2012 FEI World Endurance Guide

Photo Credit: ©Robyn

2012 LONGINES FEI WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIPNEWMARKET, GREAT BRITAIN AUGUST 25, 2012

2 2012 Longines FEI World Endurance Championship

The following horse-and-rider combinations have been named by the United States

Equestrian Federation to represent the U.S. in the 2012 Longines FEI World Endurance

Championship.

2012 Longines FEI World Endurance Championship 3

Crandell has been a professional farrier since 1983. This

has afforded him opportunities to serve as a shoeing and

training consultant worldwide. He has participated as a

rider or a staff member for equestrian endurance teams

for most FEI world championships, and many other ma-

jor international events since 1986.

John Crandell IIIBorn: April 21, 1962 Residence: West River, MDHeraldic – 14-year-old Arabian gelding owned by John Crandell Jr.

John Crandell III has been involved in the sport of En-

durance since 1976. In 2006, Crandell trained Heraldic to

earn the first “Triple Crown” in the history of American

endurance riding by winning the Old Dominion 100, The

Tevis, and the AERC National Championships and was

honored with the “Best Conditioned Horse” award at

each event.

In June 2007, Crandell and Heraldic won the Fort Howes

CEI3* 160 km race in Montana. Two months later, the

pair won the Arabian Nights CEI3* in Idaho. With his

successes in 2007, Crandell was named Chronicle of the

Horse “Overall Horseman of the Year.”

In July 2008, Crandell partnered with HH Saba Shams

finished second in the Greenway Gallivant CEI3* 160 km

race in Florida. With LR Jasuur Melika, Crandell complet-

ed the Goethe Challenge and President’s Cup that same

year.

In 2010 at the Goethe Challenge in Florida, Crandell had

a fourth place finish with LR Bold Greyson.

Crandell and Heraldic had a banner year in 2011. In

March, the pair won the 160 km race at FITS. Their

success continued with a win at the CEI2* 120 km race

in Millbrook, Ontario, Canada. At the Endurance Pan

American Games in Santo Domingo, Chile, Crandell and

Heraldic partnered yet again to compete in the CEIO2*

120km race. Finishing with a time of 6:03:38, Crandell

won an Individual Silver medal and helped his team earn

a Silver medal.

Photo Credit: Merri Melde-Endurance.net


Becky HartBorn: February 12, 1954 Residence: San Juan Bautista, CA No Repeat – 10-year-old Arabian gelding owned by Becky Hart

Becky Hart has long been a force on the endurance

scene. In her 38 years of riding, Hart has earned more

titles than many could ever dream of.

Hart is a two-time winner of the prestigious Tevis Cup

and Race of Champions in addition to winning the AERC

National Championship and North American Champion-

ship twice as well. As the only rider to have won the FEI

World Endurance Championship three times in a row,

she is in a class of her own.

Hart is a member of the AERC Hall of Fame and was the

Hertz/USET Equestrian of the Year in 1990. She is also a

previous recipient of the Chronicle of the Horse Overall

Horseman of the Year award.

In April of 2011, Hart and her gelding No Repeat added

to Hart’s 20,000+ miles ridden in competition when

they won the Buck Meadows Boogie. Only a few months

later, the pair took third in the CEI3* at the Patriots Day

at Lake Almanor event. They finished up the year with a

third place finish out of 43 riders in the North American

Endurance Team Challenge CEI3* for the bronze medal

and the Best Conditioned Horse award.

In 2012, the pair once again impressed at the CEI3* level

by taking third out of 45 of the best endurance riders in

the United States at the 2012 USA Team Trial Race.

In addition to riding, Becky is also an Active Official. She

has served on the AERC Board of Directors, USEF Board

of Trustees, and is an FEI 3-star judge. She has also been

the trainer for many world class riders in her 20 years of

teaching.

Photo Credit: Donna Shifflette


Kanavy started 2011 off on a winning note, winning the Dupuis Piney Pig CEI3* on her own Gold Raven in January. In May, she would pick up another CEI victory on Reach For the Gold at the Biltmore Challenge CEI2* event. This would start a string of top placings for the rider and her horses. In May, she would cross the border and finish second in the CEI2* 120 K CEI event in Millbrook Ontario before traveling to the Big Sky State to win the CEI3* at the Fort Howes Endurance Ride.

The 2011 Endurance Pan American Games in Chile would be Kanavy’s final ride of the year and she would go out on a high note, finishing third individually and was a member of the 2nd place U.S. team.

Kanavy would repeat her victory at the Dupuis Piney Pig event in January of 2012, winning the CEI3* on LM Parys. In July, Kanavy and her mount Reach For the Gold were named to the U.S. Endurance Team for the 2012 World Endurance Champi-onships.

