August 2017 YourDressage

YourDressage

August 2017

A United States Dressage Federation Publication

Road to the Finals: Taryn Anderson hopes third time is a charm

Welcome to Your Wonderful World of Dressage YourDressage is compiled by the United States Dressage Federation, written by participants from throughout the dressage community. The articles in this publication are submitted by people like you to share and be shared by all. Experience their stories as they navigate through the wonderful world of dressage and become friends with your dressage community.

It’s YourDressage, be part of it! If you would like to submit your story see the last page of this publication.

Get Connected

The 2017 USDF Online Stallion Guide is now LIVE! This annual online stallion guide is released by the United States Dressage Federation for the dressage community.

The guide is available both through the USDF website and the USDF app.

Featured article this year is, “The Hottest Bloodlines in Rio” which looks at what sport-horse pedigrees were represented in the 2016 Olympics.

We continue our look at breeding statistics from USDF’s major championships, adding Great American/USDF Regional Championshps.

Once again we have the “Index of Progeny for Advertised Stallions,” which includes progeny that have ranked 1-100 in Adequan®/USDF Year-End Awards. It also includes horses that have placed in US Dressage Finals, Great American/USDF Regional 2017 USDF Championships, and Great Online Stallion Guide American/USDF Breeders Championships from 2009-2016.

This guide contains interactive links to give you all the information you need to make a favorable breeding decision. Whether interested in breeding, or looking for a breeder with offspring already on the ground, this is a great way to learn more about dressage breeders throughout North America.

The Hottest Bloodlines in Rio

Trending Stallions in the Sport Horse Arena: USDFBC Statistics

Pursit of Excellence: Regional Championship Statistics

Finals by the Numbers: US Dressage Finals Statistics

August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

Give us your feedback. #yourdressage

What to See Inside Departments on the ground: Life at Twin Lights Farm Mary and Colleen Barrett discover that breeding sport ponies is a worthwhile endeavor.

YOUNG & INSPIRED: A WITastic Winter with Lendon Gray Tessa Holloran found taking lessons from Lendon Gray a great experience and hopes to build on to it going into this show season.

MY TIME TO RIDE: Journey with a Gentle Giant Beth Ann Adams finds her gentle giant in a 17.2 hand Percheron/ Warmblood named Fiona.

Heard ARound the Arena: At the 2017 NAJYRC See what people were posting on social media from this year’s competition.

USDF flashback: Captain John Fritz Captain John H. "Jack" Fritz (1924-2012) was a superhero of US equestrian sport. His efforts helped shape American dressage as we know it today.

GMO SPOTLIGHT: Lehigh Valley Dressage Association (LVDA) Take a look at this group member organization.

Cover story - Road to the Finals Third Time's a Charm

Taryn Anderson has qualified for the US Dressage Finals the past two years but has not been able to attend. She is hoping that this year her dream will come true.

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on the ground

Life at Twin Lights Farm

By Mary & Colleen Barrett

I

started Twin Lights Farm in 2003. Located in Westminster, MA, it is a family-run operation, with a breeding program focused on producing high quality sport ponies for dressage. I started the breeding program because, at first, I wanted the perfect pony for my kids, but then I ended up focusing more on breeding the best dressage sport ponies that I could produce. We only breed one to three foals per year, so we are able to give each youngster plenty of handling and training from the start.

Back in 2003, I started with an old imported Welsh mare, Elphick’s Encore, who we bred in our garage in Haverhill, MA, for our first foal. Then, we moved to Westminster that fall, where there was no barn or power, only a run in shed and a generator to power the ultrasound for the vet. Later on, I purchased a Mary riding Benno's Nor'Easter

young Welsh cross mare, TLF Roseanne, and an off-the-track thoroughbred mare, In A Dream.

All of our stock are descendants of these three mares. The ponies are handled and shown by myself and my daughter, Colleen, and we start them in shows early, so they become unfazed by the show experience.

We started showing at local breed shows in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, but since have moved on to showing all over New England, including the USDF Breeders Championship New England Series Finals.

We even traveled to Toronto, for the Royal Canadian Agricultural Show. My first time entering the ring with a pony foal, Benno’s Nor’Easter, at a dressage breed show, the judge just laughed at us. It took years for me to build up the courage to try again, but it only made me more determined to produce ponies that could not only compete with the big warmbloods, but win against them.

While our breeding program August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

on the ground

started with Welsh ponies, I ended up loving the movement of the German Riding Ponies and started crossing my mares with them. We also added warmbloods to our breeding program, to get the big lofty movement that the ponies needed. At that point, I started breeding more for dressage than the hunter ring.

Our goal was to produce athletes of smaller stature that can compete at the highest levels of their discipline.

