Gary Brewster of West Vancouver, BC, won the gold medal in the 1.30m division of the Western Canadian Show Jumping Championships. Riding CinqueCento Z, an eight-year-old grey Zangersheide gelding owned by Okanagan Show Jumping Stables, Brewster delivered two clear rounds on the final day to finish the three days of competition with a final score of .77 faults.

“It was a very fun competition,” said Brewster. “When it is spread over three days, you had to be consistent. The format rewarded consistency. The course designer did a good job with the time allowed; you could not relax and play it safe or else you would have walked out of the ring with a lot of time faults.”

Brewster was extremely pleased with his victory, considering that his mount, CinqueCento Z, is lucky to be alive. While competing in Arizona, the horse ate oleander, a poisonous plant, and was operated on.

“I bought him as a six-year-old, but he missed his seven-year-old year because of a freak thing,” said Brewster, whose horses are based at Fairway Farms in Langley, BC. “He is getting back on track now and making up for his lost year. He’s very careful, and has a lot of heart. Especially in a competition like this, you see that he is very consistent.”

As for Anderson Ranch, Brewster noted, “It is my first time being to Anderson Ranch in a couple of years. We’ve had a great time, the horses really enjoyed the facility and they all jumped well. When John (Anderson) told me about the Western Canadian Championships, I said I would come and support it. John is working hard to come up with some exciting new ideas. He’s done a great job with the sponsorship and the presentation.”

Liz Ashton of Victoria, BC, took the silver medal with a three-day total of 6 faults riding Vibrance, her eight-year-old chestnut Dutch Warmblood gelding. Calgary’s Jay Duke earned the bronze with a total of 9.21 faults riding Quiz Z.

Tamie Phillips of Strathmore, AB, won the 1.40m division of the Western Canadian Championships riding Dressman. Despite having a rail down in the final round, Phillips’ final score of 16.03 faults gave her the gold medal.

“I really liked the concept,” raved Phillips. “Instead of just ‘run and win,’ it promotes good riding and good horsemanship. I think people will be really excited to do this next year.”

Phillips has been partnered with Dressman, a feisty seven-year-old chestnut Hannoverian gelding, since purchasing him in January in Germany.

“I call him my little red rocket,” said Phillips, who was showing Dressman in the 1.40m division for the first time. “He’s a hot head, but he’s really brave and really fun! I really, really enjoy him. He is a fun horse to ride.”

A well-known local trainer, Phillips has also several students competing at the Rocky Mountain Classic, including Lynne Teasell who won the gold and silver medals in the 1.15m division.

“We’ve had a great summer,” Phillips said. “From the 2’6 hunters to the CSI Grand Prix riders, everyone can come out and have success, and have a good time. It’s been super fun. It is professional and well-run with beautiful jumps, and yet there is not so much pressure that it takes the fun away. That is what sets is apart from other show jumping venues – it still keeps the fun aspect! I have had clients here through week one to week three, and everyone has left with a sense of achievement.”

Calgary’s Kristy Yopyk moved up on the final day to claim the silver medal with a total of 18.19 faults riding Ravel while Germany’s Enrico Suessenbach took the bronze riding Grosso Gold with 21.71 faults.

Held over three days with all scores counting, Jackman-Atkinson was in third position coming into the final day of competition in the Western Canadian Championships. Two clear rounds riding Neopolitan in Saturday’s two-round final put Jackman-Atkinson in top spot with an overall score of 2.78 faults.

“I have had Neopolitan since 2003, but she was hurt and it has been five years since I competed with her,” explained Jackman-Atkinson of her 13-year-old Irish-bred mare. “I brought her back to competition, and it is so nice to win!”

Despite competing at Anderson Ranch for the first time, Jackman-Atkinson and Neopolitan had no trouble adjusting to the new venue.

“She loves galloping on grass, so this worked out pretty well for us!” said Jackman-Atkinson, who is the editor of the Neepawa Banner. Her husband, Matthew, is a professional trainer who also competed at the Rocky Mountain Classic show jumping tournament. “It is our first time showing outside of Manitoba since we moved back there in 2006. This is a really nice facility. The horses like the footing, the jumps are nice, and the course is beautiful.”

