by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 8, 2024
The Dressage Foundation has made awards to two trainers from its $25,000 Anne L. Barlow-Ramsay Grant for U.S.-Bred Horses Fund.
The grants, going to more than one recipient for the first time, are designed to showcase U.S.-bred horses ridden by American citizens.
Lauren Chumley of Pittstown, N.J., and Leeloo Dallas will be training this winter with Michael Bragdell under auspices of the grant. Leeloo Dallas, bred by Racheal McKinney, was purchased by Lauren as a foal. Lauren specializes in developing young horses and is a member of the USEF Developing Program with the mare, who has KWPN bloodlines.
“I believe in this little American horse with my whole heart and in Michael’s program,” said Lauren.
“I am absolutely thrilled that TDF believes in us too.”
Floridian Molly O’Brien and Fortunato H2O, an 8-year-old Oldenburg stallion owned by Lehua Custer, will train with Olympians Sue Blinks and Ali Brock during the winter season in Wellington. Molly is an assistant trainer and head groom for Lehua and has competed Fortunato H2O successfully through Prix St. Georges. Fortunato H2O was bred by Kendra Hansis of Runningwater Warmbloods.
Calling the grant life-changing not only for herself, but also for Lehua and Kendra, Molly said, “Dr. Ramsay’s philanthropic generosity affords riders like me, without private sponsorship, to pursue training opportunities to showcase elite, U.S.-bred equine athletes on a competitive stage.”
The Anne L. Barlow-Ramsay Grant Fund was established at the Dressage Foundation in 2008 by Dr. Barlow-Ramsay to fulfill her desire to support U.S.-bred horses that are competing on the international dressage stage. Since 2008, eleven recipients have been awarded a $25,000 grant for training or competition, including those who have successfully competed at the highest level of the sport. Applications are due August 15 each year.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 2, 2024
Could mandatory registration of dressage trainers be on the horizon, along with a certification requirement for these professionals?
It’s a definite possibility in the wake of Tuesday’s FEI stakeholder meeting in Switzerland, where some key players in the discipline met to discuss the core objectives of dressage and “ways of realigning the discipline to reflect these objectives.”
Dressage has been under scrutiny not only since the pre-Olympic Charlotte Dujardin scandal (the Olympic multi gold-medalist was shown hitting a student’s horse with a longe whip in a video that went viral) but also after other allegations of abuse became public.
What is the overall goal as seen at the meeting? Those attending contended that horses should be trained through balanced and systematic education, while being ridden to be calm, supple, flexible, confident, and responsive, “fostering a deep and positive connection with the rider.” You may be seeing that perception written into the FEI Rulebook going forward.
“A crucial aspect is that Dressage is practiced without tension or resistance, ensuring harmony between the horse and rider,” the FEI stated.
FEI Dressage Director Ronan Murphy explained the next step is to figure out how to “adapt our practices and approaches to ensure these standards are met. This effort is not the responsibility of any one group; it is a collective mission for the entire Dressage community.”
FEI Secretary General Sabrina Ibáñez said, “While showcasing top sport, the Paris Games brought to light challenges that have prompted us to reflect and reassess in the post-Games period.”
One thing that should be reassessed is how the blood rule is handled. A case in point was the way the head of the ground jury stopped Marcus Orlob in the middle of his Paris Grand Prix test because his mount, Jane, had a tiny scratch on her white hind leg. It wasn’t gushing blood. Had it been on a black leg, it wouldn’t have been visible at all.
Was anyone in the stands, far from the middle of the arena, able to see that? No, so they were mystified when the rider was excused. Why not let the athlete finish his test and then have the veterinarians in the backstage area determine afterward whether the horse should be disqualified. The scratch obviously was not anything to do with abuse; it happened when the mare whirled to follow the previous entry, who exited the arena the wrong way.
The FEI should train and trust officials to make judgments about the presence of blood and determine whether it stems from something the rider has done or from another source. Animal rights activists have terrified officials, even though many of these protestors know nothing about horses and may have objectives that don’t necessarily relate to horse welfare. The fear of having horse sports excluded from the Olympics has been a driver for incidents like the one involving Jane.
National federations and media were not part of the Tuesday meeting. Participants included representatives of the
International Dressage Rider’s Club, the International Dressage Officials Club, the International Dressage Trainer’s Club and the dressage organizers, as well as the presidents of the European Equestrian Federation and the Pan American Equestrian Confederation; the FEI vice president, the chair of the FEI Para Equestrian Technical Committee and the FEI Dressage Steward General.
The discussion will continue at the FEI annual meeting in November and its sports forum in April 2025.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 6, 2024
Nature vs. nurture. It was the first thing that came to mind when I realized the top four competitors in the Platinum Performance/ U.S. Equestrian Federation Show Jumping Talent Search Finals East came from equestrian families.