While most of our ponies are still youngsters and not competing under saddle yet, we have a few who are owned by adult amateurs who are happy with their rideability, manageable size, and comfortable gaits. We mostly show the ponies in-hand at the breed shows, and have had quite a lot of success. TLF Bejeweled qualified for the “Sport Pony Star Search Challenge�, which was held at the 2012 Royal Canadian Agricultural Show. She competed and was the TLF Bejeweled

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Jumper TLF Hannah

high score pony of dressage type, winning the NASPR Star Search dressage breeding champion yearling filly. In 2013, TLF Hannah Jumper, shown by her owner and trainer, was the American Connemara Pony Society’s beginner novice champion for eventing her first year out. She also received the United States Eventing Association’s Gold Medal program beginner novice level, for finishing three times with a score of 35

TLF Margarita at NEDA in 2015.

or less that same year. Several of our other foals have won classes and qualified and competed in USDF Breeders Championship Series Final competitions (TLF SummerSolstice, TLF Bejeweled, TLF Rosalinda, TLF Margarita and TLF Masquerade). They are usually a hit at the show, not only because the “cuteness factor” of a pony foal is nearly impossible to beat, but because they hold their own in conformation and move-

ment. Most onlookers are surprised by their big, free, and lofty movement.

My daughter and I are currently working with trainers to get several ponies coming of age into showing. We are anxious to see them start their under-saddle career, and I am looking forward to seeing our ponies at the highest levels of their disciplines.

When I started, it seemed like no one knew what a sport pony was,

but now they are more appreciated and have more opportunities.

The market has changed and they are recognized now for how great and capable they truly are. eTRAK Extra

Read an article on the prenatal care for a healthy mare and foal from Dec/Jan 2015 USDF Connection magazine

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YOUNG & INSPIRED

A WITastic Winter with Lendon Gray Tessa Holloran

I

remember driving down to the Youth Dressage Festival, in August, when we got the e-mail that I was accepted to the 2017 Winter Intensive Training (WIT) Program in Wellington, Florida.

I was so excited, I wasn’t sure if I would get in because the participants are usually a little older than twelve. The next several months were spent getting ready, finding a place to live, packing, and making sure Beau was fit and able to handle the intense training. I have been involved with Dressage4Kids for many years, and as soon as I learned about WIT, I started dreaming of going someday.

Beau is my KWPN mare, her registered name is Usela, and I had only been working with her for about a year and a half.

During that time, we faced a few setbacks and our training really stalled for several months. I Tessa and Usela Photo by Lia Forado

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YOUNG & INSPIRED

thought the WIT program would be a great opportunity to really focus in and see if we could make up some lost time. I had also ridden with Lendon several times, and loved the way she pushes you outside your comfort level and finds ways to help you get results.

WIT is possible thanks to the generosity of Kim van Kampen, who hosts the program at her beautiful Hampton Green Farm.

There were fourteen girls in the program, and it was a great experience to spend time with younger riders because, at home, my barns have always been all adults. We were able to watch and meet some of the biggest names in the dressage world. Our trips included auditing Lisa Wilcox, Steffen Peters, and Robert Dover. I also got to attend the USDF Trainers Conference, and also hear Debbie McDonald give a terrific talk on training tips. We met every member of the U.S. Olympic Dressage Team, and even held their bronze Tessa with Laura Graves at WIT

medal from the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. Everyone had to interview someone who inspired them in the horse world, and I got to sit down with Laura Graves and talk to her about her riding. I was always amazed at how these very famous and busy professionals would make time for us and help us learn from their experiences.

I took five lessons a week with Lendon, and while she can be very tough at times, she is always fair.

I loved every minute, and am so excited with the progress Beau and I have made. A large part of our training focused on getting a more balanced uphill canter and more suppleness in all gaits. We also showed five times at the AdequanŽ Global Dressage Festival and faced the judges fourteen times, earning a few qualifying scores for regionals later this year. Lendon’s coaching was a huge part of our success.

While we were all enjoying the nice weather, the days were a lot of hard work. Every day started at 6:30 a.m., with barn chores then fitness, and ended around 4:30 p.m.

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YOUNG & INSPIRED

We rode six days a week, took field trips to other farms, had weekly written tests, and volunteered. But we also had a lot of fun. We enjoyed going over and watching the warm ups at the Adequan® Global Dressage Festival, the Friday night freestyles, the jumpers on Saturday, sponsor parties, and even just going for yogurt.

Since I’m in seventh grade, in our public middle school, I was very lucky that my teachers supported this training. I wasn’t sure how they would feel about me missing three months of school.

I had to keep up with my classes from Florida, and did quite a bit of my schoolwork at the barn, and on our day off. It was a little challenging at times, but it all worked out.

