The Dressage Foundation is pleased to announce that the Carol Lavell Gifted Scholarship is increased to $900, for recipients selected in 2008 who will train in 2009.  Access the updated application here. We encourage you to print out the information sheets and read carefully before completing the application.  The deadline for receiving applications is Friday, September 12, 2008.

The Gifted Scholarship Fund was established by Carol Lavell, and seeded from Donations received in special remembrance of her great Dressage horse, “Gifted.”  Many other friends of The Dressage Foundation have added Donations and the Scholarship Fund has grown steadily over the years, and provides scholarships to enable Adult Amateurs to set aside quality time in concentrated training, with a horse they own, with a trainer of choice, away from the daily pressures of job and family.

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The United States Dressage Federation (USDF) announced that it has created a new Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feed to enable members and businesses to receive the most up-to-date USDF news and headlines. RSS is an internet protocol that transmits a news feed in real time and is automatically updated as new items become available. These feeds make it possible for people to keep up with all of the current news and happenings at USDF on their personal webpages or homepage, with RSS capabilities. Anyone who wishes to add the USDF RSS feed can do so by clicking on the RSS icon on the USDF website at www.usdf.org.

Director of IT Services Chad Compton stated, “The availability of this feed to all of our members, affiliates and partners will enable us to keep the public informed of important news and updates from USDF instantly and help us to establish ourselves as the primary resource for dressage news in the United States. Additionally, the development of this feed ties directly into the USDF Strategic Plan by using technology to make dressage news available to people outside of our membership and to create a world class website.”

For more information on subscribing to the USDF RSS feed, please visit the USDF website or contact the USDF office.

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The time is now! Take the time to fill out a nomination form for a candidate you would like to be considered for the 2008 USDF Hall of Fame or Lifetime Achievement Award.  The deadline, May 1st, 2008, is coming up soon. This is a great opportunity for you to assist USDF in recognizing those individuals or horses that have made a significant contribution to the sport of dressage in the U.S. or in their service to USDF.

Nomination criteria for both awards, as well as the nomination forms, are available online at http://www.usdf.org/halloffame/  or call USDF office at (859) 971-2277 or halloffame@usdf.org.

Nominations received after May 1st, 2008 will not be considered until 2009.

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Lexington, KY - The USEF Dressage High Performance Committee is introducing a new 12-Month Grand Prix Ranking List for the 2008 competition year. This new ranking list format will track all U.S. horse/rider combinations competing at the FEI Grand Prix level at any CDI, as well as the 2007 High Performance qualifying competitions, and insures a more accurate reflection of the current top competitors. The 12-Month Grand Prix Ranking List will be maintained by USEF staff and will report all FEI Grand Prix and FEI Grand Prix Freestyle scores on a revolving 12-month period. There are no drop scores, making the ranking a true account of the top U.S. horse/rider combinations in a timelier manner than previously reported by USEF.

The new 12-Month Grand Prix Ranking List will not replace the current USEF Dressage Long List for Training, as this will continue to be utilized to determine what riders have priority for training sessions with U.S. National Coach Klaus Balkenhol. Instead, the new format will be a tool incorporated into the annual maintenance of the Long List, and will also be used for score tracking, consideration of grant requests, and competition invitations.

“The previous Long List was only reviewed and updated annually and therefore did not accurately reflect the top horse/rider combinations throughout the year,” explains George Williams, chair of the USEF High Performance Dressage Committee. “This new format gives the Committee a better connection to the top U.S. riders and an improved tool to track their accomplishments throughout the year.”

The High Performance Dressage Committee and Dressage Credentials Committee have also approved revised criteria for riders seeking to enter foreign CDI competitions. These criteria will now utilize both the existing Long List and the new 12-Month Ranking List to determine which riders will be awarded invitations. New criteria are now posted on the Athlete Services page of the Federation website, www.usef.org.

For more information about the 12-month Grand Prix Ranking List please contact Gil Merrick, Managing Director of Dressage at gmerrick@usef.org.

For more information about Athlete Services please contact Cindy Stys, Director of Athlete Services at cstys@usef.com.

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Thank you for your interest - Bears Above the Ground has filled.

If you have any questions about the show, please do not e-mail the ODS Office - direct your questions to the show manager or secretary.

