I thought that this was one of the best review articles of 2008. Written by Nancy Jaffer, one of the best equine writers in the USA, it was published on nj.com. It was worth a read:

The equestrian scene didn’t reach quite the same level of tumult as the stock market in 2008, but it had plenty of jagged edges that will require some smoothing in 2009 and beyond.

It may be difficult for some to find good memories of the past year, but there’s little doubt the highest point of 2008 for U.S. fans was the team gold in Olympic show jumping. Canada’s team silver added to the luster of North American efforts in Hong Kong. After all, the competition seen worldwide effectively demonstrated that whatever the Europeans believe, they don’t dominate this discipline.

Among the too-numerous low points of the last 12 months was the death of superpony Theodore O’Connor in a freak stable accident. It was stark misfortune; one of those mishaps without reason, which devastated the little eventing prodigy’s far-flung fan club.

Read the entire article.