Of the format, competing over three days to claim an overall championship, Jackman-Atkinson said, “I thought it was really neat and different. You watch events like the World Cup Final that are run similarly, and it was fun to be a part of that. You don’t often get that at the lower levels. It was special.”

In the awards ceremony, the top eight horses were invited back into the ring for ribbon presentations. The top three finishers were then invited to step onto the podium, where they were presented with gold, silver and bronze medals, sashes, and bottles of sparkling wine, which the winners had fun spraying on each other. All division winners were also presented with a pair of Wildkart Stirrups, compliments of Francis Berger of Equus Integral.

While Jackman-Atkinson was presented with the gold medal with a total score of 2.78 faults, Jenna Macoun and Sprite earned the silver with 5.27 faults after jumping double clear on the final day, and Macaela Sobie of Calgary, AB, won the bronze riding Cha Ching.

In the 1.15m division, Lynne Teasell of Okotoks, AB, dominated the competition, winning both the gold and silver medals. With Calida, a 10-year-old Holsteiner mare, Teasell posted four clear rounds to take the gold medal with a perfect score of zero. With Verina, an eight-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare that Teasell has been riding for one year, a final score of 1.03 faults earned the pair silver. Glynis Barnes of High River, AB, was also double clear on the final day to earn the bronze medal with 1.80 faults riding Millennium Z.

“It has been such a fun competition, being consistent over all three days, and I am so happy with my girls!” said Teasell. “This is my third season with Calida, and she can be a little on the kooky side – she is pretty hot and gets nervous, but she tries really hard. She has really come into her own this year; she is hunting the fences and is just naturally fast. Verina is very sweet and tries very hard, and the two of them are best buddies. They get turned out together, and they are stabled together.”

A family doctor, Teasell was cheered on in the Western Canadian Championships by her husband, Greg Schnell, and their two sons, Michael, 7, and Matthew, 4. Teasell keeps her horses at Aspen Creek, commuting to train with Tamie Phillips of Strathmore, AB.

“Tamie has been fantastic, she is a wonderful coach,” raved Teasell. “Because she competes herself, she has such good feel. And she accepts Calida’s quirkiness, which is important!”

Of the inaugural three-day Western Canadian Championship, Teasell said, “I thought it was really fun. It is nice to have a goal. With a final at the end, it gives you the feeling of pressure. It is a nice goal to try to be consistent from day to day.”

A regular competitor at the Rocky Mountain Show Jumping competitions produced by John Anderson and his team, Teasell said, “What John has done for the sport is amazing. He is giving us that stepping stone to reach the next level. The shows are well organized, it is a beautiful facility, and John is so encouraging of the kids. He is also continually improving the facility, the fences are beautiful, and the footing is great. We are very lucky.”

Calgary area athletes held down the top three positions in the 1.20m division. Melissa Macdonald took the gold medal with a total score of four faults riding Fate. Elizabeth Easton earned the silver with a score of 8.45 faults riding Cetro Z while Calgary’s Angelica Jones was third with 8.77 faults riding Platinum.

In the final round, Macdonald of Millarville, AB, was double clear to earn the gold medal with Fate, a nine-year-old Dutch Warmblood/Thoroughbred-cross mare bred in Wilsonville, Oregon. The pair has been together for three seasons, and has advanced up through the levels together, starting in the .90m division. Macdonald hopes that she and Fate will be able to compete up to the 1.40m division together.

“She is super excited to jump all the time, she loves it!” said Macdonald, 16, who trains with Erin Taylor at Ironstone Farm in Calgary. “I found the Western Canadian Championships to be very nerve-wracking. The pressure was on every day, and everything was riding on the jump-off.”

Macdonald’s family lives on a farm in Millarville and has western trail horses. While her parents ride recreationally, Macdonald’s older sister is also a show jumping competitor.

