The U.S. Team’s top performer of the day was Alise Oken (Charlotte, NC) & Hi Hopes Farm’s Kaid Du Ry. They offered one of the strongest showings of the day and jumped two clear efforts over both rounds of competition. Oken & Kaid Du Ry were one of only two pairs to produce double clear rounds Saturday.

Annie Cook & Signe Ostby’s Banba and Lydia Ulrich & Beth Congel and Up The Creek Farm’s Santos Utopia both improved from round to round. Cook (Woodside, CA) had 12 faults in the first round and 8 in the second. Ulrich (Rochester, NY) improved on 8 faults in round one to score a 4 fault total in round two.

Jennifer Goddard (Fort Solanga, NY) & Stateside Farm’s Unique rounded out the U.S. effort Saturday and will have gained valuable experience jumping on the  2012 Show Jumping European Young and Junior Rider Tour. Thus far she has won two classes in Bonheiden with Stateside Farm’s Ungaro de la Hot Couture and finished third in another with Unique.

For Young Rider and Junior results from Thursday and Friday click here.

The top three scores from each round were counted and the U.S. team, led by Chef d’Equipe Anne Kursinski , finished with a very solid 32 total faults. That score placed them in a tie with the Young Rider team from Belgium.

The team from Germany won the class with 13 faults. It was a narrow victory over a French team that finished with 16. The team from Sweden finished third with 20.

Sydney Shulman Wins Again

Junior rider Sydney Shulman made Saturday her third victorious day in a row. After wins with Maria Werner’s Zimza La Bim on Thursday and Friday Shulman (Greenwich, CT) carried her momentum into the weekend and captured first place in the Junior 1.20m Speed class sponsored by Peugeot. Read about her wins earlier in the week here.

For competition information about the CSIOYJ Bonheiden visit;

http://www.jumping-bonheiden.be/

The 2012 U.S. Show Jumping Young Rider Tour is made possible through funding by the USET Foundation.

To learn more about the 2012 Show Jumping European Young and Junior Rider Tour visit;

http://usef.org/_IFrames/breedsdisciplines/discipline/alljumping/sjEurope.aspx

To follow the 2012 U.S. Jumping Team visit;

http://www.usefnetwork.com/featured/2012Jumping/

CSIOYJ Bonheiden Nations Cup Results

1st GER – 13

2nd FRA – 16

3rd SWE – 20

T 4th USA and BEL – 32

6th GBR – 36

7th ITA

8th CAN

9th DEN

The vision of the United States Equestrian Federation® is to provide leadership

for equestrian sport in the United States of America by promoting the pursuit

of excellence from the grassroots to the Olympic Games, based on a

foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare

of its human and equine athletes. 

Five up-and-coming Young Riders and one Junior Rider from the U.S. will compete alongside some of the best rising talent in Europe at three prestigious competitions over the next month. The first stop on the 2012 tour is this weekend’s CSIOYJ Bonheiden, which runs May 17-20.

To learn more about the 2012 Show Jumping European Young and Junior Rider Tour, and for competition dates, click here.

The five U.S. riders contesting the CSIOY this weekend have already made an impact on the American jumping scene and look to add to their resumes in Europe. Annie Cook (Woodside, CA) was the winner of the 2005 Adequan/USEF Pony Jumper Individual Championship and in 2008 she was a member of the Gold medal winning Zone 10 team at the 2008 CN FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships. Cook will ride Signe Ostby’s Banba and Landkorn 5 in Europe. Jennifer Goddard also brings two horses on the 2012 Show Jumping European Young Rider Tour; Stateside Farm’s Unique and Ungaro de la Hot Couture. Goddard (Fort Solanga, NY) enjoyed a successful 2011 season collecting victories at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival and the Lake Placid Horse Show.

Alise Oken (Charlotte, NC) has twice competed at the Adequan FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships as part of the Zone 3 Team. In 2012, Oken finished sixth in the Artisan Farm Young Rider Grand Prix Series. She will ride Hi Hopes Farms’ Marcus Quintus and Kaid Du Ry as part of the 2012 Show Jumping European Young and Junior Rider Tour. Also competing on the 2012 tour is Lydia Ulrich who tied for second place in the overall standings of the Artisan Farm Young Rider Grand Prix Series. Ulrich (Rochester, NY) will ride Beth Congel and Up The Creek Farm’s Santos Utopia in Europe, this is the same horse she rode on the winning team in the $20,000 Artisan Farms Young Rider Team Event.

