It was an exciting day at the Adequan® Global Dressage Festival (AGDF), host of the Week 9 Palm Beach Dressage Derby’s final day of competition. For the first time at AGDF, a Derby Exhibition class was organized, providing a unique opportunity for spectators and fans to further appreciate the sport of dressage. Adrienne Lyle (USA) ultimately won the class, followed by Christoph Koschel (GER), Karen Pavicic (CAN), and Lars Petersen (DEN) respectively.

The class, formatted like a true Derby, paired riders to compete on the same horse in back-to-back tests (Koschel/Pavicic and Lyle/Petersen), with the rider receiving the highest score moving forward to the second round. Riders were given a five-minute familiarization period with the horses before performing an FEI Prix St. Georges level test. “Last year when I heard the Palm Beach Dressage Derby would be held at our venue, I had been told about the history of the show and I thought that a Derby needs a Derby (class). That’s why I set this up this year to test out how it would work,” said Thomas Baur, Director of Sport at AGDF. “It was great that we had four top riders join us, and we will work on something for next year to make the Derby class a larger part of the week.”

Christoph Koschel received the highest overall score of the class, with a 71.421% aboard Kelly Layne’s Von Primaire, which ultimately moved him to the second round to compete against Adrienne Lyle, who received a 66.579% aboard Melody Jackson’s Fortune and Fame, pushing her into the final round of competition. Lyle won the final round of the Derby, scoring a 66.816% aboard Leah Wilson’s Zango with Koschel finishing just behind on a 64.053%.

AGDF 10 will host the Florida International Dressage Youth Championships beginning this week, highlighting the riding of young dressage riders from around the world, alongside FEI CDI 1*/3* competition. Classes will begin on Wednesday, March 11, and continue through Sunday, March 15. For more information on the Adequan® Global Dressage Festival please visit, www.globaldressagefestival.com.

Final Results for Palm Beach Derby
Place, Rider, Nationality, Horse, Horse Information: Judge E% (Clarke-GBR), Judge H% (Schwennesen-AUS), Judge C% (Eisenhardt-GER), Judge M% (Romanov-RUS), Judge B% (Zang-USA), Total%

Round One:
1. Christoph Koschel (GER), Von Primaire, 2002 Dutch Warmblood gelding owned by Kelly Layne, Don Primaire x Noraline x Amiral ZW P.S.: 71.316%, 72.237%, 70.526%, 72.237%, 70.789%, 71.421%,

2. Karen Pavicic (CAN), Von Primaire, 2002 Dutch Warmblood gelding owned by Kelly Layne, Primaire x Noraline x Amiral ZW P.S.: 71.184%, 70.395%, 69.868%, 69.605%, 67.368%, 69.684%

3. Adrienne Lyle (USA), Fortune and Fame, 2004 Oldenburg gelding owned by Melody Jackson, Florencio x H Rinetle x Bonjour: 66.316%, 65.263%, 65.568%, 68.158%, 65.526%, 66.184%

4. Lars Petersen (DEN), Fortune and Fame, 2004 Oldenburg gelding owned by Melody Jackson, Florencio x H Rinetle x Bonjour: 64.342%, 67.763%, 65.526%, 67.105%, 68.158%, 66.579%

Round 2:
1. Adrienne Lyle (USA), Zango, 2004 P.R.E. stallion owned by Leah Wilson: 64.868%, 67.237%, 68.421%, 66.053%, 67.500%, 66.816%

2. Christoph Koschel (GER), Zango, 2004 P.R.E. stallion owned by Leah Wilson: 63.289%, 63.684%, 65.526%, 64.079%, 63.684%, 64.053%