The United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation has awarded the Jacqueline B. Mars National Competition & Training Grant to Liz Halliday-Sharp, and her mount, Cooley Quicksilver (Womanizer x Kylemore Crystal), a 9-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding owned by The Monster Partnership.
As the recipient of the grant, Halliday-Sharp, who is an athlete on US Equestrian’s Eventing High Performance Pre-Elite Training List, will receive $10,000 to support her trip from Lexington, Kentucky, to Temecula, California, to compete in the CCI4*-L at the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event on October 28-31, 2020.
“It’s very, very exciting, and it makes a big difference to the owners as well—we’ve got to support the good owners in the sport as much as we can,” said Halliday-Sharp of receiving the grant. “We’re very grateful to the [USET] Foundation. It’s an expensive sport, and you don’t get a lot of prize money. [This] really makes it all possible."
“I think next year, we’ll start to think about five-star competition for [Cooley Quicksilver],” Halliday-Sharp continued. “I very much hope he’ll be considered for the Olympic Games, and that’s part of our reasoning for going to Galway."
Each year, the Jacqueline B. Mars Grant is awarded to eventing riders who have been identified and recommended by the USEF Eventing Selectors, with an impressive record and the potential to represent the United States in future international competition. Halliday-Sharp, who has not yet represented the U.S. at an Olympic Games or international championship, received this select distinction following a strong performance as part of the 2019 FEI Eventing Nations Cup Team at the Military Boekelo CCIO4*-L in Enschede, the Netherlands. According to Erik Duvander, US Equestrian’s Performance Director for Eventing, it will be important for Cooley Quicksilver and Halliday-Sharp to receive the opportunity to produce a competitive performance, as the pair trend toward joining the Elite list.
Thanks to the Jacqueline B. Mars Grant, Halliday-Sharp and Cooley Quicksilver can continue their training with the goal of representing the United States in future international competitions.
What’s a Hunter Pace? The Sherwood Forest Equestrian Center's Hunter Pace is a cross-country-style course around Sherwood Forest over various natural obstacles/terrain. The course ends with a final treat for riders to take in stunning views of Mt. Hood with a loop through the old Far Hill Farms field. The beginning of the course will first start with a warm-up loop around show jumping obstacles in the outdoor ring at Sherwood Forest and then riders will continue directly onto the course. Sign up as a solo rider, pair, or team.
Claire Allen remembers when she was 11 years old, having just made the switch from the hunter/jumper ring to three-day eventing. She told her new eventing trainer that her goal was to one day compete in the United States Equestrian Federation’s Eventing Young Rider Championships.
As he was finishing tacking up his horse in preparation to navigate the cross-country course at the 2024 Twin Rivers Summer Horse Trials, James Alliston expressed concern about navigating the 101 Freeway. That’s because as soon as he crossed the finish line aboard Intermediate level winner Addyson (Ampere x Nickerbocker) at 10:38 a.m. on Saturday—his fifth cross-country round of the morning with three at Preliminary and two at Intermediate—the West Coast-based five-star rider had to drive 185 miles on the 101 Freeway from Twin Rivers Ranch in Paso Robles, California, to San Francisco International Airport to catch a 4:35 p.m. flight to Frankfurt, Germany.
There is so much more to proper grooming than keeping your horse picture-perfect for the horse inspection. Good grooming practices are critical to proper horse management, no matter if you are planning for your next FEI appearance or your Starter level debut. To help you maximize your knowledge of grooming practices, we opened up the opportunity for USEA members to submit any questions they might have on our Instagram and Facebook stories. In this week's episode, Host Nicole Brown sits down with three of the highest-regarded grooms in this industry, Max Corcoran, Emma Ford, and Stephanie Simpson, and asks them all of your questions and more to help you perfect the art of grooming.