Sweet Sixteen

Team USA wins FEI World Equestrian Games dressage silver for the first time since 2002

 

2018 WEG team dressage silver medalists Kasey Perry-Glass, Adrienne Lyle, Steffen Peters, and Laura Graves of the USA with technical advisor and chef d'equipe Robert Dover. Photo by Jennifer Bryant. 

“They’ve worked very hard for this.”

Not that we had any doubts that the four members of the 2018 US World Equestrian Games dressage team had put in the time and the blood, sweat, and tears to get there; but there was the affirmation, standing next to me ringside for the dressage team medal ceremony at the FEI WEG Tryon 2018.

It was Diane Perry, Team USA member Kasey Perry-Glass’s mom and the owner of Perry-Glass’s WEG mount, Goerklintgaards Dublet. Between wielding her smartphone video camera to record the ceremony for posterity and exhorting “Dublet” to please keep all four feet on the ground, Perry was every horse-show mom writ large: proud, perhaps a little overwhelmed, adrenaline-fueled but tired from the long hours in the North Carolina heat and humidity, and already gearing up for her daughter’s next effort (asked whether they’d be celebrating tonight, Perry quickly replied: “Oh, no. We have a horse show tomorrow,” referring to the Grand Prix Special).

 

Group hug! Team USA's Debbie McDonald, Kasey Perry-Glass, Adrienne Lyle, and Steffen Peters embrace after watching Laura Graves clinch the team silver medal on Verdades, while sponsor Betsy Juliano and chef Robert Dover look on. Photo by Jennifer Bryant. 

It’s easy to forget, when we see our dressage idols on the covers of magazines, and when they and their entourages and their sponsorships and their celebrity make them seem larger than life, that top riders are daughters and wives and moms and dads—people who were endowed with a generous helping of talent and ambition and grit and of course luck, but also people who probably have a lot in common with those of you who are reading this. They love horses. They love riding. They love dressage. Watching Diane Perry cheer for her daughter as she stepped onto the WEG dressage medal podium for the first time, the glamorous medal ceremony suddenly felt very personal.

But competition at this international level isn’t really personal; it’s about national pride first and foremost, with glory for one’s team and one’s country superseding individual accomplishment. Although dressage is ultimately about one rider’s partnership with one horse, “top sport,” as the Europeans call it, is a machine the way NFL football is a machine: an industry and a very serious business while at the same time serving as entertainment and hobby for the spectator and fan.

 

German team gold medalist Isabell Werth and Bella Rose were the highest-scoring pair of the WEG Grand Prix team competition. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

The German dressage machine has dominated the discipline for decades, and today was no exception. The team of Isabell Werth on Bella Rose, Sonke Rothenberger on Cosmo, Jessica Bredow-Werndl on TSF Dalera BB, and Dorothee Schneider on Sammy Davis Jr. swept the 2018 WEG dressage team competition with a total score of 242.950. Werth and her “dream horse,” Bella Rose, topped both her teammates and the entire field with their score of 84.829 percent in a largely flawless test marked by elegance and elasticity.

 

Top USA scorer Laura Graves and Verdades. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Last to go in the entire team competition was the most hotly anticipated pair of the largely American crowd: top-ranked US rider Laura Graves and her famous Verdades. They did not disappoint, laying down a powerful Grand Prix test marred only by “Diddy’s” slight spook at an FEI TV camera near C to earn a score of 81.537 percent, which put Graves second individually behind Werth. 

Graves’ usual sparkling smile seemed a bit dimmed during the medal ceremony, and at the press conference we found out why: She confessed to being “a little under the weather.” Here’s hoping she gets some needed rest and feels better for tomorrow’s GP Special—although she said that “adrenaline is an amazing thing” because as soon as she put her foot in the stirrup today, all else was forgotten.

Perry-Glass’s score of 76.739 percent was the second-highest of the US team, which clinched the silver medal on a team total score of 233.136.

“It felt great,” Perry-Glass said of her Grand Prix test afterward. “He was 100 percent in warm-up, and I really felt like he brought the power that we were looking for in the test.”

“He’s so sensitive,” Perry-Glass said of the 15-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding (Diamond Hit x Ferro). “I had to figure out that balance between asking for more and not asking for too much. I think we’re really right on the cusp of being really great with that. 

