Soers Sunday offered a very special attraction this year – the first international traditional driving show at the CHIO Aachen. The conclusion after the premiere: More please!

22 teams of horses, 13 different breeds, rare carriages, lovely costumes – the first International, traditional driving show at the CHIO Aachen had plenty to offer. Where otherwise the best drivers in the world battle it out for a place on the cherished Winners’ Board of the CHIO Aachen, although it was also about the time and skill on Soers Sunday, today the priority lay on the best possible presentation.

The stands around the Driving Stadium are no fuller than today, when the Exells and the Chardons from the world of the driving sport are rolling over the lush grass. There were no free seats or empty standing room. Everyone wanted to see the magnificent carriages. A Fjord horse from Norway was represented as well as a Barb horse from North Africa. Alongside traditional carriage horses like Friesians, Dutch Harness Horses and the heavy German warmbloods, of course. They were presented in different types of harnesses, as one-horse, two-horse and four-horse teams in front of different carriages, in some cases real rarities – Phaetons, Landauers, Dogcarts.

The carriages had to drive through a course of obstacles without knocking the balls off. But many other tasks were also demanded – ringing a bell with the whip, driving a circle one-handed, etc. All of which had to be completed as fast as possible. Marie Tischer reached the finish line in the fastest time of 212.94 seconds with her Brandenburg-bred gelding, Fortino. Alexander Berghof came second with his pony gelding, Silvio Skjoeldson, (230.64), followed by a team of two horses: Vanaro P and Gesira P driven by Bernhard Rudolph (236.26).