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The 2009 Dates for the Children of the Americas Dressage Invitational are Announced

Release: March 19 2009

Author: severs

By Cathy Zemaitis

The Children of the Americas Dressage Invitational (CADI) is the only competition of its’ kind in the United States. This United States Dressage Federation- and United States Equestrian Federation-recognized event is exclusively for children between the ages of 12 and 14. It features riders from South and Central America, the Islands, Mexico, Canada and The United States, all brought together for a week of training and international competition. New for 2009 is the working affiliation with Lendon Gray’s Dressage 4 Kids (www.dressage4kids.org) and the addition of the FEI Children’s Preliminary Test at all of the Centerline Events Dressage Shows.

The Children of the Americas Dressage Invitational is hosted by The Bear Spot Foundation for Equine Facilitated Psychotherapy (www.bearspotfoundation.org). The idea behind CADI is to create a common bond among the children using their love of horses as a catalyst. All of the participants leave with many happy memories and numerous email addresses.

The children are nominated by their country’s federations and qualify according to the individual nation’s criteria. Children traveling from South and Central America, Mexico and the Islands compete in Section A, on borrowed horses, and children from the United States and Canada compete in Section B on their own horses.

During CADI Week, each child has the undivided attention of top national and international dressage trainers. Each child is assigned an instructor and receives lessons on the horse they drew for the two days prior to the competition. In addition, that trainer coaches them during the competition, which consists of the FEI Children’s Preliminary Test and a Freestyle. During CADI 2008, every trainer expressed delight in the high level of riding and the fact that each child on a borrowed horse created a freestyle in their own country with no knowledge of the type of horse they would draw; “Amazing to watch them go down center line to their music and see it works...beautifully!”

CADI 2009 takes placed at Bear Spot Farm in Concord, MA, from September 29-October 3. For more information and entry requirements go to www.bearspotcadi.com.

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