In addition to being a top competitor, Kanavy gives back to her sport through organizing and managing competitive rides. She has attracted riders from the United Arab Emirates, Austra-lia and Europe, as well as the best from the U.S. and Canada. Kanavy and her husband, Larry, also own and operate Trev-Dan Building Supply Co., in Chester Springs, PA. They have three children.

Valerie KanavyBorn: July 9, 1946 Residence: Fort Valley, VAReach For The Gold – 9-year-old Arabian gelding owned by Valerie Kanavy

The eldest of six children, 1994 and 1998 World Endurance Champion Valerie Kanavy was the only family member with an interest in horses. Although her parents supported her desire to ride, they couldn’t afford to buy her a horse–so she did it herself. At age 11, she got her first horse for $150. Kanavy began competitive riding in 1972 after reading an article about the Tevis Cup in California. Since then, she’s ridden to the top echelon of her field. Kanavy’s 1994 World Championship horse, Pieraz (nicknamed Cash) was purchased through a classified ad for $500.

At the 1994 FEI World Equestrian Games in Holland, Kanavy and Cash earned the Individual Gold and Best Conditioned Award. In 1996, Kanavy opted not to defend her World Cham-pionship title. She instead handed over the reins to her daugh-ter, Danielle.

Kanavy won the 1998 World Endurance Championship in the United Arab Emirates with a thrilling gallop to the finish. At the 2000 Bayer/United States Equestrian Team (USET) Festival of Champions, Kanavy rode to a third place finish in the Sooner Trailer/USET 50-Mile Endurance Championship, finishing be-hind one of her own horses, Bearcat O’Reilly, ridden by winner Kristen Snook. She came back the next year to win the USET Championship, and repeated that title at the 75-mile distance in 2002.

Valerie has had success in recent years with a number of dif-ferent horses. With the Arabian mare Gold Raven, Kanavy won the FEI ride at the Goethe Challenge in December of 2008. With the grey Arabian gelding King Ali Gold, Valerie had two wins in the 2008 season. They won at the New Years in New Mexico competition and the CEI3* Open at Fort Howes.

At the 2009 Biltmore Challenge Kanavy and her own Spectac-ular Gold won the AERC Open 100. Kanavy and her mount LM Parys won the CEI2* 120 KM race at Coast Creek New Lowell CEI event in Canada in late July.

Kanavy’s first event of 2010 saw her in the top six at the Flor-ida Horse Park Gallop on the Greenway with her mount Layla Z Gold in the FEI 80 1* event. A few months later, she placed third in the 120 KM CEI2* ride at the Biltmore Challenge with Destiny Gold. Her first win of the season would finally come in July when she would finish first in the CEI1* 84 KM ride in New Lowell, Canada on John Fountain’s Tuff Enough FA.

Photo Credit: Genie Stewart-Spears


2012 FITS competition, Cashin In and Meuten would fin-

ish second. Meuten would pick Not Tonight as her mount

at the 2012 USA Team Trial Race in March. The decision

would be the right one as they finished fifth in the CEI3*

160KM race.

Nicki MeutenBorn: January 5, 1970 Residence: Zebulon, NCNot Tonight – 10-year-old Arabian mare owned by Nicki Meuten

Nicki Meuten and her husband Don live outside of

Raleigh, North Carolina on Forever Young Farm. They

both are veterinarians and breed, raise, and train most

of their competition horses. Nicki has been competing

in endurance for almost 20 years and has over 10,000

competition miles.

Recently, with her own Arabian mare, Not Tonight,

Meuten has been riding many miles and picking up great

results along the way.

At the Biltmore Challenge in May 2009 the pair was

third in the AERC Open 100 division. They topped that

result in January 2010 at the Florida Horse Park Gallop

on the Greenway where they won the FEI 120km CEI2*.

Meuten and her mare returned to the Biltmore Chal-

lenge in 2010 and this time left with the victory in the

120km CEI2* SR division.

Meuten put in two rides at the 2011 Dupuis Piney Pig

event, placing third on FYF Dutch in the CEI1* before

getting in the saddle the next day to place third in the

CEI3* on Not Tonight. A little over a month later at the

FITS competition, Meuten and Not Tonight won the

120km ride and picked up the Best Conditioned Award.

In December of that same year, Meuten and her own

Cashin In placed fifth in the CEI2* at the Goethe Benefit

Challenge.

FYF Dutch would get the call for the ride at the CEI3* at

the 2012 Dupuis Piney Pig event where Meuten would

place sixth on the gelding. In the 120 KM race at the



Heather ReynoldsBorn: August 4, 1977 Residence: Dunnellon, FLRiverwatch – 8-year-old Arabian gelding owned by Heather and Jeremy Reynolds

Heather Reynolds is an accomplished endurance rider

based out of Dunnellon, Florida where she runs a suc-

cessful training business with her husband Jeremy.

