Photo: Custom Saddlery is proud to sponsor young dressage rider Ayden Uhlir (Photo courtesy of Elma Garcia)

Wellington, FL (January 20, 2015)— Accomplished young dressage rider Ayden Uhlir is poised to move up the ranks to make a place for herself at the top of the sport. The nineteen-year-old is bringing her Dutch Warmblood gelding Sjapoer (Contango-Jenia, Woldgang) out in the FEI U25 classes at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival in South Florida this season, and Custom Saddlery will be there to help.

Custom Saddlery has a knack for choosing top riders to represent the brand and, as the company’s newest partner, Uhlir is no exception. Custom Saddlery, the favorite saddle maker of some of the top dressage riders in the world, produces handcrafted products made of the finest materials with superior fit for horses and riders. Recently being named the USEF Official Saddle of the U.S. Dressage Team has further enhanced the saddle maker’s stellar reputation.

Uhlir has an impressive number of wins under her shadbelly, including capturing the gold medals in the Young Rider Individual and Freestyle at the 2013 North American Junior and Young Rider Championships. (NAJYRC). She was also a silver medal winner in the NAJYRC Team division. She earned the championship title in Young Riders at the 2013 Festival of Champions, and was the junior champion there in 2012.

Custom Saddlery approached Uhlir when she was training with Christine Traurig, who also rides in a Custom saddle. Traurig loaned the saddle to the young rider to try it and Uhlir was hooked. “What I loved about her saddle and why I love my new saddle is that it isn’t like a big sofa,” she said. “When I was in the lower levels, I really liked the security of more leather and cushion in a saddle. I needed to have a saddle that gave me direction as well, for example with leg rolls. But as I become more trained, I want less and less between me and the feel of the horse. Custom gives me that option.”

Uhlir’s goal is be a member of a Nations Cup team in 2015; and with quality riding equipment like Custom Saddlery saddles, she could be well on her way. “After working towards the Nation’s Cup, I hope to be part of any first U25 team to Aachen,” Uhlir plans. She recently moved from Southern California to Wellington, Florida, and is a working student at Kim Boyer’s Hampton Green Farm. Uhlir said that Boyer, who is a generous sponsor of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival and Dressage4Kids, has given her many opportunities and Uhlir has a renewed respect for the boost that sponsors give to the sport of dressage. “They do so much helping riders and horses purely for a love of the sport,” she said.

Custom Saddlery is proud to be a part of Uhlir’s rise to the top. As the choice of high-performance riders and amateurs alike, Custom Saddlery saddles feature the right blend of fit, style, and craftsmanship using the most advanced methods and techniques available. Based in Aiken, South Carolina, Custom Saddlery offers specialized saddles for both dressage and jumping. The Official Saddle of the U.S. Olympic Dressage Team is devoted to supplying high-quality, customized saddles that are perfect matches for dressage’s most talented riders. For more information about Custom Saddlery and its popular saddle models visit www.mysaddle.com or call 1-800-235-3865.

Photo: The Diamante Farms team accepts the Tackeria Stabling Award at the 2015 Adequan Global Dressage Festival (from left to right: McKenzie Jenkins, Devon Kane, Roberto Gallardo, and Terri Kane

Wellington, FL (January 20, 2015)— The Diamante Farms team looks sharp in and out of the ring and, as a result, their pristine stabling area at the 2015 Adequan Global Dressage Festival recently won the first-ever Tackeria Stabling Award. Diamante Farms of Wellington, Florida, was pleased to be recognized for its style and function while successfully showing several riders and horses during the first week of the international show series.

A complete equestrian shop that has been supporting the Wellington equestrian community for forty years, The Tackeria is excited to be an official sponsor of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival — the world’s largest international and national dressage circuit that is held across the street from The Tackeria in Wellington, Florida. With the new Tackeria Stabling Award, The Tackeria will reward equestrians who maintain eye-catching, practical, and neat stabling set-ups at the international dressage show.

The Diamante Farms team is a worthy recipient. With their stabling area elegantly decorated with curtains and nameplates, the team thanks their sponsors for helping them achieve their signature sophisticated look. “We have so many wonderful sponsors that help us with different products,” said Devon Kane, head trainer of Diamante Farms, who competed in week one of the Global Dressage Festival on her Danish Warmblood Destiny. “We appreciate all the time and effort from lots of different people such as Custom Saddlery, Back on Track, Choice of Champions, MDC Stirrups, and DSB Sport Boots.”