I am so appreciative to Lendon and all the Dressage4Kids volunteers and sponsors, who make these programs possible for younger riders. And of course my family and friends, who are so Lendon checks fit for Beau's first ride in a double bridle

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supportive with time, money, and even Facetiming to help me with homework. It was an amazing experience, but I did miss my dad, sister, and dogs, who all stayed home in Massachusetts.

Besides the intense training and time in the saddle, I really enjoyed making new friends.

Everyone was so encouraging, and we learned a lot from each other. Whether you were eleven or nineteen years old, we all had different backgrounds and had something helpful to share with

others. Many of us have been keeping in touch, and I hope our friendships will last forever.

Now that we are back home, I plan to ride with Lendon as much as possible at the D4K TEAM Clinics (formerly EDAP), so we can continue to build on everything from Florida. I’m looking forward to our show season.

Update: Tessa was recently inivited to the 2017 USEF Children Dressage National Championship at the US Dressage Festival of Champions, August 23-27 in Wayne, IL.

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August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

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my time to ride

Journey with a Gentle Giant

By Beth Ann Adams

A

fter twenty memorable years together with my dressage partner Pendragon, we sadly had to say goodbye. What would the future hold for me? Giving up riding was unthinkable. After months of indecision, I reached out to Olivia Steidle. Olivia was familiar with my riding abilities and had been responsible for much of Pendragon’s early training. Eager for new experiences, I dusted off my saddle and moved into Travelda Farm where Olivia is a dressage instructor. The first few months involved taking lessons on different horses.

Soon Olivia opened the discussion of looking for a suitable dressage horse. A retired jumper had just moved to Travelda, the owner was looking for a lease situation with stipulation of no more jumping.

Olivia encouraged me to give the big black mare a try.

My journey with the mare Fiona began in the cold snowy

Beth and Fiona

winter of 2013. Our introduction was a bit rocky. Upon going to the field to bring her in for a trail lesson, she pulled the lead out of my hand and refused to move. Helping hands came to the rescue and she was finally brought in and tacked up. Pretending to be brave, I slowly stepped into the saddle. It came falling down with me landing on the ground underneath the mare.

Yes, I’d forgotten to tighten the girth! I’m sure you will not blame me for being nervous when I tell you Fiona is a 17.2 hand Percheron/Warmblood. Fiona’s reaction to all the fuss was to stand quietly while I readjusted the equipment and finally got into the saddle.

Over the winter months we got to know each other better. It soon became obvious that grooming a 17.2 hand horse needed an alternative approach! By standing on my tiptoes I was able to brush her neck and long back. Putting on the saddle and bridle were and equally formidable task requiring “bench pressing” the saddle into correct position. Bridling was ac-

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my time to ride

complished by saying “head down” while pressing lightly between her ears. Ground rules were being established as well as mutual respect.

It was a breathtaking experience riding Fiona’s powerful trot and huge canter, requiring physical fitness, concentration to stay in sync with her stride as well as mental fortitude. Olivia would patiently repeat “legs long, go with her, soften your inside hand”. Sometimes I would feel like I’d never ridden a horse before! Despite my not-so-perfect endeavors, Fiona proved to be a cooperative and forgiving horse. Olivia and I took Fiona to her first dressage show entering the walk-trot test. To everyone’s delight, we took home a beautiful blue ribbon with a score of 73%! Fiona’s willingness in the show ring reestablished my confidence as a competitor.

Olivia invited Felicitas von Newmann-Cosel to hold a series of clinics at Travelda. Felicitas acquired Germany’s Master Level Beth and Fiona at a clinic with Felicitas Newman-Cosle

Instructor Degree which led into her present position as head instructor at First Choice Farm in Maryland. Olivia’s students knew Olivia had been a working student with Felicitas; consequently, it was easy to recognize their teaching similarities.

As Felicitas watched each rider/horse pair warm up, she quickly detected the major areas which needed to be addressed.

Felicitas proved to be an effective and articulate instructor. It was important to Felicitas that each participant understood what was needed for her horse to perform its task correctly. I found Felicitas’ calm, soft spoken demeanor a satisfying change from other clinicians who rush you through the lesson. She gently reminded us that our ultimate goal is to display the two most important elements in riding; the horse’s need to be balanced with its entire body while at the same time remaining maintaining correct stretch to the bit. Felicitas explained the horse should stretch into the bridle, lift-

August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

my time to ride

Beth and Fiona

ing its back and carrying its own neck, creating a feeling as if “peering over the edge of a cliff.”

With Fiona it was apparent to Felicitas that I hesitated letting the mare reach the full potential of her gaits. She explained that the tendency to hold back and flatten a big-moving horse is a common occurrence. She emphasized Fiona needs to reach evenly into both sides of the bit on the long side as well as on circles. She pointed out that if I’m feeling little contact on one side of the reins, Fiona is leaning onto that shoulder to hold herself up. Felicitas echoes Olivia’s words by saying, because Fiona has

strap is to feel the horse’s motion coming through to your hands.