There are still rides available at Bears Above the Ground.  Please contact the show secretary at the e-mail address / phone number posted below if you have any questions about this show. 

The Spring Into Dressage Show (March 28, 29 and 30, 2008, DevonWood EC) filled on the opening postmark date.   In accordance with USEF Rule  GR 915.3a, a lottery (drawing) will be held to determine entry priority and wait list order.  All entrants or their designated representatives are welcome to witness the drawing, to be held:

Date:  Tuesday evening, March 4, 2008
Time:  6:00 PM
Place:  Hayward Farm, 53363 NW Hayward Rd; Banks, OR 97106

Directions to Hayward Farm:

Take Hwy 6 towards Tillamook.
Go past Banks (intersection with Hwy 47)
Approximately 3 miles after this, take 1st right (Cedar Canyon Rd)
IMMEDIATELY turn left onto Cedar Canyon Rd
Go 3.2 miles and take right fork (Hayward Rd) - 1st driveway on the left (Colored lights on the porch)

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact Siobhan (503) 324-2907 or myself (503) 349-7576.
Thank you,

Donna Edwards
Show Manager

Hopefully by the time you read this those of us in Central Oregon will be thawed out, dug out and able to ride, haul and travel. It has been an especially tough year for equestrians on this side of the mountains so we have been concentrating on planning and organizing our second Central Oregon Dressage Classic which is growing to a two day show this year. We hope you will come and join us at the beautiful new facility at Brasada Ranch in June.

Choices of  ODS activities to participate in this month are numerous. Spring into Dressage and the Northwest Horse Expo in Albany featuring ODS member Jeremy Steinberg as the Dressage Clinician, the ODS Adult Team Show and Bears Above the Ground are our first two league shows. If you’re not ready to ride it isn’t too late to contact organizers of these events and offer your volunteer time. I know for sure the Team Show in Salem will appreciate volunteers and we will need people to help in the ODS Booth at the Expo which is in Albany.

The ODS Board Meeting and Retreat were held in January at the Silver Falls Convention Center. Besides the board there were several chapter presidents, officers and members making a total of over 20 participants. The first day we participated in round table discussions about topics the board plans to work on during the year. The discussions were very productive and it was great to have the input from people outside the board. ODS secretary Sally Temple compiled a list of ideas we can use as a resource throughout the year.

Decisions made at the board meeting include moving the Omnibus deadline up to July 1. This will make it possible to publish and mail the Omnibus in November. Show management committees for league, practice and licensed shows need to begin planning earlier for their 2009 Omnibus listings.

The board also voted to support educational opportunities already planned for this year to make them more available for ODS members. The USDF Region 6 Adult Clinic will be held at Devonwood and the Region 6 Mini Convention in Portland, were selected as the opportunities we would support this year.

The board will travel to Klamath Falls for the next meeting which is in April in conjunction with a Show Biz seminar sponsored by the Cascade Chapter.

There are currently some important volunteer opportunities available for ODS members. We are seeking an assistant treasurer. This is a position that does not require travel or attending meetings. Most of the work involves receiving the year end financial reports from the chapters and preparing the report for the annual meeting in the fall. For a job description please contact John Craven.  Secondly we are seeking an ODS Treasurer. Our new bylaws allow us to appoint a qualified member as Treasurer. This is a year to year board position and requires attendance at board meetings. For a job description please contact John Craven.
As Region 6 Elections Committee representative it is time for me to solicit candidates for the 8 Participating Member Delegates for USDF convention. These positions are open to all USDF Participating Members and you must be a Participating Member to run for election. These people attend the USDF Convention (in Colorado this year) and vote at the Board of Governors representing the whole region. Currently there is no financial support from the region for these delegates but we are working on ways to raise funds to help defray the costs at the regional level. I am also seeking a person to count votes for one of the USDF regions. This job takes a few hours in the month of August and a computer is required. Basically you enter the votes for all the members who vote by mail into the computer. Please contact me if you are interested in any of these positions.

I look forward to seeing many of you at the EXPO and The Adult Team Show! Good Luck to those starting the show season at Spring into Dressage. Travel safely!

Be sure to watch for your April issue of the USDF CONNECTION as there will be a feature article on ODS in that issue!!!

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