The U.S. Equestrian Federation has named the following drivers to represent the United States at the two driving World Championships set to take place over the next two months. Chester Weber will serve as the chef d'equipe for both championships.
The FEI World Pair Driving Championships will take place in Conty, France, Aug. 24-28, and the three drivers who will represent the U.S. with pairs of horses will be:
Spectators and competitors at the CAI-B Live Oak in Ocala, Fla., March 24-27, honored the 2008 Farnam/Platform U.S. Equestrian Federation Horse of the Year, Jamaica, as owner Chester Weber officially retired the Dutch Warmblood gelding. Jamaica will enjoy his golden years at Weber’s Live Oak Stud in Ocala, Fla.
At 28, he’s the youngest U.S. driver nominated for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.
Josh Rector drives through a mowed field, his four-in-hand team fit and fresh coming off their second-placed finish at the Bromont CAI in Quebec at the end of June.
Along the neighboring country road, a woman stops traffic to get out and snap a photograph of the team decked out in a custom camel and chrome harness and pulling a Van Der Heuvel carriage, which rattles and clinks. Old world craftsmanship is surprisingly loud.
Our columnist reflects on the sport’s history and the modernization that will be showcased at the upcoming World Equestrian Games.
An advanced four-in-hand competitor contacted a show secretary and asked if the competition would allow him to enter but not do Section A (Section A is approximately 5km of any pace) of the marathon. His reason was that the track was “too rough.”
In this monthly series leading up to the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in September and October, we watch a different competitor prepare for competition each month.
Tucker Johnson competed in his first international competition in 1987, and now he’s preparing for what he said will be his last—the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.
After the WEG, in October, Johnson, a 46-year-old from Hobe Sound, Fla., will be retiring from international four-in-hand competition.
Patience is a hard skill to learn, especially in the horse world. In a sport where competitive success often defines a horseman’s livelihood, it can be difficult to wait for the right moment, show and horse to make a breakthrough.
But if Suzy Stafford has learned anything in her long journey with Beverley Lesher’s Courage To Lead, patience ranks at the top of her list. “I was willing to wait for her because I knew she was special,” said Stafford. “Waiting for something that’s worth it takes a while sometimes.”
In Stafford’s case, it took six years.
The year 2009 turned out better than I expected. The mood of the country at the end of 2008 was depressed by the plummeting economy yet hopeful that President-elect Obama would pull a rabbit out of his hat and fix things–fast.
We were good to worry. It helped us to make some difficult choices, learn what’s most important, and how to stretch our limited resources. Life goes on. Competitions were held (most of them), some even had increased entries. World Championships were held and medals were won!
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