I reported a couple of months ago about the joys of spring arriving.  Seems I was a bit premature.  Just for the record, down here in southern Oregon the last week of April we were still having a lot of very cold rain and snow mixed in with a little hail and sleet to make it interesting.  I’m still blanketing the boys.    Looking forward to T-shirt weather soon.

The ODS calendar is jammed full for the month of June.  At last count, there were five clinics, five ODS chapter events, ten USEF/USDF licensed shows, and another five league/schooling shows on the calendar.  Something for everyone.  The calendar is a great resource for planners and participants alike.

Posting of events on the ODS website calendar is free and provided as a service to our members so take advantage.  Submit your event by sending an e-mail with the event details to postmyevent@oregondressage.com.  For instructions for what to include in the e-mail go to the website (oregondressage.com) and click on the Shows and Clinics tab.

I’ve written before about the ODS Strategic Planning process that we are currently undertaking.  As part of that process we revisited some of the history of the organizations.  One of the historical documents that we came up with was the Articles of Incorporation from back in 1972.  I was particularly impressed with the eloquence with which the purpose of the organization was presented and would like to share it with you.  It’s something that all of us need to keep in mind.

Excerpt from Articles of Incorporation of the Oregon Dressage Society, March 21, 1972 under the Oregon Nonprofit Corporation Law

ARTICLE II.  The purpose or purposes for which the corporation is organized are:

• To preserve the Classical Equestrian Art from abuses to which it can be exposed and to preserve it in the purity of its principles so that it can be handed on intact to generations of riders to come.
• The object of Dressage is the harmonious development of the physique and ability of the horse, to make the horse calm, supple and keen, thus achieving perfect understanding with its rider.  These qualities are obtained through a progressive, systematic form of schooling.
• The rules of the International Equestrian Federation (F.E.I.), the American Horse Show Association, the A.S.H.A, ((now the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and the United States Dressage Federation (USDF)) shall govern all Dressage Tests and Events, of this Society, without exception.
• The Society adheres to the thesis that Dressage, practiced properly, is an Art not a Sport.
• The program of the Society shall be education and shall be designed primarily to offer a Framework in which individuals can progress with Dressage schooling of themselves and their horses.

The ODS Office recently offered 5 copies of the FEI Dressage Handbook Guidelines for Judging for sale.   The books were originally purchased as materials for the last L judges training program.  The handbook is well known for being beneficial for all competitors to read, not just Judges or Judge Candidates.   From the FEI website: “Authored by some of the most experienced FEI Dressage Judges, this book will prove invaluable not only to the education of Dressage Judges but also to riders and trainers at all levels. It will not only help with the understanding and clarification of the scores, but also with the awareness of the criteria outlined in the FEI Dressage Rulebook.”

Those copies were quickly snapped up and a waiting list established.  If there is enough interest, we will look into obtaining more copies for sale.  The cost for the Handbook was $44.00 including shipping/handling.  If you are interested in a copy, please call or e-mail the ODS office.

I’ve mentioned before some of the difficulties we have been having with our ODS event liability insurance process.  We continue to be plagued with last minute applications.  We understand that last minute applications may occasionally be necessary but it should be the exception, not the rule.  ODS is instituting a new process in which applications are being submitted to our insurance carrier on the first Tuesday of the month.  Be sure to have your application in by that time or will be held until the next monthly submission.

The ODS Board of Directors met April 24th at Devonwood Equestrian Center.  Many thanks to Ginny Rattner for hosting us.  We all appreciate it.

The Awards committee is making proposals to help eliminate some of the confusion surrounding the distribution of the award plaques last year.  As currently written the award criteria left some room for interpretation and misunderstanding.  We will have that all worked out for next year.

ODS Delegates to the USDF Convention were elected at the Board meeting.  Your ODS representatives will be Gaye McCabe, Jessica Rattner, Marsha Williams and Ed Miller.  If you have issues, thoughts or views you wish to have considered please let one of the delegates know.  I’ll try to keep you posted on matters to be considered by USDF as they become known.

One of the major issues discussed at the Board meeting had to do with ODS dues structure.  As I have reported before, there have been significant increases in costs associated with ODS membership benefits, most notably the increase in USDF dues, increased subscription rates for Flying Changes Magazine and printing costs.  ODS is currently operating on a lower per capita income than we were in 2004.  The bottom line is that the current ODS dues cannot cover the increased costs for next year.  Proposals have been made for increasing the ODS dues to reflect those increased costs.  The Board will vote on those proposals at the next ODS Board meeting July 31 in Eugene.

###