Ocala, FL (March 13, 2013) – Chester Weber’s Jamaica, the KWPN gelding that has been ‘Jamaican’ the world crazy for Combined Driving since his rescue from slaughter, was among the inaugural inductees to be forever honored for their achievements in the EQUUS Foundation/USEF Horse Stars Hall of Fame ceremony Saturday evening, March 8, at the EQUUS Foundation ‘Fete Cheval Etoile’ at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington, Florida.

Jamaica’s rags to riches story began in Holland where the partbred Hackney colt sired by British stallion, Cambridge Cole (Walton Searchlight x Cambridge Madge) was born in 1991 and destined for slaughter when Belgian driver and FEI official Mark Wenten plucked the bay gelding for service as a tourist carriage horse in the city of Bruges. The horse’s notorious impatience for standing still to allow visitors into a carriage was exactly the kind of get-up-and-go Weber was seeking when he purchased Jamaica in 2001.

Jamaica’s demonstrated aptitude for going in the wheel in Weber’s dressage phases, and left lead for the marathons, became integral to an award-winning team whose victory laps included seven National titles, a Silver Medal at the 2008 World FEI Championships, and 2008 Farnam Platform Horse of the Year recognition from the U.S. Equestrian  Federation. In keeping with his dedication to the equestrian industry and fitting with Jamaica’s status as a champion who was once a rescue horse, Weber donated all of Jamaica’s Horse of the Year winnings, a year’s worth of feed, to local horse rescues in Ocala. It is this ‘pay it forward’ attitude that has built Chester’s reputation as both a world class Four-in-Hand driver and a dedicated horseman and philanthropist.

Ever the equine ambassador, Jamaica has participated in ‘Kiss the Horse’ literacy campaigns, been featured in three books, For The Love Of The Horse, Volume III, True Horse Stories, and Beloved Horses in Second Careers, has helped raise funds for the ReRun Thoroughbred organization by painting a “Moneigh” masterpiece with his muzzle, and his likeness has been immortalized with its own Breyer horse model. In 2011, amid fans and friends at the Live Oak CAI-B, Weber retired his teammate. Now age 22, Jamaica is luxuriating in golden retirement at Weber’s Live Oak Stud in Ocala, FL.

The Horse Stars Hall of Fame has been created to honor contributions of amazing horses; share the stories of their athletic and humanitarian feats; and build a more informed and compassionate America that values the bond between horses and people. The inaugural inductees in the ‘Athlete’ category were composed of the overall champion and slate of nominees from each year since the 2005 inception of the USEF Horse of the Year (HOTY) awards program, one of the oldest nationally recognized multi-breed awards programs in America.

A complete list of inductees is available at www.equusfoundation.org.

Follow Jamaica and the burgeoning achievements of the newest cast members to Weber’s combined driving teams at www.chesterweber.com and its link to Facebook.

Photo: Chester Weber’s famed driving horse and 2008 Horse of the Year, Jamaica, was among the inaugural inductees to

be forever honored for their achievements in the EQUUS Foundation/USEF Horse Stars Hall of Fame. (Photo courtesy of

Barbara Bower)