Vecses, Hungary (June 8, 2011) – The American flag was waving high in Hungary when Combined Driver Chester Weber drove the team, comprised of two of Jane Clark’s horses and two of his own horses, to victory at CAIO Vecses, an international combined driving competition in Vecses, Hungary. Weber won the dressage phase with a score of 37.25, placed sixth in the marathon and followed it up with a double clear cones trip which launched him into the win with a total score of 145.51. Koos de Ronde, of the Netherlands, finished in second with 149.63 and Jozsef Dobrovitz, of Hungary, came in third with a score of 150.22.
Weber, who celebrated his 36th birthday on the day of the dressage test at the CAIO Vecses, said he was thrilled with the win and pleased with the results throughout the competition. “I used Jane Clark’s horses Uniek and Splash in the dressage test and was very pleased that we received a first place from all five judges,” Weber said. “The marathon was exceptionally competitive, and it was fantastic to compete against the best drivers in the world. We posted the fastest time on the sixth obstacle of the marathon, which I was very happy about. We then went double clear in the cones and ended up second in that phase to round out our win.”
Weber, who is the eight-time USEF National Four-In-Hand Combined Driving Champion, is staying in Europe as he prepares for Aachen in July. “We brought nine horses with us to Europe and right now we are staying outside of Frankfurt, Germany at Michael Freund’s, our U.S. team coach, as we continue to work the horses. Next week we will compete at the CAI Altenfelden in Austria,” Weber said.
Weber added that winning his first CAIO was a great start to his European competitive season. “My goal for 2011 is to prepare ourselves for the 2012 World Championships in Riesenbeck and to continue to insure our preparedness for the 2014 World Equestrian Games in France,” Weber said.
Weber will also compete at the CAI Riesenbeck in July, a venue in which he has already found great success. In 2004, Weber became the first American to win the prestigious German Fahrderby held at CAI-A Riesenbeck, an achievement he repeated in 2008. Weber said when he returns to the United States he hopes to defend his USEF National title. “The US Championships are at The Laurels at Landhope in September and I would love to win a ninth championship,” Weber said, adding that winning the driving competition in Hungary was a great way to celebrate his birthday and it will be something he will always remember.
For more information on Weber and his combined driving team, visit their website at www.chesterweber.com.
For more information contact:
Chester Weber
chester@chesterweber.com
www.chesterweber.com
1-352-895-1139