Guenter Seidel Rises to the Top in Tough Intermediaire I Field

Intermediaire I winners Guenter Seidel & Rey del Mundo. (Photo: Terri Miller)

For the duration of the day, competition in the small tour was once again ferocious as Pan American Games hopefuls from both the U.S. and Canada fought for top marks in the Intermediaire I Test at the Capistrano Dressage International CDI-W/Y/J/U-25. As a result, the top four combinations all scored over 70%, and adding to excitement they finished within less than half a point of each other. In a fitting climax, Olympian Guenter Seidel won a tiebreaker at 70.500% to take the win with his own Rey del Mundo (Rock Forever x Fiona by Ferragamo) over Canada's Leslie Reid with Juliet Sears LeDorze's Westphalian gelding Fine and Smart (Fuerst Piccolo x Whoopy by Worldman). "I'm very pleased, especially because he's so green and I had no expectations when going in the ring," said Seidel of his leggy bay Westphalian gelding, who in addition to leading the victory lap also notched his first CDI victory. "At this point I'm really just trying to give him confidence. I think his trot work in particular was very good today, and I'm really happy with him."

See video of the winning ride on CDP Live!
See complete competition results here.

Complete results are available on the California Dreaming Productions website, http://www.californiadreamingproductions.com. Expanded live video streaming coverage of Sunday's CDI Grand Prix and Intermediaire I freestyle classes with expert commentary by FEI judge Axel Steiner resumes at 9:00am PT on CDP Live, www.californiadreamingproductions.com/live-stream-test/.

Formed by a partnership between long-time show organizer Glenda McElroy of Burbank, CA and Grand Prix riders and trainers David and Alisa Wilson of Chino Hills, CA, the goal of California Dreaming Productions is to bring a fresh face to international-level dressage competition on the West Coast. Additional show information is available on the new California Dreaming Productions website, as well as regular updates posted on Facebook. For more information, contact Glenda McElroy, glenda@cdpequestrian.com, or David and Alisa Wilson, david@cdpequestrian.com and alisa@cdpequestrian.com.