Kane added, “We expect the horses to look nice and classy and we expect our area to look nice and classy as well.” The team is honored to win the Tackeria Stabling Award, which included a beautiful Tackeria cooler. “We’re thankful to the Tackeria, and we feel very honored to win this award,” commented Devon Kane’s mother Terri, who is an owner of Diamante Farms.

The Tackeria — which has become a favorite tack store among dressage competitors from around the world — is happy to support the dressage community through this award. Adequan Global Dressage Festival attendees looking to emulate Diamante Farms’ stable set up can find an incredible selection of tack items and equestrian-themed gifts at the Tackeria located at 13501 South Shore Boulevard (Suite 107). The Tackeria carries a complete selection of equestrian equipment imported from Europe, the Far East, and South America. Visiting The Tackeria is something attendants do not want to miss. After all, if you haven’t been to the Tackeria, then you haven’t been to Wellington!

For more information about the Tackeria, visit www.tackeria.com or call (516) 793 – 2012. For more information about the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, visit www.globaldressagefestival.com.

Wellington, FL (January 20, 2015) – Carol Cohen’s Abacus and rider Hannah Michaels claimed the inaugural TheraPlate Award after the first show of the 2015 season at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival. Michaels and Abacus, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood stallion (Tuchinski x Tian, Mooiman), scored a 65.526 percent in the FEI Prix St. Georges on Thursday, January 8, and then upped the ante by earning a 71.974 percent in the Intermediaire I on Saturday, January 10.

Abacus was purchased for Cohen’s daughter Rebecca to ride in Young Riders, but when Rebecca went away to college, Cohen and Michaels, who trains with Oded Shimoni, decided to peel back the layers of the horse to see what was there. “We found we had this amazing horse,” Cohen said, adding that her daughter has declared herself eligible for the Pan American Games to be held in Toronto, July 10-26.

“He has an amazing personality,” Cohen said of Abacus. “He’s a breeding stallion and he really owns the barn. There are other stallions in the barn— but he’s the guy. And yet, he is really kind. He’s fun and funny and he loves his teddy bear in his stall.”

Abacus was chosen as the first recipient of the TheraPlate award because he is fit, energetic, and bursting with health. Cohen said he is also a potent stallion with many foals on the ground, including some purchased by Grand Prix rider Caroline Roffman.

The TheraPlate Award, a beautiful commemorative plate, celebrates TheraPlate Revolution’s core priorities of ideal soundness, fitness, and strength in horse-and-rider teams during each show of the twelve-week Adequan Global Dressage Festival series held in Wellington, Florida.

TheraPlate Revolution, based in Weatherford, Texas, is devoted to helping horses and people reach the ultimate health and body condition needed to deliver peak performance. The TheraPlate team is honored to recognize horse and rider pairs at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival who demonstrate this level of excellence.

The TheraPlate team will also host the final event of the Lunch & Learn Series, which takes place weekly during the 2015 Winter Equestrian Festival. On March 26, during the final week of competition, TheraPlate will lead a discussion titled “Sound Year-Round: 10 Tips Your Veterinarian May Have Forgotten to Tell You to Help Maintain Year-Round Soundness in Performance Horses.” A working TheraPlate therapy platform will be on-site to demonstrate the technology behind the product and provide the opportunity for trainers and riders to experience the therapy themselves.

Through consistent use of a TheraPlate platform, equines experience benefits such as increased circulation, bone density, and muscle mass; reduced swelling, inflammation, and pain; and rapid healing. The TheraPlate is effective on horses, humans and other animals and has been widely praised as the “best money ever spent” for the treatment and prevention of injury. TheraPlate Revolution is proud to be a part of recognizing and rewarding ideal soundness, fitness, performance and strength— and helping educate equestrians on how to achieve those conditions. For more information on the revolutionizing therapy platforms, visit www.theraplate.com or call (800) 920-3685.

Wellington, FL – January 20, 2015 – The Challenge of the Americas (COTA) invites you to support an important cause and join the excitement this year through a new sponsorship opportunity, Partners for Pink. The 2015 COTA is set for Friday evening, March 20, at the International Polo Club Palm Beach in Wellington, Florida.

Partners for Pink (PFP) is a great way to get involved with one of the highlight events of the season. PFP is a new, up-and-coming society of individuals and business owners banding together in the fight against breast cancer.

