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By Danielle Aymond One of the most common questions we receive from families with young riders is whether their child can participate in USEF/USDF-licensed dressage shows (or a “Recognized Show”) without purchasing full USEF and USDF memberships. The good news is that the answer is......
By Sharon Londoño Amateur status matters in USEF-licensed dressage and eventing because it determines eligibility for amateur-restricted classes and protects fair competition. When Amateur Status Begins Riders are automatically amateurs until age 18. Beginning at 18, a rider must declare and maintain USEF amateur status......
Gerlinde Beckers, Ph.D. A new show year is upon us, and with it comes fresh goals, busy warm-up rings, and riders of all experience levels sharing the same space. As we head into the season, it’s the perfect time to revisit warm-up ring etiquette and......
Video created by Judi Dauterive and Marie Cobb In 1975, the Louisiana-Mississippi Dressage and Combined Training Association (LMDCTA) was formed. The club focused on the disciplines of dressage and combined training, bringing together a variety of riders and horses from across the area. In December......
By Danielle Aymond Recently, I had the privilege and entertainment of accompanying my son, Connor, to a Dressage4Kids clinic with the legendary Lendon Gray, graciously hosted at Kalie Beckers’ farm. Now, you would think after years of riding, shows, clinics, and “Oh, now I get......
By Gerlinde Beckers, Ph.D. In her September 2025 Chronicle of the Horse article, “Where Have All the Dressage Kids Gone?” Nicole DelGiorno voiced a concern that echoes across showgrounds nationwide: dressage in the U.S. has become an adult sport. But that shift isn’t because children......
By Danielle Aymond In December 2022, I was lucky enough to get to attend the Carl Hester Through the Levels Masterclass at the World Equestrian Center. It was fantastic and I learned so much. However, I also came home with a sponsor pamphlet to a......
By Judi Dauterive Photographs by Marie Cobb of Ree Photographics Thanks to a generous grant from The Dressage Foundation, SEDA was recently able to host a clinic with a renowned professional sport horse handler, Christine Smith. Although she has now retired from handling dressage prospects......
Our spring Le Bon Temps I show was a resounding success. Threatening weather made for a sloppy first day, but it cleared up into a fabulous weekend. We appreciate everyone coming out to support the show. The Southern Circuit winner was chosen at the event.......
By Danielle Aymond During COVID, digital lessons and shows became all the rage. And although the popularity (and need) has died down, this led to an extraordinary leap forward in technology and access for riders. Unfortunately, I live over an hour from one of......
By Lydia Chiasson This year, the United States Dressage Association (USDF) created a new year end award – the Adequan®/USDF Handler of the Year Awards. From their website, USDF states “Designed to recognize Junior/Young Rider and Adult Amateur handlers, as defined by USEF, in two......
By Natasha Fernandez How do you make dressage fun? Well, you invite Lauren Sprieser to come on down to Folsom, LA and do a symposium! This was the most fun I have ever had at a dressage symposium. Usually dressage and fun do not coexist......
By Nicole Miller I was honored to represent SEDA again at the annual Adequan/USDF Convention. This year’s event was held in Houston, Texas. Attending the convention in our Region made it a bit special: it was close to home and we had a hand in......
By Alex Johnson I’m sitting down on a Wednesday night, writing to you all after attempting to prepare for an upcoming show. I’ve got a six-year-old with the flu on the couch, a husband that just got out of the hospital, and a toddler who......
By Danielle Aymond In 2023, I got the unexpected and shocking opportunity of a lifetime. I qualified to compete in the Second Level Adult Amateur Freestyle division at the US Dressage Finals after a super shocking win at Region 9 Championships on my 20 year......
By Lydia Chiasson I received a scholarship through SEDA in the fall of 2022 and used it towards two lessons with Linda Strine during her trips to Louisiana in 2023. The horse that I rode in the lessons is my now-20-year-old OTTB, Oughtlands (also known......
By Baileigh Marcotte Hello everyone! 🙂 My name is Baileigh Marcotte and I was awarded the Spring 2023 SEDA Scholarship. I would like to first start by saying how grateful Custom and I are to have received this opportunity from SEDA! Custom and I love......
By Nicole Miller The temperature outside is flirting with triple digits and the heat index is well into the triple digits, so I thought I’d sit down and write a follow up to my article from last summer. It’s too hot to do much else!......
By Brailyn Seymour Spring 2022 SEDA Scholarship Recipient I chose the Daniel Stewart Clinic and Symposium for my SEDA scholarship. This was my first clinic experience and I had an amazing time. I chose this clinic because I have always struggled with being nervous before......
By Nicole Miller Spring 2022 SEDA Scholarship Recipient It’s been awhile since I’ve ridden in a clinic, and I was delighted to be selected as the recipient for the spring SEDA Scholarship. I wasn’t quite sure which direction I wanted to go with it –......
By Lydia Chiasson Fall 2021 SEDA Scholarship Recipient I’ve been a member of SEDA (Southern Dressage and Eventing Association) for 7 years now, and have thought about applying for the biannual scholarship, but never actually submitted an application for it, until this past fall. I......
We are so excited to share the progress on our Cross Country course upgrades! UPDATE APRIL 7, 2022 It’s finished! We have a new water jump, bank complex, and a mound feature. We look forward to the debut of our new course enhancements soon! MARCH......
By Keely Smith, SEDA Scholarship Recipient Hello readers! My name is Keely Smith, and I was awarded the Spring 2021 SEDA Scholarship. First of all, a huge thank you to SEDA for awarding Bodie and I with the SEDA Scholarship. I am so proud to......
By Meredith Hunter When I was awarded the SEDA scholarship, my plan was to ride with Charlie Hutton. Of course the Corona virus had different ideas. Despite my disappointment, it was a blessing in disguise. By not riding with Charlie, I had the opportunity to......
UPDATE: The tennis courts have been removed and filled in. Ground has been broken on the water jump, construction of the bank complex has begun … and we may even be getting an ‘bonus feature’. Check out this post for more details. The Southern Eventing and......