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You might have noticed that things look a little bit different. A month or so ago, it was suggested that my website needed a more mobile-friendly look because the font was too difficult to read. I tried to make an adjustment, but the theme that I had been using had not been optimized for mobile devices, or as Weebly calls it, responsive. Over the weekend, I looked at changing my theme, but while doing so, Weebly suffered a major fart and refused to let me go back to my old theme. So viola, I have a new, responsive theme. I can't say that it looks any better on mobile devices, and I am not sold on the font color, so you might notice some changes over the next week or two. To those who hate change - I am FREAKING out right now, I'll try to get it done quickly. I despise constant changes. Pick something, dammit, and stick with it. But that's just me.  I made my husband give me a high five! Dork. In the midst of that nightmare ... er, surprise, I got an even better one in the mail. After the forty-sixth F-bomb - redoing a website is a pain in the butt, I took a walk and checked the mail. So glad I did as both my USDF Rider Award Certificate and my lapel pin were waiting in the mailbox. I am now (even more) officially a USDF Bronze Medalist.  The photos in this new theme are ridiculously huge. Just take a step (or ten) backwards. I think there might be such as thing as too much celebration, but honestly, this achievement is only now starting to sink in, and I am going to appreciate every new bit of it. While at the show this past weekend - I swear I'll get to that over the next few days, Speedy got a ton of compliments, which always surprises me. I mean, I know he's cute, but he's definitely not the big, powerful warmblood that draws all of the oohs and aws. Whenever the person complimenting Speedy seemed interested in hearing more about him, I couldn't resist telling his story quickly ...
I bought Speedy as a 3-year old to serve as my next endurance horse. He's now 16. Eventually, after 16 years of competing in 100 and 50-miler races, including several seasons on him, I decided to give dressage a try. Speedy and I started at Introductory Level together, and while it took ten years, we just earned our Bronze Medal. Of course, my little story always earned what seemed like genuine and heartfelt congratulations! I like to tell his story because so many riders think you can only be successful on a purpose-bred warmblood. Yes, the sport is probably easier on those horses, but with a little extra hard work (in our case, a LOT of extra hard work), any horse and rider can be successful in the sport. Go out and ride what you've got, and you might just surprise yourself. I certainly did! Waiting for my latest scores to become official on USDF Scores was a brutal wait. The website was super glitchy all last week, so who knows? My scores might have been official sooner, but I couldn't see them. As I was eating lunch on Friday afternoon, I decided to hit refresh one more time knowing that it probably wasn't going to be the last time. We've all heard a trainer say that, "okay, one more time." Yeah, sort of like that. To my surprise, it really was just that one time.  Finally! As soon as those scores popped up, I bolted for my laptop and got to work applying for a USDF Bronze Medal. First, I had to verify that I had earned the right scores. I keep meticulous track, but you never know when there's going to be a problem. I clicked the Rider Award Eligibility link, and to my relief, my pink score was lit green. All systems were go for the medal!  I clicked "HERE" immediately! Once everything is verified, USDF gives you the option to apply right from the Rider Award Eligibility screen, which of course I did. When you click on the link, you are taken to a payment page. Once I had completed the personal information and provided my credit card number, my application for a USDF Bronze Medal was received.  And now I wait some more. Once that was done, I zipped on over to the USDF Store and tried to order a Bronze Medal lapel pin. Whomp, whomp. First of all, the Bronze and Silver pins are on backorder - it's not like they give out that many; how are they on backorder? Secondly, it looks as though you have to have been awarded the medal before you can order a pin. I sent an email to USDF asking for clarification. Yesterday, Sarah Kissman replied, "Thank you for contacting USDF. I can confirm that USDF has processed and awarded your USDF Bronze Medal. You may order the corresponding bronze lapel pin online through the USDF store." Of course I ordered it right away. I had decided to attend the USDF Convention and Gala Awards Dinner, so that I could receive the medal in person, but USDF just announced the convention will be virtual. Well crap. So, I'll get the medal in the mail but probably not until January.  Backordered? Once that last score became official, Speedy became eligible for his California Dressage Society (CDS) Third Level Horse Performance Award. The Performance Awards are fairly new. The first year they were available, Speedy and I were competing at Second Level. We earned the award in 2018. Like the USDF Medals, the Horse Performance Awards are handed out at the CDS Annual Convention and Awards Gala. This year's event, if it happens, should be in Southern California in January. I went in 2018. Now that we have an extra reason to go, it will definitely be on my calendar. Oh, and much like the USDF Medals, you have to apply and pay for this award as well. I also completed that application and sent in my credit card number.  Receiving the Second Level Award in 2018. I am not complaining, well not complaining much anyway, but awards season is pretty expensive!