The society offers local, regional and national coverage in print media, various spots for on-site recognition, VIP seating at the event that includes several hospitality and entertainment benefits, and six general admission tickets. Membership for this group is set at $1,500.

COTA brings together elite international riders to put on a stunning performance that assists The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) through their partner Play for P.I.N.K. (Prevention, Immediate Diagnosis, New Technology, Knowledge). The event provides much-needed funding for lifesaving research.

A big crowd turned out to watch the 2014 Challenge of the Americas at the International Polo Club Palm Beach. Photo by Meg McGuire.

The Tackeria, Wellington’s go-to source for equipment, supplies, fashion and gifts for the hunter/jumper, dressage and polo disciplines, is renewing its commitment to COTA, this time as a member of Partners for Pink.

“We’ve been sponsoring the Challenge of the Americas for a number of years, and I’ve worked with Mary Ross for a long time,” Lou Cuthbertson, manager of The Tackeria, said. “Breast cancer is unfortunately something that touches all of us one way or another. It’s a great event for a great cause, and we’re just happy to do a little part.”

Dr. Cetty Weiss of Weiss Family Chiropractic Centers, feels similarly about the event, saying, “We all look forward to it every year!”

Weiss Family Chiropractic Centers is a member of Partners for Pink, and Weiss said she invests in breast cancer research for the sake of her daughter, Dr. Arianne Weiss Prestia.

“My daughter is in the practice with me, and as I watch her mature, I want to make sure that if anything should happen, she has the latest and the greatest research out there and available for her and for all the other young women who are coming up with her and behind her,” Weiss said.

Weiss stressed how much respect she has for Ross putting on the event every single year to support women in the fight against breast cancer.

Todd Minikus was among the top show jumpers competing in the four-bar class held as part of the 2014 Challenge of the Americas. Photo by Meg McGuire.

Judith and David Sloan’s Roseview Farm is another member of Partners for Pink. Like Cuthbertson and Weiss, Judith is motivated to sponsor by her desire to help combat the devastating effects of breast cancer.

“Like all families, we have been impacted by breast cancer,” she said. “Supporting the Challenge’s cause by marrying our passion for horses with our desire to support breast cancer research is one way we can contribute to the cause.

“My husband and I are pleased to support this year’s Challenge,” she added.

COTA offers a variety of sponsorship platforms at all levels of commitment. These include, but are not limited to: presenting sponsor, team or product sponsor, hosting the pre-competition social, a portion of the challenge gala, or Partners for Pink.

“If you’re looking for the perfect venue in which to entertain VIPs, look no further,” said Mary Ross, Chairman of COTA. “The Challenge of the Americas is the perfect place to showcase your support of the fight against breast cancer while receiving significant local, regional, and national recognition.

“It is so important to support breast cancer research,” she added. “The goal is a world without cancer, and we want to do our part to reach that goal.”

The Challenge of the Americas will be a highlight of the winter equestrian season, with excitement, dazzling entertainment, and elegance. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact Mary Ross at (561) 251-7945.

More information about COTA, Play for P.I.N.K., and The BCRF can be found at the following websites:

www.challengeoftheamericas.com

www.playforpink.org”

www.bcrfcure.org

Phelps Media Group, Inc. (PMG), based in Wellington, Florida, is a public relations firm primarily focused on promoting events and people in the equestrian world.

From Phelps Media Group

Wellington, FL – January 20, 2015 – American Equestrians Got Talent auditions at The Grille Fashion Cuisine have been moved to Tuesday for this week only. Come out tonight between 7:30 and 10:00 p.m. to show off your talent or cheer for your favorite performers as they vie for a spot in the final!

Ayden Uhlir took home the top prize of $500, sponsored by PSdressage.com, during the Jan. 7 auditions, and Ki-Juan Minors captured the crowd’s approval during the Jan. 14 auditions. Both will return for the March 15 final competition at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival show grounds, where they have a shot at the $5,000 grand prize sponsored by Robert Ross, P.A., Luxury Equestrian Realtor for Keller Williams.

Uhlir and Minors lead off tonight’s auditions with performances of new songs. The venue at The Grille has been expanded and includes a larger stage, allowing ballroom and break dancers to join the mix. Judges will provide commentary after each performance, and the audience’s applause will determine the winner.

