A staggering 13 championship titles were presented on Saturday, November 12, the third day of the 2022 US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan® at the Kentucky Horse Park. The prestigious show, which offers over $120,000 in prize money, runs through Sunday, November 13, and features competition from Training to Grand Prix level. Music and artistry abounded on Saturday as many of the classes were freestyles.

Photo – Ashley Maul hits her target score of 70% to claim top billing in the AA Grand Prix Freestyle riding Adiah HP. (SusanJStickle.com)

From reserve champion in 2021, Ashley Maul went one better this year, landing the AA Grand Prix Freestyle — and the Calaveras County Perpetual Trophy — on her own Adiah HP. Their 70% marked the first time the pair have reached that magic score at the level, and they did it on the national stage. Maul also finished third on her own Johnson gelding, Caprice.

Watch the winning Grand Prix Freestyle ride for Ashley Maul and Adiah HP. Video by US Equestrian.

The 15-year-old Adiah HP — who is part-bred Friesian — has an impressive record, having competed extensively under James (Jim) Koford at international Grand Prix before Maul bought her.

“The 70% score was actually what I was after, and the win was just an extra that I wasn’t expecting,” said Maul, who used to event and is a long-time student of Koford’s. “I knew Adiah really well. Then when we started looking for a horse for me, I wondered if they [Koford and former owner/breeder Sherry Koella] would ever sell her. I tried her, and we liked each other.”

Supercomputer Adiah HP

Taking on an educated horse has its own challenges, though: “I call her a supercomputer because there are so many details, and she is so nuanced,” explained Maul. “Occasionally I put in the wrong input and I get an error message back, so I’m trying to keep decreasing the error messages by making better inputs.”

How does Maul, who works full-time as a small animal veterinarian, cope with the inevitable pressure of showing a well-known and well-loved horse on the circuit?  

“It’s intimidating because people recognize her everywhere I go, and I’m just the amateur riding her,” she laughed. “But Jim is the best cheerleader and gets you feeling like you can do it even though you’ve never done it before. He sees her all the time and comes to teach us.”

Come December, Maul will head to Wellington for the winter season and her new farm with both of her horses.

Competition concludes on Sunday, November 13, with 11 championship titles to play for. Follow the action via the USDF Facebook page and the US Dressage Finals website, plus live online streaming on the USEF Network. To learn more about the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan®, view results and day sheets, and read daily news releases, visit the official US Dressage Finals event website.

See more about the US Dressage Finals presented by Adequan® experience with Reese Koffler-Stanfield, the host of the Dressage Radio Show on Horse Radio Network, which is the official podcast of USDF. 

About USDF

Founded in 1973, the United States Dressage Federation is a nonprofit membership organization dedicated to education, recognition of achievement, and promotion of dressage. For more information about USDF membership or programs, visit www.usdf.org