When we each used the strap, it was amazing how we could feel when out horse was coming evenly up to the bridle. My lessons with Felicitas have been inspiring and insightful. I was especially thrilled when she said that Fiona and I look well matched and harmonious together.

I’m very grateful for the large hind quarters, it is important LVDA Training Grant which allowed me to take lessons with to ride her back to front, making Felicitas von Newmann-Cosel. sure the hind legs track up under her belly. She turned to the auditors Fiona made her training level debut this past season. I am proud explained that when the horse is to report we are expecting to correctly carrying itself, balanced receive several awards. More imand equally stretching into both portant than ribbons, Fiona and reins, it might feel like too much energy! However, it is this feeling of I are having fun, gaining experience, and have become partners. power we are seeking to establish.

It was our next session with Felicitas that she introduced a unique eTRAK Extra concept of training. With Olivia Read about draft crosses mounted on her own horse, she in this article from demonstrated the technique of putthe June 2012 USDF ting a cloth strap around the horses Connection magazine hind quarters while Olivia held the ends. The purpose of using the August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

Road To The Finals

By Jennifer M. Keeler

Taryn riding Romulus

Every year when riders and horses from across the country gather in Lexington, KY, for the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan®, they not only bring top performances to the Alltech Arena — they also bring amazing stories. From overcoming tough odds, facing life’s daily challenges, healing from medical and veterinary conditions, or simply being the unlikely underdog, the tales which unfold at the Finals are nothing short of inspiring.

Back by popular demand, USDF’s exclusive series titled “Road to the Finals” will once again share competitors’ stories as they try to earn a ticket to the Kentucky Horse Park on November 9-12, 2017. Each month, a different rider from across the country will allow readers behind-the-scenes access as they pursue their dreams of competing with the best of the best at the Finals. This month, you’ll meet Taryn Anderson of Colorado.

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Third Time's a Charm

Find out more about the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan® here

Taryn Anderson with Addison &: Romulus, Erie, Colorado, Region 5

F

or the last two years, 28-year-old Adult Amateur competitor Taryn Anderson of Colorado has successfully qualified for the US Dressage Finals. And for both of those years, she also had to make the gut-wrenching decision not go to simply because she couldn’t afford it.

“I have desperately wanted to go to the Finals every year I’ve qualified, but it just never worked out for me and I’ve always been so disappointed,” said Anderson.

“But this year I’ve been saving money and have set my mind to do it, so I have no excuses if I’m lucky enough to qualify once again.”

Anderson hopes to double her chances for finally achieving her dream thanks to having the ride on two talented mounts. Her accomplished Third Level partTaryn with Romulus (left) and Addison (right)

ner, Addison, is a nine-year-old Oldenburg mare and Anderson’s most experienced competition partner. “Addison always makes me feel very confident because she’s exactly the same at home as she is at shows and not spooky at all,” Anderson noted. “I know we’ll get a good score for every test – as long as she’s in a good mood. She is a mare after all.”

She also has high hopes for Romulus, an eight-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding who has been affectionately nicknamed “Pig Pen” for his messy habits in the barn. “My mom and I found Romulus barely broke in a pasture in 2015 when we honestly had no idea what we were looking for,” Anderson admitted.

“I got on him after being told he hadn’t been ridden in months, and surprisingly he didn’t buck me off (unlike the horse I had looked at before him). He seemed so kind and sweet so I bought

August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

him, and now here we are, my ‘diamond in the rough’, scoring pretty consistently in the 70’s at First Level. Who would have thought!”

Anderson knows what it takes to be competitive at a championship level when given the opportunity. She began riding at just nine years old, and after first stepping into the dressage arena at eleven, she quickly found herself as an accomplished Junior/ Young Rider at the elite levels.

Despite her blossoming talent, other aspects of life were about to get in the way of her equestrian dreams.

“I fell out of riding for ten years because my horse at the time developed some ongoing physical issues, and I felt so discouraged that I didn’t ride much at all and other things ended up being more important to me,” Anderson explained. “I was a teenager, still in high school, Taryn and Addision get congratulations for their reserve championship in third level freestyle at the 2016 Regional Championship at Estes Park, CO.

who had just gotten a car and I was kind of burned out by the horses taking all of my time away from other activities. So I started choosing my friends over my horse, so my mom sold him and all my riding stuff. It was actually a great move for the horse who went to a great home with a girl who loves him, and he even went on to Grand Prix!

“But for me, it was probably the biggest mistake I’ve ever made,” Anderson continued.