“He has every opportunity to be up with Isabell and Laura,” Perry-Glass continued. Referring to their excellent finishes in Aachen this year, she said: “We’ve done it once before. I know we can do it again.” With tears welling, she said, “I’m going to cry because I love him so much.”

For a report on Team USA silver medalists Steffen Peters’ and Adrienne Lyle’s tests yesterday, click here.

Since the retirement of Charlotte Dujardin’s superstar mount Valegro, the dressage world has wondered whether Great Britain would remain among the top powers in the sport. The answer, as evidenced by today’s WEG team dressage bronze medal, is yes. 

 

Great Britain's Charlotte Dujardin and her new star partner, Mount St. John Freestyle. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Dujardin, back on the international scene for the first time since winning individual gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics with Valegro, was Team GBR’s top scorer, earning 77.764 percent on the astonishingly young-yet-accomplished nine-year-old Hanoverian mare, Mount St. John Freestyle (Fidermark x Donnerhall). “Freestyle” handled the atmosphere in the US Trust Arena with ease, making just a few green mistakes—this was only Freestyle’s sixth Grand Prix—and Dujardin said afterward that the mare’s nickname of “Mrs. Valegro” is not an exaggeration.

“She has three very normal paces,” Dujardin said, “but when I started riding her, she has unbelievable trainability. And then her scope for what she can do: She can just put her legs wherever she wants! She’s so brave and she gives so much… She has the same attitude [as Valegro]: She goes in that arena, she’s not afraid of anything; she tries so hard. I know when she’s stronger and the mistakes aren’t there, it’s going to be very, very exciting. I think she may be as good as him one day. 

 

2018 WEG team bronze medalists Carl Hester of Great Britain on Hawtins Delicato. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Finishing just behind his most famous pupil was Carl Hester, also on a relatively inexperienced horse, the 10-year-old Hanoverian gelding Hawtins Delicato (Diamond Hit x Regazzoni). The stunning “Del” put in a lovely and elastic test with just a few bobbles to earn a score of 77.283. The British team was rounded out by Spencer Wilton on Super Nova II (74.581) and Emile Faurie on Dono di Maggio (72.795), for a team total of 229.628.

Said Hester afterward: “I said to Charlotte, with these young horses, we can’t compete them all around Europe and then fly them to a WEG and expect them to be on form. They would be exhausted. Our plan was to do the British shows and then come here. Having said that, I’ve had a week…it’s been a bit tense because the horse hasn’t really walked, he hasn’t really halted. Then this morning, one week later, we walked around the ring at 7:30 this morning on a loose rein; he walked around twice and I thought, I’m going to have a good ride today. And I did. He has such good paces, this horse. He might not be the superstar flash of some of the others, but he is so good with his hind legs, he has such a great walk.”

With that, the stage is set for an exciting start to the WEG individual dressage competition. Two medals are at stake—GP Special and GP Freestyle—and the Special kicks off tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. EDT. Watch on FEI TV or catch WEG dressage on NBC Sports' Olympic Channel.

Let Them Eat Cake

Celebrating the USDF Instructor/Trainer Program's 25th anniversary. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Unlike with Marie Antoinette, this time the invitation was a welcome one. The occasion: the USDF Instructor/Trainer Program's 25th anniversary. Adequan/USDF Annual Convention attendees, and especially members of USDF's Board of Governors, enjoyed slices of delicious cake during a break in day 1 of the BOG's annual assembly.

Cake wars: USDF members vied for the best angle to photograph the anniversary creation. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

In truth, the break was hardly needed. Once a notoriously contentious governance marathon, the BOG assembly is on track to break speed records for the second year in a row. Today's agenda -- which included reports from USDF's president and executive director, a budget report, and talks by various United States Equestrian Federation officials -- wrapped half an hour early. It left plenty of time for the eagerly anticipated drawings for those most cherished of door prizes, the traditional gift baskets donated by USDF's group-member organizations.

