November 5, 2014

USEF Communications Department

Lexington, Ky. – Chris Welton, CEO of the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF), has announced the creation of new senior staff position: Chief Commercial Officer.

The position, overseeing all aspects of communications, marketing, and network/media assets, will be filled by John W. (Josh) Taylor. Taylor brings more than 25 years of experience in marketing, promotion, and sponsorship. He was founder and managing partner of Midlantic Ltd., a promotional marketing agency serving a variety of sport organizations. Taylor brings experience in the racehorse industry, owning racehorses and broodmares with his wife, Emery Jones Taylor. He is a steward of the National Steeplechase Association and the chairman of the Winterthur Point-to-Point Races. With his knowledge of equestrian sport and marketing expertise, Taylor will expand promotion and marketing strategies essential to the future success of equestrian sport.

Welton states, “I recognize the fundamental importance of our media assets to the future of the sport, and am confident that Josh will help to guide the Federation through the challenges associated with media rights and promotion.”

In response to the announcement, Taylor says, “I am excited to join Chris and his senior staff at USEF. This is a very interesting time for this industry, and I look forward to working with the stake holders- including owners, riders, organizers, affiliates, and the FEI- to foster stronger alliances as we face the challenges of marketing expansion.”

November 5, 2014: Debi Metcalfe founded Stolen Horse International (quickly nicknamed the “Net Posse,” http://NetPosse.com) as a nationwide partnership of animal enthusiasts who could help spot and recover stolen horses. Now, with 11 years of experience helping horse owners track down their beloved mounts, the Net Posse has the wisdom and resources to help prevent thefts. The organization will always help track down missing horses, but is now focused on teaching horse owners how to deter theft and ID their animals with microchips so that the four-legged family members can be easily tracked. Click here to find out how to permanently identify your horse and tack and protect your property, click here for more information:

“NetPosse.com is a place for horse owners to learn to be proactive–not just reactive,” Metcalfe says. “If someone contacts the posse after their horse has been stolen, there’s only a certain amount we can do. But if the horse has an ID and is registered, we have tracking data and a way to help locate and claim the horse.”

Prevention and Microchip Products
The Netposse.com website offers the first all-equine ID microchip registry deemed the ‘NetPosse Identification Program’ (NIP). First get your horse microchip here: https://www.netposse.com/store.asp?cat=Microchips then register the chip. For a one-time $20 registration (at https://www.netposse.com/product.asp?productid=486&cat=Victim+Services),
NIP members register their horses and tack—and add identifying photos for easy access when needed. NIP members can register all horses and tack in one database and have access to update records at any time. Additionally, NIP members receive free NetPosse.com listing reports if a horse or tack are ever missing. Look for packages that include a microchip and registration for the chip, such as this package for one horse’s microchip and NIP registration:

Ready to shop? Also check for other preparation resources such as theft-deterrent signage. Signs let prospective thieves know that that premises are monitored. Get signs here:

Check out the site’s disaster preparedness articles and remember that during disasters, missing animals can be listed for free.

Join the “Posse”

Once your horses are chipped and registered, make sure you’re signed up to get the most recent news and alerts about all missing horses at: http://netposse.com/article.asp?id=30. As part of the posse, you’ll get updates about stolen animals or goods that may pass through your area. The link also allows you to donate to help the 501(c)(3) cause. Donate now: https://www.netposse.com/donate.asp

How it All Started

When Metcalfe’s horse, “Idaho,” was stolen in 1997, she and her husband worked relentlessly to find her—and also documented their procedures so they could help others find stolen horses and learn to prevent future horse thefts.

“I quickly became an expert,” Metcalfe says of the year Idaho was missing. “We decided to start the NetPosse.com site to help other people and to pay it forward for all the people who helped us and for all the victims who still needed help. From there it just got bigger and bigger.”

Eleven years later, the volunteer-run organization still helps horse owners find stolen and missing horses as its primary focus, but it has expanded to include tracking down stolen tack, farm equipment and even cows, dogs and other farm animals.

If a horse is stolen or missing, the owner can submit a detailed report for free or for a small fee on NetPosse.com. Once the report is complete, Metcalfe sends out an alert to NetPosse.com’s extensive network via email to news media contacts and lists the report on extensive social media resources. Every person on the network has the potential to help find a horse. Stolen horses can be moved quickly, so it’s important to have a wide network of people looking for them.

“It’s like finding a needle in the haystack when the haystack keeps moving,” says Metcalfe. Her group has helped find a horse from California in Connecticut, and one horse from Connecticut was found in Texas. “Our motto is ‘never underestimate the power of one.’ Our alerts go out to ‘ones’ all over the world who share it with their friends.”