“I was a pretty good little rider with great coaches behind me, so who knows but I think I could have gone somewhere. One of my best friends from that time stayed with the horses, and now she’s competing internationally for the U.S. Team. But you make your mistakes, and the important thing is that I came to realize how much I really loved riding and found my way back. So if I have any advice for a young rider in high school, it would be to STICK with it! You get so much knowledge from the young rider program and if you really want

August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

it, you can make it happen. The love for horses will always be there and having a special horse is worth the time away from your friends!”

Now as an adult, Anderson’s focus and determination are hopefully paving the way to the Kentucky Horse Park in November. In addition to working extra hours at work to save extra money for the trip, she depends upon the critical support of family and friends to help her get there.

“I work full-time at a framing company owned by my dad, and he lets me take off work early to head to a show, or just rolls his eyes when I show up a few minutes late for work while still wearing my riding gear because my lesson went too long,” Anderson laughed.

“My boyfriend drives semis for a living, so he and my dad trailer me around and help with Taryn getting coached my Scott Hassler at a symposium at Colorado Horse Park.

everything when it comes to the ‘heavy lifting’, while my mom is the best horse show mom/groom ever! I also try to help my trainer Greta Vowell with things at the barn and in return that reduces coaching expense at shows. It’s a challenge competing two horses at two different levels and both with freestyles, so it definitely takes a village to get it all done.

My whole family is very into it and comes to all my shows and really is the best support system you could ask for.”

Anderson has a busy roster of shows scheduled over the summer in preparation for the Great American/USDF Region 5 Championships in mid-September, and she hopes every competition will bring her one step closer to finally achieving her goal of bringing her charges to Kentucky.

“I mainly want to go to the Finals to compete with the best and see where I stand,” she said. “Since we don’t compete at CDI’s yet, the Finals is the best experience I can get right now with that type of

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US Dressage Finals Travel Grants

Taryn and Romulus at the Colorado Horse Park.

atmosphere in a big venue. And I’m even looking forward to the travel because I want to get the long trip followed by competition under the horses’ belts, so one day when we do hit the FEI

levels we can be more ready for the demands of a CDI. Overall, I really think that the Finals would be an amazing experience for me and the horses, and I can’t wait to just get out there and do it.”

If she qualifies for this year’s US Dressage Finals, Anderson plans to submit a special application with her show entry as part of USDF’s new travel grant program for qualified competitors representing certain states in the Western United States. Designed to alleviate some of the financial burden for those traveling the greatest distance to the 2017 Finals, the USDF is making up to $50,000 in travel grant funds available to eligible competitors who apply and fall into one of two groups based on the rider’s address of record as associated with their USDF membership.

Competitors from Group 1 (which includes Washington, Oregon, California, Hawaii, Alaska, Montana, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada and Utah) are eligible to apply for grants of up to $1,200 per horse/rider combination, while competitors from Group 2 (Wyoming, New Mexico, and Colorado) are eligible to apply for grants of up to $900. For more information about this program, click here: August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

Heard around the arena

What interesting or fun thing have you heard lately? Send it to us using #aroundthearena

The AdequanÂŽ/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships were held July 18-23 at HITS-on-the-Hudson and Rebecca Farm.

August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

Heard around the arena

What interesting or fun thing have you heard lately? Send it to us using #aroundthearena

More at the 2017 NAJYRC

August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

USDF FLASHBACK

Captain John Fritz Reprinted from the April 2015 USDF Connection magazine.

T

here are doers, and then there are those whose accomplishments tower over those of us mere mortals.

Captain John H. “Jack” Fritz (1924-2012) was a superhero of US equestrian sport. Were it not for his efforts, American dressage—and eventing, and Pony Club, and the North American Junior and Young Rider Championships—would not exist today, at least not in their current robust forms.

Fritz was one of the cavalryera Army officers who brought his equestrian knowledge and organizational expertise to the fledgling horse-sport world of the 1950s and 1960s, as sporting associaPodcast Alert

PODCAST

Check out podcast 69 about John H. Fritz at usdf.podbean.com.

tions sprang up to fill the void left by the cavalry’s mechanization. A hunter/jumper rider as a youth, he had become interested in dressage while a student at Princeton University in New Jersey in the late 1940s. Fritz rode at the Princeton Riding Club under Anita Hazek, a native of Austria who had trained at the Spanish Riding School. At the riding club he also had the opportunity to study with Major Deszo Szilagyi, a graduate of the Hungarian Cavalry School.

After college, Fritz entered military service. While stationed in Tokyo during the Korean War, he rode regularly at the Imperial Palace, taking instruction from two members of the 1932 Japanese Olympic dressage and eventing teams. In the spring of 1952, he participated in a show-jumping competition that included Crown Prince Akihito, who later became the emperor of Japan.

