ADS Intermediate Championships

At the ADS summer meeting August 7-9 in Leesburg, Virginia, the Board of Directors approved the American Driving Society Intermediate Championship—and the competition began immediately!

Scores from any ADS-approved CDE occurring after this year’s annual meeting can be used (see explanation below); the cut-off date for scores that count for the first Championship is the last Friday in August 2010.

This Championship is the first of a planned series of awards designed to encourage and inspire drivers of all levels. Although we cannot all compete “head to head” because of the size of our country, these Championships will enable us to measure ourselves against others at the same level of proficiency nationwide. We eventually hope to award a Championship at Preliminary Level as well.

The criteria for the Championships are very simple.

• You must be a member in good standing.
• You must be competing at Intermediate level.
• You must be qualified to compete at Intermediate as per the ADS Rulebook, Article 905.14
• You can compete with more than one horse/driver combination; however, scores submitted for a Championship must be earned by the same combination.
• You are automatically entered just by competing.

Awards will be given in the following categories for both ponies and horses: Singles, Pairs, Tandems and Four-in Hands; also Single, Pair and Four-in-Hand VSE. The first awards for Champion and Reserve will be presented at the ADS annual meeting held in conjunction with the World Equestrian Games (Lexington, Kentucky) in 2010. Subsequent awards will be given at a designated ADS event.

Here’s how it works:

• Each competitor’s two best scores will be added together and the lowest total score will win. (You must use scores from all three phases of each event, i.e. you must have completed without being eliminated or retiring.)
• If there is a tie, the lowest total marathon score wins.
• HDTs and ADTs will not count towards these awards, at least for the present.