Devon, PA (September 29, 2011) – Dr. Cesar Parra is one of Dressage at Devon’s most successful equestrians, both as a rider and as a trainer. His record at the Dixon Oval includes winning 13 classes, while his students have 22 wins at this famous dressage venue. Dr. Parra knows what it takes to be successful at the highest levels of dressage competition, and this year he will be paying it forward during Dressage at Devon as both he and Katie Riley, the Senior Trainer at Parra’s Piaffe-Performance Farm, will give a demonstration on how they prepare their horses to compete at FEI competitions. Dr. Parra was recently named to the US Pan Am Dressage Team following the 2011 Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF Festival of Champions; he and Grandioso will travel to Guadelajara in October to represent the United States. Dr. Parra, who is originally from Colombia, will be the first Latin American dressage rider to represent the US. The demonstration will take place Friday, September 30 and Saturday, October 1 at 5:30pm in the Dixon Oval just before the Grand Prix classes. Former Chef d’ Equipe of the US Dressage Team Jessica Ransehousen will provide a commentary.
“The dressage community here at Devon and all over this country have done so much in supporting me through the years and I am happy to be able to give back to them in any way that I can,” said Parra. “I am proud to represent the US in the Pan Am Games and I am more than happy to explain my training and preparation methods to the rest of the dressage community. Katie Riley has been my eye on the ground, and an invaluable source of support for me. We are both so pleased to be able to discuss our training methods at Devon.”
“The Festival of Champions was very emotional and exciting for my entire team. We had set as a goal to make the USA dressage team for the Pan Am Games, so to accomplish that is wonderful. Our nickname for the Pan Am Team is the ‘dream team,’ and it really does feel like a dream come true for us! I feel very blessed to be representing the country that has given my family and I such a wonderful new life,” Parra said. Parra is no stranger to the Pan Am Games. In 1999 helped Colombia earn a Team Silver Medal at the Pan Ams and has also competed in the Olympics, the World Equestrian Games and was named the Colombian National Champion multiple times.
“As we look toward the Pan Am Games we will continue to focus on making Grandioso even stronger, and through this demonstration we will go through the motions of doing just that.” Parra said. “Many things contribute to a horse’s success in the arena, and Grandioso goes out to walk on the hills in addition to his regular workout.”
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Parra, who owns Piaffe-Performance Farms with locations in New Jersey and Florida, added, “Of course I cannot thank the Davis family enough for their continued trust and confidence in me and the whole Performance farm team.”
The 2011 Pan American Games will be held October 14 – 30 in Guadalajara, Mexico, with approximately 6,000 athletes from 42 nations participating in 36 sports. The dressage portion of the Pan Am Games will be held at the Guadalajara Country Club.
For more information on Parra or Piaffe-Performance visit their website at www.piaffe-performance.com.