“Right now, I am looking forward to doing the 1.20m division at the Spruce Meadows “Masters” for the first time, and my long-term goal is to show in the International Ring at Spruce Meadows,” said Macdonald, who is a student at Holy Trinity Academy in Okotoks. “That is why I came to Rocky Mountain this week, to prepare for Spruce Meadows. The Grand Prix ring here is easy to gallop around in, and it is close to home.”

Presenting sponsors of the inaugural $25,000 Western Canadian Show Jumping Championships were Cavalor, Starting Gate Communications, and Rocky Mountain Media. The Western Canadian Show Jumping Championships offered five divisions – 1.10m, 1.15m, 1.20m, 1.30m and 1.40m, with a total of $25,000 in prize money being distributed. Riders counted their scores over three days of competition held Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

The $25,000 Western Canadian Championships were introduced in 2010 by the Canadian Equestrian Development League and the Alberta Hunter Horse Society, two Alberta equestrian organizations formed to encourage and grow the sport of show jumping at the grass roots level.

The win has propelled her into third place in the HSBC FEI Classics™, behind William Fox-Pitt (GBR), the new leader, and Andreas Dibowski (GER) with one event left, Les Etoiles de Pau in France in November, where Fox-Pitt has already declared a possible runner in Navigator.

Powell, 37, did not put a foot wrong all weekend on the 17-year-old Lenamore, who stands only 15.2hh. “He was such a wee star,” she said. “The owner, Lexi Mackinnon, is getting married next week. I’d told her that I hadn’t got her a wedding present and that I’d try and win Burghley for her! I can’t believe that’s come off.”

William Fox-Pitt (GBR) missed a record sixth Burghley victory by 4 penalties, but he said it was “an honour” to finish second to such a popular, seasoned combination, and was pleased with the form shown by both his horses, Seacookie, second, and Macchiato, sixth.

Clayton Fredericks (AUS) scored his best ever Burghley result, third, a considerable feat of horsemanship on a horse with which he had only slight acquaintance. He got the ride on the German-owned Be My Guest this summer. “She’s not the easiest ride, but everything I tried with her seemed to work. She’s a very good jumper, but sometimes a little too bold.”

The jumping course, designed by Richard Jeffreys, who will be officiating at the forthcoming Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™, rode well on improved footing and produced 18 clears. Three riders finished on their Dressage scores: Powell, Fredericks, and Mark Todd (NZL), 11th on Major Milestone. Lauren Shannon (GBR), 12th on Zero Flight, won the HSBC Training Bursary for the best CCI4* debut.

Caroline Powell, who is based in Kelso, Scotland, but hails from Christchurch in New Zealand, has had a long road to success, but now her achievement in winning Burghley puts her on the roll of honour with fellow countrymen Mark Todd, Blyth Tait and Andrew Nicholson. She initially came to Britain to work for Ian Stark (GBR), whom she accompanied to the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.

She got the ride on Lenamore, one of the oldest horses to win Burghley, in 2004 and was fourth at Badminton on him last year. She was a member of the New Zealand team with Lenamore in 2006 and 2008 and will compete Mac Macdonald in Kentucky.

Results
1. Caroline Powell/Lenamore (NZL) 38.7 + 0 + 0 = 38.7
2. William Fox-Pitt/Seacookie (GBR) 40.3 + 1.6 + 1 = 42.9
3. Clayton Fredericks/Be My Guest (AUS) 45.8 + 0 = 45.8
4. Oliver Townend/Carousel Quest (GBR) 39.2 + 0.4 + 8 = 46.6
5. Mary King/Apache Sauce (GBR) 44.8 + 0 + 4 = 48.8
6. William Fox-Pitt/Macchiato (GBR) 46.8 + 2 + 0 = 48.8
7. Mary King/Kings Temptress (GBR) 45.3 + 0 + 4 = 49.3
8. Clea Phillipps/Lead The Way (GBR) 49.5 + 0.4 + 0 = 49.9
9. Anna Warnecke/Twinkle Bee (GER) 50.5 + 0 + 1 = 51.5
10. Francis Whittington/Sir Percival lll (GBR) 48.3 + 0 + 4 = 52.3

Full results on http://www.burghley-horse.co.uk/

The 37-year-old, who is based in Scotland, produced a foot-perfect round on the 17-year-old grey Lenamore, one of the best cross-country horses on the international circuit. Powell has never won a CCI4* before, and she was cautious in her celebrations tonight as she does not have a Jumping fence in hand over two Britons, Oliver Townend, the defending champion on Carousel Quest, and five-times winner William Fox-Pitt, who is lying third on Seacookie.

