Wellpride American Eventing Championships

Like Queen Elizabeth II, English horseback riding tends to have a somewhat regal and removed reputation. Perfectly coiffed men and women, top hats, tails and overpriced hayburners. Talleyho? Tally no.

This weekend's Wellpride American Eventing Championships at Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne isn't your average horse show. It combines Black Beauty with the X-Games.

"Getting dunked in the water kind of does away with egos," said AEC communications director Amy Daum. "It's a very humbling sport."

Eventing is best described as a sort of equestrian triathlon, with three phases -- dressage, cross country and show jumping -- that test the competitors' skills in the ring, over fences and galloping across the countryside.

Dressage, a sort of equestrian ballet, tests the horse and rider's ability to perform a series of prescribed classical movements in an enclosed arena. During cross country, horse and rider gallop over natural terrain, up and down hills, across ditches and into water, leaping over a variety of other imposing obstacles along the way. In the show-jumping phase, competitors make their way over a course of colorfully painted fences in an enclosed arena, making every attempt to leave all the fence rails up when they cross the finish line.

The U.S. has been a powerhouse in the sport since it debuted in the Olympics in 1912, and the U.S. Eventing Association has served as the national association for the sport since 1959.

"With the 2008 Olympics nearing, a lot of Olympic team hopefuls will compete to be seen," Daum said.

Expecting a record of 600 entries, competitors include the reigning Olympic gold medalist, Leslie Law of Great Britain, three-time Olympian and current Pan American Games gold medalist Karen O'Connor, Olympic and World Champion John Williams, Olympic and Pan Am medalist Darren Chiacchia, as well as top riders from Canada (Olympians Hawley Bennett and Mike Winter), Australia and New Zealand.

Lamplight will host the Championships for the first time. Carolina Horse Park in Raeford, N.C., has held the event for the past three years.

Though the Chicago suburbs might not seem like horse country, Daum says that the Wayne facility is "truly one of the premiere equestrian centers in the country."

Describing the landscape as gorgeous and spectacular, she says it is also horse-friendly, accessible and convenient.

"It has all the amenities that are oftentimes lacking at a lot of facilities -- electrical outlets for fans for the horses, great concessions and tons of permanent stabling."

The facility is known for taking excellent care of its grounds -- reducing the risk of injuries to horses galloping, jumping and landing at 15 mph to 20 mph.

"If Chicago gets its bid for the 2016 games, this very well could be one of the places considered to hold the Olympic Eventing championships," Daum said.

The dressage phase began Thursday, with cross country today and Saturday and show jumping Sunday.

The cross-country phase will take place on the rolling terrain of Pratt's Wayne Woods Forest Preserve, which lies directly across the street from Lamplight.

"(Cross country) is definitely the best-attended spectator event," she said.

Spectators are also invited to take part in free educational seminars held on all three days. Eventing experts, veterinarians and designers will cover everything from grooming to competition, saddle fit, horse health, pet first aid, barn design and proper cross-country riding techniques.

Admission is free, and parking donations will be given to the Fox River chapter of the American Red Cross.

This is the first year the Eventing Championships have tied themselves to a charity.

"We're honored," said Kay Catlin, development director of the Red Cross's Fox River chapter.

"A big focus of ours is to put out information on pet first aid and care during disasters," she said.

Donations will come at an opportune time.

"I just had a conference call about how fundraising for the recent flood has been lagging. Some of the money raised at AEC will go to that," she said.

Wellpride American Eventing Championships

Where: Lamplight Equestrian Center, 6N940 Dunham Road, Wayne

When: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today through Sunday

Tickets: Free admission. Gates open at 8 a.m., with competitions concluding around 5 p.m. The dressage phase began Thursday with cross-country today and Saturday and show jumping Sunday. Parking contributions benefit the Fox River chapter of the American Red Cross

Info: www.aecatlamplight.org or (630) 497-1770