Here at Nation Media, which currently is comprised of Eventing Nation, Horse Nation, and Jumper Nation, we are always learning. The equestrian community that we call home is evolving (some parts slower than others!), as is the media and publishing industry. After much reflection and analysis, we have made the decision to discontinue JumperNation.com for the time being. Jumper Nation was launched in 2015 as the brainchild of Leslie Wylie and John Thier. The goal was to bring the same brand of ridiculousness to the sport of show jumping that we’ve done with Eventing Nation. Our time with Jumper ..read more

by Ema Klugman “We are all of us more complicated than the roles we are assigned in the stories other people tell.” -Tara Westover I had a lightbulb moment in college a few years ago. It was in a political science seminar course. We spent the majority of the class time debating the merits of abstract ideas that ancient philosophers developed and trying to map them onto current policy debates about technology, immigration, healthcare, and more broadly, the role of government in society. A light went off in my brain when my professor said three words, which, in hindsight, were not that groundbre ..read more

by Ema Klugman People say that there is always more to learn about horses. Just when you think you have it figured out, whether that’s riding a particular movement in dressage or honing your eye over jumps, you realize that you don’t. It can be frustrating and confusing. The horse should understand what to do because you’re explaining it right. Or at least you think you are. But every horse has their language, and as they develop and progress new problems often pop up just when you think that you’ve conquered the old ones. Corrected the right drift? Now you’ve lost the rideability. Improved th ..read more

By Susan Glover. Ok, 2022. Let’s do this. 2021 started badly for me and my horse Steve. Well, it actually started great and then went downhill like a runaway wheelbarrow full of horse poop. I’d been feeling something was NQR with Steve off and on the previous summer, which saw us return to work after a bad bone bruise knocked Steve out over the winter-spring. I got his hocks injected and things felt fabulous for a while and then…he felt not fabulous, but only briefly, here and there. The usual questions started, the ones that come up when dealing with NQR-ness and an animal that speaks a diffe ..read more

2021 was a banner year in show jumping for many reasons, with the Olympics and the return of top sport in venues around the world. One of the most incredible things about show jumping is the heart that both horse and rider have to bring to their partnership to make it to the top ranks, over and over again, over months and years. We riders know how special are the bonds we forge with our horses, and no matter how many medals and ribbons and trophies have been won, you can see the same level of gratitude given by any rider, Olympian or not, when it is time to wind down a horse’s career. The deci ..read more

Here it is, your last week of horse show dates for 2021. It’s been quite a year, with events from World Cups to the Tokyo Olympics to the Longines Global Champions Tour, and shows large and small returning to the scene nationally and internationally. There isn’t a lot going on this last week but there are a handful of fun competitions ringing in the new year! Old Salem Farm is having their December A show, and ESP’s final week of their Holiday series is going on at the PBIEC. Swan Lake’s Holiday Blast A show offers hunters, equitation, and ponies Monday through Thursday in their enormous, love ..read more

by Ema Klugman. I think our modern society is obsessed with productivity. Every hour of every day is supposed to have a goal. This starts with kids in school, whose schedules are set from breakfast to school to after-school sports practice to homework time to dinner. Of course, these kinds of schedules provide structure to kids and teenagers, instilling in them a sense of organization which helps them develop good habits. As we grow up, we have more leeway to make our own schedules, but in general we still feel that everything should be scheduled. All the minutes are supposed to be devoted to ..read more

Ok, so for our last Dream Farm of the year we decided to find a winter wonderland for all of us who are wishing for snow…which is always fun until you have to tromp through it with a full muck cart, but hey, this is a Dream Farm!) We found this fantastical property in northern Germany, just east of Bremen, south of Hamburg, and centrally-located for competitions, training, and anything else you’d like to do with your horses. Built in 2016 to the high standards of Laufstall-Arbeits-Gemeinschaft e.V., the property includes a small barn with three stalls, but there are accommodations for 17 more ..read more

HITS is the Perfect Place for all Equestrians Compete at HITS Ocala The 41st HITS Ocala Winter Circuit is right around the corner, January 18 – March 27, 2022! Ten weeks of unparalleled competition opportunities abound, with USEF National- and Premier-Rated Hunters and 4*, 5* and 6* Jumpers. Hunter highlights will include two USHJA International Hunter Derbies, three USHJA National Hunter Derbies, two USHJA Pony Hunter Derbies, and two World Championship Hunter Rider Weeks. Jumper competition will feature seven weeks of FEI CSI2* competition, new in 2022, as well as Grand Prix p ..read more

Last year we saw myriad iconic shows cancelled due to the dangers of the pandemic, some never to return. Two of those that came back this year are the London International and the Poznań International Fair in Poland. Both of these events attract everyone from families out for horsey entertainment to serious competitors at the FEI level. This year London offered FEI World Cup driving, dressage, and show jumping competitions, along with Shetland races, demonstrations of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, dog agility, and performances by Santi Serra. Poznań, part of the Cavaliada Tour, hoste ..read more