The New Zealander had to call on all her experience to remain focused during a one-hour delay while medical staff attended to Nicola Malcolm (GBR), Powell’s near neighbour in Scotland, who was airlifted to hospital after a fall with McFly at fence 19, a hedge. Malcolm was later reported to be conscious and likely to be discharged from hospital tomorrow morning. “The wait didn’t bother me too much as it’s happened to me before and I knew I was going out there on a horse that knows its job so well,” said Powell. “He’s a very special horse and he just loves it.”

Mary King (GBR), the 1996 Burghley winner, was the only rider to complete two clear rounds inside the time, to end the day in fourth on Apache Sauce and fifth on her home-bred mare Kings Temptress.

Dressage leader Ruth Edge (GBR), departed from the reckoning when Two Thyme refused at the hedge out of the water at the Trout Hatchery (fence 10), but 19-year-old Christoffer Forsberg (SWE), fifth after Dressage, had a first Burghley to remember when he went clear, albeit with 15.2 time penalties, on the 18-year-old Forsberg and is now in 20th place. “It is a dream to be here,” he said. Mark Todd (NZL), a five-times winner and having his first Burghley ride since 2000 , is lying 11th with Major Milestone; Geoff Curran (IRL) is the best of the 25 Burghley first-timers, in 12th place on The Jump Jet; and Pippa Funnell (GBR), enjoying her first return for six years, is in 19th place on Mirage d’Elle, having had 20 penalties for a refusal on the edge of the steep drop at fence 4, the Leaf Pit, rescinded.

Andrew Nicholson (NZL), winner of Burghley in 1995 and 2000, is in 13th place on Armada, but dropped down the order with Avebury after the grey gelding ran out at the second corner at the Land Rover Dairy Farm (fence 17b).

Riders were full of praise for Mark Phillips’s Cross-Country course, where the lines were deemed to be “horse-friendly”. There were 47 clear rounds, 11 inside the optimum time of 10 minutes 54 seconds, and 58 of the 72 starters completed. “Mark Phillips and his team have done a brilliant job,” said 2009 HSBC FEI Classics™ winner Townend. “It was what you expect Burghley to be: big, exciting and demanding attacking riding.”

Results
1. Caroline Powell/Lenamore (NZL) 38.7 + 0 0= 38.7
2. Oliver Townend/Carousel Quest (GBR) 39.2 + 0.4 = 39.6
3. William Fox-Pitt/Seacookie (GBR) 40.3 + 1.6 = 41.9
4. Mary King/Apache Sauce (GBR) 44.8 + 0 0= 44.8
5. Mary King/Kings Temptress (GBR) 45.3 + 0 = 45.3
6. Clayton Fredericks/Be My Guest (AUS) 45.8 + 0 = 45.8
7. Francis Whittington/Sir Percival lll (GBR) 48.3 + 0 = 48.3
8. William Fox-Pitt/Macchiato (GBR) 46.8 + 2 = 48.8
9. Clea Phillipps/Lead The Way (GBR) 49.5 + 0.4 = 49.9
10. Anna Warnecke/Twinkle Bee (GER) 50.5 + 0 = 50.5

Follow with live results on http://www.burghley-horse.co.uk/

For the four-year-old daughter of Cloud Hopping, the seven-furlong event was her first added-money score since the La Lorgnette Stakes, at Woodbine last May. Jockey Emile Ramsammy, who also guided her in the La Lorgnette, was back in the irons for the successful Seaway steer. Hooh Why is trained by Donald MacRae and is owned by Derby Daze Farm, Mark Hoffman and Earl Trostrud.