The 2014 USDF Board of Governors assembly. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Beautiful baskets, many displaying state or regional pride, are a cherished BOG tradition. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

The reports and addresses were universally upbeat. According to USDF treasurer Steve Schubert, the USDF is in the black and has been pronounced squeaky-clean by its independent auditing firm. In its second year of existence, the US Dressage Finals attracted 100 more horses than the 2013 edition and are in the black, according to Janine Malone, who chaired the national championships' organizing committee. USDF member and horse-registration numbers are healthy, although some GMOs have seen attrition, a concern addressed in the morning's GMO roundtable discussions, in some committee meetings, and in USDF executive director Stephan Hienzsch's BOG report.

GMO representatives share challenges and solutions at the popular GMO roundtable discussions, Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

The USEF reports were practically fountains of delight. No one can compete with national dressage chef d'equipe and technical advisor Robert Dover when it comes to optimism. Referring to the USEF-USDF relationship, Dover said, "We are putting together a true machine that works together at every single level, from the littlest kids to the highest level." Make no mistake: This man is going to get US dressage riders on the medal podiums or die trying. My own money's on the former.

We heard from USEF president Chrystine Tauber, who praised the USDF's efforts in creating the US Dressage Finals and promised continued support for dressage. Some of that support will assuredly come in the stout, genial form of Will Connell, whom the USEF lured across the pond from the British Equestrian Federation to become its director of sport.

Connell had the BOG delegates laughing at his tales of his days as commander of the King's Troop in the Royal Army, and later as a new employee at the BEF, working to transform a "dysfunctional" British team into the world-beaters they proved to be at the 2012 London Olympics. (In Athens 2004, Connell said, he found Carl Hester in the arena the night before the Grand Prix Freestyle, frantically trying to learn teammate Richard Davison's freestyle. Hester figured his chances of qualifying were so poor he hadn't bothered to create his own freestyle, Connell said.)

Under that pleasant exterior and the hello-old-chap stuff must beat the heart of a ferocious go-getter, however. Most sources give Connell the credit for turning around Team GB's equestrian fortunes, and it's clear the USEF wanted him badly. It will be very interesting to see what Connell does with what he's calling Operation Tokyo, the reference being to the 2020 summer Olympic Games.

So Close...

For a heady few hours, it looked as if the USA was going to clinch the dressage team bronze medal at the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. But then Great Britain’s Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro came in and spoiled it all.

The five-member ground jury—including the USA’s own Lilo Fore—universally placed Dujardin and the twelve-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding (Negro x Gerschwin) first, with an average score of 85.271 percent. Sixth from last in the field of 100 horses, Valegro soundly beat the previous day’s front-runner, Bella Rose 2, ridden by Isabell Werth of Germany (81.529).

“I had a fantastic ride today,” Dujardin said of “Blueberry.” “He felt really, really good; he’s felt good all week. He went in and he really, really did perform.”

WEG team gold medalists Germany. From left: chef d'equipe Klaus Roeser, Kristina Sprehe, Fabienne Lutkemeier, Isabell Werth, Helen Langehanenberg, and head judge Stephen Clarke of Great Britain. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

But Dujardin’s stratospheric score wasn’t enough to knock the German team off the highest step of the medal podium. The all-women team (Helen Langehanenberg/Damon Hill NRW, 81.357; Kristina Sprehe/Desperados FRH, 78.814; Fabienne Lutkemeier/D’Agostino FRH, 73.586; and Werth) claimed the team gold medal with a total score of 241.700. And we should point out that the gold medal was theirs despite the injury and withdrawal of the horse considered Germany’s front-runner, the 2010 WEG gold medalist Totilas (under Dutchman Edward Gal) with current rider Matthias-Alexander Rath.

“We bought her as a three-year-old,” Werth said of Bella Rose 2, whom she says may be the best horse she’s ever ridden. (That’s saying a lot, considering Werth’s numerous Olympic and WEG appearances and medals, including gold ones, with such famous mounts as Gigolo and Satchmo.) “This is one of the diamonds you find in your life. I had the luck already with Gigolo and with Satchmo to have some diamonds, but she is really something special. She is so beautiful, so proud, with great charisma.” Bella Rose 2 is a ten-year-old Westfalen mare (Belissimo M x Cacir AA).

