Emily Tears concluded the CDS Southern Junior/Young Rider Championships all decked out in blue after she earned three championship sashes and the high-point award, Aug. 25-27 at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in Burbank, Calif.

Tears, 19, Coto de Caza, Calif., rode her 6-year-old Lopaca to the accolades. Not to be outdone, Emily’s younger sister, Rachel, 17, rode her Gryffindor to the training level, 17-21, championship.

Emily, last year’s training level champion, won the first level, division B, championship and the second level championship with 71.53 percent and 67.55 percent, respectively.

Emily said that her rides on Saturday were “both a little bit tricky down by C since he was a little bit scared down there. Sunday’s rides were better. He was feeling more like himself.”

For her score at first level, Emily received the Bud Muravez Perpetual Trophy for the highest score at training through second levels. Emily was also part of the winning team, “Rock On,” for this year’s Team Challenge. This new class consisted of several riders from different levels combined to form a team. Her teammates included Becky Davidson, La Verne, Calif., Kasey Belloff, Agoura, Calif., and Paige Dobbie, Moorpark, Calif., with a combined score of 66.95 percent.

Emily bought her gelding, by Lorentin, as a 4-year-old from the Holsteiner Verband in Germany. Although her trainer, Karen Ball, helped with the selection and training of the horse the first year, Emily said she does the riding now. She’s been a working student for Ball all summer, as she’s done for several years, and Ball, Coto de Caza, Calif., received the show’s trainer award as she had the most students competing at the championship.

Emily also won two reserve championships on the 17-year-old Connemara Cashel’s Rock Of Ages at the third and fourth level divisions with scores of 62.58 percent and 62.76 percent, respectively. Emily has been showing the stallion, owned by Kathryn Lucas, for four years.

Although Emily said he was a little quick in the trot for the third level test, she thought the tempo was better in the fourth level test. Next year she plans to campaign Cashel’s Rock Of Ages in the Young Rider division. And her goal for Lopaca is to move up to third level and eventually try out for the North American Junior and Young Riders Championships when he’s ready.

Rachel rode her American Warmblood gelding (a Belgian-Morgan cross), Gryffindor, to 66.70 percent at training level for the tricolor. They purchased the 7-year-old gelding just five months earlier.

“My rides went really well,” said Rachel. “He’s not really used to showing, so it was kind of a lot for him this weekend. He did fabulous. He tries so hard. He’s a great horse that gives 100 percent. I was a little bit worried because a lot of horses tend to be a little bit spooky in the Equidome, but he didn’t look at anything.”

Rachel, who also trains with Ball, started dressage three years ago after riding her family’s horses around the farm for fun. Both sisters credited their parents and Ball for the invaluable support system they’ve provided to enable them to ride and compete.

Junior Champions Return
Three riders who were part of the National Junior Team Championship held earlier this summer at Pebble Beach, Calif., claimed titles at this year’s CDS Championships.

Christine Stephenson, Mission Viejo, Calif., earned the FEI Junior Championship with a combined score of 71.00 percent from the Junior Team test, Individual test and freestyle.

Her 9-year-old Oldenburg, Charly 285, started his dressage career a bit later in life. He was originally imported into this country from Germany when he was seven to be a grand prix jumper, but he took a dislike to the water jumps.

Stephenson was pleased with Saturday’s Individual test. “The trot work felt really nice, and his half-passes were a lot better today,” she said. “We’ve been working on our halts a lot, and he’s starting to come under better, and they were good yesterday and today and he got 8s on them. So that was pretty exciting. I thought he was good both days, so I’m just really happy with the show, especially since Pebble Beach was a little traumatizing for him. It’s a very scary venue, and he had a hard time with the flags.”

Katie Johnson, El Cajon, Calif., claimed the fourth level championship on her 10-year-old Oldenburg, Meeko with 65.46 percent. Like Stephenson, Johnson was thrilled that her homebred overcame a difficult show at Pebble Beach and returned to the ring confident.

“He got really scared [at Pebble Beach],” she said. “[Here] he went, ‘OK, I can do it.’ He really held up his end of the bargain. It was a big jump from the Junior Team test to fourth level. He was really on and very attentive, which is interesting for him. It’s been a long haul.”

