A definitive hats off to the eleven horse/rider combinations competing at Saturday night’s rider celebration dinner at the 2026 combined Great American/USDF and CDS Horse of the Year State Championships. They did an amazing job of entertaining a packed crowd. It was a cli9hanger to the end with Josh Peter Albrecht (Oroville, CA) on Coalcyn Equestrian LLC’s KWPN chestnut gelding, Goldenboy Vinckenburgh and Jaclyn Pepper-Millard (Santa Rosa, CA) on her KWPN mare, Limited Edition riding to tie score of 73.975% in the CDS Grand Prix Freestyle sponsored by Pacific Ridge Dressage, hosts of the new Winter CDI at LAEC.
A higher percentage in the artistic scores gave Josh the edge for the class win. The Freestyle victory driven by music from Cold Play and the earlier Reserve Champion placing in the Grand Prix earned Josh and “G-Boy” the overall Grand Prix Grand Champion title. In addition to the beautiful, embroidered dress cooler from Riding Warehouse, and CDS Championship jacket, the winners name will be engraved on the Keen Perpetual Trophy, the encased Pan American Gold Medal won by Hilda Gurney and Keen in 1975. “It was a great finish to the season,” Josh explained. “This is my home now. I qualified for this Championships and Festival in this area. To finish in this arena was truly special.”
Third place was awarded to the Grand Prix winner Ari Lopez on Ravenna N.
Prior to the start of competition, you could feel the excitement in the air as the Riders’ Celebration Dinner got underway, with wines provided by Unti Vineyards. Following a beautiful rendition of the National anthem by CDS Member, Ana Gilmour.
Mid-way through the performance, competition took a break, while CDS honored long time Championship Show manager, Glenda McElroy, who is retiring this year after more than three decades of service.
While the final GP scores were tallied, Carolyn Bland (Woodside, CA), a two-time Vaulting Trainer of the Year and the Pacific Coast Vaulting squad, freshly back from a sixthplace finish at the World Championships in Aachen performed a great demonstration with explanation, by multi-time vaulting World Medalist and Dressage Young Rider Champion, Haley Smith.
Other highlights of Saturday competition included the High Score award of 75.700% earned in the CDS Open Training Level Championship by Carrie O’Neill (Villa Park, CA). Riding her chestnut, Oldenberg gelding, Dynamic Design, Carrie made it a hat-trick, winning high score three days in a row for her CDS, USDF and Futurity rides. “Desi” is such a sweet boy,” Carrie said. “He tries very hard to do whatever I ask. I bought him from the Verden stallion auction at 2 1/2 (unbroken), had him gelded and flown home, and he has just been the best boy ever since. I couldn’t be happier.”
Earlier in the day, the Intermediaire I Grand Championship was awarded to Alix Curry (Pescadero, CA) and her Hanoverian gelding, Dante Liebe FH with a combined score of 68.930%.
Region 7, USDF and Dressage4Kids were proud to present our Region’s inaugural USDF/Dressage4Kids U-13 Regional Merit Award to the highest-scoring 13-and-under rider in the Training Level Junior/Young Rider Championship to 12-year-old, Sierra Smoot.
For complete results of the day’s classes click on the link.
Sunday classes will wind-up the competition with the USDF/Dressage4Kids U-13 Regional Merit Award to the highest-scoring 13-and-under rider in the First Level, two more CDS Grand Champion awards, and a full slate of Great American/USDF and CDS Championship competition.
