Tragedy: 21 Polo Horses Died Mysteriously

Ravel, son of Contango

Ravel, the 11-year-old Dutch warmblood gelding together with his champion rider Steffen Peters (both pictured here) have claimed the FEI World Cup Final Dressage and the FEI World Cup Final Grand Prix titles in Las Vegas.

Ravel - owned by Akiko Yamazaki, the wife of Yahoo's Jerry Yang - comes from highly-priced bloodlines. Ravel's sire is none other than Contango who is deceased, but has left behind vials of semen which Iron Spring Farms keeps freshly chilled and ready-for-sale for $1,800. Contango's progenies are also listed online for sale here. Donatalia, Ravel's one-year-old half-sister is listed at $10,500; and Winston ISF, Ravel's handsome six-year-old half-brother at $85,000. Ravel's dam Hautain also bore Contango another son named Showtime. That stallion resides in the United Kingdom.

Who will Win?

The Grand Prix Freestyle to Music, the second part and highlight of the FEI World Cup Dressage Final competition starts at 10:00 pm ET tomorrow. The three leaders following the Grand Prix competition are world-class champions:

1. Steffen Peters riding Ravel
   The Upside --- The German-born and San Diego-based rider with the 11-year old gelding gave a magical performance on Thursday that had the audience on their feet. The judges were equally impressed giving him the highest score of 77.915% at the Grand Prix competition.
   The Downside --- Faces very stiff competition from two champion dressage riders Anky Van Grunsven and Isabell Werth, both with multiple World Cup Dressage and Olympic titles under their belts.
2. Anky Van Grunsven riding IPS Painted Black
   The Upside --- She has been at the top of leader board more times than anyone in the sport. With a record nine FEI World Cup Dressage Final titles and three individual Olympic Gold Medals from the last three games (2000, 2004 and 2008) she is the reigning champion and a serious competitor who fights for every point and competes to win. She is a master at the Freestyle.
   The Downside --- Van Grunsven is not riding her Olympic horse; instead is on her second string horse. Due to a previous injury she experiences recurring back pain. Judges awarded her a 74.170% score in the Grand Prix competition on Thursday.
3. Isabell Werth riding Satchmo
   The Upside --- With eight Olympic medals and two World Cup Final titles, Werth is one of the most decorated riders in the sport. An amazing competitor riding an amazing horse.
   The Downside --- Mistakes cost points and the pair ended up with a score of 73.745% in the Grand Prix.

Watch the Grand Prix Freestyle LIVE online at Universal Sports; and read about Steffen Peters here http://www.nbcolympics.com/athletes/athlete=1362/bio/

Barn Rules: The Nags

Q: The older ladies at my barn are bossy and overbearing. They bombard me and the younger riders with unsolicited advice and remarks on horse grooming, horsemanship, and how we tack our horses. It is impossible to get even one peaceful moment without a rule or opinion shoved in our faces. Is there a nice way to tell them to back off?

A: Women like horses often behave like prey animals with a strong fight-or-flight instinct. This means they respond to a threat either by fleeing or standing their ground. The older nags at your barn very likely feel threatened and have chosen to assert their dominance to establish the pecking order at the barn. Looks to me like the herd of women at your stable - much like a herd of horses - needs an established hierachy in order for the group to function smoothly. To survive here, you are gonna have to show you are willing to cooperate and accept their higher rank. This means you will have to let the dominant mare be the one responsible for the rules and overall safety of the barn. She will likely let up on the unwelcomed comments once her role as boss mare is clear. The alternative is to find another barn where you can be the alpha nag.

Rolex FEI World Cup Dressage Final

Watch it Live!
Starting tomorrow, 15 of the world's most talented dressage riders will be competing for the Rolex FEI World Cup, the most prestigious and sought after title in dressage competition next to the Olympic medal. This year the competition will be held in Las Vegas, April 15 to 19. For those of you who cannot get to Las Vegas, you can watch the competition LIVE on Universal Sports.

The World Champion
The Netherland's Anky van Grunsven, 41, who has dominated the sport of dressage with nine world cup championships and three Olympic gold medals will be defending her title against some stiff competition from Isabell Werth, the German rider who has won the world cup final twice; and Steffen Peters of the USA riding Ravel who has shown significant improvement since their debut at the Summer Olympics in 2008. This will be the first FEI World Cup Dressage Final for Adelinde Cornelissen (The Netherlands), Marco Bernal (Columbia), Heath Ryan (Australia) and Jan Ebeling (USA). The youngest competitor is Adelinde Cornelissen, 29 and the oldest is Jeannette Haazen, 54.

Photo Contest @ the Rolex World Cup
Offield Farms and Lingh.nl has invited attendees to submit the photo that best captures the magic of the event. The winner will receive $500 with an additional $500 donation made to the winner's charity of choice. Simply submit your photo (two photos maximum) in JPG format along with your contact information to dressage@offieldfarms.com or visit Offield Farms.