March 2013 Letter from USPRE President

Open Letter to the Membership of USPRE and PRE Breeders of the United States and Canada: 

Dear Member, Breeder, Owner,

Our Annual Meeting and USPRE Week in Wellington is passed, and I would like to update you on the matters discussed at our meetings and news for 2013

A Successful First Year of Studbook Management

It has been now one year since USPRE took over the management of the PRE studbook LG in the United States Our staff has completed the job of transferring operations from Miami to Wellington and organizing an office for efficiency and growth  USPRE LG Administration has now established a process of customer service based on expediency and effectiveness In February, we conducted a customer survey—an annual requirement by ANCCE—for which 75 randomly selected breeders were interviewed about their experience using USPRE for their paperwork On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being “Excellent”, we are happy to report that 75% of those surveyed rated our services in the 8-10 range, with the majority of marks falling in the Excellent column in all categories

The growth in the breeding sector is already evident in our numbers in 2013, and to meet the demands of the industry we have begun the process to take on additional staff in Wellington, as well as a part-time position in Southern California Revision dates for the Spring Tour are established and we are looking at a September Tour along with a Qualified Tribunal at that time

USPRE will be on-site at both of the Feria shows in City of Industry this year, with Tanya Duffey on hand to meet with breeders and process requests We have plans as well to do the same at the Fiesta at the Virginia Horse Park in late August In January, USPRE was the guest at Rancho Jimenez for a breeders’ meeting for 150 people, where new LG documents and procedures were explained A similar Breeders Seminar was held in Wellington in conjunction with the Annual Meeting earlier this month, and we will hold another Breeders Seminar in Virginia in August for breeders in the South East region

Growth Brings Change

Several changes to the Board of Directors have occurred in the past few months At the February Board of Directors meeting, Janne Rumbough of Wellington, Florida returned to the Board for a three-year term As a result of the resignation last November of Alexander Zilo, the Board has appointed Miguel Nunez as ANCCE Representative and Betsy Ketcham as Vice President

It has become evident that our Association has fundamentally changed due to the appropriation of the Studbook responsibilities We have evolved from a formerly grant–based organization to one that is now funded primarily by breeders and owners who use our services, and as a result our governance structure is also evolving The Board of Directors of USPRE is committed to channeling these new revenues back to activities and services that benefit our Members as well as to promotional campaigns that educate the national equestrian audience, as per our Bylaws Furthermore, the Directors see the need for Breeder Members to have more influence on the direction of the organization and use of its funds To this end, we have enacted the following initiatives for 2013 for the benefit of the Membership, all of which were presented at the Annual Meeting in Wellington earlier this month:

New Website: On March 1, USPRE launched a new and greatly improved website which meets all industry standards for on-line transaction security, and is an essential tool for the PRE breeder and owner to request services and complete purchases, to be informed of the latest news and notices pertaining to our horses, record purchases, store information, access the ANCCE website, view instructional videos, follow show results, and more

Breeders Executive Committee: In response to requests by Javier Conde, President of ANCCE, at meetings held with USPRE Board of Directors in January 2013, for a more democratic process for USPRE leadership selection by Breeder Members, and for a corporate structure more in keeping with other ANCCE Affiliate Associations, the Board of Directors has created the Breeders Executive Committee, made up of Breeder Members who are appointed by the General Membership, and which is funded by revenues of the organization, funds which may be used to support shows, clinics, and any other activity endorsed by the BEC Beginning in 2014, Voting Members will elect the members of the BEC, who will ultimately appoint their own representatives to the Board of Directors The BEC will hold their first meeting in March The BEC members for 2013 are:

• Betsy Ketcham—CA, Acting Chair
• Margot Reynolds--TX
• Kay Greenbury--MI
• Rafael Madrigal--CA
• Alfredo Gonzalez--CA
• Tom Reed--FL
• Ramiro Pereez--CA
• Karen Lewis--VA
• Karen Rock—IL

Dressage Programs: Our highly popular dressage programs will continue in 2013, including the USDF All Breeds program, the Florida and California High Point Series, and the Global Dressage Festival Sponsorship Our main efforts in Wellington take place just prior to our Annual Meeting, and this year we topped all records for attendance at the USPRE Party at the Global Dressage Pavilion Close to 700 people attended a Spanish Fiesta to see special guests Juan Manuel Munoz and Daniel Martin Dockx of the Spanish Olympic Dressage Team The work of USPRE in Wellington has opened the door for success for the PRE breed in the most elite sport horse community in North America Following the Wellington event, Martin Dockx traveled to California for a two-day dressage clinic in San Jose, sponsored by USPRE 

Breeders Seminars, Clinics and Show Sponsorship: USPRE will be hosting a number of clinics around the country in 2013, beginning with a Breeders Presentation Clinic on April 14 at Feria del Caballo  All requests for clinics or sponsorship should be directed to Betsy Ketcham and the BEC

“One Nation, One Studbook, One Association” Campaign: USPRE has launched a PR campaign in 2013 to promote membership in our organization and to correct misinformation that has been circulating by another new association in the last few months USPRE is happy to work with regional clubs and chapters which form to meet the specific needs of breeders in one location, however we do not want the American breeder population, or our Members in particular, to be misled by false advertising

USPRE is the ONLY Affiliate Association recognized by ANCCE in the United States and the ONLY American association to have representation on the Board of Directors of ANCCE USPRE and ANCCE continue to maintain close cooperation and have committed together to a long-term collaboration in the future

USPRE is the ONLY Manager of the Studbook in the United States and Canada ANCCE’s Protocol agreement with USPRE is exclusive

USPRE represents the PRE Breeders and Owners of all of the United States, as well as all interests and uses for the PRE Horse 

USPRE will continue to promote the PRE Horse for Dressage, as well as other sports, as does ANCCE

USPRE has and will continue to service all PRE breeders, whether or not they are USPRE Members

For those of you who have not yet joined, membership in USPRE shows your support of our efforts, makes you a part of a vibrant PRE community, and allows you to participate in our Member Benefits and Programs which are outlined on our website Membership in USPRE is a way for you to help shape the goals and function of the organization 

To all our USPRE Members, our sincerest thanks for your support in this work—we are strongest when we together devote our efforts to the success of our horse in the United States

With all best wishes to the PRE Community of North America, 

Kimberly Boyer, President
United States PRE Association
Wellington, Florida