Your dressage achievements deserve to be recognized!
Reprinted from the July/August 2016 issue of USDF Connection
By Peggy Klump
The popular USDF All-Breeds awards program, which was instituted in 1982, is designed to recognize the accomplishments of specific breeds in dressage. This program offers USDF members and the participating breed registries (known for program purposes as participating organizations, or POs) a means of recognizing excellence in dressage competition—both in hand and under saddle—by horses of specific breeds and registries.
The All-Breeds awards program has grown from 12 POs in 1982 to 66 for the 2016 show season. The American Morgan Horse Association, the American Quarter Horse Association, and the Appaloosa Horse Club, along with the larger warmblood registries, have participated since the program’s inception (see “Fun Facts” below for the full list). These registries recognize the value of rewarding their members for participating in national-level dressage competitions with horses of their breeds.
In 2016, the KWPN of North America and the American Hanoverian Society each have more than 3,000 horses declared for the All-Breeds awards program. The Arabian Horse Association has more than 2,000 horses; and the International Sporthorse Registry/Oldenburg, the Oldenburg Horse Breeders Society NA division of GO V, and the American Trakehner Association each have 1,000 to 1,500 horses declared. Even among those registries with fewer horses participating, the competitive accomplishments remain significant. These awards encourage USDF members, regardless of their horses’ breeds, to strive to improve and offer a goal to work toward.
Each year’s All-Breeds award winners are celebrated at the Salute Gala & Annual Awards Banquet at the Adequan/USDF Annual Convention. Champions and reserve champions each receive a custom cast pewter medal on a neck ribbon. Participating organizations may give additional prizes ranging from championship ribbons to embroidered coolers. Certificates are available online for all horses in the standings in recognition of their success that year.
Program Specifics
Participating organizations. USDF welcomes breed registries interested in becoming long-term POs. All- Breeds awards letters of agreement are renewed annually by March 1.
USDF works with the POs to identify and rank eligible horses and riders based on their median scores. Every competition year, each PO is given a list of horses that may be eligible for All-Breeds awards based on scores earned; the organizations mark each horse as either eligible or not eligible. If your horse is not marked as eligible, contact the PO directly, as he will not appear in the All-Breeds preliminary standings until the PO marks him as eligible. Be aware that a PO will not be listed in the preliminary standings until it has marked at least one horse as eligible for awards, and that horse meets all of the award requirements.
If you are striving toward an All-Breeds award, USDF encourages you to contact your PO directly to verify that you have met all of the requirements.
USDF requirements. To be eligible for All-Breeds awards, horses, riders, and owners must meet all of the membership and registration requirements as outlined in the USDF Member Guide.
The declaration process. In addition to meeting score and membership requirements, a horse must be “declared” for the program in order to be eligible for All-Breeds awards. Declare your horse by submitting to USDF (by e-mail, fax, or mail) a copy of his breed- or performance-registry papers and a completed All-Breeds Awards Declaration Form. Online printouts of registry papers or pedigree and FEI passports are not accepted. The declaration form is located on the USDF website under Awards/Forms and Documents.
Once the documentation has been processed, USDF will notify the owner of the horse via e-mail that the declaration has been made. All-Breeds declarations must be received by August 1 of the award year or late fees will apply. Declarations may be verified on the horse’s summary page of USDFScores.com.
For current-year foals, if registry papers are not yet available, a letter of eligibility from the PO will be accepted as long as USDF receives the document by September 30 of the current year along with a completed All-Breeds Awards Declaration Form.
Fun Facts
The following 12 registries were the first to offer All-Breeds awards when USDF instituted the program in 1982:
- American Association of Breeders of Holsteiner Horses
- American Hanoverian Society
- American Morgan Horse Association
- American Performance Horse Registry
- American Quarter Horse Association
- American Trakehner Association
- American Saddlebred Horse Association
- Appaloosa Horse Club
- International Arabian Horse Association
- North American Trakehner Association
- Part-Thoroughbred Stud Book
- United States Lipizzan Registry.
Questions? Send e-mail to allbreeds@usdf.org. Good luck, and thank you for helping to promote your breed for dressage!
Peggy Klump, of Rancho Cucamonga, CA, is the chair of the USDF Awards Committee.
