After two days of competition, the dressage phase of this year’s FEI World Pair Championship is finished.

Standing in first place individually after dressage is Germany’s Carola Diener, with a score of  35.58 penalty points; in second place: Beat Schenk (Switzerland), with 36.22 points, and in third: Austria’s Georg Moser, with 40.19 points. The highest-placed U.S. driver is Joe Yoder, who’s standing in sixth place overall, with 44.03 points.

In the team standings, Germany is in the lead, followed by Switzerland in second, and the Netherlands in third. The U.S. team is in a good spot heading into tomorrow’s marathon phase, standing in fifth place.

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Here’s Leslie Hernandez’s report from yesterday evening:

Today was the first official day of competition, dressage to be exact. Misdee Wrigley was the first American to go. The leader of the day had a score of 35.58! Not too shabby!

There were lots of very nice horses and drivers, and some interesting turnout choices. For instance, two of today’s female drivers had their grooms wear hats that matched their own. Everything else about the groom’s outfit was pretty traditional; very different look.

Some of the dressage tests were lovely, others not as well executed. There was only one error of test, a driver from Great Britain with a pair of Welsh Cobs. The breeds of horses run the gamut from every type of Warmblood to Lusitanos and Lippizan. The oldest competitor, at sixty-eight, drove today as did the youngest, Anna Sandmann. She is only fifteen!

There are a few vendors at the event. Harness makers, carriage dealers, even a dog boutique! A petting zoo sprawls down one side of the grounds with donkeys, birds, and geese to name a few. While the food elsewhere has been delicious, we were unimpressed with “The American” sandwiches we had for lunch. Two wieners and french fries on a baguette doesn’t really hit the spot.