After this week, auditions return to Wednesdays every week through March 4. Sign up to audition by contacting Robert Dover (rdover2@aol.com).

American Equestrians Got Talent: Ki-Juan Minors sings
Ki-Juan Minors sings “Killing Me Softly” at the second round of AEGT auditions. Video courtesy of Robert Dover.

Several sponsors, led by Robert Ross, Kim and Fred Boyer, Equestrian Sport Productions, Tuny and David Page, and PSdressage.com, are supporting this exciting event. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact Sara Ike (908-234-1251 or sara.ike@uset.org.) or Robert Dover (Rdover2@aol.com).

American Equestrians Got Talent Fast Facts

Spearheaded by U.S. Dressage Team Chef d’Equipe Robert Dover, American Equestrians Got Talent is the third annual East Coast fundraiser to benefit USEF High Performance Dressage programs through the USET Foundation.

Contestants audition to earn their place in the season finale. Celebrity judges will be on hand at each audition to critique the performances, and the audience’s applause will determine who moves forward to the finale and who goes back to the barn.

Auditions

When: Every Wednesday evening from Jan. 7 through March 4, 2015. This week’s audition has been moved to Tuesday, Jan. 20, from 7:30 to 10:00 p.m.

Where: The Grille Fashion Cuisine, 12300 South Shore Blvd., Wellington, Florida

Prize: PSdressage.com is sponsoring prizes of $500 to be awarded to the top performer at each audition.

Participants: Auditions are open to the entire equestrian community, including riders, grooms and others involved in any discipline from dressage and hunter/jumpers to polo and Western. Please sign up in advance by contacting Robert Dover (Rdover2@aol.com). Walk-ins accepted if space is available.

Season Finale

When: March 15, 2015

Where: The Stadium at PBIEC (Global Dressage Festival show grounds), 13500 South Shore Blvd., Wellington, Florida

Prize: The winner, who will be named America’s Most Talented Equestrian, will receive a grand prize of $5,000 sponsored by Robert Ross, P.A., Luxury Equestrian Realtor for Keller Williams.

Contacts
Sponsorship:
Sara Ike (908-234-1251 or
sara.ike@uset.org) or Robert Dover (Rdover2@aol.com)

Media:
Phelps Media Group

Mary Adelaide Brakenridge (561-753-3389 or mab@phelpsmediagroup.com)

The United States Equestrian Team Foundation is the non-profit organization that supports the competition, training, coaching, travel and educational needs of America’s elite and developing international, high-performance horses and athletes in partnership with the United States Equestrian Federation.

Photo: Karen Pavicic (left) accepts the Premier Equestrian Sportsmanship Award from April Leonard at the 2015 Adequan Global Dressage Festival

Wellington, FL (January 19, 2015)— “I am on a quest toward the top of the world,” smiles 2015 Adequan Global Dressage Festival’s Canadian competitor Karen Pavicic. With her sights set high, Pavicic glided across the show ring on her mount Don Daiquiri in the FEI Grand Prix and the Freestyle Grand Prix during the first week of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival. Pavicic’s positive attitude could be seen throughout her performances, and earned her the first Premier Equestrian Sportsmanship Award of the season.

Pavicic was proud to accept the tri-colored Premier Equestrian Sportsmanship Award ribbon, an embroidered polo shirt, and a copy of The Horse Angels— a novel by Premier Equestrian’s CEO, Mark Neihart—in recognition for having a winning attitude to match her riding talents. Pavicic highly praises her athletic mental coach, Dirk Stroda, whom she claims has played a huge part in her dressage success. Stroda assists Pavicic in learning to stay positive and focused both in and out of the show ring. Her Oldenburg mount, 13-year-old Don Daiquiri (sired by Don Cardinale), is also a source of Pavicic’s happiness as the pair competes at national and international levels. Pavicic declares that she has “an unwavering desire to continue to represent Canada at prestigious and international levels.” Completing her Grand Prix class and Grand Prix Freestyle with high scores during the first week of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival looks to be a promising sign for Pavicic and Don Daiquiri’s 2015 show season. Pavicic’s next goals include the 2015 Pan American Games and the World Cup in Las Vegas. “I am so excited!” she says. “I’m very thankful to Premier Equestrian for this award; it means a lot to me.”

