Showing titles in Equestrian Sports

"Every horse story is a love story," writes Jane Smiley, who has loved horses for most of her life and owned and bred them for a good part of it. To love something is to observe it with more than usual attention, and that is precisely what Smiley does in this irresistibly smart, witty, and engaging chronicle of her obsession. In particular she follows a sexy filly named Waterwheel and a grey named Wowie (he "tells" a horse communicator that he wants it changed from Hornblower) as they begin careers at the racetrack.

While many veterinarians apply, only a small number are approved to examine the elite canine athletes who, using solely their muscle and an innate drive to race, carry handlers between frozen outposts each year, risking injury, illness, and fatigue along the way. In Four Thousand Paws, Lee Morgan—a member of the Iditarod's expert veterinary corps—tells the story of these heroic dogs, following the teams as they traverse deep spruce forests, climb steep mountain slopes, and navigate over ice-bound rivers toward Nome, on the coast of the Bering Sea, where the famed Burled Arch awaits.

Own your first horse like an expert, regardless of your experience. Discover how to care for and nurture your horse, even if you’ve never set foot in a stable before. The journey from a complete novice to an accomplished rider is a meaningful and rewarding experience that simply can’t be rivaled. The love and affection between horse owners and their animals is astounding–it’s no joke when riders say their horse is their best friend.

Isaac Burns Murphy (1861-1896) was one of the most dynamic jockeys of his era. Still considered one of the finest riders of all time, Murphy was the first jockey to win the Kentucky Derby three times, and his 44 percent win record remains unmatched. Despite his success, Murphy was pushed out of thoroughbred racing when African American jockeys were forced off the track, and he died in obscurity. In The Prince of Jockeys: The Life of Isaac Burns Murphy, author Pellom McDaniels III offers the first definitive biography of this celebrated athlete.

When Lanfranco ‘Frankie’ Dettori arrived on British shores in 1985, aged just 14, he couldn’t speak a word of English. Having left school just a year earlier, he was eager to become a stable boy and apprentice jockey, following in the footsteps of his father. This was his first, but certainly not his last, leap of faith. Despite his slight size, Frankie’s impact upon the British racing scene was immediate and significant.

On Horsemanship, also sometimes titled The Art of Horsemanship, is a treatise written about 350 BCE by the Athenian historian, soldier, and student of Socrates, Xenophon (c. 430-354 BC). The treatise is a "hands-on" manual which deals with the selection, care, and training of horses in general.

In 1904, at age 23, two-time Kentucky Derby-winner Jimmy Winkfield was forced from American horseracing by a virulent combination of racism and hard times. Wink left his beloved Kentucky, bought a steamer ticket for Europe, and made the world his racetrack. There he embarked on a decades-long odyssey, rising to superstardom and winning and losing two fortunes. Driven at gunpoint from Russia by the Bolshevik Army and from France by Nazi occupiers, the 105-pound jockey proved himself the most resilient, courageous athlete of the 20th century.

He was always destined to be a champion. Royally bred, with English and American classic winners in his pedigree, Sir Barton shone from birth, dubbed the "king of them all". But after a winless two-year-old season and a near-fatal illness, uncertainty clouded the start of Sir Barton's three-year-old season. Then his surprise victory in America's signature race, the Kentucky Derby, started him on the road to history, where he would go on to dominate the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes, completing America's first Triple Crown.

Xenophon's The Art of Horsemanship is a highly unusual text in the corpus of Classical Greek literature. It is a short survey on the various aspects of care for horses as seen by a highly experienced rider from the 5th century BCE. It is particularly notable because so many of its observations are relevant to the modern rider. Xenophon, friend of Socrates and professional soldier, is best known as the author Anabasis, the vivid account of a failed military expedition deep into Persia.

Fifty-six million years ago, the earliest equid walked the earth-and beginning with the first-known horse-keepers of the Copper Age, the horse has played an integral part in human history. Combining fascinating anthropological detail and incisive personal anecdotes, Susanna Forrest draws from an immense range of archival documents as well as literature and art to illustrate how our evolution has coincided with that of horses.

Horse ownership provides companionship, stress relief, and increased happiness…but these things only happen when you’re able to form a complete bond with your horse. When you have that foundational relationship in place, the way you’re able to train and care for your horse completely opens up. Your increased sense of confidence leads to a mutual respect between you and your horse…and this gives you the control you need in order to have fun together–while ensuring you both remain safe.

With a show-jumping career spanning over 40 years, Nick Skelton is a legend in the equestrian world. No other rider has won so many major competitions on so many different horses, and he is as popular at Olympia and Hickstead as he is at Aachen, Geneva, Paris and Spruce Meadows. In 2000 Skelton was forced into retirement after he broke his neck. But following an amazing recovery, he came out of retirement in 2002. Now he tells the full story of his eventful life and matchless achievements.

At age nine, as Susanna sat on a horse for the first time, an unbreakable bond was forged. It set the stage for a lifelong odyssey for this determined girl and her devotion to her equine companions. From lush Brazilian rainforests to serene Swedish farms, from thrilling British derby banks to the picturesque wine hills of France, this is a story that spans continents, careers, and crossroads. From driven Olympians to bold bullfighters, from kind horsemanship trainers to daring jumpers, each character who crossed her path shone a light on who she yearned to be.

If you love horses, you know that the connection between you and your horse can be one of the most meaningful and fulfilling connections of your life. And you might have been told that to deepen the connection with your horse, you need to deepen the connection with yourself. But how do you do that? Riding with the Chakras lays out a trail map of insights along with guided exercises to illuminate your inner wisdom and assist you in connecting more fully to yourself, your horse, and the world around you.

In more than a century of American Thoroughbred racing, only 13 horses have won the Triple Crown (the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes, all won in the same season). Veteran turf writer and racing historian Edward L. Bowen takes us through the rich history of one of the most formidable and exciting challenges in all of sport. Bowen covers the trainers, owners, and jockeys who etched their names into the annals of thoroughbred racing, and the “lucky 13” who captured all three jewels of the Triple Crown, racing’s most prestigious prize.

They had no business being there. They were up against million-dollar horses owned by patricians, oilmen, Arab sheiks, and Hollywood producers. They were 10 regular guys, and all they wanted was to win a race. Instead, they won the hearts of America.

Do you have a foal on the way? Maybe you've got a weanling who's growing like a weed but in need of training and possibly getting dangerous? Do you know what training is essential for baby horses, how to approach the work - and how much is too much? You have years till you can ride your colt or filly - but there's a lot of training that needs to be done in the meantime.

A revolutionary approach to the techniques of working with horses, by a renowned instructor. In Horses Never Lie, renowned horse trainer Mark Rashid challenges the conventional wisdom of "alpha leadership" and teaches the listener to become a "passive leader" - a counterpart to the kind of horse other members of a herd choose to associate with and to follow. Applying Rashid’s principles and techniques helps cultivate horse personalities that are responsive and dependable regardless of the rider.

Have you ever watched your horse do something that defies human logic and wondered, “Why does my horse act this way?” If so, you’re not alone. Horses are designed to survive in the wild, yet occasionally the wires between domestication and instinct get crossed. Meredith Hill is back with her equine expertise

Isaac Murphy, born enslaved in 1861, still reigns as one of the greatest jockeys in American history. Black jockeys like Murphy were at the top of the most popular sport in America at the end of the nineteenth century. They were internationally famous, the first African American superstar athletes—and with wins in three Kentucky Derbies and countless other prestigious races, Murphy was the greatest of them all.