Success Stories

One of Metcalfe’s favorite “found stories” is about a stolen horse named Opie. Metcalfe’s team worked with the victim for a number of years, but couldn’t find the horse. Ten years later, a rider shopping for a horse to buy tried out a horse she’d found on Craigslist. She liked him, but the backstory sounded a little fishy. The rider Googled the horse and the information she knew and identified the horse as stolen horse, Opie, by clicking here.

“We have thousands of open cases, and we work on 5-20 cases a week,” says Metcalfe. “Our cases take a long time to handle. We’re the consultants, and we understand where the victims are coming from because we’ve been there. All of our core volunteers were once victims.”

NetPosse.com also helps victims with missing horses that either ran away or disappear after civil disputes. Did the horse get out? Did somebody let it out? Did somebody steal it? Civil thefts involve violations of contract—disputes over ownership after lending or leasing a horse, for instance. The contract may say the person who has the horse must give you (the owner) the chance to take the horse back when they’re finished, but the horse is sold instead.

Metcalfe says her horse Idaho is still the cornerstone of the organization. “She was our first miracle,” she says. “Because of her, many more miracles continue to happen.”

Debi Metcalfe
Stolen Horse International
PO Box 1341
Shelby, NC 28151
debi@netposse.com
704-484-2165

Exciting head-to-head dressage competition got underway on Thursday at the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan&reg …

November 3, 2014

Lexington, Ky. – The 2015 United States Equestrian Federation Dressage Tests have been published on USEF.org. The 2015 Tests will be effective December 1, 2014 through November 30, 2018.

In addition to the 2015 USEF Dressage Test booklet, the USEF has collaborated with the United States Dressage Federation to produce the On the Levels app, which provides examples of the new Introductory through Fourth level dressage tests with commentary from top U.S. trainers and judges, with segments geared toward improving difficult movements at each level. The mobile website will feature 31 engaging videos to help riders understand the requirements for tests within each level, including 18 videos of riders performing each test and 13 supplementary test tip videos. The videos will include narration from top athletes, judges, and trainers, including Kathy Connelly, Jan Ebeling, Hilda Gurney, Steffen Peters, and Jessica Jo “JJ” Tate, each bringing his/her own unique perspective, providing the viewer with a variety of approaches. The launch of the On the Levels app will be announced next week.

To view the 2015 USEF Dressage Tests, visit:

To order the 2015 Dressage Test Booklet, visit:

To view the 2015 USDF Tests, visit:

In addition to the new USEF and USDF Dressage Tests, all FEI Tests have minor updates in the wording of the Collective Marks as well as changes to the FEI Children, FEI Intermediate A, and FEI Intermediate B Tests. These tests become effective January 1, 2015, and can be found here: http://fei.org/fei/your-role/organisers/dressage/tests.

By: Lindsay Y. McCall

Lexington, KY – November 4, 2014 – The United States Para-Equestrian Association (USPEA) would like to thank the United States Equestrian Federation ( USEF) for their support of the Para-Dressage Young Rider Program. As a USEF International Discipline USEF LOGOAssociation the USPEA fosters the Para-Equestrian sport from the grassroots to the high performance level. The USPEA was recently awarded a USEF Affiliate Grant. Through this awarded USEF Affiliate Grant, the USPEA is able to further support the discipline at the young rider level. Offering high-level opportunities to young rider para-dressage athletes benefits not only the para-dressage sport and future international teams but the equestrian discipline as a whole. Those benefits include the new Para-Dressage Young Rider Championships. With the collaborative efforts of USEF and USPEA, the FEI fully embraced inclusion for the Para-Dressage Discipline to be

U.S. WEG Team Athlete Sydney Collier and her dog Journey. Journey became a media sensation at the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Photo copyright SusanJStickle.com
represented at the Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships, starting in 2015.

President of the USPEA, Hope Hand, noted, “I am excited to finally have the opportunity to showcase these talented Young Riders at the 2015 Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships. With the support of the USEF grant programs, the USPEA and our collaborative USEF coaching staff, we were able to successfully campaign two of our young riders all the way to Normandy, France, to represent us at the World Equestrian Games. We thank our ambassador and nominee for the USEF Youth Sportsmanship Award, Sydney Collier. Sydney and her dog Journey have tirelessly campaigned across the globe, spreading awareness about the high performance sport of Para-Dressage. We are proud to have Sydney on our USEF Team.”

