United States Eventing Association

The Best of the West Return to Woodside for Third Annual International Horse Trials

The best of the west return to Woodside International Horse Trials, October 5-8, 2017, for the highly anticipated autumn competition at the pristine Horse Park at Woodside.

Forty-nine international competitors, including 2008 Individual silver medalist Gina Miles, will contest the CIC*, CIC2* and CIC3* divisions alongside the 300 competitors entered at the Beginner Novice through Advanced levels.

Presented by CWD, Devoucoux, Equine Insurance and Professional's Choice, Woodside International Horse Trials is a vital competition on the West Coast calendar as riders use these international horse trial (CIC) divisions as key qualifying and preparatory runs for their fall three-day events (CCI) later in the season. The CIC3* combinations in particular use Woodside to prepare for the CCI3* at Galway Downs International Three-Day Event in Temecula, Calif., Nov. 2-5. It is common to see Woodside winners go on to huge successes at their season-end three-day event.

The United States Eventing Association (USEA) has designated the CIC3* and Advanced divisions as qualifiers for their competitive Adequan USEA Gold Cup Series. Riders who achieve qualifying scores next weekend will be eligible to compete in the series finale, the Gold Cup Final, held annually at the USEA American Eventing Championships.

Ian Stark returns for the third year to design the cross-country tracks at the Horse Park at Woodside. Stark enjoyed a storied riding career, which includes four Olympic silver medals, before he began designing courses. He’s now left his mark on some of the world’s biggest events including Chatsworth, Bramham and the European Championships at Blair Castle in 2015.

“This is my third year and we’re doing tweaks to it rather than major changes,” Stark explained. “What I hope is that people that are heading for a CCI in the fall, this gives them a good enough question in a competition, but also encourages good jumping toward their fall three-day event.”

Woodside once again welcomes the USEA Young Event Horse (YEH) West Coast Championships. This competition showcases talented 4- and 5-year-old horses to a panel of judges who assess their ability for the top levels of the sport. YEH looks to identify the future stars of the eventing, and graduates of this program have been known to have successful careers representing the United States around the world. To learn more about USEA’s YEH program, click here.

Spectators are welcomed and encouraged! Eventing fans can get an unobstructed view of the cross-country course under the shade of a sprawling oak tree, or they can explore the course to get a front row seat on the action. For an admittance fee of $10 per car, spectators will receive parking and an event program.

The competition begins Thursday as young horses go head to head for the YEH West Coast title.

Horse Trial and CIC divisions get underway with dressage on Friday, where they will perform a predetermined set of movements for their first scores of the weekend. Later that evening, the international competitors will navigate Michael Roy Curtis’ show jumping track followed by a Welcome Reception by the Grand Prix Arena.

On Saturday, spectators can get a taste of the exciting cross-country phase as the upper levels tackle Ian Stark's courses. Meanwhile, Beginner Novice and Novice competitors will have their turn at the show jumping. The international competitors will celebrate their accomplishments at the Awards Ceremony and competitor's dinner at 6 p.m. On Sunday morning, the pressure is on for Advanced riders in a nail-biting show jumping finale.

Tickets are available for both the Welcome Reception and Competitor's Party, and can be purchased at this link. While spectators can view the entirety of the competition, reserved ringside seating is available for those who wish to purchase a patron’s pass. Click here to view all ticketing and patron information.

To learn more about The Event at Woodside, please visit, www.woodsideeventing.com.

To learn more about The Adequan USEA Gold Cup Series, please visit, www.useventing.com/competitions/goldcup. To learn more about the USEA Young Event Horse Series, please visit www.useventing.com/competitions/yeh.