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President's Note -- September

I hope everyone is enjoying the summer. We’ve had a wealth of activities for dressage enthusiast—so many that I can’t list them all. July brought a Christine Traurig clinic, the Stars and Stripes show in Central Point, the Letter Perfect Show in Vancouver, the ODS Linda Acheson Benefit show, and the USDF Walter Zettl clinic to the Sherwood area. August will bring the Lake Oswego and Dressage at Devonwood recognized shows. Add in the Eckert Meyners clinic in Seattle, various breed inspections and you could be on the road every weekend!

The ODS Championships are coming fast. Make your banquet reservations quickly if you haven’t done so already. Silent auction items are always appreciated, as are class sponsorships. Contact Corinne in the office at the same email address: office@oregondressage.com, or the new phone number (503) 681-2337, and she’ll get you in touch with the appropriate person. Also keep in mind the Region Six championships on the first weekend in October. Congratulations to those of you who qualified. I hope that you’ll make the journey north to compete!

Don’t forget put the Jane Savoie clinic on your calendar for October 23rd and 24th. The North Willamette Valley Chapter is sponsoring this event. Information can be found at www.ods-nwvchapter.com . At this writing there are still some openings for riders for Sunday session. If you have additional questions, please contact Andrea Marek at (503) 723-9142.

I want to thank everyone involved with the ODS Benefit Show for the Linda Acheson education fund. We had a great day—two rings with four judges! I want to thank our four “L” program graduates for donating their time, Kate Smith and Kim Barker for their show management skills, the volunteers, riders, and of course, Devonwood for their many contributions and hospitality. Teri Emrich, the Rattners, and staff make everyone feel right at home. We also had significant sponsorship in the form of cash and prizes. Thank you to Quailhurst, Pony Oaties, Fantasy Glassware, and other class sponsors. I’m please to announce that the Chehalem Mountain Dressage Chapter has asked to coordinate and manage this show next year, perhaps with an expanded format. I’m sure Linda would be pleased since Chehalem Mountain was her local chapter.

There has been a renewed interest in the ODS sport horse committee. Barb Funk has generously offered to chair this committee. As a DSHB judge, TD, breeder, and past ODS president, she’ll bring a wealth of experience to the post. Barb would like to see more sport horse classes throughout the state, a revision of the ODS sport horse awards, and additional educational activities for chapter members. The end goal is to get additional horses into the show ring, and in turn, educate the breeders and riders. If you have an interest in the sport horse breeding, please contact Barb at dcreek@pacifier.com.

I hope to see you at the Championships! Good Riding,

John