Rounding out the Young Rider squad is Chloe Reid (Washington, DC). Reid was part of the fourth placed team in the Junior Championship at the 2011 Adequan FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships riding Toulon. In Europe she will ride Chloe D Reid LLC’s Toulon and M.M.A. Everse’s Zsa Zsa.

Sydney Shulman will represent the U.S. in the CSIOJ at Bonheiden. The Junior Rider was on the Bronze medal winning Junior Team at the 2011 Adequan FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships. Shulman (Greenwich, CT) brings John Madden Sales Inc’s Little Lady D’Elle as well as Maria Werner’s Zimza La Bim on the 2012 tour.

The Young Riders will ride in Nations Cup competition Saturday and all riders will contest Grand Prix competition Sunday.

 For competition information about the CSIOYJ Bonheiden visit; http://www.jumping-bonheiden.be/

 The 2012 U.S. Show Jumping Young Rider Tour is made possible through funding by the USET Foundation.

To learn more about the 2012 Show Jumping European Young and Junior Rider Tour visit; http://usef.org/_IFrames/breedsdisciplines/discipline/alljumping/sjEurope.aspx

 To follow the 2012 U.S. Jumping Team visit; http://www.usefnetwork.com/featured/2012Jumping/

The vision of the United States Equestrian Federation® is to provide leadership
for equestrian sport in the United States of America by promoting the pursuit
of excellence from the grassroots to the Olympic Games, based on a
foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare
of its human and equine athletes.

   DEVON, Pa.—The always exciting Open Jumping at the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair will have an extra fillip of tension thrown in this year…

…as 14 of the competitors who are long-listed for the show jumping team at the London Olympics will be competing in two of the Observation Events that will decide the eventual team.

   Devon, which runs May 24 to June 3, benefits Bryn Mawr Hospital, to which it has donated over $14 million during the 10 decades of their association.

Among the 14 long-listed competitors are four Olympic or World Championships medal winners.

Leading the list are McLain Ward of Brewster, N.Y., and Beezie Madden of Cazenovia, N.Y., both with two Olympic team gold medals and a World Championships team silver, and Laura Kraut of Wellington, Fla., with one Olympic team gold medal.

Margie Engle, also of Wellington, has a World Championships team silver medal, and another of the long-listed riders, Mario Deslauriers of New York, N.Y., is an Olympic and World Championships veteran.

In all, 31 riders have qualified to show at Devon, including Laura Chapot of Neshanic Station, N.J., who has been Leading Open Jumper Rider at Devon for four of the past six years, always battling it out for that honor with Ward, who has won the Grand Prix  at Devon six times.

This will be a particularly tension filled event for Ward, as he had to skip the selection trials in Wellington in March because he had fractured his kneecap when a horse fell with him in January at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington.

He and Sapphire, his Olympic partner in the Athens Olympics and the Beijing Games held in Hong Kong, both have to demonstrate that they are both in good condition and will be able to compete at the top of their game.

Ward is also bringing Antares, a horse he competed successfully on in a number of Nations Cup classes in Europe last summer.

Open Jumpers begin Tuesday evening, May 29, with the two Observation Events, the $100,000 Wells Fargo Grand Prix of Devon held at 8:00 p.m. Thursday and the $50,000 Idle Dice Stakes at 4:00 p.m. Saturday afternoon,, as the two highlights of the show.

Junior Jumpers compete on Friday and Saturday, with last year’s Leading Junior Jumper Rider, Charlotte Jacobs, returning to defend her title.

Pony Jumpers compete on Sunday, May 27, in the afternoon and evening, and Lucy Matz, daughter of Michael Matz, who trained Barbaro to win the Kentucky Derby and had Union Rags in the Derby this year, will compete on Wise Guy.

Adult jumpers compete Sunday and Monday, and on Tuesday and Wednesday there are classes for five-, six-, seven- and eight-year-old Young Jumpers.

The Country Fair offers boutiques and rides and delicious foods for every palate, plus there are contests for hats, dresses and dogs, plus special back barn tours, so there are special events for each member of the family.