Sydney Collier agreed, “I would like to thank USEF for their incredible support of the USPEA Young Riders Program. The continued growth and development of the program has allowed my education as an equestrian to advance both in and out of the saddle. Carrying on my mentor and friend Jonathan Wentz’s dream of a thriving Young Rider program in the USPEA is a very important part of my mission, and continues to be possible because of this support. A huge thank you to everyone at USEF from all the young riders of past, present, and future as we work towards our goals of becoming the best equestrians we can be for our country, and our horses. ”

The USPEA is grateful to the USEF for providing this grant for the education and support of the young athletes in this sport.

Willi Wesley trots to a thirteenth-place finish and a score of 65.960 percent in the Grade Ib team test with rider Sydney Collier.
Willi Wesley and Sydney Collier at the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Photo copyright SusanJStickle.com

Para-Dressage Young Rider Annie Peavy at the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Photo copyright SusanJStickle.com

NOVEMBER 4, 2014

By Yellow Horse Marketing for the US Dressage Finals

Sunny skies, rolling green fields, and the iconic four-board fences of the Kentucky Horse Park welcome the droves of horse vans arriving in Lexington, Ky. for this week’s US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan®, a unique national head-to-head competition showcasing riders and horses competing for top honors at all dressage levels from Training to Grand Prix as well as musical freestyles.

This year’s competitor roster includes over 400 entries for the US Dressage Finals and USDF Dressage in the Bluegrass open show, reflecting an increase of more than 100 entries from last year’s inaugural event. Over four exciting days of competition to be held November 6 – 9, 2014, riders representing all nine United States Dressage Federation (USDF) regions and from 38 states across the country (and the District of Columbia) will gather in the Horse Capital of the World, including from the West Coast states of Washington, Oregon, and California, as well as up and down the eastern seaboard from Maine to south Florida.

For this second annual Finals, championship offerings have been expanded to 30 divisions, offering exhibitors from a variety of backgrounds and experience levels (including adult amateurs, professionals, and High Performance riders) a chance to earn national honors, fantastic prizes, and more than $50,000 in prize money. From the awe-inspiring atmosphere of the Alltech Arena to the picturesque outdoor Stonelea and Claiborne arenas with state-of-the-art synthetic footing, dressage competition will be held across six rings, including four rings of non-stop Championship action.

In the pre-dawn hours of last Saturday, Barbi Breen-Gurley of Los Osos, Cal. loaded her Dutch Warmblood Vindicator onto a commercial van full of fellow California horses for their 55-hour non-stop journey across the country to the Bluegrass Region. Looking fresh and fit upon his arrival on Monday, the gelding seemed ready to take on 20 other competitors in the Open Grand Prix Championship class later this week. Having attended the inaugural edition of the Finals last November (where the pair finished sixth in the Intermediaire I division), Breen-Gurley was well aware of the long and expensive trip they faced in returning to Kentucky. But there was never a doubt that, given the opportunity, she would be back.

“I was so proud of him last year, and even though this is his first year at Grand Prix, I wanted to come back, do our best, and be able to say that we did this,” Breen-Gurley explained. “My amazing husband Geof supports me all the way, my kids are so proud, and I truly believe that you have to seize an opportunity like this when it presents itself. I knew what we were in for coming all this way, but I am still so grateful to be here. So often I see people give up on their dreams for many different reasons, but I refuse to, even if it means traveling across the country to pursue them.

“I also think it’s great to see even more people from the western states this year,” she concluded. “We had a wonderful time last year, and I’m happy to see others take advantage of this. It’s incredible to be competing with such great people from all over the country who are so committed to the sport. It makes for such a great energy here, and it’s particularly inspiring and exciting for me.”

The US Dressage Finals get started on Thursday, November 6 with USDF Dressage in the Bluegrass open classes, followed by a Competitor Welcome Party at the Alltech Arena. Championship classes kick off on Friday, with special evening performances and activities both Friday and Saturday to entertain competitors and spectators alike. For a truly unforgettable championship experience, limited VIP seating in the Alltech Arena is still available for purchase (to learn more, click here). For those dressage fans unable to attend the Finals in person, the popular USEF Network will feature live online streaming of select classes from the Alltech Arena on their website by clicking here

To learn more about the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan®, download competition information, review entry lists, purchase tickets to special events, and sign up to receive news and updates, visit the official event website at http://www.usdressagefinals.com.

PHOTO CAPTION & CREDIT: Competitors from coast to coast will be competing this weekend for national titles at the Kentucky Horse Park, site of the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan. Photo by Jennifer M. Keeler.

Jennifer M. Keeler

Phone: (859) 806-1557

jennifer@yellowhorsemarketing.com

www.yellowhorsemarketing.com