not Have To, Having Faith in Failure, and Question Suggestion.

Clinics are a great way for riders to gain new perspective into their riding, and we profiled several different clinicians this year in partnership with Event Clinics: Kim Severson, Dom and Jimmie Schramm, Maya Black, Lainey Ashker, Boyd Martin, Emma Ford, Tik Maynard, Max Corcoran, Landsafe Equestrian, Sinead Halpin, and Joseph Murphy.

Ever wonder what the pros see when they're out walking cross-country? In the Ride Between the Flags series, riders walk us through their approach to tackling different cross-country questions. Take a look at how these riders would approach different cross-country combinations: Alexa Perkiel, Marc Grandia, Madison Temkin, Lindsay Wagner, Barb Crabo, Deborah Rosen, Phillip Dutton, and Bec Braitling.

We interviewed veterinarians on a variety of topics this year, take a look: What to Expect in the Equine Emergency Room, The Relationship Between Conformation and Lameness, Part One, The Relationship Between Conformation and Lameness, Part Two, The Anatomy of a Joint, Systemic Joint Products: Straight to the Blood Supply, The Scoop on Oral Joint Supplements, and Straight From the Horse’s Mouth: Equine Dentistry Basics.

The USEA Horse Heroes series celebrates equine athletes who have contributed to the sport again and again, competing with multiple riders at the upper levels of the sport. Read more about the horse heroes we celebrated this year: Copycat Chloe, Mr. Medicott, and Guinness X.

Everyone loves to pick up tips, and so we started the Top 10 Tips article series to share our best tips with you! Check out top 10 tips for the following topics: Make a Horse Shine with Sam Burton, Cooling Down with Dr. Jennifer Miller, Successful Jump Chute with Martin Douzant, Blanketing with Daniel and Kaitlin Clasing, Body Clipping with Maddie Hogan, and Fighting the Winter Blues with Carol Kozlowski.

We all can agree that horse fitness is paramount in eventing, but what about rider fitness? We talked with riders and other fitness professionals about how they stay fit in and out of the saddle: Making Time for Fitness Outside the Saddle with Sinead Halpin, The Importance of Balance and Strength with Sharon White, How Nia Changed the Game for Kathy Davidson, The Power of Strength Training with Shelley Thomas, and CrossFit for Better Riding with Michael Pollard.

If you like to watch videos, be sure to check out some of the different educational videos the USEA published this year: The Science of Conditioning and Recovery with Max Corcoran, Warm-Up Exercises for Jumping with Phillip Dutton, Cross-Country Designs for the Future, Counter Canter for Better Balance with Kristin Bachman, The History of Eventing with Jim Wofford, Rideability Exercises with Boyd Martin, and How to Evaluate Hay Quality with Dr. Amy Burk.

The USEA released bi-monthly podcast episodes all year, covering a range of topics from how to ride your best dressage test and tips for a successful stadium round to preparing your horse for the winter months. Click here to listen to all the USEA Podcast episodes.

If you were a USEA member this year, you received six issues of Eventing USA which featured coverage of the top events of the year, educational articles, and profiles as well as regular columns such as Horse Health, Year in the Life, Grid Pro Quo, Amateur Zone, Committee Corner, and Winner’s Circle. Members can access all back issues of Eventing USA through Online Services.

Our membership is what keeps the USEA alive and we always welcome feedback from our members. Have an idea for an article for the USEA website or Eventing USA magazine? Want to contribute an article of your own? Email Jessica Duffy at [email protected] to share your ideas and stories!