Boutiques offer a vast selection of goods from trendy clothes to men’s and women’s sports wear, often appliquéd with a horse or dog design, handbags, shoes, hats, belts, blankets, Alpaca coats and wraps, beautiful gold, silver and turquoise jewelry, fine paintings, prints and sculptures, antiques, designer eyewear, children’s clothes, toys and games, needlework, pottery, home décor, souvenirs and collectibles as well as, of course, tack shops.

At the Country Fair, from the Ferris wheel high above the show grounds, to carousel horses and rides of all description to classic games of shoot the duck and throw the ball, there are rides and games for children of all ages.

Hot dogs and hamburgers vie with pizza and soft drinks and ice cream, while in the Garden Cafe every afternoon and evening there’s a different selection of gourmet foods, including fine wines, that can be enjoyed in comfort in the pavilion.

Then, of course, there’s the famous Devon fudge and lemon sticks.

The ticket office opened April 9, tickets may be ordered by phone at, 610-688-2554, or online at www.devonhorseshow.org.  General admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under and seniors 65 and over. Reserved grandstand tickets are available ranging from $12 to $55 depending on the performance.

SOPHIE

           There was a mystery afoot in the barn that night.  The horses were in the middle of eating their grain and the barn was in that lovely state where nothing is heard but the swish of horses shifting in the bedding and the munching of everyone eating their grain, with the occasional  muted splash as a muzzle entered a water bucket.  It was Tink’s favorite time in the barn. He didn’t think there was a more peaceful atmosphere anywhere.  The stablehand was just finishing up with the haying when Susie’s mother hurried in and yelled up the aisle to her.  “Bed the empty stall between Fortress and Scrabble, please, and bed it really deep.  I just bought a new horse and I’m going to get her right now.”

She hurried back out of the barn and could be heard hooking up the trailer.  As the stablehand readied the stall, excitement spread through the barn.  A new horse at this time of day?  And on the spur of the moment like this?  Susie’s mother was usually very careful in her horse purchases and they typically took a long time.  The general feeling was that she must have run into a great deal on a fabulous horse that she already knew.  Who the horse was and just how wonderful she could be was the topic of conversation for the next hour as they all waited for the new arrival.

The excitement increased as the truck and trailer were heard to pull up outside.  There was a noisy, busy atmosphere as horses chatted and paced at the front of their stalls, but as the new horse was slowly led into the barn the noise fell away and  was replaced with a profound stillness.  She stood in the aisle with her head hung nearly to the floor, not looking around and showing no interest in her surroundings or the other horses.  She was kind of a pinto — well, maybe… who could tell?  Her body was patches of brown and white with the occasional weeping sore and her hip bones looked as if they would come through the skin over them any second.  Her legs were covered thickly with dried muck and dotted with oozing sores.  Her feet didn’t look like they belonged on a horse.  But the worst was her eyes — they looked dead.  She could obviously see, but her eyes were dull and listless.  There wasn’t even pain in her eyes — just a horrible nothingness.

The stablehand managed with great effort to shut her gaping mouth.  “Did you say you bought  this horse?” she asked, “As in, paid money?”

“Yup,” replied Susie’s mother, “Five hundred dollars.”  The stablehand’s mouth was hanging open again.  “I’ve called the authorities about the rest of the horses in that barn, but I wanted to get this one out now and that’s what it took.  I didn’t think she’d live till tomorrow if I left her.  Now help me get her in the stall and try to make her more comfortable.  The vet should be here any minute.  Her name’s Sophie, by the way.”

Sophie was moved quickly into her new stall and sank with relief into the deep, clean bedding — something she had obviously not seen in a long time.  She lay there, silent and still, with her head bowed and those awful, empty eyes staring into nothing.  The vet came and gave her fluids and antibiotics and checked her all over.  He left ointments and creams and pills and instructions not to try and clean her up yet for she was too weak.  She was to get her medicines and food and water, but otherwise be left to rest.  Sophie never moved, oblivious to all that was happening around her.

