Team Braveheart members: Patricia Madson (seated), Susan Luzano, Andrea Stonecipher (groom and horse specialist), Lise Yervasi (me) on Brendan Braveheart, Sonja Madson, Libby Anderson (coach), Kim Fahey Koennicke, Bobbi Pala

ODS member, Lise Yervasi & Brendan Braveheart competed in the Gold Coast Dressage Association Official Qualifying Competition for the 2012 Paralympics. The US team led the competition and will be one of 23 teams competing in London this Summer.  Lise & Brendan Braveheart scored a 60.806 in the Grade IV test, finishing eighth.  Lise is an ODS member and was invited to ride with Steffen Peters at the 2011 ODS Fall Festival last November.

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Wellington, FL -As the sun rose over the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center in Wellington, FL the Gold Coast Dressage Opener CPEDI3* commenced. Twenty-three para-equestrian dressage riders from seven countries vied for top scores under F.E.I. judges Carlos Lopes (POR), Hanneke Gerritsen (NED), and Marc Urban (BEL). For two weekends, beginning with the Gold Coast Dressage Opener CPEDI3* and ending with the Wellington Classic Sunshine Challenge CPEDI3*, para-equestrian dressage riders have the opportunity to earn their qualifying scores and increase their international rankings before the 2012 London Paralympics. For each country the next two weekends will mark the closeout of the team rankings before London. Dueling for the top positions in Friday’s Team Test were Canada and the United States. Competition will continue Saturday with the Individual Test, and end Sunday with the Freestyle competition followed by the awards ceremony.

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Reims, France – The USEF European Young Rider Tour continued its successful trip through Europe with another second-place finish in the Nations Cup at CSIOY Reims. Runners-up in Belgium the previous weekend, the Young Riders continued their successful European effort.

Catherine Pasmore led off the U.S. team, rebounding from a 13-fault first round on My Boy to improve to eight faults in round two. Karen Polle rode With Wings in the second position to a six-fault effort in the first round but only picked up one time fault in round two. Reed Kessler had the best result, jumping two double clear rounds on Onisha which kept the momentum going and then Jessica Springsteen picked up a time fault in each round – but also added a rail in the second round on Vornado van den Hoendrik. The 16-fault effort left the team second behind the Netherlands who finished on nine faults.

Katie Prudent served as Chef d’Equipe.

Thursday was an extremely successful day for the U.S. riders in preparation for the Nations Cup. Catherine Pasmore won convincingly on Van David in CSIO YR PX Conseil General de la Marne over her two teammates, Karen Polle on With Wings, who was second, and Jessica Springsteen on Cincinatti La Silla who was third. Reed Kessler and Onisha finished seventh, Richard Neal on Transmission was ninth and Pasmore was 10^th on her second horse My Boy.

In the CSIO Juniors 1.25m Meg O’Mara was third with Smeagle.

Jumping continues throughout the weekend.

ENDS

Please see http://www.jump-results.com/OPEN/reims11.htm for more information.

Read Catherine Pasmore’s blog here: http://www.catherineusa2011.blogspot.com/

Guenter Seidel and U II. © 2011 Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com

DEL MAR, California, April 30–Steffen Peters and Ravel won the Grand Prix Freestyle at the Del Mar National CDI3* Saturday in what he described as “the best ever” freestyle by the gelding.

Guenter Seidel on U II was the runnerup in advance of heading to Europe for training with former U.S. coach Klaus Balkenhol, similar to last year’s program but that ended in the American Olympian being injured and out of the saddle for six months.

The partnership of Steffen of San Diego, California, and the 13-year-old KWPN gelding by Contango which won two individual medals at the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky last year scored 80.050 per cent.

“Ravel was great,” Steffen said. “We had one short change in the Grand Prix, and it was a bit conservative.

“The freestyle was his best ever. No mistakes and very expressive.”

Like many top American riders with an eye toward the Olympics in London in 2012, Europe is on the calendar and this year includes the World Equestrian Festival CHIO at Aachen, Germany.

Guenter of Cardiff, California, and the 10-year-old KWPN gelding by Jazz who was the U.S. Developing Horse champion scored 74.00 per cent with Shannon Peters and Odyssey third on 69.20 per cent.

The scores for Guenter and U II in both the Grand Prix and the Freestyle were personal bests since the pair began competing at international level Grand Prix just over a year ago.

For complete results – http://www.dressage-news.com/?p=10928

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Mette Rosencrantz and Finally. © 2011 Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com – thank you to Dressage-News for allowing ODS to share stories!

Note from ODS Office – the following ODS riders are in the results related to this news story – CONGRATULATIONS!

• Heather Oleson
• Jessica Wisdom
• Mike Osinski
• Molly Martin
• Koby Robson

RANCHO MURIETA, California, April 10–Canada’s Rochelle Kilberg and Rudy captured the Intermediaire I Freestyle at the Golden State Dressage Festival CDI3* Sunday after the USA’s Mette Rosencrantz and Finally took the Prix St. Georges in the battle to qualify for the Pan American Games later this year.

Mette of Topanga, California, on Finally won the Prix St. Georges, a prime focus for the quadrennial event at small tour, by earlier in the weekend and they were second in the Intermediaire I.

The big tour classes were miniscule with Canada’s Wendy Christoff on Pfalstaff winning the Grand Prix with three starters with 66.404 per cent and the Special in which the pair were the sole starter with 66.229 per cent, while Barbi Breen-Gurley Los Osos, California, and Octango were the sole entry in the Freestyle and scored 65.925 per cent.

Visit this page for complete results:  http://www.dressage-news.com/?p=10704.

Jan Ebeling and Rafalca. © Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com

DEL MAR, California, Mar. 12–Jan Ebeling and Rafalca scored a personal best at Grand Prix at The Dressage Affaire Saturday, in their bid to win a berth for the second World Cup Final for the pair.

Jan of Moorpark, California, and the 14-year-old Oldenburg gelding scored 69.596 per cent for the win with Sue Blinks of Encinitas, California on Robin Hood on 68.447 per cent for second place and Guenter Seidel of Cardiff, California on U II on  67.638 per cent for third place.

Jan, who competed Rafalca in the Final at Las Vegas in 2009, already has one qualifying score, 74.70 per cent for the freestyle from Saugerties, New York, that counts toward qualifying for the Final in Leipzig, Germany, at the end of April.

The freestyle is scheduled for Sunday and the result counts for qualifying scores in the North American League which is allocated two places in the Final. After completion of World Cup qualifying competitions on the East Coast, Tina Konyot of Palm City, Florida is atop the North American League standings but she has said she does not plan to go to Leipzig with her stallion, Calecto V. Shawna Harding of Aiken, South Carolina, stands second in the standings with Rigo and has declared her intention to compete in the Final if she qualifies.

ODS member Nicki Grandia scored a respectible 60.362% aboard Elisienne.

The only remaining World Cup qualifier in North America after this week’s Del Mar competition is at Burbank, California, at the end of March.

Complete results of The Dressage Affaire Grand Prix are available at: http://www.dressage-news.com/?p=10308

Wellington, FL – Despite the weather’s best attempts to delay the start of the 2011 World Dressage Masters presented by the International Polo Club Palm Beach, the competition prevailed and at 2 PM the only World Dressage Masters in the United States got underway at 2 PM at the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center after some fierce storms passed over Florida.

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