Kelli Cruciotti Vanderveen took home the blue in the the CabanaCoast CSI2* while Philippaerts won the National Grand Prix. After having to sit out FEI classes when her best horse retired due to an injury last year, Kelli Cruciotti Vanderveen was not only back in the big ring, but she took the top spot in the $50,000 CabanaCoast CSI2* Grand Prix at the 2022 Winter Equestrian Festival. Her partner was the 12-year-old KWPN gelding Forever SFN, whom she’s ridden in only four other FEI classes. “He’s quite a character. He thinks he’s definitely the king,” Cruciotti Vanderveen said. “He has a little ..read more

Episode 1: Grand Prix jumper rider Kama Godek explains how to walk a standard 12-foot stride. Welcome to the PHOD Pod! The Practical Horseman Podcast’s minisode series where we share audio lessons from our favorite Practical Horseman OnDemand videos. At Practical Horseman OnDemand, you can enjoy hundreds of how-to videos and get insider access to to exclusive interviews and lectures, slow motion demonstrations and step by step tutorials taught by top level pros in the hunter, jumper, equitation and eventing disciplines.  In the premiere episode of the PHOD Pod, 5* FEI Grand Prix jumper r ..read more

This new match of Bond’s bested a field of 40 starters to bring home the blue. Warming up before the $500,000 Rolex Grand Prix CSI5*, Ashlee Bond cantered her Karoline Of Ballmore very slowly to a line of three 1.70-meter verticals that were set two strides to two strides apart. “And that’s it,” Bond said of the unusual schooling program she has with the 12-year-old Belgian warmblood mare before big classes. “No oxers. No nothing. It’s unreal. She’s amazing. “I feel like when you do that with a horse, you start to trust them very quickly because you’re like, ‘If I can pretty much come and [alm ..read more

On this episode of the Practical Horseman Podcast, hear from international five-star eventer Will Faudree. This week's episode, brought to you by Bimeda, is with international five-star eventer, Will Faudree.  At the 2022 Carolina International, Practical Horseman caught up with Will and spoke to him at his stalls, so you’ll hear the goings-on of the event in the background.  During our conversation, Will told the story of his upbringing on a cattle ranch in Texas and how he actually started out riding western. Later down the line, Will was inspired watching the 1988 Olympics a ..read more

The Canadian Olympic champion has been battling brain cancer since 2017. Wellington, Florida—Canadian Olympic champion Eric Lamaze has announced, with regret and sadness, that he has officially retired from show jumping competition. Lamaze, who has been battling brain cancer since 2017, last competed at the CSIO5* Spruce Meadows ‘Masters’ tournament in Calgary, AB, where he anchored the Canadian Show Jumping Team to victory in the $600,000 Bank of Montreal Nations’ Cup on September 11, 2021. He then took a step back from competition to focus on his health, not knowing his last competitive appe ..read more

Overall: This is a pleasing picture because of the horse-and-rider turnout and the horse’s style. I’d like to see the rider make a few adjustments to her leg, seat and release. SEL Photography Leg: The stirrup is placed right on the ball of her foot, but she doesn’t have as much weight in her heels as I’d like because she’s pinching with her knees. This pinching draws her heels up and away from the horse. I’d love to see her leg wrapped around this mare and have more contact with the back of her calf. Seat/Hip angle: The pinching of the knee also has made her seat go too far out of the saddle ..read more

Reflections from two-time Olympic eventer Bruce Mandeville on what he learned from his most memorable horse Larissa, my partner for multiple Pan-American Games, Olympics and a World Championship, was a striking liver chestnut Trakehner mare. She was leggy, elegant, strong-willed and white-eyed, with a refined face, long ears, beautiful movement and jumping scope to spare. She sounds like she would sell easily, but when it came to submission and listening to her rider, that was a different story. Larissa was a conundrum; I learned so much by cracking her code. Once I figured her out, she became ..read more

An amateur eventer shares her story of diagnosing and treating arthritis in her horse’s knee. At first glance, 12-year-old Runsonstilts (aka “Stilts”) might appear to be just a plain, brown off-the-track Thoroughbred with a sweet expression. But to his owner, Margaret McKelvy of Mount Airy, Maryland, he’s the perfect amateur horse, as eager to venture out on the trail as he is to go jumping or “dance in the sandbox.” As she remarked, “He goes as well as I ride him and will always rise to the occasion”—high praise indeed for any equine. Margaret McKelvy leads Stilts giving a pony ride. Courtesy ..read more

USEF “R” judge and trainer Holly Hugo-Vidal explains the qualities of good hunter and equitation rounds. In this series, USEF “R” judge and trainer Holly Hugo-Vidal explains the qualities of good hunter and equitation rounds, tips for a successful hunter under-saddle class and how to deal with competition-ring nerves. She also discusses what you can do to encourage a horse to trust you and common mistakes riders make that can take away a horse's confidence. Practical Horseman OnDemand members can watch the full video by clicking here. If you are not a member, you can sign up for a 10-day free ..read more

2022 FEI World Cup Finals will be held in Leipzig, Germany, April 6-10, 2022. Lexington, Ky. – US Equestrian is pleased to announce the athletes who will represent the U.S. in jumping 2022 FEI World Cup Finals. The Finals will be held in Leipzig, Germany, April 6-10, 2022. Courtesy, U.S. Equestrian U.S. Jumping The following athletes will represent U.S. Jumping and are listed in alphabetical order: Misti Cassar (Canyon Country, Calif.) and Mylord Cornet, her own 2010 Oldenburg gelding Katie Dinan (Wellington, Fla.) and Brego R’N B, a 2006 KWPN gelding owned by Grand Road Partners LLC Margie ..read more