Team Great Britain (Carl Hester/Nip Tuck, 74.186; Michael Eilberg/Half Moon Delphi, 71.886; Gareth Hughes/DV Stenkjers Nadonna, 69.714; and Dujardin) took silver with 231.343. And even with two horse/rider combinations pinch-hitting at the last minute when team horses suffered injuries, the Netherlands (Adelinde Cornelissen/Jerich Parzival NOP, 79.629; Hans Peter Minderhoud/Glock’s Johnson TN, 74.357; Diederik van Silfhout/Arlando NOP; and Edward Gal/Glock’s Voice, 72.414) won team bronze over Team USA (227.400 vs. 222.714, respectively).

 

The bronze-medal winning Dutch team (Hans Peter Minderhoud, Edward Gal, Diederik van Silfhout, and Adelinde Cornelissen) shares a laugh at the post-medal-ceremony press conference. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Judge Stephen Clarke, who was president of the ground jury for the team competition, said: “The whole thing was outstanding. It’s unbelievable that, year after year, the standard gets higher and higher, and our sport grows more and more. We should all be very excited and very positive about it.”

The US team of Steffen Peters/Legolas 92, Laura Graves/Verdades, Adrienne Lyle/Wizard, and Tina Konyot/Calecto V finished in the same order as at June’s WEG selection trials. Peters had the high score of 75.843, despite two mistakes in the one-tempi changes. As before, Graves was hot on his heels with 74.871, with her nemesis being “Diddy’s” apprehension of the TV cameras lurking between the judge’s booths, which caused him to stop dead momentarily during his extended walk. Lyle’s solid test aboard Wizard earned them a score of 72.000, and Konyot’s mostly solid test with Calecto V had a few small errors for 69.643.

 

Yikes! Verdades spies a monster in the bushes during his Grand Prix test with Laura Graves. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

If you were a horse, you'd be scared too. Glock's Voice and Edward Gal of the Netherlands negotiate the monster in the bushes, aka an FEI TV camera. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

According to Peters, he pushed the envelope with Legolas 92—and almost pulled it off. “The rest of the test was probably the best we’ve done,” he said afterward. “I really fought for my team, fought for my country. We risked everything. The extensions felt better than before, and we really went for it in the half-passes. The strong points are the piaffe-passage. A wonderful feeling—very supple, very energetic. We went for it in the one-tempis, and that’s where the mistake happened.”

 

One-tempis might be Legolas 92's Achilles heel, but this one looks just fine. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Peters, who was hospitalized with pneumonia prior to the Aachen CHIO and was forced to withdraw from the competition, credited his wife, Shannon, with keeping both Legolas 92 and Rosamunde in top shape, riding until her husband was able to get back in the saddle. In fact, he said, Shannon uncovered a bit more suppleness in Legolas than Steffen even realized the horse had in him.

 

Floating: Laura Graves and Verdades show why they're putting the international dressage community on notice. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

For her part, Graves handled her first appearance on a truly international stage with grace. Saying she’s not normally a nervous competitor, she admitted: “When I was warming up, I said, ‘I have this pain in my stomach. I don’t get nervous.’ [US dressage chef d’équipe] Robert [Dover] said, ‘That’s nerves.’ I said, ‘I’m not nervous; I have a pain in my stomach.’ He said, ‘That’s what nerves are.’ So yeah, I was very nervous,” Graves concluded with a laugh.

In the twelve years Graves and “Diddy” have been together, she’s learned that he’s the type of horse that overreacts if he’s pushed when he’s scared. He’s an honest type who spooks only when he’s truly scared, so she knew there was no point in pushing him when he froze momentarily in the walk, she said of the twelve-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding (Florett AS x Goya) her mother found as a yearling.

“He has a lot of points to earn with his walk; he has a super walk, so whenever we miss it from tension like we did today, it’s a real bummer,” Graves said afterward. “Still, everything else…there were no mistakes in the changes and I’m super happy with how his piaffe is coming along. So I’m really proud to be here.”

Of the WEG experience, Graves said: “It just keeps feeling like the next step. This is the big boom you’ve been waiting for. When you find out you’re on the team, you kind of expect fireworks and rainbows falling from the sky. This [going in the WEG arena for the first time] is the big bang for me.”

