Erin Gilmore

Jessica Newman and JustWorld International leverage the power of horses for a greater good.

“It’s not just about the blue coats and the logo. It’s more than that,” says Jessica Newman.

But it’s those blue coats and Newman’s familiar face that pop up at horse shows all over the world, all year long.

At 7:45 a.m. on Thursday morning, Day 2 of the George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Session hadn’t officially begun yet, but Morris himself was already in the saddle. While the sun was still making its way out of the clouds, Morris rode among the first group of riders, aboard a horse he’d commandeered from GHM participant Olivia Champ.

In his world, if you’re not early, you’re late.

Day 2 began with trotting—lots of it. And then cantering—lots of that, too. A thorough warm-up is absolutely essential when an intense lesson in gymnastic jumping is ahead, Morris intoned.

Twelve of the country’s top young riders arrived at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington, Fla., before sunrise on Jan. 2 to prepare for the 2013 George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Session. They came from all corners of the country and from leading show barns, some with their own horses and some aboard borrowed mounts.

Kindness is a virtue.

And loyalty. And friendship. And hard work. Ask anyone on the West Coast to name an especially virtuous rider, and there’s a good chance that Lane Clarke will come up in conversation.

Mr. Whoopy is the kind of horse who can sometimes get in his own way. His bucks and leaps between fences have become his calling card but have also been known to cost him valuable seconds in the ring.

“He tends to play a little bit when he shouldn’t, but that’s kind of his deal,” said rider Duncan McFarlane. “If you were to take away the play, maybe it would take away his jump. It’s kind of a trade with him, but it does pay off.”

September 2—Bridgehampton, N.Y.

Course designer Guillherme Jorge put a lot of thought into the number of fences he would include for the $250,000 FTI Consulting Grand Prix CSI-W at the Hampton Classic Horse Show. In fact, it wasn’t until he saw the final list of entries on the morning of the class that he made his final decision.

“At this level of competition, it’s always a very fine line between an easy course and a difficult course,” he explained. “But this is a very important class and very important prize money.”

Tropical Storm Isaac left an unwelcome surprise for residents of Wellington, Fla., on Monday, Aug. 27, as widespread flooding overwhelmed many areas of the city.

Beginning on Sunday night, more than 14 inches of rain fell during a 24-hour period as the outer bands of Isaac passed over Florida. Canals crested their banks, and water rose as high as 4 feet over major roads on Monday afternoon. Much of Binks Forest and Aero Club Road were completely under water, as was the normally busy intersection of Wellington Trace and Greenview Shores Blvd.

With one well-placed push along the sacroiliac joint, a loud popping sound ricochets from somewhere along the back of the horse’s body, inspiring a sigh of relief and instant licking and chewing.

“You’d be hard pressed to find something, short of Washington, D.C., that is more politicized than the horse show world. So really I haven’t gone far,” said Miles Hildebrand, DVM, as he steps back to survey the horse’s reaction to his adjustment.

Although the United States and Canada both fronted star-studded teams, it was a “young” squad from Germany that took top honors in the $75,000 Nations Cup at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival on March 2 in Wellington, Fla.

Veteran rider Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum anchored the team that featured three riders under the age of 30. The German team was excited to win on just 4 faults for the night.

On Feb. 21, Robert Ridland was named as George Morris’ successor as the next U.S. show jumping chef d’ equipe, a position that will begin in 2013 when Morris retires.