The 2024 CDI season begins!

Photo: Alison Campbell-Wright

The 2024 international competition season kicked off not with a bang, but with a whimper. Just 9 horse/rider combinations entered the CDI division at this weekend’s event at the beautiful Desert International Horse Park in Thermal, California, a disappointing and somewhat surprising turn of events considering the show is a World Cup qualifier.

American Ben Ebeling was the sole competitor in the CDI-W classes, scooping up all the available points from the competition and all but sealing his bid for a spot.

Canada was represented by a sole rider in the CDI; British Columbia’s Alison Campbell-Wright and her mount Slapstick were among the three entries in the Young Rider division. The pair finished third in Friday’s team test with 59.118%, and moved up to second place in the individual test on Saturday with a score of 57.471%.

Why are entries so low in this all-important Olympic qualifying year? For starters, it’s very early in the season. Many of the Canadians wintering in California have just arrived in the past few weeks and are slowly acclimating their horses after the journey. And those based there year-round may feel no pressure to spend their holiday break preparing for an international competition. I’ve also noticed an increasing number of west coast riders opting to spend their winters in Florida over the past few years. Hopefully entries increase dramatically for other events this winter. It would be a huge loss for riders in the west (both Canada and the USA) if the California CDIs disappeared from the FEI calendar.

Next week the east coast is in the spotlight as the Adequan Global Dressage Festival kicks off with its first CDI of the season beginning Thursday, January 11.

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