Catching up: At the USEF National Dressage Championship in Gladstone, NJ, James Dwyer earned the highest acclaim for his paraequestrian freestyle demonstration. The ‘Who’s Who’ of the dressage world gave him an extended standing ovation. He was just brilliant.

At the Aachen World Equestrian Festival, held June 26 –July 5, one of the most prestigious venues on the globe, Steffen Peters and Akiko Yamazaki’s Ravel put in an amazing test, scoring 77.830% in the Grand Prix against many of the best horses and riders in the world! The weekend only got better from there, as they continued on to win the Special and the Freestyle, making it a sweep of all three CDIO Grand Prixs.

For those who follow popular celebrities, Katie Price rode Ulster in the Prix St.-Georges at the CDIO Hickstead. She’s the UK’s most well-known “Page 3” nude model and reality television celebrity for those on this side of the Pond who might not recognize her name. While she wasn’t exactly a star in the dressage arena, the crowds did gather to watch.

Darren Chiacchia has moved into the old Knox Estate in East Aurora, New York.A0 This is a beautiful old estate formally owned by the founder of the US Polo Association.

Tami Hoag is getting her “Fhil” out in California. She took her big bright red gelding Fhilosopher to his first show out in Moorpark California to get used to a sandbox away from home. (This is the horse whose hair matches Tami so perfectly we suspect that is why she bought him!) Meanwhile Tami and her other redhead, Rush Hour, enjoyed two grand prix wins that weekend! You show girl!

Michelle Gibson says that a cruise from Anchorage to Vancouver was the perfect birthday present for a ‘Big One.” Michelle and ten of her friends will definitely keep that cruise ship rocking!

In the “Economy Isn’t All Bad” department, we hear that Dressage at Lexington was up 20% and had to close registration, they had so many entries. Way to go!
Dressage diva and doc to the equestrian stars, Andrea Bayer, has one “hot” dog! In between, horse shows and delivering babies, Andrea found time to audition her pooch, Paddy for a movie. The stately Airedale got the part- but after just three days of shooting an animal rights bunch shut down the set due to the heat. Will Paddy’s career resume in the fall or has it truly gone to the dogs???

Speaking of putting on the dog, in a presidential show of goodwill, Freedman Harness owner, David Freeman sent one the their handcrafted leather collars and leashes to the White House for Bo Obama. Only the best for the nation’s “top dog.” We’ll be watching for Bo sporting his new collar on TV.

Nan Sexton says White Fences is like Jurassic Park with all the biting insects breeding in the standing water this past summer. “I have never seen such enormous black mosquitoes,” she says. “Some have, and I am not exaggerating, 1/4 inch long snouts…or whatever they are called. Everyone in this area is getting into entomology. I had a half an hour conversation with Janne Rumbough about the control of biting stable flies. At lot of us have horses with summer sores for the first time this year.” Nan, we feel your pain!
Did you hear that venerable dressage judge Michael Kierkegaard “made improper comments about having to judge a mule and was seen using his cell phone while “officiating” at a USEF licensed show? We don’t know what score the mule earned, but Michael had to pay a $750 fine and was suspended for one month.

Congratulations to Megan Howe, USDF recipient of the 2009 USDF Intercollegiate / Interscholastic Membership Organization (IMO) Senior Athletic Achievement Award. Megan graduated with a cumulative GPA of 3.89 and won this award based on her ability to balance academics with participation in extracurricular equestrian activities.

Please buy something from http://www.GreyDun.com. Patricia Powers is one of the most fabulous horse artists of our time, and she has some staggering vet bills for her beloved cats. For many years, she has always been a generous donor with her artwork for animal welfare and equine rescue causes.

Children! Children!!! So, how do our top USEF National Dressage champions relieve stress on a rainy day at the USEF National Championship? Well, some of them sweep dirt on each other in the barn aisle—we think there may have also been a (rather hilarious) manure-throwing incident.

Joanna Hall Glass says thatA0she was looking forward to a restful weekend in her garden and riding her horses when the phone rang — three women pulling a veritable ark had broken down in North Augusta, South Carolina, and needed a place for horses, et al, while their rig was repaired. Why do the locals always think of Sporting Days, we wonder??A0 “Ah well,” Joanna sighed. “The call came in at 9:30pm and the big rig tow truck (driver came from my hometown in PA) pulled into my yard at 2am.
I awoke to cock-a-doodle-do,A0then I hear turkeys, goats, whinnies and barks — no meows.A0 The head count for the weekend was four yearling turkeys, one old turkey hen,A0one rooster – quite handsome and his three hens (I adopted),A0two billy goats (fancy longhair breed) four lady goats, three ponies, one stallion, five dogs, two trucks (one small) one very large steel trailer and the threeA0souls – all a bit off course. . .”
Joanna, next time we break down, we’re hoping to find an angel just like you along the road. Kudos and hugs to our best Samaritan. A0

Horses: At the end of July, Dominion, an 11 year old Hanoverian gelding owned by Pat Stempel and ridden by Shelly Francis, was put down after breaking his leg in his stall. He placed 10th in mid-June at the 2009 USEF National Grand Prix Championship, Gladstone, NJ. Our condolences to the owner, rider and grooms who loved him.

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