Yes, It Was an Early Morning for the WEG Dressage Veterinary Inspection

Nonconformist: Dressage announcer Pedro Cebulka at the veterinary inspection. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

So early, in fact, that announcer Pedro Cebulka's hair was still in curlers.

After all, the opening ceremony ran pretty late last night, and with the enormous traffic jam outside the Stade D'Ornano and the pervasive shuttle snafu that stranded many of us journalists curbside for an hour or more, we all didn't get to bed until the wee hours.

But curlers?

Hey, who says a dressage veterinary inspection has to be a staid affair? Not Cebulka, a well-known equestrian emcee here in Europe who's loved by competitors and spectators alike for his flamboyant costumes and his effortless, entertaining way of keeping events on track.

Apparently Cebulka often dons wacky outfits -- spangles, crazy hats, that sort of getup. Here at the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, however, officials are given uniforms to wear. But evidently no one banned wigs, and so Cebulka donned one festooned with pink curlers, just because.

A chilly morning made for some extraordinary displays of equine athletics. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

The multilingual Cebulka, who currently calls Canada home, has the gift of improv. When one of several dressage horses became fractious during the jog, he quipped to the officials: "Please step back against the rail. But if you have insurance, stay where you are." Another time, during a horse's airborne antics: "Horses, please control your riders."

The goofy wig and the patter couldn't conceal the importance of the veterinary inspection, however. It is during this in-hand "jog" or "trot-up" that the appointed veterinary panel watches each horse trot and decides whether it is fit to compete. And not all always are. One horse, Donpetro HL, ridden by Natalya Yurkovich of Kazakhstan, was held, re-presented, and eliminated.

Valegro and Charlotte Dujardin of Great Britain. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Such a fate did not befall any of the better-known WEG dressage contenders, fortunately, including all of Team USA: Legolas 92 (Steffen Peters), Wizard (Adrienne Lyle), Calecto V (Tina Konyot), and Verdades (Laura Graves). Although several top horses were withdrawn just days ago (click here for my report), there were no more changes today to the German or Dutch teams. Great Britain's squad, including Valego, the reigning Olympic champion, is likewise intact.

International-competition newcomers Laura Graves and Verdades are at their first World Equestrian Games. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

All day long, teams have been getting in one more training session before the start of competition. Tomorrow is day one of two consecutive days of Grand Prix tests, the combined average scores of which will decide the dressage team WEG medals and whose individual scores will determine which horse-rider combinations will advance to the individual Grand Prix Special on Wednesday, August 27.

US dressage chef d'equipe Robert Dover guides Calecto V through the turn during the veterinary inspection. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Tina Konyot and Calecto V will be first to ride for the US: tomorrow (Monday) at 9:35 a.m. local time, which is 6 hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time for those of you tuning in via FEI TV (sorry, there's no free live-streaming). Adrienne Lyle and Wizard ride at 3:24 p.m.

Laura Graves on Verdades and Steffen Peters on Legolas 92 go Tuesday at 10:09 a.m. and 3:45 p.m., respectively.

Dinner with Champions

The 2014 USDF/USEF Young Rider Graduate Program participants and special dinner guests. From left: Robert Dover, Stephan Hienzsch, USDF Youth Programs Committee chair Roz Kinstler. Middle row, second from right: Debbie McDonald. At right: George Williams, Scott Hassler. Photo by Victoria Trout/USDF.

Last night, as part of the USDF/USEF Young Rider Graduate Program, the attendees enjoyed a special evening: dining with three of the US national dressage coaches, the USDF president, and the USDF executive director.

In a relaxed atmosphere, the 38 participants got to know chef d'equipe and Olympian Robert Dover, Developing coach and Olympian Debbie McDonald, and young-horse coach Scott Hassler as they swapped stories and shared anecdotes about their dressage careers. Also on hand were international competitor George Williams, USDF's president; and USDF executive director Stephan Hienzsch.

