I’d like to make a few introductions. First, I’m Gabby Farthing, and I’m guest authoring this letter to you because, as you’ve probably already noticed, this Performance Report publication is a slight departure from the Horse&Rider issues you know and love.  

Actually, it’s less a departure and more an announcement: Please allow me to introduce Performance Report by Horse&Rider and its premiere print issue, “Made in America: The Evolution of the Western Performance Horse.” 

Still Being Written

Ironically, when interviewing NCHA Hall of Fame cutting horse trainer and $4 million competitor Bill Riddle in my attempt to pen the path of the cutting horse from the ranch pasture to the show pen, he asked me, “How do you make a magazine work in this day and time of the internet?”  

“I’m not gonna lie,” I told him. “This project is part of trying to figure that out.” Then I said, “there’s no level of comfort anymore—the minute you learn something, you have to learn something new.”  

So here we are: building a new product, a new look, a new book. Evolving.  

A Trusted Team

What’s not new, though, is the talent of this proven team. Nichole Chirico continues to captain Horse&Rider, and she demonstrates her deep well of knowledge in the piece she authors about the rise of the Reining horse and in the coming-up of the Cow Horse, co-authored with trusted contributing editor Jennifer Paulson.

Lauren Feldman takes us to the top of the timeline—a small Texas town match race that marks the moment in our American history when the horse becomes one of our own—with the academic appeal that has given great value to numerous titles in her career.

Lillian Jones, who recently joined the Horse&Rider team after shouldering much of the growth at BreakawayRopingJournal.com, takes on the print page to again map the early trajectory of a sport, this time in the form of the Ranch Horse Events.  

Behind the scenes, Emily Carey searched the quiet corners of the Quarter Horse world for long-lost pictures while simultaneously hitting the pavement and capturing so many of the stunning images you’ll find on the cover and across these pages.

Then, Art Director Michelle Miller used her skilled and intuitive talents to pull it all together—deadlines be damned—and create a genuinely beautiful book that I believe each member of the team can take great pride in. 

Best of Both Worlds

You don’t have to be in publishing to know that change is challenging, and you need only to look to these pages to discover that, when you meet the moment head-on, ears perked, shoulders ready, greatness ensues.

Though Performance Report by Horse&Rider will go to print only once in 2026, it doesn’t stand alone. This issue marks the beginning of a more focused approach to covering the performance horse world as it’s actually unfolding—across disciplines, events and bloodlines. That coverage continues online, where the same team is reporting on results, stories and the moments that don’t wait for a print cycle. You’ll find it through Horseand Rider.com or by going directly to HorseandRiderPerformanceReport.com.

For our dedicated Horse&Rider audience, that title’s foundation remains unchanged. It is still your resource for trusted horsemanship, horse care and Western lifestyle coverage. Performance Report builds on that legacy with a narrower lens—one trained on the performance horse and the industry around it.

The Western performance horse was built over time—by necessity, by competition and by the people who demanded more from it. This issue captures that foundation. What follows is our commitment to documenting where it goes next.

GR Farthing
Editorial Director