In case you’re not familiar with the expression, it refers to the question of how much a person’s characteristics are formed either by genetics or upbringing/life experience.
Winner Taylor Cawley is a third-generation serious horsewoman. Her grandmother, Sue Ashe, won the 1958 AHSA Medal finals and is a respected horse show judge. Taylor’s mother, Molly Cawley, is a successful grand prix rider. (Molly and Sue judged the 2019 edition of the Talent Search together.)
Taylor Cawley with her mother, Molly Cawley, and trainer, Stacia Madden. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Amira Kettaneh, the reserve champion, is the daughter of Leigh Kattaneh, who owns and trains at Fox Creek Farm in New Hampshire. Irish Olympic show jumper Shane Sweetnam and his wife, trainer Ali Sweetnam, from Sweet Oak Farm in Florida, are the parents of third-place Olivia Sweetnam.
Fourth place JJ Torano is the son of show jumper, hunter exhibitor and top trainer Jimmy Torano and his wife, Danielle, who also has her share of success in equestrian competition.
Expect to see all four on senior national teams when they’re older; that’s the point of the Talent Search.
I asked Jimmy about the advantage for children of having parents who are involved in the horse business. Nurture won.
“They’re around it every day, they’re living it, they’re breathing it. They’re getting the opportunity to ride several horses,” he pointed out.
Thinking back to his own childhood, Jimmy said, “I didn’t get the opportunity JJ has, so Danielle and I are doing everything we can. If he can get there, we’re want to do everything in our power to try to get him there.”
One goal is for JJ to be on a Nations Cup team with Jimmy’s friend, McLain Ward. That will have to wait a bit; JJ rides as a 13-year-old at the moment.
Each rider in the top four has trained with their parents, “but for the equitation, we’ve put them with these top equitation trainers,” said Jimmy.
JJ Torano on Favorite Edition Z. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
His son works with Missy Clark and John Brennan; Taylor is with Stacia Madden, Krista Freundlich and the team at Beacon Hill, Olivia is taught by Ken and Emily Smith and Andre Dignelli and the Heritage team coach Amira.
The competition at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation in Gladstone, N.J., began on Friday with a flat phase won by Taylor on 95 points, with Olivia one point behind. JJ was third on 91 and Amira eleventh on 86.5.
In the gymnastics segment Saturday, JJ went into the lead, followed by Taylor and Olivia, while Amira moved up to fifth. JJ stayed on top after Sunday morning’s show jumping round, which had a double coefficient. JJ was ahead of Taylor overall by one point, 424 to 423. Amira was third further back with 413, and Olivia had 411.
Olivia Sweetnam and Class Act. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
The Final Four, modeled on the way the individual medals used to be decided in the world show jumping championships, involves each competitor jumping a shorter course on their mount, and then doing the same on those of their rivals.
Taylor wound up on top with a score of 379, while Amira, who had a knockdown, was 10 points behind. Olivia finished on 366 and JJ got close to the next-to-last fence in his final round to end on 344.5 in fourth place. Both he and Olivia had time penalties along the way.
Taylor Cawley with USEF President Tom O’Mara, judges Nicole Shahinian-Simpson and Ellie Raidt (left); Lucca Rockhold-Murphy of Platinum Performance, 2023 Talent Search winner Luke Jensen and Stacia Madden. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
“No matter who won today, the top of this group are definitely our riders for the future. We really hope they will be team riders,” said Anne Kursinski, the U.S. chef d’equipe for the developing show rider program.
“This group notably was very young,” said Ellie Raidt, who judged the Talent Search with Nicki Shahinian-Simpson.
“That impressed us, because it takes a lot of maturity and experience to get here.”
DiAnn Langer, who has served as U.S. Show Jumping Young Rider chef d’equipe, noted when asked for her impressions of the competition, “Every year, there’s a great group that comes forward, they’re the obvious ones that have a lot of experience. You expect it.”
But she and Anne also like to look at the riders who are the next level down.
“We have some beautiful riders that are coming along who are in the middle. The more that they jump into the jumper ring and start moving up through the heights, they are going to get stronger and stronger,” she believes.
Taylor, who called her victory “surreal” noted “the final gets you ready for the jumper ring, where I eventually want to be.”
Taylor Cawley with Oki D’Eclipse. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Taylor said she is the only one who has shown her mount, Oki D’Eclipse, in equitation. She has been with Oki, who won the Grappa trophy for the Talent Search’s best horse, since Devon 2023.
“He’s really been a joy to watch grow up in the equitation. I love working with him,” said Taylor, who was seventh in the class last year.
Amira, fourth in 2023, said “I just really wanted to do better than I did last year. I ended up taking my jumper (Mark 19) here which got me to the top four, which I am really grateful for.”
Amira Kettaneh and Mark 19. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Olivia, who rode Class Act, said she enjoyed the final phase the most because “it’s so educational to be able to get on different horses and show versatility. All four of them were so extremely different.”