In 1951, when the United States Equestrian Team was founded, Fritz joined and soon assumed a leadership role. By 1965, August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

USDF FLASHBACK

he had become the USET’s director. From 1974 to 1989, he served as its executive vice president; later, he assumed the volunteer role of assistant secretary-treasurer and continued to come into the USET offices in Gladstone, NJ, almost daily. During his long tenure, Fritz was the resident expert on USET and American equestrian history—a fitting role, considering that he was a professor of history at Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey for more than 25 years.

“In the 1950s and early ’60s, I happened to be in a part of the United States where dressage and eventing was taking root,” Fritz said in a 2003 interview with USDF Connection. “It was a growing sport, and not many people were involved. There was a need for somebody who was interested in both, and it was me.”

Fritz’s next organizational move after the USET was in 1955, when he joined the US Pony Clubs, which had been founded the year before.

He went on to become a USPC

president and in 1995 was honored for his years of service with the Pony Club Founder’s Award.

From there Fritz became interested in eventing, and in 1959 he helped to establish the United States Combined Training Association (now the US Eventing Association), which inducted him into its Hall of Fame in 1999. A driving enthusiast to boot, Fritz is also a founding member of the Gladstone (NJ) Driving Association.

Fritz, who earned his eventing and dressage judge’s licenses in the 1950s, served the American Horse Shows Association (now the United States Equestrian Federation) for more than 40 years. In the 1960s, when the AHSA formed dressage and eventing committees to establish rules and competitions, Fritz was a member of each and chaired both. He also later became an FEI judge, and he was a member of the eventing ground jury at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and at the 1987 Pan American Games in USDF founder Lowell Boomer and Fritz

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USDF FLASHBACK

Indianapolis.

In the early 1970s, Fritz helped to found the Eastern States Dressage and Combined Training Association and the Delaware Valley Combined Training Association, both of which went on to become USDF charter group-member organizations (GMOs).

Members of these and other regional and local dressage clubs, frustrated at what they saw as lack of attention to dressage by the AHSA, wanted to create a national dressage organization. Fritz, not surprisingly, was called on to help, and he attended the founding meeting of the USDF in Lincoln, NE, in 1973, where meeting organizer Lowell Boomer recruited him to serve as chair and keeper of order.

The delegates from the clubs who attended the USDF founding meeting were a “polyglot group,” the late former USDF president and 2002 USDF Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Lazelle Knocke recalled in a 2003 interview with USDF Connection. “There was no common thread except, ‘How can

we get a national [organization] off the ground?’ So you needed someone who with humor, and yet with authority, could make it work. So Lowell turned to Jack Fritz. He was at that time a college dean, so he was used to handling unruly folks.

He got us all together.”

Fritz was also a strong supporter of young equestrians. In 1967, he and co-founder Robert E. Cacchione—the latter of whom was a student of Fritz’s at the time—created Fairleigh Dickinson University’s riding program. Together they also launched the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, which today has almost 400 member colleges in 45 states and Canada.

Fritz left an enduring legacy for aspiring young international equestrian competitors. He believed that young riders in North America needed a continental championships similar to those held in Europe, and the creation of the North American Young Riders Championships (now the FEI North Fritz at an early USDF Convention

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American Junior and Young Riders Championships) in the 1970s is largely the result of his efforts. The eventing competition debuted first, in 1974, with dressage joining the NAYRC in 1981 and jumping, in 1983.

The USDF bestowed on Fritz its first honorary life membership, and in 2000 he was inducted into the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame.

A

s a dressage judge and a member of the AHSA (now USEF) Dressage Committee, Jack Fritz had a keen interest both in the evolution of dressage judging and in reporting on those changes. For the March 1976 issue of Dressage (later Dressage & CT) magazine, as the chair of the Dressage Committee, he penned an account of changes the committee had made to its then system of classifying judges. Read on for a look at Fritz’s methodical style of documentation and at the origins of the American dressagejudging system.

AHSA Dressage Committee Report More than two years ago, in 1973, the AHSA Dressage Committee under the chairmanship of John Winnett, at the suggestion of and under pressure from the growing number of local and regional dressage associations developing in all parts of the country, undertook a study of how to improve and standardize dressage judging in the United States. As a result, the Committee in 1974 divided the then recognized judges into four categories labeled A, B, C, and D. Judges with a D rating were individuals with limited judging experience or those whose experience made them well qualified to judge horses at the Training, First, and Second Levels but who were less qualified to judge horses at more advanced levels of training. Individuals classified in the C category were considered more experienced as judges and more able, as a result From Dressage, March 1976. Reprinted by permission of Natalia (Mrs. Ivan) Bezugloff.

Jack Burton and Jack Fritz dressed up

of their experience, to judge horses at Third Level. B-rated judges were those whose experience made them more able to judge horses at Fourth Level, and A judges were those individuals in the opinion of the Committee with the greatest

amount of experience, knowledge, and understanding to judge horses at FEI levels. The Committee did not at the time, nor has it since, ever said that B judges were not capable of judging FEI-level classes, that C judges were not capable of August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

judging Fourth Level classes, etc.