Here are a few of the evening's memorable quotes from our very special guests:

On what makes for a successful equestrian career

In my career, and in Deb’s, and in Scott’s, we were never not students -- from the time we began, and it’s still happening now. I’m still a student when I’m riding. I still have other people who are giving me input while I’m riding.  -Robert Dover

Depth -- lots of horses coming up through your pipeline. You can be very lucky and have one special horse, but if you can’t somewhat keep a pipeline coming, then as soon as that horse is done you’re pretty much like the rest of the country.  -Debbie McDonald

Keep yourself attractive to the outside world, because that brings you the flow of horses. Be a good person; be a good character; be a team player; respect your horses; have a positive environment around you all the time. Be attractive, and that’s not just how you ride; be attractive in all ways. -Scott Hassler

In life and in sport, those who are going to be great will become great. If you’re going to be great, you’re going to figure it out and you’ll be great and that’s the way it is. -Robert Dover

On teamwork

My team is my vet, my shoer, my groom, my everybody that is part of what I do. I think when you build up a lot of confidence and respect, you work alongside them instead of talking down to them or expecting them to pick up a pitchfork, and you join in. That’s building team spirit, and I think it goes all the way on up to the Olympic Games.  -Debbie McDonald


Even in the hardest times, just be true to yourself and kind to everyone around you, and it will all work out in the end, however it’s supposed to be. -Debbie McDonald

We are so grateful to these wonderful role models for giving of their time and expertise to help the next generation of dressage professionals. Thank you!

It's a Long Way to the Top if You Want to Do Dressage

Day one of the 2014 USDF/USEF Young Rider Graduate Program was all about work.

Not training. Not riding. Not flying changes or showing or any of the wonderful horsey stuff that makes so many young people want to pursue dressage as a career.

Today's speakers focused on the unglamorous hard work and attention to detail that go into building a successful business as a dressage trainer, instructor, or rider.

International competitor Jessica Jo "JJ" Tate started things off by recounting her own career trajectory, from horse-crazy high-school student to successful professional with several high-level horses that are garnering national attention.

This will come as no surprise, but "hard work" is tops on Tate's list of steps to success. An unwavering work ethic and the courage to set goals and seek opportunities for advancement -- these were also key for Tate, who left her home state of Wisconsin to move to Hungary (a country she'd never visited, populated by people whose language she didn't speak) to study under Olympian Gyula Dallos, all at the recommendation of Tate's mentor, Charles de Kunffy. Later, the same courage led Tate to leave her thriving dressage business in Wisconsin to move to the East Coast to work for another important influence, Oded Shimoni.

All the while, Tate said, professionalism is paramount.

"Learn to bite your tongue," Tate said. "Never have a meltdown at a horse show. Learn to compartmentalize. If you go to the doctor, your doctor doesn't come in the exam room and share his personal problems. He conducts himself in a professional manner. I might be upset and stressed because my top horse just sustained an injury, but I have a lesson in an hour and a student who expects me to bring it 100 percent and focus on her and her horse."

Professionalism includes paying close attention to your image and your actions, stressed Debbie Witty, president of Performance Saddlery, makers of Trilogy saddles. Witty discussed her rationale for sponsoring dressage riders and trainers, explaining what impresses her and how she makes the decision to sponsor -- or not sponsor -- a rider.

For Witty, it boils down to a positive image and "pleasant, polite" promotion of oneself and her products. She likes to support riders whose conduct reflects well on themselves and on her company, and who she believes have the potential to act as ambassadors for both her products and our sport. Mindful of image, she pays attention to a rider's presence on social media, and she also "loves it when riders mention us on their Facebook pages."

Sponsorship by Performance Saddlery starts with complimentary saddle-flocking and goes all the way up to saddles and saddle pads. But regardless of the level, the rider can bill herself a PS-sponsored rider and may be eligible for promotional consideration on the company's website and Facebook page, among others.

Piggybacking on Witty's session theme was equine-marketing pro Johnny Robb, who spoke on sponsorships, as well. Robb echoed Witty's emphasis on being positive and persistent ("without being a pest," she qualified). She emphasized the importance of enthusiasm -- for our sport, for the products and the company you're wooing -- and creativity in one's approach.

Think like a marketer, Robb advised. "What do you have to offer a sponsor? Position yourself as a marketing solution. How can you make their life and their job easier?"