Morning came and to everyone’s great relief Sophie was still lying as before.  She sipped water when it was put down before her but had no interest in the handful of grain offered her.  Her legs had been smeared with ointment and bandaged in an attempt to soothe the sores and soften the thick, hard crust that coated them, and there was ointment globbed on all the sores on her body.  But otherwise nothing had changed.  The horses all silently were led out to their respective fields and it was a somewhat somber day on the farm.  No one discussed Sophie — it was too scary.  They all realized if they hadn’t been so lucky to have gotten wonderful owners and to live in such a nice stable, that this could be them.  They all quietly watched as the vet’s truck came and went, and no one had the usual hide-your-head-under-the-hay-so-they-won’t-see-you feeling that the vet’s truck usually brought.  It was just a very quiet, depressed day.

Sophie was asleep when they came in.  She did sip water and nibbled a little at the hay that had been placed in front of her nose as the other horses quietly ate their grain.  For several days this was the way life in the barn went.  But then Tink noticed that things were perking up a little.  There was a tiny little happy spot deep inside him, and on reflection he realized that it was because Sophie seemed a little stronger — he was rooting for her!  And it was a feeling that was spreading through the barn.  No longer was Sophie just a scary specter in their midst.  Inch by inch she seemed to be battling back and becoming real to each of them.  That happy spot grew in each of them day by day as they began to dare to hope for her and as they cheered her on in each of her little gains.  One day they came in and she was standing, not because someone made her, but because she wanted to!  That day Frado reported the vet had said that he wouldn’t need to come every day anymore.  He said Sophie would live but would never be rideable again.  And he said that Susie’s mother (for she herself  had done most of Sophie’s nursing) could start cleaning her up more thoroughly the next day.

The day dawned bright and sunny and warm, and the horses all felt cheered knowing that Sophie would begin to start living a more normal life today.  The mood in the fields had almost returned to normal.  Fortress was attempting to hog all the hay in the field (the stablehand, knowing this, spread it widely and thus it kept Fortress very busy).  Scrabble flitted nervously from pile to pile, staying out of Fortress’ way, and old Pooh calmly and happily munched his hay and dozed in the sunshine.  In the mares’ field, Big Bertha kept Celeste strictly supervised while Celeste worried and fussed over whether the sun would fade her beautiful coat.  And in the middle field, Tink, Frado and Babette began to think of mischief again and mulled the possibilities for a new adventure.

Evening feed time rolled around and there was the usual fuss as to who would go in first from each field.  They had the same disagreement every night and every night they went in in the same order, but each night they felt the discussion was their duty.  As Tink and Babette were led in they both stopped in shock.  It was Sophie — she stood there in her stall, and she was WHITE — all over!  She had had a bath and the last of the dirt and muck had finally come off, but no one had yet guessed that she would be white.  Her feet had been trimmed and were much better looking (though it would take almost a year for her feet to become completely normal).  Her white mane and tail were clean and flowing, if somewhat patchy.  The sores on her body and legs had dried up and were well on their way to healing and it could be seen that Sophie’s body was beginning to fill out.  But best of all were her eyes.  They were alive!  She looked at each horse in turn as they came in and quietly said, “Hello, I’m Sophie.”

Soon after eating Sophie lay down again and went to sleep, tired from her efforts.  But the atmosphere in the barn was jubilant.  She had come back from wherever she had been, and she was one of them now!  And it seemed that she always would be.  Tink knew that because later that night Susie’s mother came in with a neighbor to look at Sophie.

“She was my first show horse.” she explained to the neighbor.  “I had her for three years before I outgrew her and had to move on.  She was a wonderful show horse and a great friend.  She taught me more than any horse I’ve ever had.  We bred her once after I outgrew her, and sold the baby.  Then we sold her to a nice family with a sweet girl who loved her.  But I lost track of her after that until I heard about her that awful day.  I went right over to that man’s place when I heard.  I couldn’t believe what I saw and would have paid anything I had to.  Sophie had been such a wonderful horse for me as a teen-ager  that when Susie came along and I started looking for a pony for her, I went out and hunted down Sophie’s baby and bought him for Susie.  Sophie will be comfortable but never sound again, the vet says, but she will probably be breedable.  She was a good mother and  a very happy one so maybe that’s what we’ll do.  After all, around here there will always be a market for more little Tinks, won’t there?”

Tink’s eyes widened at this revelation.  Sophie was his MOTHER?  No wonder she made him feel soft and squishy inside when he looked at her!