In fact, the Committee provided that judges could judge classes at a level higher than their classification automatically entitled them to do if organizers sought permission and obtained a guest card. In 1976 organizers will merely have to write for permission; a guest card will not be necessary.

What the Committee was trying to do with this system was to indicate to organizers which judges on the basis of the Committee’s study were best qualified at what levels; it had no intention of saying that because an individual was classified as a B judge, for example, that he was necessarily a better judge of horses at the Training, First, and Second Levels than judges with a C rating. The system has apparently not been fully understood. There has been a tendency to think that judges with a D or C rating were not as good judges as those with a B or A rating, and thus organizers have sought judges in these categories even though their shows offered only lower-level classes. As Fritz (left) at a ribbon-cutting for the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame at the 2006 USDF convention August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

a result, many able judges have not been used to the extent they should have been.

The Committee late in 1973 also came up with a method by which the qualifications of those being recognized as judges for the first time and those seeking to be reclassified as being well qualified to judge horses at a higher level of training could be more properly evaluated for such recognition. The system also provided for a means to constantly evaluate all judges and a means to bring judges together with the aim of standardizing judgments and standards. At the time and since, the Dressage Committee has been commended by judges and competitors in other areas of competition—equitation, hunters, saddle horses, for example—for trying to tackle problems common to all divisions of competition and to develop a way of standardizing judging.

At the time the original classification of dressage judges was made, there were complaints that the Committee had made a number

of errors in its classifications. Even some members of the Committee held that opinion. But in general the dressage community was reasonably satisfied with what had been done.

This past December was the first occasion when the Committee was faced with the problem of implementing its program by passing judgment on applications for initial recognition or for reclassification. Readers will note I have avoided using the term “promoted.”

The use of this term in the Committee’s original plan has caused some of the misunderstanding of the system. Just as all American school children and their parents feel they should get A’s in school or be considered inferior, many dressage judges have felt if they did not get “promoted” from D to C to B to A everyone would consider them less good and therefore not use them. How wrong!

The Committee had for over a year been under pressure from influential elements in the USDF to evaluate its original classification of

judges. As the Committee considered applications for reclassification, it seemed essential to review the whole list of judges with the aim of determining who were best qualified to be called A’s, B’s, C’s, or D’s. The Committee decided at that meeting to reclassify a number of individuals. Some left that meeting not really sure all of the decisions made were justified, but all felt they had done what strong voices in the dressage community had asked be done and hoped they had done the correct thing.

It would have been desirable to further study the bases for the Committee’s decisions before taking any action, but there was great pressure from the AHSA office to submit the list of judges because the Rule Book was in the final stages of preparation. So the Committee sent out letters informing a number of individuals of their reclassification. As a result, most members of the Committee received letters or phone calls or were personally asked to give their specific reasons why Miss Doe should be reclassi-

fied while Mr. Doe was not. This rightly caused the Committee to further consider its stand. A careful study was made of the records available to the Committee on all judges. As a result a majority of the Committee decided their action had been hasty and that until there was more and better concrete objective data available on all judges, classifications should remain as they had been for the past two years. So except for the addition of persons who have been given initial recognition, and except for reclassifying a limited number of individuals as being well qualified to judge horses at a higher level of training, the judges’ roster remains unchanged in 1976 from what it was in 1975.

While some feelings have been hurt, while the Committee has been condemned by some and praised by others, lessons have been learned. The Committee has been trying to develop a system of rating and evaluation where none really existed before. It has been trying to do what the dressage

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November 29-December 2 Hyatt Regency Lexington • Lexington, KY community said it wanted done.

Made up of humans, the Committee has perhaps (to paraphrase the Book of Common Prayer) “done those things it ought not to have done.” But I hope the dressage community will not say therefore, “there is no health in us.” As a Committee we want to represent the dressage community and to tackle such problems that need tackling. We are anxious to hear from all quarters and will respond as best we can.

Another action of the Committee which caused some concern was the enforcement of the rule that has been in the Rule book for two years, that judges who did not attend a recognized AHSA Judges Forum at least once in a two-year period would be automatically reclassified from A to B or B to C, etc. Many who received such notices communicated that they had intended to attend a Forum but that the publicity on the Forums had been poor, dates were changed late in the year, and other problems.

Feeling that it would not be just to

forgive those who had a reasonable excuse without hearing from every persona reclassified for not attending a Forum, and recognizing that the Committee had changed dates, had not given proper publicity to the Forums, and even that two Forums had been held with AHSA office approval which the Committee did not even know about, the Committee decided that all those who were subject to reclassification would receive a warning letter that their classification would not be changed for 1976, but that if they did not attend one of the recognized Forums sponsored by the Committee in 1976, they would be reclassified for 1977.