As I sit here hitting refresh on my Rider Award Eligibility page at USDFScores.com, I decided to do a little research. But first, what's up with the USDF website? It has been ridiculously glitchy for more than a week. Sometimes, a click will take me to a blank page and other times I can get where I want to go. Also, lost from the menu, is the link to look up how many medals have been awarded and to whom. I eventually found it by doing a Google search, but I can't find the link on the current USDF website. Meanwhile, I refresh the page.  The Bronze Medal is not yet "official." The reason I keep hitting refresh on my eligibility page is because you aren't automatically awarded a medal or performance award. You have apply for it, and you can't apply for it until your scores are officially recorded by USDF. And so I hit refresh. One of these times, my pink section will light up in green.  As of Friday, my most recent score hadn't been recorded. While I wait, I've been busy looking up some interesting numbers. First, USDF was established in 1973 after it was decided that there ought to be a national governing body for the sport of dressage. There were already dressage associations spread around the country, but there were no uniform standards. The California Dressage Society (CDS), my own GMO, was formed in 1967, six years before the birth of USDF. I am sure many articles have been written on the history of the various USDF awards programs, but after a brief search, I only found this one. Admittedly, I was only casually curious and didn't want to spend too much time looking. According to the article, the first Gold and Silver Medals were awarded in 1974. After searching through the USDF website, I found that a Bronze Medal was issued in 1977. Were there other medals awarded before that? Probably, but there are currently 9,626 Bronze Medal recipients, and I didn't want to look through them all.  Bronze, Silver, Gold. If you can get to the page, USDF has a way to look up every medal recipient by the current year and by all years. You can find the link here (maybe). I was really curious to know how widespread the Bronze Medal actually is. Frankly, I feel like the last person on Earth to get hers. Many of my friends have had their medal for years. I also have friends who have earned the needed scores but haven't bothered to actually apply for the medal. As of late June, 179 riders have applied for a Bronze Medal in 2020. The total number of Bronze Medals that have been awarded since the late 1970s is 9,626 - soon to be 9,627. Of course, fewer Silver Medals have been awarded; 111 in 2020, and 5,487 in total. It's not surprising that the number of Gold Medals is even less. There have only ever been 1,625 Gold Members awarded and only 43 in 2020. The Freestyle Bars have even fewer recipients: 287 Bronze Freestyle Bars, 328 Silver Freestyle Bars, and 160 Gold Freestyle Bars. My trainer, Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables, has ALL SIX. I would really like to know how many other riders have all the medals.*  Upon hearing we had just earned our final Bronze Medal score. As I was researching the number of riders who have received the three different medals, I ran across this article, "Building Blocks to Bronze." While it doesn't tell you how many Bronze Medals have been awarded, it does talk about how difficult it can be to achieve. If you're working towards you own medal, it's a worthwhile read.
In the meantime, I am going to continue with my strategy of hitting refresh. Eventually my scores will become official, and I'll be able to apply for my Bronze Medal. Of course, the medals aren't awarded until the end of the year so more waiting will be necessary. I will be able to buy my lapel pin though. You can bet that will happen the instant my pink section becomes green! Refresh. Refresh. Refresh ... * According to this USDF article, as of 2011, only 10 USDF members had earned all six medals. Chemaine Hurtado is certainly a member of a very elite group of dressage riders. If we're friends on facebook, you've already heard that Speedy and I finally earned the last score we needed to qualify for a USDF Bronze Medal. Upon hearing we had earned our final score. If I look less than happy it's because I was fighting tears of relief. For those of you who only casually follow dressage, a Bronze Medal is awarded once a rider has met certain score requirements. There are six scores required.
There were the deep hoof bruises caused by wearing shoes; we went barefoot. He developed tendonitis after an exuberant turnout. He sliced open his coronary band; on what we never found. He knocked out a tooth. He sliced open both front legs requiring sutures. Then he developed PPID which came with repeated abscesses. Speedy always recovered well, but the time outs took their toll on our training.  2012 Regional Adult Amateur Competition, Introductory Level Winner. Our slow journey wasn't all Speedy's fault though. Most of our snail's pace was because we were never intended to be a dressage team in the first place. I bought him as a three-year-old to be my backup endurance horse. When my super star mare died in 2010, Speedy got called up to the big leagues completing several endurance seasons before we became dressage partners. Because I had never taken riding lessons, we started at Introductory Level and then moved ever so slowly through Training Level before we even thought about earning the necessary scores from First Level. And the truth is, it never even occurred to me that we might make it to First Level, and certainly not Second and then Third!  The Git-R-Done 55 Miler in 2010, just two months before our our first ever dressage show. Obviously, we did. Along the way we struggled - we have lots of scores in the high 50s, but we also made consistent and steady progress. We've either won or been reserve at every California Dressage Society (CDS) Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) level from Introductory through Second Level. Last August, Speedy developed an abscess just days before RAAC where we slated to show at Third Level. We were forced to withdraw.
