Dressage NZ Media Release | 10 March 2021
Oro Dressage by the Lake
With its breathtaking views of Lake Karapiro, and world class facilities, Dressage by the Lake at Takapoto Estate will attract dressage riders from far and wide on the first weekend of May.
With the sad cancellation of the Land Rover Horse of the Year 2021, it has been busy behind the scenes organising a new show at this spectacular venue. Being close to Cambridge, the equine capital of New Zealand, this also provides a new opportunity to promote musical dressage at its best to a wider audience.
“Watching the Land Rover Horse of the Year team make the hard decision to cancel its show this year was devastating for the equestrian community. We all know the hours of hard work that organisers, sponsors, riders, volunteers and trade stands put in leading up to that show. But we all support their decision, and know they made the right one,” said Dressage New Zealand Sport Manager, Wendy Hamerton. “In lieu of being able to hold the Zilco Musical Freestyle finals at the Land Rover Horse of the Year, a group of dedicated volunteers, supported by the Dressage NZ board, have been busy pulling together Dressage by the Lake.
The event has been scheduled on the same weekend as AMDG Dressage at Clevedon. While this is something our sport really did not want to do, the Covid climate has bought its own challenges resulting in limited options available. The weekend prior includes Anzac Day, meaning classes would not be able to commence until after 1pm on Sunday and moving this show any later in the month would have meant colder temperatures and fewer daylight hours for our competitors. Discussions were held between Dressage NZ and the Auckland Manukau Dressage Group, and all parties were happy with the outcome of holding both shows on the same weekend.”
Dressage by the Lake will be held on 1 & 2 May 2021, and will host the Zilco Musical Freestyle finals, plus one additional class for each level, and two preliminary level classes. The schedule will be released in late March, with entries opening on 1 April.
The current top 15 combinations in each level on the North Island Zilco Musical Freestyle leaderboard will be given first option to enter by a date to be set in the schedule, then entries will then be taken on first in first served basis. The organisers may need to cap the size of some of the classes but are hoping to be able to accommodate all combinations who would like to compete at this fantastic facility.
For further information please contact:
Dressage Sport Manager | [email protected] |027 240 2702