Farewell to the Senior Statesman of American Equestrianism

He always wore a bow-tie.

He always had big ideas.

He was going places, and he said he was taking us with him.

And he did.

Finn Caspersen was possibly the most influential person on the American horse sport scene in the late 20th century. And I am sure many blog readers have never even heard his name.

Consider this: He saved the US Equestrian Team from a tangle of lawsuits and takeover attempts that many said would be its demise. He dreamed of a national headquarters for the Team at Gladstone and made sure it happened. He figured out that the USA could beat the Europeans at their own games and set out to make that happen, too. He showed us that combined driving was a wild, fun ride and a sport worth embracing by bringing the world pairs championship to Gladstone.

All we had to do was hang on to his perfectly tailored shirt-tails.

And we did.

Look where we are now, on the eve of hosting the World Equestrian Games in America! Thank you, Finn Caspersen.

Former USET chairman and advocate for equestrian sports Finn Caspersen died on Monday. Please click here to read Nancy Jaffer's overview of his contributions to American horse sports.

Jack Le Goff: A Video Tribute from USEF

by Fran Jurga | 27 July 2009 | The Jurga Report

Video courtesy of Sarah Lane, USEF's Senior Director of Communications, and www.clubequestrian.com. I believe that is the soundtrack is the wonderful original recording of Edith Piaf singing "La Vie en Rose".

Friday's news of the death of former USET eventing coach Jack Le Goff was stunning. I feel the usual sadness at the loss of a great horseman and the particular loss of someone who lived right here for many years and was a familiar site on horseback and out on the water as well.

But mostly I wonder about the the fact that we have lost not just a great horseman and a legendary coach to whom US eventing owes so much, but we have lost some perspective on international horse sports and eventing as a sport. Jack Le Goff spanned generations in eventing, indeed the 50 years of Badminton seem contiguous with the timeline of his life.

He was a great competitor, but he was also one of the last great coaches whose roots were in classical training, as you will see in the video, which shows some of his higher level displays of horsemanship at the Cadre Noir at Saumur, which is roughly the French equivalent to the Spanish Riding School of Vienna.

The sport of eventing has changed since Jack Le Goff had riders like Tad Coffin and Mike Plumb galloping around the Essex County trails here in Massachusetts (and I do mean galloping). If you went to what you thought was a safe little schooling show, he might pull up with a big horse van and give some young horses some showring exposure. (No pressure, riding in front of Jack Le Goff!)

There was a time when the best aspiring riders in Canada and the US found there way to Hamilton/Wenham, Massachusetts to train at the USET headquarters. Even now I meet people who brag about having even having passed through the barn in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Is eventing the same sport now? I don't think so. Wherever it is headed, it is not likely to ever go back to those days of galloping super-fit horses.

The accomplishments and gifts to our nation of an international coach like Jack Le Goff can never be overstated. But his sport may have technically passed with him, and the next generation is on its own to invent what's next for their great sport. Who is or will be the next to inspire riders--and a nation--to embrace a sport the way that Jack Le Goff did?

What a tall order to attempt to fill those boots and attain the thrilling combination of art and sport that Jack Le Goff represented.

Hong Kong Revisited: Spend an Educational Evening with Olympic Rider, Horse, Nutritionist and Vet

You are cordially invited to join the US Equestrian Team for an evening of informative discussions about the United States Equestrian Team's "Olympic Story 2008". The evening is presented by Somerset Feed & Grain and sponsored by Pennfield Equine Feeds and Kentucky Equine Research

DATE: October 22, 2008
TIME: 5 PM to 9 PM
LOCATION: The USET Foundation Headquarters at 1040 Pottersville Road in Gladstone, New Jersey
Hors D'ouveres will be served from 5 PM to 6 PM
Photo Session with Philip Dutton and Olympic Mount Connaught 5 PM to 6 PM

Featured Speakers: Nutrition Expert Joe Pagan, B.S.A., M.S., Ph.D; Philip Dutton (Olympic Rider, US Eventing) and Brendan Furlong, D.M.V. B., M.R.C.V.S., US Olympic Team Veterinarian.

In the coming months Pennfield, KER and the USEF will host a series of additional nutritional lectures, USEF fund raisers and programs to educate equine enthusiasts from different riding disciplines by giving them opportunities to meet, learn, and even train with top athletes in the sport.

On the other side of the globe, Dr Peter Huntington and Australian eventer Megan Jones will make a similar presentation at the Equitana Asia Pacific on November 20th.