“Mark (Hoffman) and I are friends,” said MacRae. “He was leaving her up here for a bit and he had to go out of town. He left her with me. Mark and I talk every day. I kept her under his program. I just had to keep her happy. She’s a classy filly.”

Hooh Why’s performance was an improvement from her fourth-place finish in the Belle Mahone (Aug. 22) and more reminiscent of the form she showed when claiming the Grade 1 Ashland at Keeneland in 2009. In the middle of a hot pace battle (:22.86 and :44.81) from the outset, the chestnut fended off an outside challenge from even-money favorite Tribal Belle. Turning for home and into the teeth of a fierce headwind, a bid came from second-choice Mother Russia, who had enjoyed a stalking trip. Hooh Why continued to hold her ground and maintain her advantage.

A stretch move from Indian Apple Is also was to no avail, as Hooh Why stayed on to the wire for the 1 3/4-length tally. Mother Russia was third.

Hooh Why covered seven furlongs in 1:23.51. The filly is now 6-for-22 with over $750,000 in earnings.

Hooh Why returned $15.50, $5.50 and $3.80, combining with Indian Apple Is ($4.70, $3.20) for a $63.20 exactor. Mother Russia ($3.40) rounded out a triactor worth $260.10.

However, Edge, a renowned exponent of this phase, has just 0.4 of a penalty in hand over New Zealander Caroline Powell, who scored a career best on another 17-year-old, the evergreen Lenamore, and defending champions Oliver Townend and Carousel Quest, who produced the only other sub-40 penalty test, are a further 0.5 of a penalty behind in third.

Two Thyme is only competed sparingly these days – his last Cross-Country run was in June – but Edge has prepared him specifically for his first crack at the Land Rover Trophy.
“He always tries so hard,” said Edge, whose previous best placing at Burghley was 17th on Marsh Mayfly in 2006. “He’s on great form and feels really up for it.”

There was plenty to excite a capacity crowd enjoying the sunshine and a succession of well-ridden tests.

The young Swedish first-timer Christoffer Forsberg sprang a surprise by slotting into fifth place, just behind William Fox-Pitt on his second ride, Seacookie. At 19, Forsberg, who is just a year older than his horse, Grafman, is the youngest rider in the field but he produced one of the most consistently rhythmic performances of the day.

Clayton Fredericks (AUS) declared himself “rapt” with his ninth-placed performance on his new ride, having leased the Thoroughbred mare Be My Guest from her German owners. “Everything I asked for she gave me. She’s not the biggest mover, but now I’ve got the bitting and warm-up sorted. You’ve just got to keep her sweet.”

Mark Todd’s return to Burghley after a 10-year break elicited huge cheers and he declared: “It feels as if I haven’t been away.” The New Zealander has only competed Major Milestone, a novice at this level, three times, but declared himself well-pleased with equal 29th place at this stage and, with 20 penalties – the price of a Cross-country refusal – covering the top 46 riders, it’s all to play for tomorrow.

Looking ahead, riders have declared Mark Phillips’ Cross-Country course a typically big Burghley challenge, where the undulating ground tends to make the optimum time harder to achieve than at the season’s other CCI4*s.

“It’s a good track,” Clayton Fredericks summed up. “You get lulled into a false sense of security when you walk it, but when the crowds are out tomorrow, suddenly the line that seemed so obvious before, will seem much narrower and horses react to that – you have to keep them going forward. It’s going to be a really exciting day.”