One of the day's most engaging sessions was about a topic that might strike some as dull: equine law. But equine lawyer Yvonne Ocrant's introduction to equine liability issues, and the land mines involved in dealing with lawsuits, had the Young Rider Grad Program participants peppering the Chicago-based lawyer with questions.

Equine-liability statutes vary from state to state, Ocrant stressed -- and a few states have no such statutes at all. Read your state's statute carefully to learn, among other things, its definition of "equine activity" and "participant."

A careful paper trail, ample warning signage (in state-approved legalese), solid contracts and liability releases, and lots and lots of communication with clients can help protect you in the case of a lawsuit, Ocrant said. Oh, and lots of the right type of insurance --which she'll delve into tomorrow.

Media relations was the subject of Lindsay McCall's talk. McCall, who specializes in equine-industry PR, photography, and journalism, covered such topics as the importance of preparing an "elevator speech" (a five-minute introduction that includes your background, horse info, achievements, and goals) and strategies for handling interview requests (be friendly and accommodating; frame all responses in a positive light; never speak ill of one's horse, teammates, or other factors; thank supporters and sponsors).

Realize that some interviewers are horse-savvy while others don't know one end from the other. For the latter, use simple terms as free of equestrian and dressage jargon as possible. And always spell your name and that of your horse!

Photography is a big part of journalism, of course. McCall pointed out the rampant copyright violations that occur, especially pertaining to Facebook and other online postings of professional photographs. Obtain permission from the photographer before you post that great show photo (you may have to pay a fee for digital usage rights), and always credit the photographer.

Beth Baumert, president of The Dressage Foundation, gave an overview of that charitable organization's many funds and grants. She encouraged the YRGP participants to give to causes they believe in and stressed that no amount is too small or insignificant. Most of all, she urged the young adults in the room to plan for their own secure financial futures by establishing a retirement savings account (she likes Roth IRAs because they're seeded with after-tax money, meaning that the withdrawals will be tax-free) as early as possible, to take maximum advantage of the power of compounded interest.

United States Equestrian Federation managing director of dressage Jenny van Wieren-Page rounded out the day with a look at the USEF's "pipeline" for dressage, beginning with juniors and ponies and finishing at the high-performance level. She encouraged the YRGP participants to contact the USEF with questions about programs and eligibility, and also to feel free to contact the national dressage coaches with questions.

We covered a lot of ground in one day! Now the grad YRs are looking forward to a special evening: dinner with national coaches Robert Dover, Debbie McDonald, and Scott Hassler.

See you tomorrow for day 2 of the YR Graduate Program!

A Feast of Dressage: Four Days in Florida

This year, we have the good fortune to enjoy back-to-back USDF educational events in "Wellie World," aka the Wellington, Florida, area.

This weekend is the every-other-year Young Rider Graduate Program, co-hosted by the USDF and the United States Equestrian Federation. It's followed immediately by the annual two-day Succeed/USDF FEI-Level Trainers' Conference.

I'll be blogging during the course of both events, bringing you photos and highlights from both programs. To get things started, here's a little bit of background information about the programs' focus and this year's headliners.

Some years ago, the USDF in conjunction with the USEF realized a need for an educational bridge between the FEI Young Rider ranks and the world of dressage professionals and open competition. Kids were finding themselves equipped with riding skills but woefully ignorant of knowledge of business, insurance, legal issues, client and sponsor dealings, and the like.

Selected Young Rider Graduate Program applicants receive two days chock-full of lectures from leading experts on the above topics as well as from the people they probably admire the most: well-known dressage pros. This weekend's lineup includes such marquee names as Catherine Haddad Staller, Lilo Fore, Janet Foy, and Lendon Gray. As an added bonus, the young pros or aspiring pros get to have dinner with some equally lofty luminaries, including Olympian and current national dressage chef d'equipe Robert Dover.

Then on Monday, we're off to the beautiful High Meadow Farm in Loxahatchee for the Succeed/USDF FEI-Level Trainers' Conference. Last year's event, with Olympian Steffen Peters and US national dressage young-horse coach Scott Hassler, was such a smash hit that the dynamic duo of S&S is back this year.

The Trainers' Conference, as its name suggests, is a type of symposium conducted for trainers of horses working at the FEI levels. The clinicians encourage dialog and questions from the participants as well as from the demonstration riders. Together the demo riders and horses at these conferences constitute some of US dressage's best and brightest, and it's a real treat to see how even these excellent pairs improve under expert coaching.

