By Pamela Fowler From CIEF

Three riders from the Cayman Islands Equestrian Federation (CIEF) represented Cayman this week at The Children of the America’s Dressage Invitational held at Bear Spot Farm in Concorde, Massachusetts. Cayman rider, Ashley van den Bol, made it onto the podium taking third place overall in the borrowed horse division.

Ashley van den Bol, Jenna Boucher and Chloe Fowler trained and competed over the course of four days in the dressage competition on borrowed horses. The girls rode the Children’s FEI Preliminary Test and a self-designed Freestyle Test to music, against riders from Argentina, Honduras, Barbados and the United States.

The competitors were split into two divisions, those riding their own horses and those riding borrowed horses which were allocated at random in a draw. All the Cayman riders rode borrowed horses and were each coached by top US dressage trainers who donate their time to the event.

The event is a fundraiser for the Bear Spot Foundation run by Jane Karol, owner and operator of Bear Spot Farm. The Bear Spot Foundation offers equine-assisted psychotherapy for children with psychiatric presentations.

In the Preliminary Test on the first day of competition, van den Bol placed fourth, Fowler fifth and Boucher sixth, with riders from Argentina taking the top two spots and Bree Anne Hurdle of Barbados taking third place. On the second day of competition, van den Bol finished on the podium in third place, with Boucher in fourth and Fowler in sixth. The scores from the two competitions were averaged and awards given for overall placings. In the final tally, the Agentinians took first and second place with van den Bol coming in third. Fowler finished in fifth place and Boucher close behind in sixth.

The riders were also grouped into mixed country teams for a team competition. Scores of all team members were averaged and rosettes given for the highest team scores. The Purple Team, of which Fowler was a member, was placed first, with van den Bol’s Pink Team in third and Boucher’s Orange Team in fourth.

All riders had a fantastic time and made some great friends and some great memories. CIEF’s Secretary-General, Pamela Fowler said, “It was great to see Cayman so well represented at this annual dressage invitational again this year, as equestrian sport in Cayman continues to grow. This event is a wonderful opportunity for our riders to step out onto the international stage and meet and compete with riders from other countries whilst assisting to raise funds for the equine assisted therapy program run by Jane Karol. All three riders had a wonderful time and learned so much from the coaches who taught them and the horses they rode. We look forward to CADI 2016 and the new opportunities it will afford for upcoming dressage riders in Cayman!”

IMAGES CIFA Group Photo: L to R : Ashley van den Bol, Chloe Fowler and Jenna Boucher.