Competitors in the U.S. Eventing Association’s Area V will have two new Fédération Equestre Internationale competitions added to their calendar for 2017.
With the sale of Greenwood Farms (Texas), and the subsequent loss of the Weatherford and Greenwood CCI* and CIC** this spring, riders in Area V, and Texas specifically, had been left without any nearby FEI competitions.
Tre’ and Janet Book, of Willow Draw Farm in Weatherford, saw the need for a new FEI competition and applied this year. They hosted their first USEA recognized event May 28-29 and plan to host another on Nov. 5.
The new FEI event will offer a CIC* and CCI* on Sept. 30-Oct. 1, 2017, with courses designed by Adri Lea Doyal and new fences designed by Marvin Savage.
Willow Draw is just a few miles down the road from the former Weatherford And Greenwood site and is a popular schooling facility with a full cross-country course and gallop track.
The farm has hosted combined tests, hunter/jumper and dressage shows, and its two 2016 horse trials, with cross-country courses designed by Carsten Meyer, benefit charity.
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“Semper Fi Fund is who we give our $10,000 to [in the spring],” said Tre’. “The fall show is St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. With the national shows, we made a decision from Day 1 to make them charity shows.”
Willow Draw boasts good terrain and great viewing for cross-country.
“We have a lot of terrain change and a lot of hills,” said Tre’. “We have a lot of land technicalities we can use that are similar to the East Coast. We only have 30 stalls, so our FEI event will be limited to 30 horses. By doing that, it allows us to focus. They’re the primary focus.”
The Texas Rose Horse Park, home to the Nutrena USEA American Eventing Championships from 2013-2015, has been approved to run a CIC** and CIC* May 11-14, 2017, adding another competition for riders aiming for three-day events.
“Now that Texas Rose is doing a spring event, we’ll be doing the fall event. For Area V you either had to go to the East Coast or to Colorado to get started on a track for the one-stars. Now that there are two one-stars between the two venues, it’s really helping out the central area not traveling as far,” said Tre’.