Reynolds won the CEI3* class at the 2007 Git-R-Done

event on Cal Flaming Emit and hasn’t looked back. Her

next race, she won the CEI2* division on HCR Jotyr and

finished sixth on Dreamm On in the CEI3* at the Arabian

Night race.

Cal Flaming Emit would give Reynolds a fifth place finish

in the CEI3* 160KM race at the 2008 Greenway Gallivant

but it wouldn’t be until 2009 that Reynolds would get

another CEI win. However, this win would be huge as she

would pilot Makazin to victory in the CEI1* 80KM race at

the 2009 AERC National Championship.

In 2010, Reynolds would win the 160KM division at the

Git R Done event on Ssamiam before finishing fourth in

the 2* race on A Kutt Above at Sun City. Her upper level

placings would continue at the Shine And Shine Only

show where she would finish second in the CEI2* Senior.

Reynolds would travel to Europe in July and win on

Opium Lord in the CEI2* 120KM class at the CEI event at

Euston Park in Great Britain.

Reynolds would start her 2011 off with a fourth place

finish in the CEI2* at the Patriot Day at Lake Almanor.

She won the CEI2* at the Goethe Benefit Challenge to

cap off her year.

The Dupuis Piney Pig event would be Reynold’s first race

of 2012 and she would have a good fifth on Riverwatch.

At the 2012 FITS event, Stirgess and Reynolds would

come home first in the 160KM class as a good prep for

the USA Team Trial Race. In the Trial Race, Reynolds

would pilot Riverwatch to a fourth place finish in the

CEI3* 160 KM race. Reynolds biggest victory of 2012

would be a double dip when she would pilot both Bound

For Honor and Chanses to victories in the CEI2* and 3*

respectively.



the CEI3* ride at the North American Endurance Team

Challenge aboard A Kutt Above. His last race of the year

would result in a third place finish with Severiano Marti-

nez’s Chanses.

In 2012, Reynolds would start off with a second place

finish in the CEI2* event at the Dupuis Piney Pig ride on

A Kutt Above. He would go on to finish fourth in the 120

KM race and third in the 90KM race at the 2012 FITS

event. His first victory of the year would be a big one

as he beat 44 other competitors in the CEI3* 160KM

race at the 2012 Team Trial Race on A Kutt Above. The

victory was followed by a second place finish at the FEI

CEI3* ride at the Biltmore Challenge in May on Stirgess.

In July, Reynolds was named to the U.S. Squad for the

2012 World Endurance Championships with his mount A

Kutt Above.

Reynolds is married to fellow endurance competitor

Heather Reynolds. Together they run Reynolds Racing,

a training, coaching and consulting business out of their

home.

Jeremy ReynoldsBorn: January 16, 1980 Residence: Dunnellon, FLA Kutt Above – 11-year-old Arabian gelding owned by Heather and Jeremy Reynolds

Jeremy Reynolds is an active endurance competitor

based in Dunnellon, Florida. Not only does Reynolds

compete in endurance rides around the globe, but he is

also a farrier.

In 2010, Reynolds and his Arabian gelding Sir Smith rep-

resented the U.S. at the 2010 Abu Dhabi Al Wathba Pres-

ident’s Cup in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

The pair placed a credible 37th out of 106 competitors.

Upon returning from the UAE, this pair won the 160km

ride at the Git R Done II competition in April 2010.

Reynolds rode TA Tiran to a victory a month later in the

CEI2* Senior event at the Shine and Shine Only ride in

California. But his winning streak wouldn’t end there as

he’d ride A Kutt Above to victory in the CEI3* Senior ride

at the Patriots Day at Lake Almanor in October of that

year.

Reynolds’ last ride of 2010 would also see victory when

he rode Sir Smith to the win in the CEI3* 160km at the

Desert Gold Multi-Day CEI event. At the same event and

in the same class, he would ride Dreamerchant to a fifth

place ride as well.

Reynolds would start 2011 off with a victory, winning the

80 KM 14 on Stirgess in May at the Shine and Shine Only

Event. He would pilot Stirgess to a third place finish a

month later in the CEI2* Fort Howes Endurance Ride. A

Kutt Above would get the call at the next CEI event and

the pair would finish second in the CEI3* at the Patriots

Day at Lake Almanor. Reynolds would get his first CEI

victory of the year in September when he would win



Sleeper was a member of the Gold medal-winning U.S.