 RAAC 2018 Second Level In 2019, Speedy was diagnosed with PPID, otherwise known as Cushing's Disease. Even with medication - we have a Therapeutic Use Exemption from US Equestrian, it has taken some time to get his symptoms under control. Knowing that horses with PPID frequently become insulin resistant and are more likely to suffer laminitic episodes, I recognized that our time competing together wasn't guaranteed, and each day's ride might be the last. I didn't want to earn a Bronze Medal on a different horse. Speedy and I started this journey together, so I wanted him to have the honor of getting us all the way there. Knowing that time might be short added another layer of pressure to get those Third Level scores.  From Saturday's show at SCEC. Over the years, we've had plenty of help from our trainer, Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables. While Chemaine is now based closer to me than before - she's still an hour away, getting weekly lessons has been impossible. For many years, I was lucky to ride with her at most once a month. Even without being able to ride in a steady program, Chemaine has been a tremendous support, frequently coaching me through a problem over the phone or by text. With her guidance, she has taken an endurance pair from Introductory Level to the Bronze Medal. We would never have been able to earn the needed scores without her instruction and vision.  Left to right: Chemaine Hurtado, G Ima Starr FA, and me. After I finished my first ride on Saturday, I felt pretty confident that we had eked out at least a 60%. Hearing that we had indeed earned a qualifying score left me feeling more relieved than happy. After working so diligently for the past several years, I expected to feel elated. Instead, I just felt utter relief. Earning a USDF Bronze Medal was a lot like earning my first 1,000-mile Medallion from the American Endurance Ride Conference or finishing my first 100-mile endurance race. Those two milestones left me feeling like I could truly call myself an endurance rider. The Bronze Medal has given me a similar feeling. Now I feel a bit more confident in identifying myself as a Dressage rider.  AERC Chevrons. As I lay in bed on Saturday night, I felt both happy and unburdened. By Sunday, I felt pressure. As a USDF Bronze Medalist, I now feel like I had better start performing like one. It feels as though the bar is now higher, that more should be expected. We're not done with Third Level. That left to right flying change still gets stuck and our half passes need more bend and a lot more forward.
Now that I am not putting so much pressure on myself to earn that Bronze Medal - you do not know how frustrating it is to be one score away, I think I'll be able to really focus on improving the movements where we're weak and building on our strengths. And besides, I can't move on to Fourth until we've had our opportunity to compete at the CDS Regional Adult Amateur Competition at Third Level. But knowing Chemaine like I do, I know she's already sneaking in some Fourth Level stuff. I don't mind; endurance riders are always looking down the trail to see what's around the next bend. I may not know what's next, but gratefully, Chemaine does, and I have every confidence in her ability to get us there. Stay tuned for videos and a show recap. Because my GMO (California Dressage Society - CDS) is so big and offers so many awards, I only join USDF as a Group Member (GM). As a GM I am only eligible for Rider Awards but not Horse Performance Certificates, the Adequan Awards, or the All-Breeds Award. Like I said though, CDS offers so many awards, plus a great championship show held in conjunction with the USDF Region 7 Championship show, that I've never felt the need to join as a Group Member.  CDS's Regional Adult Amateur Competition Second Level (Elite Division) - 2018 The only thing that kind of calls my name though is the Adequan/USDF All-Breeds Award. Each year when the Yearbook edition of the USDF Connection arrives in my mailbox, I hungrily flip to the All-Breeds Award section and check out how we might have fared against the Arabian Horse Association (AHA) winners. For adult amateur awards, a rider must have at least eight scores from four judges from four different shows AND a median score of 60% or greater (Training through Fourth Levels). In 2019, Speedy and I had eight scores from two judges from two shows and a median of (roughly) only 56.5%. We wouldn't have qualified for this year's All-Breeds Award.  2019 Arabian Horse Association, Third Level Adult Amateur. There have been years though, like in 2018, where we might have been competitive. In 2018, we had a median score of (roughly) 61% at Second Level which included sixteen total scores from five shows and five judges. 2019's first and second place riders (at Second Level) clocked in at 63% and 62%. We might have been close.  CDS's Regional Adult Amateur Competition (Elite Division) First Level - 2017 The main reason I don't declare for All-Breeds is because it's pretty expensive.