Results
1. Ruth Edge/Two Thyme (GBR) 38.3
2. Caroline Powell/Lenamore (NZL) 38.7
3. Oliver Townend/Carousel Quest (GBR) 39.2
4. William Fox-Pitt/Seacookie (GBR) 40.3
5. Christoffer Forsberg/Grafman (SWE) 44.3
6. Mary King/Apache Sauce (GBR) 44.8*
7. Andrew Nicholson/Avebury (NZL) 45.0
8. Mary King/Kings Temptress (GBR) 45.3
9. Clayton Fredericks/Be My Guest (AUS) 45.8
10. William Fox-Pitt/Macchiato (GBR) 46.8*
*denotes error of course

Riding the 14-year-old white-faced chestnut Apache Sauce, fourth here in 2008, she missed part of the final canter work and, on arriving at halt, had to be interrupted by Ground Jury member Marilyn Payne (USA). “I haven’t done that for years,” a smiling King said afterwards, confessing to a “blonde moment”. She continued: “But when I went back and did the flying changes, they came off much better! You never know how Apache Sauce will go; sometimes he can be a real ‘red-head’, but he was on his best behaviour today.”

King’s long-time team mate William Fox-Pitt (GBR), a five-times winner of Burghley and currently second in the $333,000 HSBC FEI Classics™, is in second place on the handsome Argentine Thoroughbred Macchiato – also having suffered a minor aberration.

Fox-Pitt was penalised with an error of course after entering the arena more than 45 seconds after the bell had rung. “I had got myself into a position where I couldn’t see the clock. I’ve never done that one before!” he explained. “Macchiato has started to really come on in the Dressage,” added Fox-Pitt, who won Luhmühlen in 2008 on the 12-year-old bay gelding. “He’s a sensitive and forward-going horse who always tries to please.”

Despite her contrasting lack of experience, third-placed Laura Collett (GBR), 21, contesting her first Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials, managed not to forget any of her test. She produced a composed performance on Ginger May Killinghurst, a 15-year-old chestnut mare by Dallas, who has previously been ridden at four-star level by Andrew Nicholson (NZL) and M-J Tumbridge (BER). Collett is a former Junior and Young Rider European Champion, but she admitted: “Those courses now look rather small compared to this!”

Describing her first Burghley as “amazing”, she has walked the Cross-Country with British team manager Yogi Breisner and pronounced it: “A lovely course – as big as you would expect. I’ve had some serious braking problems with Ginger May Killinghurst, but I’ve borrowed a new bit from Lucy Wiegersma and hopefully that will do the trick. I’m definitely going to take the long route at the first of the Dairy Mound Corners.”

Enjoying perfect sunny conditions, 38 of the 77 starters have now performed their Dressage tests in front of Martin Plewa (GER), Marilyn Payne (USA) and Les Smith (GBR), seven of them scoring under 50.

Performances of interest included Pippa Funnell (GBR), back at Burghley for the first time since 2004, in fourth place with the French-bred Mirage d’Elle; Marina Köhncke (GER), seventh on the beautiful bay mare Calma Schelly and making her Burghley debut – her first four-star event since the Sydney Olympics 10 years ago; and Kate Walls (GBR), whose horse Alter Ego, in ninth place, has made a remarkable recovery from breaking his back in a fall at Luhmühlen last year.

But it could be all change tomorrow (Friday). Renowned Dressage expert Ruth Edge (GBR) is still to come on her 2007 Luhmühlen winner Two Thyme, who has been carefully prepared for Burghley, and World silver medallist Clayton Fredericks’ (AUS) first CCI4* with new ride Be My Guest will be of interest.

King and Fox-Pitt still have their second horses to come, and strong performances are expected from the defending champion, Oliver Townend (GBR) on Carousel Quest, plus other former winners Mark Todd (NZL) with Major Milestone and Andrew Nicholson (NZL), on Avebury. 

Results
1 Mary King/Apache Sauce (GBR) 44.8*
2 William Fox-Pitt/Macchiato (GBR) 46.8*
3 Laura Collett/Ginger May Killinghurst (GBR) 47.0
4 Pippa Funnell/Mirage d’Elle (GBR) 48.2
5 Capt Geoff Curran/The Jump Jet (IRL) 48.8
6 James Robinson/Comanche (GBR) 49.0
7 Marina Köhncke/Calma Schelly (GER) 49.3
8 Anna Warnecke/Twinkle Bee (GER) 50.5
9 Kate Walls/Altar Ego (GBR) 51.7
10= Nici Wilson/Oingy Boingy (GBR) 52.0
10= Michael Pollard/Wonderful Will (USA) 52.0
*error of course

There are over 65 horses scheduled to over the next five days, with the first load scheduled on Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 1200 hrs MDT. This years roster/cargo includes, World, Olympic, and Continental champions, as well as the world famous Celle Stallions.

