Well, that’s a shame. Reading through this thread reminded me of how far warmblood breeding has come in North America since the 1970’s.
I was reminded of when I bought my first Hanoverian and had to call the AHS office to find a breeder and they couldn’t name anyone in Florida! They did give me a breeder in Ohio though. 
The next year Bob Orton came down to the Brooksville farm, thank goodness.
Now there are multiple WB breeders of every type in almost every state.
Going back a long time and up to the present:
Anne Kitchel-- from Seldom Seen to Statesman and Future Star.
Warioto Farm-- from Bold Mc (sire of BiCoastal, owned by Warioto and dam of The Wizard and numerous other ch. hunters) to Zarr.
You might not want to “go back to the beginning of time,” but sources like these (and Denny, Diana Dodge, Phyllis Jones, the Chapots, etc.) who not only "go back, " but manage to keep on going seem well positioned to provide depth and historical perspective on what’s being done now/how things have changed, changes that have had to be made, etc.
Seems to me that this thread has successfully pointed out that breeders can be “influential” in many different ways, some having more to do with bloodlines, others with marketing, with a lot of combination and convolutions in between. In your position, I can imagine myself having a blast talking to a lot of different breeders, taking a lot of notes, letting the 15 kind of rise to the top, and letting the reasons for my choices form kind of a “subplot” as I wrote about them.
I gather that you mean people, not horses, when you say “they don’t want to focus on bloodlines, but rather on individuals”?? I.e.-- they want you to discuss people who’ve had a big impact on sport horse breeding in this country? If so, it seems to me that there are numerous exciting ways you can take this. Personally, I’d be wanting to start with breeders who could take the story from prior to the “WB invasion,” through to the present, naming the various impacts/pushes that brought us where we are today. It is for this reason, that I’d want to talk to people who’ve been there through the whole process-- not necessarily because they “ARE” the most influential breeders but because they are likely to be the most valuable when it comes to explaining who those “most influential” breeders were-- and why.
Good luck. Happy hunting. Exciting project. I hope it goes well and look forward to reading the results.
Hit a nerve did I?
It’s not your sandbox.
If you think it is I don’t recall you being a moderator.
I pointed out your ignorance in the jumper area. If you think that’s catty then you have other problems. LOL
If you don’t think producing performance horses ( and several generations of for example international jumpers) impacts the sporthorse industry then what does. Feed and lead? Foal scores?
Once more, if you don’t know who the breeders I named are and what they have contriibuted then excuse yourself from the jumper part of the article and find someone knowledgeable to make the selections.
I made a suggestion regarding who could help you on jumpers and you seem to be ignoring that so I’ll also suggest YankeeLawyer.
[QUOTE=PineTreeFarm;5061865]
Hit a nerve did I?
It’s not your sandbox.
If you think it is I don’t recall you being a moderator.
I pointed out your ignorance in the jumper area. If you think that’s catty then you have other problems. LOL[/QUOTE]
Wrong. I was asked to write the article. That makes it my sandbox. 
[QUOTE=DownYonder;5061652]
And folks, let’s get a few things straight.
I was asked to focus on the last 15 years or so, not go back to the beginning of time. I was also asked to do a single article, not a series. And they do not want to focus on bloodlines, but rather on individuals.
And as many of you have pointed out, it will be virtually impossible to do this, so it will probably get shelved.[/QUOTE]
Please don’t give up. It would be very unfortunate if the opportunity to showcase and acknowledge these people, however you ultimately decide to define them, was lost. Most of the confusion (and sniping) on this thread seems to stem from the fact that different people consider different time frames, and define “influence”, “sport horse” and “breeder” in very different ways.
Therefore, I think any article with this intent would benefit from establishing what time period the author considered, and how the author(s) is using these terms.
What time period?
You might want to consider when it first became practical for American breeders to begin importing and incorporating foreign bloodlines into the American breeding program, which was probably around 30+ years ago. In my opinion, this development opened the door for what has become the most significant change in American sport horse breeding since the establishment of the “Sport of Kings”.
What is meant by “influence”?
One method of “influencing” is when breeders share their knowledge, skills, and experience, mentoring others in their aim to breed better sport horses. In this category, I would think that Volker and Judy Ehlers at Glenwood Farms, and Edgar and Susanne Schutte at Rainbow Equus Meadows breeding primarily Hanoverian/Oldenburg/and ISR horses; and Willi Arts at D.J.Bar and Jeff Moore and Liz Searle at Osierlea breeding Dutch Warmbloods would make that list.
Another method of influencing is by producing outstanding performance horses who are successful at the highest levels of competition in a particular sport; thereby raising the standard by which all breeders are measured. In this respect, I would identify which North American bred horses have made it to the highest levels of competition, and then determine who bred those horses. Those are the breeders I would hope to find on that list.
And yet another method is by purchasing and competing outstanding performance horses who are successful at the highest levels of completion in a particular sport, and then retiring those horses to the breeding barn; again raising the standard by which all breeders are measured. In that category, I would think that Peggy and Perry Thomas would qualify with Brentina.
And, consider your audience. What publication will the article appear in? Different publications have different reader profiles. Imagine this title appearing in “Dressage Today”. As a reader of Dressage Today, would you expect America’s 10 Most Influential Breeders to be breeders of Morgans, Quarterhorses, Arabians? Are individual horses from these breeds capable of excelling in dressage? - yes; but would I expect these breeders to be described as the “most influencial” in a dressage oriented magazine? - probably not.
What is a “Sport Horse”?
There are as many ways to define “sport horse” as there are sports for horses. You can narrow your scope by defining which “sports” you are referring to. One method would be to define a “sport horse” for purposes of this article as a horse that is purpose bred for at least one of the sport horse disciplines included in the Olympics.
What qualifies someone as an “American Breeder”?
Does America include both the United States and Canada? Is a breeder the owner of the mare at the time the stallion was selected, the breeding occurred, or the foal was born? Is a breeder the owner of a breeding stallion? Are you an American breeder if your horses are bred, born, raised and/or competed in a foreign country?
I would hope that by defining these terms at the beginning, your task will be made easier, and your editor will encourage you to proceed. Everyone will not agree on who you select as the “Most Influential American Breeders”; but defining these terms will allow them to understand how you selected them.
P.S. By substituting “Some of” for “10 Most” at the beginning of the title, you may save yourself a lot of heartache.
OP, I have no additional recommendations, but I wanted to add that I am glad you brought the question forward. This is very interesting - certainly a learning opportunity for small or new breeders. There are many breeders that I didn’t know about - so you know what? I’m going to get information about them, learn about their offspring, goals, and their achievements, and become more knowledgeable in the process. Thank you!
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