Southern Spectacular  Dressage
Glenorchy Showgrounds Tasmania
15 & 16 November, 2003
Pictorial Report Page 2
by Berni Saunders

Roger Fitzhardinge and Berni Saunders were the judges of the Elementary classes - and having A level judges at this stage is very useful for those riders who wish to take the comments and marks on board and use the experience to better their scores through more correct 'basics'

Adele McCormack & Kerry Bridle along with  Peter & Allison Watson were the sponsors of the Elementary classes - a much appreciated gesture.

I felt that some of the riders were not ready for this level as their horses were not showing collection and the lengthened paces were running and heavy on the forehand.  I trust that all riders will acknowledge that judging is a thankless task and done with the best goodwill and desire to adhere to the rule book requirements for each movement in the test ... and a trained eye for the quality for which a certain mark will be rewarded.  Many riders do not seem to stop and think about this.  From a judges viewpoint there can only be ONE winner and potentially every other competitor in that class will feel that the judge was wrong or worse still, biased.

The world over, judges will differ in their marks.  This can be quite justified, as they sit at different points on the arena, and this will certainly give a different view of many movements which will sometime mean the difference of 20  - 40 marks.  I certainly understand that a rider can be quite concerned when this happens. 

I would urge all competitors with a query about their marks, or perhaps a difference in marks, to talk to the judges.  When I have done this it is quite easy to understand where the judges are coming from.  Certainly some judges will be more 'strict' on aspects of the test and its requirements, other judges will see things differently.  As discussion will usually clarify the issues and give the competitor some valuable guidance for the future.  Roger and I were quite even in most of the scores, but saw a couple of tests from a different perspective - pity we did not get the chance to discuss the issues with the riders concerned.

I am always happy to be contacted by e-mail should any such query arise.

The winner of the 3B was Young Rider James Hazelwood on Adloo Casey on 67,34% - I imagine this horse was bred by Di and Peter Jenkyn who have the Adloo prefix.	The winner of the more difficult 3F class was Cheryl Lawrence on her elegant Dressage/Show horse Precizion with a percentage of 64.40%
2nd and 4th in the Elementary classes was Celia Conder-Land on her Irish Sporthorse mare SP Diamond Kate.	Mon Amigo and Lydia Lawrence - it was nice to see one of the hard working organisers (who also rode) do well.  Lydia rode accurately.
Young Rider Kate Moore on her horse Firelight had a  3rd and 5th placing which is a great effort.	Kerry Swan-Bates on her lovely horse Seventh Heaven enjoyed a 3rd place in the 3B they retired from the other class.
Committee person Belinda Snooks did a great job to get this show on the road and also compete well for a 4th and 6th on Dunwoody ll	Bobby Dazzler had a reasonable result in the 3B ring something went amiss in the 3F.  Rachelle Hall will no doubt use this as a  guide to future training.
SL Makers Mark and Sharon White had some nice moments but was not consistent enough for this level.	I  took several pictures of Dianne Pennell on Ghost Lover and they show that this combination is not ready for Elementary. Dianne must get help in order to better understand the requirements of Elementary Dressage.  This is not an easy test and requires collection, lateral work and harmony between horse and rider - non of this was present.  Ghost lover is a very nice horse and I trust that Dianne will learn from this experience - Good luck!
Rammstein and Sandra Burotac
Presentation for the 3B class - from left.  James Hazelwood ( Adloo Casey), Celia Conder-Lang (SP Diamond Kate) Kerrie Swan-Bates (Seventh Heaven)  Belinda Snooks (Dunwoody ll)  Kate Moore YR (Firelight) Lydia Lawrence (Mon Amigo) - Well done guys!
Presentation for the placegetters of the Elementary 3F class - from left:  Cheryl Lawrence (Precizion) and next to mum is Lydia Lawrence (Mon Amigo), Kate Moore YR (Firelight).  The little one in the middle is Adele McCormack who sponsored this class.  Then with the green rosette is Celia Conder-Lang (SP Diamond Kate) James Hazelwood YR (Adloo Casey) Belinda Snooks (Dunwoody ll)
Below - Highlights from the National Dressage Championships which were held in Sydney - October, 2003.
Weltklasse - Elementary Champion	Regardez Moi - Runner-up.

I will now switch from my 'reporters hat to the judges bonnet' ... I felt that many of the horses in this class were not up to the requirements of Elementary dressage! Unfortunately there are not many videos (if any) featuring good tests at this level, so it is difficult to get an eye in for what it should look like.  I felt that many riders need to see the standard that they are riding at the National Dressage Championships or the Victorian States or  the NSW Championships.  I have included a picture of the Elementary Champion and runner-up at the Nationals, which were in October 2003.  They will show the 'throughness', engagement and collection that is now present in the top horses and we must all strive to achieve this if we want to be successful.

This is the link to my full report on the National Championships.

 Full Results | Go to Page 3