Good afternoon USEF Western Dressage members,

As a result of a rule change for Western Dressage that went into effect on 12/1/2019, Western Dressage award categories have been extended to Open/Amateurs/Juniors for all tests as well as the newly added WD Suitability, Hack, Seat Horsemanship, and Seat on the Rail classes. As a result of this expansion, your points will now be categorized depending on which class you have ridden in. In order to ensure clarity for all exhibitors, the different ways Western Dressage points will be organized, depending on how the class is run and results are reported to USEF, are explained below.

How Western Dressage Horse of the Year (HOTY) points will be organized:

With the recent addition to the Western Dressage award categories, HOTY points will now be organized by the class title and by how the results are reported to USEF. Some shows may run their classes as separate types (for example, Basic Level Test 2 Open, Amateur, and Junior) or they may run one Basic Level Test 2 class but pin the class separately; both options are permitted. Organizing points in this manner allows for exhibitors to obtain points in both the Open category as well as their rider status-specific category if separate classes are held. If a show decides to run one Basic Level Test 2 Open class and pin the class all as Open, then all points for the participants will be categorized in the Open Basic Level award category.

Please feel free to contact US Equestrian’s Western Dressage liaison, Nicole Zerbee, at [email protected], with any questions. You may also reach out to US Equestrian’s Western Dressage affiliate, the Western Dressage Association of America (WDAA), with any questions. If you are not already a member of WDAA, please consider joining this wonderful and engaging association.