The arrival of the charter means that the 2010 Spruce Meadows “Masters” Tournament is only days away.  These horses along with their riders will be competing for over $2 million in prize money over the five days of top international show jumping.

“It is fantastic that Equine Canada is finally in a position to support recreational programs,” said Equine Canada President, Mike Gallagher. “I want to thank Horse Council British Columbia for their commitment to getting this first major project off the ground.”

The following projects received a total of $26,000 in funding:
• The Sooke Saddle Club will create a Trail Riders’ Rest Area created in William Simmons Memorial Park, which forms the hub of a proposed network of multi-use trails for the Otter Point area of southern Vancouver Island.  The rest area will feature a hitching rail, a mounting block, a manure bin, picnic table, and signs to allow safe crossing of Otter Point Road.
• The Yarrow Chapter of Back Country Horsemen of British Columbia has undertaken the creation of a horse camp adjacent to the Manning Park Resort.  The grant will allow them to prepare the location for five horse camp sites in a fenced enclosure with access to the popular recreational trails in Manning Park. (This is a major project that will take several years to complete fully, but the ultimate goal is to have hitching rails, picnic tables, fire pits and corrals at the site.)
• The Okanagan Chapter of Back Country Horsemen of British Columbia has been given a grant to partially fund the purchase of corral panels that will triple the capacity for overnight camping at the site. 
• The Bouchie Lake Gymkhana Club will receive a grant that will supply a portion of the funds required to create a new warm up and dressage arena for the facility.
• The Endurance Riders Association of British Columbia has a ride camp on the Coutlee Plateau near Merritt and their grant will help with restoration and to bring a much-needed water line into the camp.  
• The Powell River Trail Riders Club applied for funding towards improving their indoor arena footing.
• North Vancouver Island Horse Association received a grant to help fund the installation of livestock pens at the Comox Valley Fairgrounds. 
• HCBC Industry Committee applied for funding to host a Jennifer Woods Horse Hauling course at the 2011 Equine Industry Conference in Kelowna.
• Slocan Valley Outriders Association applied for funding to replace wooden stalls at their facility with metal panel stalls.
• The Sointula Riding Club will purchase round pen panels and erect bleachers for their riding arena, the only community riding ring in the area.

“British Columbia is the first of our partnering provinces to launch this new national initiative.  We are delighted that we will soon be rolling out similar grants in the Yukon, Manitoba, Ontario, and New Brunswick, nourishing grassroots equestrianism from coast to coast to coast,” said Equine Canada CEO, Akaash Maharaj.

The former publisher of The Game Thoroughbred Newspaper, Stacie Roberts has been involved in the thoroughbred industry in Ontario with her family for more than 25 years.

“Stacie’s knowledge of the thoroughbred industry in Canada coupled with her creative and communication skills will help to promote the Canadian Thoroughbred industry both nationally and internationally through The Jockey Club of Canada initiatives,” said Mr. Lawson.

Along with her administrative duties for The Jockey Club of Canada, Stacie will also be responsible for the administrative duties of the Ontario Horse Racing Industry Association (OHRIA) under the leadership of OHRIA’s President, Sue Leslie.

The Jockey Club of Canada was founded in 1973 by E.P. Taylor to serve as the international representative of the Canadian Thoroughbred industry and to promote improvements to Thoroughbred racing and breeding, both in Canada and internationally. The Jockey Club operates a field office of The Jockey Club (New York); organizes the Sovereign Awards; administers the Canadian Graded Stakes program; liaises with foreign Jockey Clubs; promotes Thoroughbred ownership; and represents Canada at international racing conferences.