Shannon Dueck Wins Triple Crown® Dressage Excellence Award

Friday, March 17, 2017 | Mary Phelps

Triple Crown Florida Representative Craig Bernstein (left) awarded Shannon Dueck (right) with the Triple Crown Dressage Excellence Award at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival

Triple Crown Florida Representative Craig Bernstein (left) awarded Shannon Dueck (right) with the Triple Crown Dressage Excellence Award at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival

Wellington, FL – International dressage rider and trainer Shannon Dueck has experienced tremendous success during the course of her career, ranking among the United States’ top dressage riders. Triple Crown® Nutrition has added one more accolade to that list by honoring Dueck for her commitment, contributions, and achievements in the sport of dressage with the Triple Crown Dressage Excellence Award at the 2017 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival. Craig Bernstein, Triple Crown’s Florida representative, presented Dueck with the award at the winter competition series in Wellington, Fla.

Dueck’s love of the equestrian life has its roots in her family background and childhood experiences. Her mother, an “S” dressage judge in both Canada and the U.S., instilled in her daughter a deep appreciation for the nuances of classical dressage. As a teenager, Dueck racked up a wide range of experience in the equestrian sports, taking up the reins as an eventer and show jumper, as well as working on a Thoroughbred racetrack. By the age of 18, Dueck achieved the rank of an accomplished rider, attaining her “A” status in Pony Club and reaching Canadian Coaching Level 2.

Dueck found her ultimate calling in the world of dressage in 1994, when she worked for trainer Bert Rutten in Holland. After that, she built a long and successful career aboard her cherished and self-trained mount, Korona (by El Corona out of a Naturel mare), collecting many international awards and accolades along the way, including the Individual Silver Medal at the Pan Am Games in 1999. Since then, Dueck brought multiple horses to the International dressage rings, and also represented Canada at the World Championships, the World Cup, and the Open European Championships. Her facility in Loxahatchee, Florida, offers a full range of services including instructing, training, and boarding.

Currently, Dueck is focusing on teaching and bringing her students’ horses along in their training. One of Dueck’s favorite success stories this season is the recent induction of her student Julie Skinner in the “Century Club” with her 24-year-old horse, Lord Graphite. In 1996, The Dressage Foundation formed the Century Club to recognize horse and rider teams whose combined ages total at least 100 years.

“This is a building year, so I’ll be starting students’ horses in the show ring” said Dueck, who has two Oldenburg prospects with excellent bloodlines that she is very excited about. She will also be training a five-year-old from Denmark that she got to name. “My favorite movie is The Princess Bride,” remarked Dueck. “His show name is As You Wish and his barn name is Westley. We look for him to be the next Olympic superstar.”

With a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science and a master’s in Equine Nutrition and Exercise Physiology, Dueck is well aware of the importance of good nutrition for her horses. She speaks highly of Triple Crown’s Alfa-Lox®, an alfalfa-based supplement that uses a multiple nutrient-based approach to support normal digestive health. “I am familiar with all of the Triple Crown products, which are really good, but I love Triple Crown Alfa-Lox Forage. It helps the horse’s foregut and hindgut function well when under stress,” observed Dueck.

Based in Wayzata, Mn, Triple Crown is the official feed sponsor of the U.S. Dressage Team, the Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team, and the Hermes U.S. Show Jumping Team. Triple Crown is also an official sponsor of the 2017 Adequan Global Dressage Festival, and is supporting the White Fences Equestrian Center, Wellington Classic Dressage, and the Gold Coast Dressage Association in Wellington this winter.

Triple Crown offers feeds using revolutionary formulations and premium ingredients, and was the first company to add prebiotics, probiotics, and organic minerals to horse feed. To learn more, visit the company’s official Facebook page or Instagram @TripleCrownFeed, call 1-800-451-9916, or visit www.TripleCrownFeed.com. Please direct specific inquiries about Triple Crown Florida to Craig Bernstein at 561-543-4526.