Greetings, NDA members.

Still Waters Equestrian Academy has generously offered to host the September 20 show so we will relocate to their beautiful facility for this year. Still Waters is located at 18221 S. 68th St. in Hickman. This gift will help NDA replenish its bank account to some degree, after being unable to hold the Cornhusker Classic this year.

The only significant change is there is a very limited number of stalls available for overnight. We will try to schedule so anyone coming from outside Lincoln is accommodated with a later ride time. The competition ring is outdoors with an indoor warmup ring. The indoor ring could be used for the show in the event of bad weather.

I previously sent out a list of qualified riders. Remember, there are also Open classes for which you need not have qualified. The show will be judged by Becky O’Bea who is well-regarded in both classical and western dressage.

So, what is changed?

• The location: now at Still Waters, not the Event Center.
• Stabling: there is less of it but hopefully not needed!
• No need to include the LEC waiver with your entry or have your temperature taken upon arrival.

What is the same?

• It is still the show described in the prize list, championship and open classes.
• You still need to wear a mask unless you are mounted.
• The same great judge and awesome volunteers (you can be one, too!).

Please join us for a great day with friends and horses!

Laureen Van Norman
SSC Show Manager

As you know, the Cornhusker Classic was unable to take place this Memorial Day weekend as planned due to COVID-19 and a USEF/USDF moratorium on score reporting through the month of May.

Nebraska Dressage Association has been hard at work over the past several weeks exploring options for a rescheduled show later in the year. Our Competitions Committee worked tirelessly with our venue, health officials, USEF, and show management to find a way to make it happen. But ultimately, we were unable to find a new date and scenario that the NDA Board of Directors was comfortable with, so it is with heavy hearts that we announce that the Cornhusker Classic will not take place at all in 2020.

NDA’s commitment is to now focus all our energy on creating other opportunities for our members, like educational events and virtual shows, to help our community find ways to celebrate our horses together this season.

Thank you for your support, and we hope to all ride together at the Cornhusker Classic in 2021.

COVID-19 has made 2020 a challenging year for horse shows. While we all wait patiently for what we hope will be an eventual return to "normal," let's have some fun with a virtual competition!

Take this opportunity to ride a test, get scores and comments from a judge, AND compete as a team with your friends or barnmates!

Some notes about the virtual show:

• FREE office fees to members of any GMO, including NDA.
• You'll provide a shareable link (YouTube, Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.) with your entry.
• Your ride must take place between May 1, 2020 and May 22, 2020.
• Schooling show tack and attire—fun colors are allowed.
• Video your ride from C in a small or standard dressage arena WITH letters.
• Readers are allowed, but no coaching or other communication from trainers.
• Videos must include sound!
• Each video must start with a sign indicating rider, horse, and test ridden.
• Video must end with a 360° view of the mounted rider as an equipment check.
• Score sheets will be e-mailed unless you add $5 to have paper tests mailed.
• Classes will be placed and posted online for bragging rights (no ribbons).
• Individual high point prizes WILL be awarded to the highest score at each level.
• You can compete as a team of 3 or 4 people; the lowest average score will be dropped.
• Team placings will be posted for fame, not fortune.
• Results will be posted by June 1, 2020.
• Scores are not eligible for NDA year-end awards.
• We will NOT score videos that cannot be judged due to poor quality.

​Be sure to visit the website, where you can find the entry form, as well as some guidelines and tips for making sure your arena is set up correctly, and you can pay for your entry via PayPal.

If you have any questions about the show, be sure to contact the show manager, Heidi Helmer, the show secretary, Kathy Hanford, or the NDA Competitions Committee.

The organizers of the Spring Fling Dressage Schooling Show, an NDA-recognized schooling show originally scheduled for May 2, 2020, are excited to announce that they have found a new date! After initially being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the show has now been rescheduled to October 10, 2020 and has been renamed "Spring into Fall Dressage Schooling Show."

This show is a fundraiser to benefit Lancaster County 4-H and is open to all ages. It will have the same judge (Nancy Gorton, L graduate), and be held at the same venue (Lancaster County Event Center).

Since the new date falls in the 2021 NDA competition year (Oct 1 – Sep 30), scores from this show will count toward 2021 NDA Year-End Awards.

See you then!

NDA Schooling Show Championships—Sep. 22
Prize list has been posted!

The official prize list has been posted on the NDA website for the NDA Schooling Show Championships, which will be held at the Lancaster Event Center on September 22. Register soon—closing date for this show is Sunday, September 15, 2019. Opening date is August 7, so get your entry organized now so you can enter right away!