I hope I've whetted your appetite for what are sure to be four memorable days of fabulous learning. Stay tuned for day 1 highlights from the USDF/USEF Young Rider Graduate Program.

Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward the BOG

So far at the 2013 Adequan/USDF National Convention, there's been more buzzing about the weather than the Board of Governors agenda.

Winter Storm Dion, as the system has been dubbed, made its way into the Lexington, Kentucky, area today, bringing nonstop rain that this evening began to change to ice as temperatures dipped. This being the land of little snow-and-ice-removal equipment, the Lexington airport has already began canceling flights, which of course led to anxious speculation: "Will I be able to get out of here Sunday?" "I wonder whether my family will be able to drive in tomorrow for the awards banquet." Ah, the joys of staging a convention in the (almost) wintertime.

But inside the Hyatt it's warm and cozy, and few souls ventured outside the hotel today. (We're thanking our lucky stars the hotel is connected to shops and restaurants.) You might think this scenario makes for cabin fever and cranky Board of Governors delegates, but day 1 of the BOG assembly was almost certainly the smoothest, quickest, and least fraught with conflict in USDF history.

This ease can be attributed to two things. First, the inaugural US Dressage Finals, which wrapped just a few weeks ago, went incredibly well and have earned nothing but accolades from both competitors and the equestrian press. Had the event been problematic, I have no doubt that the I-told-you-so'ers would have been lined up 20 deep at the microphones in the BOG meeting room.

One big happy family: The USDF Board of Governors. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Second -- are you ready for this? -- there were no committee motions to come before the BOG for a vote. Zip. Zero. The excitement of the day was approving a minor addition to the USDF bylaws that had gotten left off the agenda printout. (If you're curious, the bylaws now affirm the longstanding policy of electing by acclamation any Executive Board candidates who run unopposed.)

GMO basket from the Potomac Valley Dressage Association. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Frankly, the BOG delegates showed a lot more animation whenever a drawing was held for another GMO basket. In this charming tradition, GMOs donate regionally themed gift baskets to be awarded as door prizes during the BOG assembly. (I wish I could win one, but I'm not a delegate.)

There was also excitement during the coffee break, when convention-goers were treated to mini cupcakes decorated with chocolate horse heads or the number 40 -- in honor of USDF's 40th anniversary, of course.

40th-anniversary cupcakes surround a "Happy Birthday USDF" cake. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Happily caffeinated and fortified, the delegates settled back in to listen to the customary presentations by a United States Equestrian Federation representative and by the head of the USEF's high-performance dressage arm. Today we heard from USEF CEO John Long and USEF dressage chef d'equipe Robert Dover.

Long, who announced that he will step down next June, reaffirmed the USEF's determination to self-police in the area of equine welfare:

"We’re continually reminded of the problems the Tennessee Walkers have. The [US] government has intervened; as you may have heard, two Tennessee Walker trainers were arrested this week. But that’s not what we want to happen to us. Better for us to take care of those issues than someone else coming in from the outside and telling us what we have to do."

That's why, among others, USEF rules prohibiting injections 12 hours prior to competition have been passed, Long said.

Robert Dover addresses the USDF Board of Governors. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

A couple of tantalizing quotes from Dover, who laid out his "big audacious goal" of getting US riders atop medal podiums in his "Roadmap to the Podiums" earlier this year:

"We are on the march to have [dressage] combinations that can [score] between 75 and 85 percent. That’s the formula for a medal."

And for those dressage-pony advocates out there:

"I’m so determined to enhance this [the US pony dressage program] until we have the strongest pony division in the world."
  Amidst these developments, the USDF itself appears to have turned the economic corner, said executive director Stephan Hienzsch, with horse registrations, membership revenue, and recognized-show participation up a tick this year. And USDF treasurer Steve Schubert announced that in 2013 the USDF achieved his goal of amassing six months' worth of operating cash reserves.

Safe travels to all who are Lexington-bound, and we'll see you tomorrow for BOG day 2, more great education sessions, and the Salute Gala and Annual Awards Banquet.