 $120 a year? Meh. That doesn't mean I still don't find the idea attractive. If I didn't ride two such popular breeds - a lot of Arabians get All-Breeds Awards, and the RPSI horses all have scores in the high 60s and 70s, I might be more interested in signing up. If I rode a rescue horse or maybe a Clydesdale, I'd be much more interested in showcasing my breed. Which brings me to the real point of this post. Have you seen some of the Participating Organizations (PO) that give out awards? The list is fascinating!  Page 221 of the March/April 2020 edition of the USDF Connection A few of the associations really jumped out at me, so I thought I'd do a little research and learn more about them. First of all, who doesn't want to ride a Clydesdale? The one and only time I did, I had an absolute blast. My non-horsey husband did, too! The Clydesdale Breeders of the U.S.A, a new PO in 2019, had a winner - Kim Fiore riding Freedom Royal Legacy at Training Level.  2018 - My husband and I riding Clydesdales. He's 6'3" by the way. Another association that caught my eye was the Hungarian Horse Association of America. This is definitely a breed that is new to me. Apparently more people know something about these horses than me since in 2019, the HHA awarded All-Breeds Awards from Training Level to Prix St. Georges, including a Freestyle winner.  Image shamelessly borrowed from the HHA's website. The International Drum Horse Association would cause anyone to stop and take a second look. According to their website: Actually named after a “job” performed by the horse, The Drum Horse is an important member of the Queen of England's Band of the Life Guards. These horses carry two large solid silver kettle Drums, plus a fully outfitted rider, through crowds of thousands, during the Queen’s processions! The fact that the Drum Horse can remain quiet in large crowds of people while being controlled entirely by reins attached to their rider’s feet is a testament to the Drum Horse's extraordinary disposition. It doesn't appear as though IDHA awarded any horses an All-Breeds Award this year, but they're not a new PO, so they must have had winners in the past. I'm going to keep my eye open for one of these beauties.  Image also borrowed, but I'll take one please! The International Georgian Grande Horse Registry gave out All-Breeds Awards from Training through Fourth Level to Open and Adult Amateurs alike in 2019. During the 1970s, a breeder named George Wagner Jr. started crossing drafts to Saddlebreds to recreate the[m] as closely as possible the original Saddlebred type. He wanted to bring back the heavier boned, bigger Saddlebreds of the historic past, which were more robust and sensible. One example of the original type Saddlebred was General Robert E. Lee’s horse, Traveler, who was Lee’s favorite horse throughout his many battle campaigns. This definitely sounds like a breed that can work all day comfortably!  FLYING W FARMS BARON VON CAPRIOLI 2011 Horse of the Year Champion in Dressage: Third Level Open! - Image borrowed from the IGGHR. We know that dressage is good for all horses, but the International Rescue Horse Registry is making sure that all horses, no matter their breed, get a chance to be recognized. This registry is the dream of a horse rescue board member, trainer and supporter. We'd like to give the wonderful people who give new life to abused and rescued horses a chance to register them (even if the pedigree is unknown) and earn End-of-Year Awards and scholarships. The IRHR recognized ten different horses in 2019 by giving All-Breeds Awards from Training through Second Level.  We don't qualify, but I love the idea. The USDF All-Breeds Award isn't really for me, at this point anyway, but I sure do like that so many registries and associations are stepping up to get their breeds recognized by USDF. Another thing that I like about the program is that most of the breeds listed aren't warmbloods. No bias against warmbloods, but dressage really is for all horses, so it's great to see so many breeds and types of horses getting out there and showing in the sport.
As I look over the list of All-Breeds Participating Organizations, the one breed I am dying to try out is the Haflinger. I keep threatening to get one as my next horse. By the time I'm ready for a new horse, I am going to need one that is short, sturdy, and not at all interested in breaking a sweat. Is there a breed you'd like to take for a spin? |
About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. 
Photo by Lori Ovanessian
About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
July 2020 (PC AJSK Photography)
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
March 2021 (PC Tess Michelle Photography)
Bakersfield Dressage approved!
My favorite breeches!
FOR THE SMALLER EQUINE ATHLETE
I love her stuff!
Watercolor Artist and Friend
National Rider Awards
USDF Bronze Medal - 2020
USDF Second Level Rider Performance Award - 2018
USDF First Level Rider Performance Award - 2015
USDF Training Level Rider Performance Award - 2013
State Rider Awards
CDS Ruby Rider Award - 2018
State Horse Awards
Speedy G - 3rd Level Horse Performance Award - 2020
Speedy G - 2nd Level Horse Performance Award - 2018
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2023 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic 2023 Show Schedule
TBD 2023 Completed … Pending 2023 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying Training Level 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Archives
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