How do championships work?If you and your horse have earned qualifying scores in two NDA-recognized schooling shows this year, you are eligible to compete in the championship classes at the NDA Schooling Show Championships. Be sure to check out the full qualifying rules, and then make sure you get entered into the appropriate championship class. Don't forget to provide copies of your qualifying tests along with your entry!

Championship classes for each level are the highest test of the level (i.e. Training 3, First 3, etc.) and unlike regular schooling shows, test readers and whips are not allowed. So make sure you memorize those tests!
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Not interested in championship classes?No problem! In addition to the championships, we're also offering an open schooling show with no prior qualifications necessary. Take this opportunity to ride in the last schooling show of the NDA season. Both championship and open classes count toward NDA year-end awards.

Internationally known dressage rider and trainer, Katherine Bateson-Chandler will be joining forces with legendary show jumping trainer George H. Morris at the 2019 Burlington Capital International Omaha. “The Midwest’s Largest Horse Event” returns to the CHI Health Center arena in Omaha, Nebraska, April 4-7, 2019.

Bateson-Chandler and Morris will be part of the event’s educational “Showcase,” sponsored by The Dressage Foundation, a ticketed clinic that will be held on Friday, April 5 at 4:30 p.m. The pair will also give free demonstrations and mini clinics in the “Horse Discovery Zone” at other times during the four-day event.

“We are delighted that Katherine Bateson-Chandler will be part of our Showcase this year,” said Mike West, CEO of the Omaha Equestrian Foundation (OEF) which hosted the highly acclaimed 2017 FEI World Cup Finals in jumping and dressage. “Her dressage knowledge and years of experience, combined with Morris’s legendary horsemanship skills as the ‘Founding Father’ of hunt seat equitation, will help riders of all skill levels and also give equestrian enthusiasts a memorable experience that is not-to-be-missed!”

Lisa Roskens, founder and chairman of OEF, said the idea of bringing these two stars together is to help, “Build a bridge between the disciplines, to give each something to appreciate/understand from the other.” She said that the whole idea arose when dressage riders attending last year’s Showcase expressed how they were pleasantly surprised with Morris’s flatwork. She thought that the jumper riders could benefit from a greater understanding of dressage and that in turn, dressage riders could also benefit from the different perspective of jumpers.

Known for her accomplishments both in the U.S. and abroad, Bateson-Chandler was a member of the U.S. Dressage Team at the 2010 FEI World Equestrian Games™ which placed fourth overall. She has many small tour and FEI grand prix victories on her resume. She recently won the CDI3* Grand Prix Special and took second place in the both the FEI CDI5* Grand Prix and Grand Prix Freestyle with her top horse “Alcazar,” owned by Jane Forbes Clark, at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival in Wellington, Florida.

Born in Great Britain, Bateson-Chandler became an American citizen and is now based in Wellington. She currently trains with 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist Carl Hester of Great Britain when she’s in Europe and also competes there. At age 16, she started working as a groom for six-time Olympian Robert Dover at his New Jersey and Florida farms. She then worked as Dover’s assistant trainer, gaining a wealth of knowledge and experience, and was Dover’s “wing woman” at two World Championships and two Olympic Games. Bateson-Chandler took over the reins in 2005 when Dover retired from competition and began her own training business in 2008.
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“We are so thrilled to have Katherine join us,” added West. “We really think that she is the perfect complement to George Morris and that everyone who attends the Showcase will come away as a better rider than they were before!”

Upcoming Deadlines

February 28:
Kid's Art Contest: Children ages 8 - 12 are invited to create their best piece of "horsey" art work for the chance to win fabulous prizes

National Anthem Contest: The Omaha Equestrian Foundation is looking for talented high school soloists, duets, and choir groups to enter the Omaha Steaks National Anthem Contest for the opportunity to perform at the opening ceremonies of the International Omaha April 4-7, 2019.  The winning act will receive a $1,000 prize.

March 15:
Ride with George Morris: To apply, simply send a 250-word essay telling us what it means to you to ride for the legendary George Morris.

Omaha Equestrian Foundation Grant: This grant will be awarded annually and shall be used to ward expenses for an educational, competitive or other developmental experience.  The goal of this grant is to further the OEF mission of growing equestrian sport in our region through education.

NDA Juniors are fundraising by offering an awesome piece of swag this year!

This full-zip hoodie sweatshirt is a special commemorative edition for the 40th Anniversary of our Cornhusker Classic! You can order it in either black or red. There is a small NDA logo on the left front chest, and a large imprint of our special 40th Anniversary Cornhusker Classic logo on the back.*

All proceeds from the sales of this garment will go toward fundraising for the NDA Juniors. Thank you for your support! After your purchase, hoodies will be distributed at the Cornhusker Classic on May 26–28, 2017. Get your order in by May 12!

*Please note, the back graphic will NOT be covered by the hood in the final product.