Edmonton, Alberta -- During the first weekend of August, competitors gathered at Amberlea Meadows in Edmonton, Alberta for its Summer Dressage Festival. The Event ran the Prairie Zone’s Canadian Performance Futurity Dressage classes for the second year, with an increase in horses vying for the cash prizes.

Winner of the four-year-old class was the young stallion Whirlwind II, who is owned by MJ Farms and was ridden by Laura Iversen. The licensed Canadian Warmblood, bred by John and Jacquie van den Bosch, is by Haarlem out of Sophia.

“We of course are thrilled. Whirlwind has been very successful in the hunter ring winning 2 out of 2 championships this summer,” commented Jennette Coote of MJ Farms, who stands this young stallion. “Now to add the Futurity Dressage win is a big bonus. We believe that this is a terrific program and it should be very well supported by both the breeding and sport communities.”

Second place in the four-year-old class was S H Beauhana, a chestnut mare bred by Lauri and Henry deGroot and owned by Caroline Locke. Beauhana who is by Beau Soleil and out of Hannah II, is a graduate of the Fall Classic Breeders Sale and performed very well for her amateur owner.

The five-year-old class was won by Encore III, who is owned by Krista and Alex Aasman. Encore, a Canadian Warmblood mare ridden by Sheri Bresee and bred by her father Garry Bresee, is by Eastern Ruler out of Maggie. Encore is also a graduate of the Fall Classic Breeders Sale, and was returned to Sheri for training.

“The award was important and the program is a major support for both breeders and owners”, commented Garry following the cooler presentation.

The Canadian Performance Futurity, which is open to registered and Canadian bred horses, is funded in part by the Canadian Breeders' Initiative Fund (CBIF). CBIF supports Canadian breeders of horses for the FEI disciplines, providing financial assistance to initiatives which profile multiple breed registries, with a preference to Canadian organizations. The CBIF is administered by Equine Canada and funded with charitable donations made through the Banyan Tree Foundation.

More on the Canadian Performance Futurity, including information for nominating horses, can be found at www.CanadianPerformanceFuturity.com.