She was meant to be an eventing horse, or perhaps go out in the hunt field. But once Candescent’s potential was glimpsed by Alice Tarjan, it was obvious that neither of those destinies would be in the mare’s future.
The four-year-old Hanoverian Alice imported from Europe after viewing a videotape obviously was going to be a dressage horse, her new owner realized almost immediately.
Alice and Candescent. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“As soon as she came off the plane and left quarantine, it was like, `Oh my gosh, the horse is a freak.’ She’s super scopey.”
Seven years later, Alice and Candescent have been put on the short list for the U.S. Olympic squad in their discipline.
A total of 12 riders were named with 15 horses. They include Adrienne Lyle with Salvino, number one in the standings (Adrienne was also named with Harmony’s Duval); multi-medalist Steffen Peters and Suppenkasper, number two; and Olivia Lagoy-Weltz with Lonoir, a prospect she trained up from Third Level. Others on the list are,Sabine Schut-Kery and Sanceo, who, like Candescent, is a horse the rider has brought along through the ranks and Nick Wagnman, who has two horses on the roster, Don John and Ferano.
Candescent was ranked number 13, and with Alice, is number 395 in the FEI (international equestrian federation) standings, having made a huge leap up the ladder from number 545 last month. See, Candescent can jump after all!
While Alice is under no illusions that she’ll be heading for Tokyo to ride with the flag on her saddle pad, there are plenty of big competitions on the horizon to point toward, including the world championships in Denmark next year and the Paris Olympics in 2024. Meanwhile, she’s looking forward to the mandatory outing for the short list riders in June at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Club in Wellington, Fla.
Alice and Candescent have established a close relationship during years of training. (Photo © 2021 by Nancy Jaffer)
“It’s definitely fun to have made the list. What an honor to be listed with all those people. Almost everyone on that list is a team rider,” noted Alice, who has never been on a team.
Candescent’s selection is a tribute to her owner’s patience and skill, since she is “not so easy to bring along. She’s a special one, I’ll say that,” Alice noted.
“She’s a bull on the ground, she’s a bull under saddle. They call her `the monster horse’ for a reason. She has no respect for people or anything basically,” Alice recounted.
“She just does what she wants.”
When Alice first saw the mare on the video, she was intrigued. Candescent is by Christ 3, who has produced jumpers as well as dressage horses.
“I wanted a horse that was black with four white socks,” explained the Oldwick resident, “and it’s not easy to find a jumper that is black with four white socks. Her immediate thought was, “Maybe it could jump.”
The mare’s coloring is a throwback to Alice’s childhood pony, Licorice, black with four white socks, and so she has a fleet of black horses with white socks, as we’ve recounted her fixation here previously.
Candescent’s talent has been impressively on display for several years. In 2018, Candescent and Alice won both the amateur Intermediate A and B competitions during Dressage at Devon, then went on to take the A and B classes at Devon the next year.
In 2019, Candescent had three straight victories in the U.S. Dressage Federation Championships in the amateur grand prix category. She won the USEF Grand Prix National Championship in Illinois last year, and this year, highlights included a win in the Grand Prix Special in Wellington last month.
Candescent missed an April outing at the new World Equestrian Center in Ocala when she sustained a cut requiring stitches in a trailer mishap, but Alice had planned to rest her for a while anyway. She’s back home in New Jersey now, before heading for Florida again.
Alice is looking forward to the mandatory short list outing, and competing under the lights in a new venue. During the Florida season, the horses show at the Global grounds, about a half-mile from PBIEC. Happily, Candescent isn’t put off by a new location.
“She doesn’t get bothered by a lot,” said Alice, who works with trainer Marcus Orlob of Annandale.
“It will be fun to do, and interesting to see how it plays out.”
Candescent at the dressage championships. (Photo by Susan J. Stickle)
Alice was intrigued by the fact that she was a member of the Somerset Hills Pony Club when she was growing up, as was Devin Ryan, the only New Jerseyan on the Olympic show jumping shortlist, where he was named with Eddie Blue. Now Alice is waiting to see if Doug Payne, who also belonged to the club and used to help her with Licorice, will be named to the Olympic eventing short list. He was 12th at the Land Rover Kentucky 5-star last weekend with Vandiver, but the fifth-best American (foreign riders filled seven spots in the top 12.)
While Kentucky was a U.S. Olympic selection trial, there’s one more test in that category before the short list is named. It’s the Jersey Fresh International Horse Trials, which gets under way Thursday at the Horse Park of New Jersey in Allentown. Read more on this website in the story below, or at this link.
