BOARD MEETING

A Short History of the GDCTA

 

The Georgia Dressage and Combined Training Association (GDCTA) began in 1974 when a handful of metro Atlanta dressage enthusiasts banded together to form an organization to promote the art and sport of dressage in the state of Georgia. That early organization, known as the Greater Atlanta Dressage Association (GADA), sponsored Georgia’s first-ever dressage competition in April 1974 at a farm just north of Atlanta. The judge at that competition was a local youngster named Robert Dover, who has since gone on to represent the U.S. in dressage in four Olympic games.

 

GADA held its first Nationally-recognized dressage show, The Greater Atlanta Dressage Southern, in April 1974. The Southern has since turned into an annual spring event in Georgia, drawing riders from all over the southeastern United States to compete under nationally and internationally-recognized judges. A second Nationally-recognized competition, the Atlanta National Fall Dressage Show, is held in autumn each year. In 1995, the fall show was held in conjunction with the United States Dressage Federation Region 3 Championships, hosted by GDCTA at the then brand-new Georgia International Horse Park in Conyers, Georgia, site of the 1996 Olympic equestrian competition.

 

To accommodate a growing state-wide interest in combined training and eventing, it wasn’t long before GADA voted to include this discipline also, changing its name to the Georgia Dressage & Combined Training Association to reflect this expanded focus. GDCTA is an active supporter of the combined training endeavors of its members, sponsoring cross-country schooling days at area farms each year, as well as cross-country and stadium jumping clinics with noted eventing trainers from around the world.

 

Now, more than four decades after its humble beginnings, GDCTA is one of the most dynamic equestrian organizations in the state, offering a year-round slate of events. On any given weekend, you might find a Dressage Competition, a Horse Trial, or even an International Three Day Event – sometimes a combination of all of these – going on somewhere in Georgia. Always GDCTA is there, providing educational and/or organizational assistance and volunteer support, encouraging new organizers and new riders while cheering on the advanced competitors as well.

 

GDCTA looks forward to an exciting future as more and more people throughout Georgia and the southeastern United States discover the thrill of dressage and combined training.