“Anyway,” continued Susie’s mother, “Sophie will live here for the rest of her life.  What happened to her shouldn’t happen to any horse, especially one as wonderful as Sophie.  It’s the best of everything for Sophie from now on.”

Over the next few months Sophie gained weight, her mane and tail filled in, the sores healed and disappeared, and her coat began to shine.  She wasn’t working but was groomed every day with the same love and care given to the barn’s most expensive show horses.  Sophie had begun going out and could be turned out with anyone since all the horses treated her with the gentleness and respect that her quiet dignity deserved.  Fortress was even seen sharing  the same hay pile with her!

After she returned to being the strong, healthy (if not completely sound) and beautiful horse she had once been, Sophie was breed to a Welsh pony stallion in hopes that she would produce a pony who would be as wonderful as Tink.  But that’s another story…

New Approach to Mastering 101 Confidence Skills So You Can Go Anywhere, Do Anything with Your Horse

Olympia, WA. May 1, 2012 – Are you a new horse owner? Do you compete in equestrian sports, tired of confidence issues holding you back from the success you know you can achieve? Is having less confidence an issue for you personally? Do you just want a better relationship with your horse?

Nationally known equestrian confidence coach Cathy Rivers, as part of her Big Horse Dreams, The Confident Equestrian Program, has designed a new e-Workbook that provides a proven learning progression for mastering confidence skills in order to improve your training, riding, competing, communication and overall enjoyment of your partnership with your horse.

‘’The Confident Equestrian e-Workbook,’’ which is organized into ten separate easy-to-understand skill areas that range from ‘’My Well-Being,’’ to ‘’In the Saddle’’ guides you towards the mastery of mindset, proven horsemanship techniques, and how to be the leader for your horse. Rivers has insightfully identified one-hundred-and-one skills needed to create and establish consistent confidence in the rider and for the benefit of the horse.

‘’In any aspect of your life,’’ says human dynamics expert Cathy Rivers, an accomplished equestrian and horse breeder also, ‘’you have more authentic confidence when you are physically, mentally, technically and emotionally equipped. The same is true for having confidence working with and riding your horse. The more you can bring all of yourself to your relationship with your horse, the more you will experience a true and lasting confidence.’’

‘’The Confident Equestrian e-Workbook’’ presents both horse owners and equestrians a roadmap to improving horsemanship and confidence over time.

• Confidence assessment

• 101 skills organized into 10 Skill Areas

• Designed to create and support confidence

• Track your progress

• Companion questions

• Coaching support through Big Horse Dreams programs

By utilizing a grounded holistic approach towards self-awareness and change, Rivers has designed ‘’The Confident Equestrian e-Workbook’’ as a vehicle to ask each reader questions that allow the opportunity to assess self behavior, behavior of the horse, approaches towards training, self-esteem, care, horsemanship, safety and trust. Through this assessment each reader can begin to see strengths and weaknesses in the area of personal confidence and begin to develop skills to create authentic and lasting confidence for a better partnership between owner and horse.

‘’The Confident Equestrian e-Book’’ is also a proven tool for riders who are looking to boost competitive confidence.

‘’You can have great technique in your chosen equestrian sport,’’ says Rivers, ‘’but not the confidence to match it; it’s the confidence key that let’s you and your horse succeed.’’

Cathy Rivers of Big Horse Dreams, Inc. is the Equestrian’s Confidence Coach. Cathy believes magic happens for the equestrian when their confidence surpasses their riding technique. Cathy offers various levels of Equestrian Confidence programs ranging from the Show, Perform, Win Workshop to her 6-month Gold Medal Program. .

Supporting people, especially equestrians, to flourish and experience successful and satisfying relationships with their horses is near and dear to Cathy’s heart.

Cathy lives on her farm outside Olympia, WA where she breeds and trains Swedish Warmbloods.

Cathy Rivers

BIG HORSE DREAMS, INC.

www.bighorsedreams.com

360.480.0183

Connection, Confidence & Leadership

For the equestrian who is ready to ride like a champion.

For more information, media inquiries, interview request or to review a copy, please contact:

Sarah Redfield, Marketing Director

Email: sarahredfield@aol.com

Tel: 541.420.0416

To order The Confident Equestrian e-Workbook please visit:

Big Horse Dreams, Inc.

Website: www.bighorsedreams.com/programs