East team at the 2009 North American Endurance

Challenge in Lexington, KY, and was sixth individually on

Syrocco Harmony. Also in 2009, Meg was first in the FEI

Vermont 100-mile ride and won Best Conditioned on

Syrocco Gabriel.

She was a member of the 2008 U.S. team in Malaysia on

Syrocco Reveille.

In 2010, Sleeper won the Fun in the Sun FEI 100-mile

ride in a time of 7 hours and 44 minutes with Syrocco

Reveille, who also won the Best Conditioned Award. She

finished up the year by being part of the U.S. team at the

Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

Outside of endurance, Sleeper is a veterinary cardiolo-

gist working at the Veterinary School at the University

of Pennsylvania. Because of her busy schedule, Sleep-

er’s husband, Dave Augustine, does the majority of the

conditioning and preparation of the horses for their

competitions.

Margaret SleeperBorn: December 16, 1967 Residence: Frenchtown, NJSubstitute

Syrocco Reveille – 10-year-old Arabian mare owned by Margaret Sleeper

Margaret “Meg” Sleeper began riding as a child when at

age 11, she got riding lessons for Christmas. Her father

bought her a horse the following year, an Appaloosa

named Tecumseh. After that she never looked back,

completing her first competitive trail ride, a 30-mile with

“Tummy” in 1980.

A few years later, Sleeper and her dad were at an auc-

tion to raise money for Blair Academy, where one of

the alumni had donated a 2-year-old half Arabian. After

winning the bidding, they left with the untrained young

horse who they named Chaucer. Sleeper and Chaucer

would learn together and began taking part in endur-

ance rides in 1986. They did their first 100-mile ride at

Old Dominion in 1989. Many of the horses Sleeper has

competed she has raised herself, and are relatives of

Chaucer.

Sleeper was on the U.S. East Gold medal team in the

2001 Pan American Endurance championship where she

was seventh individually. She has competed twice in the

prestigious endurance ride in Dubai in 2001 on Syrocco

Troilus and in 2002 on Syrocco Blair.

In 2006, Sleeper was 22nd at the FEI World Equestrian

Games in Aachen, Germany, and the second fastest U.S.

rider. She finished first individually in the 2007 Zone

Team Endurance Challenge (ZTEC), and her horse Sy-

rocco Troilus also won the Best Conditioned Award and

helped earn the Team Gold.

Photo Credit: ©GenieSS, inc


Emmett RossBorn: August 13, 1948 Residence: Cat Spring, TXChef d’Equipe

Emmett Ross has contributed to the sport of endurance

as a rider, trainer, and coach. Ross has logged over 5,600

kilometers and had three top ten Tevis Cup finishes and

was a Haggin Cup recipient.

Ross has attended as a rider, trainer, or coach at over

150 FEI events. He was the second of three trainers in

the world to have had winning endurance horses in nine

or more different countries. From 1995-2006, Ross was

an endurance trainer and coach in the United Arab Emir-

ates (UAE) and Qatar, and from 2000-2001 he was the

top trainer in the UAE based on points and wins, produc-

ing numerous top riders and horses. In 2005, Ross was

the Managing Director of the GCC Endurance Champi-

onship in Qatar, also serving as the Chef d’Equipe for

Qatar in the championship, leading the riders to Young

Rider Individual Gold and Team Silver and Senior Team

Silver medals. In 2011, Ross became the Chef d’Equipe

for the U.S. Endurance Team.

Not only has he played an integral role in endurance

riding, but Ross has also played an important part in

the major equestrian competitions. In 1984, Ross was

the Sports Manager (COO) of the Equestrian Events at

the Los Angeles Olympics, and 12 years later, he was

the Chief Adviser for the Equestrian Events at the 1996

Atlanta Olympics. For the 2010 Alltech FEI World Eques-

trian Games in Lexington, KY Ross was the Director/

Manager of the endurance event.

Photo Credit: Geoff Bugbee


Vonita BowersBorn: February 25, 1954 Residence: Lexington, KYTeam Leader

Vonita Bowers began working at the United States

Equestrian Federation in December of 2006 as the

Director of Endurance; she now also serves as Director

of Reining. For 24 years she had a career in the medical

services sector in administration and business manage-

ment. Prior to joining the USEF staff, Bowers had served

for 16 years in leadership roles for the American Endur-

ance Ride Conference (AERC) as a member of the Board

of Directors, as a Vice President, and served as President

for two years.

Bowers has accumulated just under 10,000 career

endurance miles and has been in the AERC National Top

Ten and the AERC Central Region Champion. Addition-

ally, she is an FEI licensed official, a past member of the

Endurance Technical Committee, and has been an orga-

nizer of endurance events.

Photo Credit: USEF Archives

2012 FEI World Endurance Guide

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