PR Pony Junkie, Johnny Robb, acquired two more little horses, Barnes & Noble. Johnny said she purchased them as a tribute to rider/author, Tami Hoag and next year when Tami’s new murder mystery comes out she plans on driving Barnes & Noble to Barnes & Noble for Tami’s book signing. Ah how we justify our passions! But we have to agree these two are irresistibly cute!
Dressage rider Aileen Daly is known for dancing on horseback; but now the Aiken, South Carolina rider is going to be dancing with the stars! Aileen will take part in Dancing with the Aiken Stars on November 15th. Her dance partner will be Aiken pediatrician Dr. John Tiffany.
Lily Zilo and trainer Endel Ots took a trip to Europe and found Lily an exciting new horse. Windsor’s Aron is a stunning dark bay KWPN gelding with tons of talent. Rider and trainer have their sights set on the 2014 Asian Games! Best of luck with your new boy Lily!!
Congratulations to Olympians Michael Poulin and Ravel on making outstanding contributions to the sport of dressage in the United States! The USDF has announced they will both be inducted into the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame (HOF) during the Adequan/USDF Annual Convention inNew Orleans,Louisiana. Michael has shown a lifelong commitment to furthering dressage and dressage education in the U.S. and was part of the U.S. bronze medal team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
Michael was instrumental in the founding of the USDF Instructor/Trainer Program and founded The Dressage Foundation’s Advanced Young Rider Olympic Dream Program. Ravel, a 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding has awed crowds nationally and internationally since he entered the competition arena in 2008 with rider Steffen Peters. Akiko Yamazaki and her husband, Jerry Yang, purchased Ravel in 2006 from Tim Coomans, Netherlands, with the goal of Ravel being Steffen’s mount at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The pair went on to meet that goal, representing the U.S. at the Beijing Games and placing fourth individually. In 2009, Ravel and Steffen took first at the Rolex FEI World Cup, beating out nine-time World Champion Anky van Grunsven.
Anne Gribbons, the Technical Advisor to the U.S. Dressage Team since December 2009, has informed the USEF she does not wish to be considered for the position after her contract expires at the end of November. At the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, Anne guided the U.S. to a fourth place team finish and assisted Steffen Peters in winning two Individual Bronze medals with Ravel. At the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara,Mexico the U.S. Dressage Team had a historic medal sweep of all three Individual medals in addition to winning Team Gold. In the summer of 2012, Anne led theU.S. to sixth in London .
The dressage community was saddened by the loss of Patsy Albers, 76, who passed away unexpectedly in October. Patsy was a well known figure at dressage competitions throughout the United States as a director, manager, volunteer and official. She was awarded several volunteer awards throughout her life. Patsy was a fundraiser and Chef d’Equipe for many years for the North American Junior and Young Rider Championship (NAJYRC) Region 1 team. In 2010, a new Perpetual Trophy was donated in honor of Patsy. “The Albers Award” is presented each year at the championship. Patsy’s efforts enabled juniors and young riders with limited resources to try out and compete. Patsy’s latest work was the 2012 Dressage at Devon where she had been the FEI Event Director for many years.
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