Claire Cox, 14, Ojai, Calif., took the third level championship on her 11-year-old, Dutch Warmblood gelding, Nirvana, with 62.64 percent. Although she’s been riding dressage for four years, she purchased this schoolmaster seven months ago so she could learn dressage the correct way.

Cox has trained with Cynthia Wilson for three months, and prior to that she worked with Kimberly Cruser, who started her. Cox is moving to Seattle, Wash., next year, and her goal is to move to fourth level and try out for the Junior Team next year.

“My parents have been extremely sup-portive of me and have been there all of these four years,” she said. “They have gotten up really early in the morning to help me and have been there for me through all the ups and downs that I have had. It’s been really nice to have the support.”

Training Titles
While Rachel Tears earned the title in the oldest age group for training level, Paige Dobbie and her 14-year-old Welsh mare, Kiss Me Kayt, took top honors in the youngest group, the 12 and under division, with 66.64 percent.

Dobbie and Kiss Me Kayt began dressage lessons nine months ago with trainer Jodie Cressman, “She’s taken to it like a fish to water, said Cressman of the pony. “She’s handled it all really well.”

Although she had some spooks in the test, Dobbie said her pony was “a good girl.” Dobbie was described as quite a cool competitor for her young age. She began showing in the hunter/jumper discipline at age 6, so at 11 she already has ample mileage in the show ring.

Sarah Warner, 13, Capistrano Beach, Calif., won the 13-14 division on her 13-year-old, Irish Thoroughbred gelding, Corso, with 67.30 percent. Warner had a rough start with Corso when she first got him, as he’d just been gelded and she “fell off almost every single day. That was kind of scary,” she said.

After changing to her current trainer, Wilma Blakely, about a year ago, and starting him in dressage, Corso turned around. “He listens to everything,” she said. “He’s come a long way. Wilma is very helpful.”

Warner enjoyed her tests and described Saturday’s ride as really forward and steady. She said her halts were good as well as her stretching circle. She credited her success to Blakely’s help. “We’ve come a long way from being totally crazy to being able to do this and win,” Warner added.

Shelby Robinson, 15, El Cajon, Calif., rode her 5-year-old, Mecklenburg mare, Shacira, to the 15-16 division score with 69.00 percent. Robinson’s trainer, Polly Limond, found the mare while on a trip to Germany looking for brood mares. After seeing a video, Robinson fell in love with Shacira even though she didn’t try her until after she was imported last September.

“I think my mare is really great. She’s young for the sport, but I think it’s good to start out younger and then work up the levels. She’s very well tempered, and I was really happy she didn’t do anything in the Equidome. She was very calm,” said Robinson. “My rides were really good. We got 70s in two of my tests.”

Robinson was also part of the winning “ShelBecKas” team. Each of the three team members rode two tests, a dressage equitation seat class, and took a written and oral test on dressage theories and U.S. Equestrian Federation rules. Her teammates included Becky Davidson, LaVerne, Calif., on her 23-year-old, Hanoverian mare, Equula, and Kasey Belloff, Agoura, Calif., on her 6-year-old Morgan-Friesian gelding, Beau.

Robinson enjoyed the team experience and meeting new people.

Belloff added, “Being on a team gives you a chance to meet other people from other barns. If you meet other people, you can branch out. It’s about making friends.”


Tobias Makes An Impression
Mia Tobias, 11, Malibu, Calif., received the CDS Southern Junior/Young Rider Championship’s sportsmanship award.

“She [earned] the sportsmanship award because of her politeness, her respect for the show staff and the way she let us know how much she appreciated everything that was done by the program on her behalf,” said Show Manager Elaine Hamilton.

Tobias, who recently switched to dressage from hunters, said she was really excited to attend the CDS Championship. “I’m here to ride and show the judges I’m a good rider and that I’m worthy of being here,” she said.

Tobias also studied hard for her Team theory test and helped her team, “Riding With The Stars,” score a 99 percent. In addition to acknowledging her trainer, Jane Arrasmith, for her help, Tobias wanted special credit to go to her 10-year-old, Westphalian gelding, Paladin. “I really want to thank my horse too because he’s taken me a long way,” she noted.