Premier Equestrian, the leading provider of high quality dressage arenas and revolutionary horse jumps, presents the Sportsmanship Award to competitors like Pavicic who exhibit exemplary sportsmanship towards every horse and human they contact at the international level of competition. Winning competitors portray positive attitudes, which aid in creating ideal environments at the show grounds and encourage fellow competitors to also be great sports.

Pavicic, the season’s first Sportsmanship Award recipient, is a successful Level III dressage coach through the NCCP in addition to competing successfully and training multiple FEI level dressage horses. One of her many previous achievements includes helping the Canadian Dressage Team earn a Silver Medal at the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Premier Equestrian offers high-quality and affordable products to dressage riders— including premier dressage arenas, arena footing, revolutionized horse jumps, and accessories. For more information about the presenter of the Premier Equestrian Sportsmanship Award and the products it offers, visit www.PremierEquestrian.com or call 1-800-611-6109.

Photo: Janne Rumbough of MTICA Farm (returning sponsor of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival) wins the Piaffe Performance Adult Amateur Award

Wellington, FL (January 19, 2015)– Success in dressage is nothing new to veteran dressage rider Janne Rumbough of Palm Beach, Florida, and to her Pure-Spanish horse Junior. Thanks to Piaffe Performance and the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, this year has gotten off to the right start for the pair. During the first week of the 2015 Adequan Global Dressage Festival, Piaffe Performance awarded Rumbough and Junior the first Piaffe Performance Adult Amateur Award of the season. Piaffe Performance is known for its recognition of adult amateur riders who exhibit exceptional sportsmanship and horsemanship.

Rumbough, through her own MTICA Farm, is a founding and current sponsor of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival. This year marks her fourth time competing at the event. “I have been involved with dressage since it started in the 70’s and you just try to continue,” says Rumbough. “This venue is wonderful, and we all try to continue doing whatever we can to keep the sport going.”

Rumbough offered her appreciation to Piaffe Performance for sponsoring the award. “I appreciate it and thank you so much, Piaffe Performance, for putting the adult amateurs on the map, she smiles. Piaffe Performance is a returning sponsor to the 2015 Adequan Global Dressage Festival series, and more winners will be crowned each week throughout the twelve-week-long series in Wellington, Florida.

Rumbough was the only adult amateur rider in the Grand Prix Freestyle division. “It felt wonderful,” she said. “I felt very lucky to be able to get in there among all these top Olympic riders. I just enjoyed myself so much. I had such a good time in there.”

Rumbough’s first ride of the week on Junior was on Thursday, January 8, in the FEI Grand Prix class. The pair scored a 61.380 percent. In the FEI Grand Prix Freestyle on Friday, January 9, the duo’s score improved to a 66.575% against all open riders and two Junior/Young Riders.

Junior (Gaucho III x La Nin III, by Brioso VI) is a 2002 USPRE gelding bred by Lanys Kay-Eddie. This beautiful and bold 17-hand grey gelding has been owned and trained up through the levels by the Dutch-born Rumbough, who started him as a four-year-old. Rumbough also rode Junior’s sire, Gaucho III.

Junior’s first time showing in Grand Prix was at the 2013 Adequan Global Dressage Festival. Rumbough and Junior recently came off a big win in November 2014 at the United States Dressage Finals in Kentucky, where they won the Grand Prix Freestyle Adult Amateur Championship with a score of 70.708 percent. They were also reserve champions in the Grand Prix Adult Amateur division at the U.S. Dressage Finals in both 2014 and 2013.

Rumbough is a dedicated advocate of dressage and also of the USPRE breed. On Wednesday, January 21, the 2015 USPRE Fantasia will showcase the breed to attendees at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival. Rumbough and Junior will perform a Pas de Deux with Mikala Munter Gunderson. Gunderson is set to ride Rumbough’s USPRE stallion, Armas Zumbel.

Rumbough sees great dedication from others in the dressage community—such as Piaffe Performance— at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival. “Everybody puts so much time and effort and money into this to make it possible, and this is one of the best venues in the world now all in one place,” she said.
Piaffe Performance is operated by Olympic dressage rider and its founder Cesar Parra, DDS, MScD, in Jupiter, Florida, and in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey. Dr. Cesar Parra and his team provide full-service training based on the Classical German Training Methods. Parra has worked with such masters of dressage as Herbert Rehbein, Siegfried “Bimbo” Peilicke, Hans Rueben, Herbert Kuckluck, and Hubertus Schmidt. Learn more about training and sales prospects at www.piaffe-performance.com.