The Committee has taken steps to improve its methods of evaluating judges and to improve how its forums are conducted. We constantly seek suggestions on how to make the system better but feel that for all its faults, the system is better than anything that exists in other competition divisions. s

2017 Adequan®/USDF Annual Convention

Welcome to our old Kentucky home

Regis trat Availa ion ble Onlin e

www.usdf.org/convention

—John H. Fritz, Chairman August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

GMO SPOTLIGHT

Tell us about your GMO. #GMOSpotlight

Lehigh Valley Dressage Association (LVDA) Group Member Organizations (GMOs) are the foundation of USDF and integral in bringing dressage and dressage education to the masses. Stay connected with your local dressage community and support dressage at the local level by joining a GMO in your area today!

USDF GMO Established: 1999 Locality: Region 1, Pennsylvania Website: www.lvda.org How many members does your GMO have annually, on average?

90-100 members Tell us about your GMO. The Lehigh Valley Dressage Association (LVDA) was founded in the 1970s and serves the northeastern portion of Pennsylvania, as well as northwestern New Jersey. Our membership ranges from future dressage stars to FEI competitors, and we welcome everyone, whether they are just looking for an opportunity to socialize with other people who share their interests or if they want to take full advantage of our show and clinic opportunities. Each year, we offer a series of five schooling shows, with the last show also being our schooling show championships, with awards at each level. While we have a “casual� dress code for our regular schooling shows, in the championship classes, we ask that riders dress as they would at a recognized show. We also offer a variety of educational opportunities to our members each year, including clinics with regional and national trainers and a winter lecture series. In addition, we have several scholarship opportunities for our members that include riding and educational scholarships, as well as a recently started clinic scholarship program.

The clinic scholarship is designed to help up to ten members, per year, offset the cost of our clinics. The riding and education scholarships, offer to members who have demonstrated exception commitment to and/ or excellence in the sport of dressage and service within LVDA, provide

funding for educational and riding opportunities. We are also very proud of the fact that we have sent at least two teams to every Region 1 Adult Team Competition for many years, and we look forward to continuing to do that in the years to come. Our Adult Team members do an outstanding job of fundraising to cover the costs associated with these competitions, and the hours of effort that go into fundraising and preparing for the show really brings the teams together. I'd like to think that we have so much fun at these competitions because of all the bonding that happens prior to the actual show.

Does your GMO offer unique classes or activities that cater to youth, adult amateurs, or professionals? If so, please provide a brief description.

LVDA sponsors at least two teams in every Region 1 Adult Team Competition, as well as sponsoring at least one team at a local team competition. In addition, we offer high score awards to both junior and senior members at each of our schooling shows, as well as at our recognized show. This year we sponsored an adult clinic with Lendon Gray, which was held prior to a Dressage4Kids event.

What type of educational events does your GMO offer?

Each year LVDA tries to offer at least one clinic with a trainer that will benefit both our lower level riders, as well as the riders who are showing at the upper August 2017 Z YOURDRESSAGE

GMO SPOTLIGHT

levels. This year, we were fortunate enough to offer two clinics, one with Emily Donaldson and one with Lendon Gray. We also offer a winter lecture series that covers a range of topics, from yoga for equestrians to changes in acceptable show attire.

LVDA also offers several riding and education scholarships each year, and we've recently started offering a clinic scholarship to help members who want to attend clinics but find the costs prohibitive.

What type of “fun” events does your GMO offer?

We try to plan a variety of non-horse events throughout the year; our annual Awards Dinner, a summer picnic/pool party, and our member social in the fall. This year we're also planning on offering a ribbon wreath workshop, we hope to add a ‘paint and sip’ night, and maybe a round of miniature golf as well. This gives our members an opportunity to get together without having a horse in hand, or being worried about `what's my horse doing on the trailer while I'm trying to talk to my friends', which we've all run into.

Additional Comments When I asked the board members for suggestions about writing this column, they all responded with variations on how friendly and welcoming LVDA members are and how much fun we all have together. We have an amazing awards committee that works really hard, to make sure we have the most beautiful ribbons at our shows and wonderful prizes for our competitors, and they're also genuinely REALLY excited for the people who win those ribbons and prizes.

We have had more fun doing show setup in the pouring rain than I would have ever thought possible, and maybe not quite as much fun cleaning up afterwards, but we still find things to laugh about.

The camaraderie within LVDA is something I haven't found in very many other groups. While our membership ranges from former riders to juniors just starting out, and all levels in-between, no matter who you are we try to make everyone feel welcome and we celebrate everybody's successes. We may be a small GMO, but we are very proud of what we have accomplished.

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