The Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF Dressage Festival of Champions presented by Paul Miller is just a little over three weeks away. Please join us here in Gladstone on June 14-17 for some exciting dressage competition, including the Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF National Grand Prix Championship, the Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF National Intermediaire I Championship and the final selection trials for the 2007 Pan American Games.
The tentative schedule is as follows:
Wednesday, June 13
4:00pm Veterinary Inspections (Intermediaire, Grand Prix, Brentina Cup, Young Rider, Junior Rider)
Thursday, June 14
8:30 a.m.—Young Rider Team Test
11:00 a.m.—Grand Prix Test
1:00 p.m.—Lunch & Awards
2:00 p.m.—Prix St. George
Friday, June 15
8:30 a.m.—Brentina Cup, Intermediaire II Test
11:00 a.m.—Grand Prix Special
1:00 p.m.—Lunch & Awards
2:00 p.m.—Junior Team Test
Saturday, June 16
8:30 a.m.—Young Rider Individual (PSG) Test
11:00 a.m.—Intermediaire I
1:00 p.m.—Lunch & Awards
2:00 p.m.—Grand Prix Freestyle
Sunday, June 17
8:30 a.m.—Junior Individual Test
11:00 a.m.—Brentina Cup Test
1:00 p.m.—Lunch & Awards
2:00 p.m.—Intermediaire Freestyle
A VIP seat/table reservation form and a list of local hotels and their contact informationcan be found online at www.USEF.org. Please note, the Bridgewater Marriott Hotel is offering rooms at a special Festival of Champions rate of $189/night for a weekday and $84/night for the weekend. To obtain the special rate, contact the hotel at (908) 927-9300 and mention the Dressage Festival. These rooms are offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
General admission to the Festival will be free on Thursday and Friday with parking in the North Field. No bus service will be available those days, but it is not a long walk to the arena. General admission on Saturday and Sunday will be $20/car with parking on Fowler Road and bus service to the arena. For those with seats in the VIP tent, parking for all four days will be in the North Field with shuttle service from the parking area to the VIP tent.
There will be bleacher seating for general admission, but it is limited, so you may want to bring a chair. For Gold Medal Club members, there will be a ringside tent with light refreshments offered throughout the day. And, of course, if you purchase a seat or table in the VIP tent, it includes table seating with food and beverage service throughout the day.
If international competition is what you crave, for information, including tickets and accommodations, on the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio, Brazil, please visit www.cob.org.br/pan2007/ingles/indexing.asp. And, while you’re online, you might want to visit http://en.beijing2008.cn, the official website for the 2008 Olympic Games.
Finally, although 2010 seems like a long way off, it isn’t when you consider the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games will be held right in our own backyard, so to speak, in Lexington, KY! Please visit www.feigames2010.org for information on tickets, accommodations, volunteering and more.
~~~