Hijinks and Heartfelt Moments at Convention Gala

If the business portion of the 2012 Adequan/USDF Annual Convention in New Orleans was quiet, the Salute Gala and Annual Awards Banquet most certainly was not.

Mardi Gras, naturally, was the gala theme. Many attendees got into the party spirit, sporting elaborate masks, beads, feather boas, and other frivolity, like these festive folks:

Of course, the banquet is a time for celebrating the accomplishments of those horses, owners, breeders, and riders who have achieved dressage and sport-horse excellence in the past year. But it's also a time for honoring those who have left an indelible mark on our sport.

Two such individuals were inducted into the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame tonight. The first, Michael Poulin, is a trainer, an instructor, an Olympian, and an instructor-certification pioneer. The Poulin family was on hand for the ceremony, making for an extra-special moment.

The Poulin clan turned out for the induction of patriarch Michael (center) into the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame

The other inductee, Ravel, established new standards of excellence in American dressage and carried Steffen Peters to victories at Aachen, the FEI Dressage World Cup Final, and the World Dressage Masters. The pair competed in two Olympic Games and won America's first-ever dressage individual medals at a world championships, at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. "Team Ravel" was on hand for the great horse's induction ceremony.

"Team Ravel" accepts the horse's USDF Hall of Fame induction plaque. From left: USDF president George Williams, USDF Historical Recognition Committee chair Anne Moss, Steffen Peters, owner Akiko Yamazaki and daughters, and veterinarian Dr. Rodrigo Vazquez. Steffen's wife, Shannon, is behind Yamazaki.

It was a night--and a convention and a city--to remember. We bid adieu to New Orleans and look forward to gathering again next year in Lexington, KY.

The Pigs Are Airborne!

For years, USDF Board of Governors assemblies were long, dragged-out affairs. They consisted of tedium interspersed with heated discussions over the hot topic du jour. (In that, they reminded me of my airplane-pilot husband's description of flying: boredom occasionally punctuated by moments of panic.)

Would a BOG, as it's not-always-fondly called, ever go smoothly? Could this meeting ever (gasp) end early? When pigs fly, it seemed.

Well, today the pigs took off and are cruising in formation somewhere over New Orleans. There's always tomorrow morning (the BOG agenda continues for a few more hours); but today, few committees put motions before the BOG, and those that did were noncontroversial. (Example: The Awards Committee secured approval to award five placings instead of three in Adequan/USDF Vintage Cup standings.) Not really the kind of thing that gets people hot and bothered. And so it went.

Really, the only "interesting" moment today happened outside of the BOG. During the US Equestrian Federation Dressage Committee open forum, a representative from the association North American Western Dressage asked why the USDF has so far declined to formally endorse or support any of the Western-dressage associations. If you've been reading your USDF Connection, you know that Western dressage is a hot topic. (The response, from USDF president George Williams, was that the USDF must take care to protect the sport's name and terminology as defined by the USDF, the FEI, and in the scope of the Olympic movement. At this time, the USDF will link to WD organizations' websites but declines to endorse any sole WD entity.)

So there you have it: a quiet day and a BOG day 1 that ended a full hour early. The upshot was that I was able to use my unexpected free time to reminisce about my interview with Michael Poulin this morning. Poulin, as you may know, will be inducted into the Roemer Foundation/USDF Hall of Fame tomorrow night during the USDF Salute Gala and Annual Awards Banquet. He's quite a guy, and it was a privilege to speak with him. I look forward to telling you more about him soon!