USEA Podcast

Future Event Horse Judging with Susan Graham White

First up on this week's episode of the USEA Podcast, Future Event Horse Committee Co-Chair Susan Graham White comes on the show to discuss the judging seminars that will be offered this year at the East Coast and West Coast Championships taking place in September. These seminars are intended for current FEH judges to help improve the quality of FEH judging across the board. The seminars will be a combination of classroom lectures and practical application in the arena.

Allyn Mann, Director of Strategic Partnerships for Adequan, comes on the show next to talk about the $60,000 Adequan USEA Advanced Final taking place next weekend at the 2019 USEA American Eventing Championships at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. Mann recaps the history of the Advanced Final, which began as the Adequan USEA Gold Cup, and talks about what's in store this year with this new division.

Finally, we continue with our series featuring past USEA Presidents in celebration of our 60th anniversary, taking place this year. We'll be hearing from Charles Lloyd, president from 2002-2004, who talks about the birth of the ICP program, the transition of the USEA to its new headquarters, and the introduction of the American Eventing Championships.

Pan Am Recap with Team USA

Listen in to this week's USEA Podcast to hear reflections from the U.S. Pan American Games team: individual gold medalist Boyd Martin, individual silver medalist Lynn Symansky, Doug Payne, and Tamra Smith. Each shares their unique experiences and viewpoint from the Games.

Look Behind the Curtain at the Pan American Games with Cesar Hirsch

Cesar Hirsch, the Sports Advisor for the Lima 2019 Pan American Games, joins us on the show this week to discuss some of the logistics for the games, including the venue and infrastructure, how many horses will be traveling to Peru, and the organizational structure and volunteers for the games.

Then, Loris Henry comes on the show to continue our series with past USEA Presidents in honor of the 60th anniversary of the USEA. Having served as President from 1999 to 2001, Henry talks about the changes that took place during her presidency, including the switch from the name combined training to the name eventing and the challenges that arose during that transition. She also discusses the greatest successes that came out of the time she served as President. 

Ride Your Best Dressage Test with Valerie Vizcarrondo Pride and Christian Landolt

This week's episode features USEF "S" and FEI Level II eventing judge Valerie Vizcarrondo Pride and FEI and Grand Prix dressage judge Christian Landolt sharing their tips and tricks for how to get the most out of your dressage test, including common mistakes they see and ways to squeeze out a few extra points.

Preparations for the Pan American Games with Erik Duvander and Will Connell

With the 2019 Pan American Games just over one month away, we took some time to catch up with US Equestrian Eventing High Performance Director Erik Duvander and US Equestrian Sports Director Will Connell about the preparations leading up to Lima.

Erik Duvander comes on the show first to talk about the team selection process, including initial scouting all the way through final selection, the selection of the final prep run location, which will take place in the CCI3*-S at the Maryland Horse Trials on July 5-7, 2019, and what final preparations for the team will look like in the month leading up to the Pan American Games.

Next, Will Connell joins us to discuss the logistics of shipping a team to a major competition like the Pan American Games, including the schedule, site visits, horse welfare concerns, transportation, accommodations, and more.

Then, as part of our Past Presidents series in honor of the 60^th anniversary of the Association, former USEA President Kingman Penniman comes on the show to reflect on his time spent at the helm of the USEA.

Reflections From Major General Jonathan R. Burton

Tune into this special episode of the USEA Podcast for an exclusive interview with Major General Jonathan R. Burton. 

Major General Burton passed away on May 29, 2019 at the age of 99. During his time with the U.S. Army, Burton appeared on the 1948 U.S. Olympic show jumping team and 1956 U.S. Olympic three-day eventing team. In 1953, he helped to organize the first continuous horse trial in the U.S. He also wrote the first rulebook for combined training. After his retirement from the U.S. Army, Burton served as Executive Vice President for the U.S. Equestrian Team for 10 years and as President of the U.S. Combined Training Association (now United States Eventing Association) from 1985-1987. He was inducted into the USEA Hall of Fame and the US Dressage Federation Hall of Fame. He was also a member of the group that established the North American Young Rider Championships in the 1980s. He worked as an FEI judge, technical delegate, and steward until the age of 92.

Get a Behind-the-Scenes Look at the 2019 USEA AEC

Get a behind-the-scenes look at the preparations for the 2019 USEA American Eventing Championships, taking place August 27-September 1 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky.

First, Tamra Smith, winner of the 2018 Adequan USEA Gold Cup Final (known going forward as the $60,000 Adequan USEA Advanced Final), shares her reflection on the competition and discusses her plans for the fall season.

USEA AEC co-organizer Mary Fike then comes on the show to share details on what attendees can expect this year at the Kentucky Horse Park.

Finally, Mike Huber joins us on the program to continue our series with past Presidents of the USEA in the lead up to the 60th anniversary celebration at the 2019 USEA Annual Meeting & Convention this December in Boston. Huber reflects on the time he spent as USEA President, including the construction of a permanent office space in Leesburg, Virginia and the restructuring of the Board of Governors.

Reflections on the 2019 USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship

Each of the four members of the champion team from the 2019 USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship at the Chattahoochee Hills Horse Trials reflects on their winning weekend. Auburn University's Team Auburn Orange consisted of Aubrey Wagner and Fernhill Sinatra, Sallie Johnson and Things to Ponder, Dorothy Dreelin and Subtle Dreams Unveiled, and Isabel Franklin and Anchorman. Each team member talks about the partnerships they share with their horses and with each other as well as their plans for the future. Chattahoochee Hills Horse Trials’ organizer Hugh Lochore rounds out the episode by looking back on the venue's first time hosting the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championships. 

Meet Jersey Fresh CCI4*-L Champion Fylicia Barr and her $500 Craigslist Mare

First up on the show this week is Fylicia Barr, winner of the Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event CCI4*-L with her longtime partner Galloway Sunrise. Barr tells the story of how she found “Sunny” in an ad on Craigslist and paid $500 to bring her home as an unbroken, nearly feral 2-year-old. It wasn’t easy to bring her up the levels, but last weekend she and Barr took home their first four-star win. Barr also talks about her riding background, how she got started in eventing, and her budding training and coaching business.

Next, past USEA President Denny Emerson comes on the show to talk about the time he spent at the helm of the USEA, the milestones he oversaw, and some of his personal memories of his time in office. Emerson served as USEA President from 1982-1984 and from 1991-1992.

Contrasting Perspectives: Boyd Martin and Ariel Grald Reflect on #LRK3DE

This week on the USEA Podcast we are joined by the new USEF CCI5*-L National Champion Boyd Martin, who rode Christine Turner's Tsetserleg to an overall second place finish at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event, and LRK3DE Rookie Ariel Grald, who finished in 12th place aboard Anne Eldridge's Leamore Master Plan. 

Grald reviews her performance over the course of the weekend, discusses her takeaways as a newbie to the CCI5*-L level, how she handles the nerves of competing at the highest level, and what lies down the road for her and Leamore Master Plan.

Martin talks about how his partnership with "Thomas" has progressed since the World Equestrian Games last fall, how he has prepared this spring to compete at Kentucky, his cross-country round, and his plans for what the rest of the year might look like.