JJ, who like Olivia was in the Talent Search for the first time, rode Favorite Edition Z, who was a jumper in Europe.
Although the jumpers are his goal, JJ knows the importance of equitation in achieving that aim.
“Equitation is teaching the basics of how to ride those jumper courses, the bending lines and inside turns are the basics for jumping,” he said.
Taylor observed that all of the people who have won the Talent Search “have gone on to win so many great things in the jumpers. Being here at Gladstone, it’s so historical, looking at all the pictures on the walls knowing the people who have come through here and trained here, it’s unbelievable I could be in the top four and even have won this finals.”
The Hollow Brook Wealth Management Sportsmanship Award was presented to Skyler Gurtis from Florida, who was making her debut in the Talent Search.
Click here for a link to results
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 3, 2024
They’re a hard-working power couple who rode away from Dressage at Devon with several blue ribbons last weekend.
But the story of Shannon Stevens and her husband, Olympic team member Marcus Orlob, is about more than victories. Behind each of the successful moments are years of struggle, hard work and disappointments, all building blocks for constructing success.
They work out of Elite Expression Dressage in Annandale, N.J., a former hunter/jumper establishment previously known as Fairwin Farm, when it was run by trainer Nanci Urban. Before that, it was an Arabian farm, and a horse owned by actor Patrick Swayze was one of the boarders.
Shannon Stevens and Marcus Orlob in the outdoor ring as Amit Kovos rides one of the horses at Elite Expressions. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Adjacent to an area dominated by suburban housing, the wooded farm of nearly 60 acres is a contrast to the nearby development, with a long driveway that runs along pastures. Retired horses lounge happily together under the trees, there’s a lovely pond and the whole impression is of being out in the country, with the property backing up into the Amwell trail system.
Marcus Orlob and Shannon Stevens like to take a break from training by the pond on their property. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
When she was looking for a farm in 2013 and Fairwin came up, Shannon was told by the Realtor that she would hate the place, that there was a freight train which ran through the property several times a day, and the whole thing was dilapidated.
It takes a lot to discourage Shannon, so she wasn’t discouraged.
“I’ll never forget it,” said Shannon of her initial visit. “I pulled halfway down the driveway and didn’t even see the barn. I called Marcus and said, `I’ve found the facility.’ It sounds crazy, but this was the facility.”
The problem was that the couple needed to move 25 horses to the new barn within two weeks, because their previous stable had been leased to someone else. Although the owner of the Annandale farm deemed it impossible to comply with Shannon’s deadline for rehoming her horses, a relative of the woman said he would talk to Shannon about the sale. He warned, however, that he needed her to “convince me why I should somehow let this happen.”
Thriving on challenges is routine for Shannon, who trained in upstate New York with the late Carol Quinn and the legendary Centered Riding founder, Sally Swift. When her conversation about the property with the relative ended, it was determined that the owner not only would hold the mortgage so the couple could close the transaction, but Shannon and Marcus also were given money for renovations. Those include a complete re-do of the main barn, with gleaming pale wood and black cast iron accents along the rows of stalls.
The main barn at Elite Expression. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
You can understand why Marcus calls Shannon, “the Alpha Mare, the fighter.”
The couple has 30 or so horses at the farm, where they base during the spring, summer and part of the fall. For the winter, they are in business on 10 acres in Loxahatchee, Fla.
Both facilities have plenty of paddocks. Not every dressage trainer gives horses pasture time, but Shannon and Marcus are staunch believers in turnout and hacking in addition to the ring work because each of their animals “deserves to be a horse,” rather than spending most of their time in a stall.
“Everyone’s on their own program, they get whatever would make them super healthy and happy,” while being safe, said Marcus.
Marcus and Shannon met at Warendorf, the German riding school that is the home of Germany’s state stud. Marcus, already a well-trained rider, was there for two weeks simply to get his Bereiter certification. Shannon was the first American to be accepted at Warendorf, where she pursued a three-month Bereiter program.
When applying for admission, “I sent a riding video and my bio,” Shannon recalled, noting she got accepted contingent on coming to Germany within two weeks.
“I spoke no German,” said Shannon, who kept playing the Rosetta Stone language CDs in the little time she had to prepare.
“It was an incredible opportunity. They didn’t have a set program,” she reported, and her guess was that they didn’t know what to do with an American.
Like the other Bereiter candidates, she started the day cleaning stalls, then was assigned a horse to ride (often one of the naughtier stallions) and got instruction. Her ability was obvious. Hannes Müller, who ran the Warendorf program from 1994 to 2023, asked her, “Would you like to ride my horse after hours and warm it up for me?”
Of course she would.
Marcus’ family ran a funeral home in Dusseldorf, Germany, and it seemed likely he could take over eventually. But his father agreed that it would be good for Marcus first to go to the U.S., visit Shannon and see how things worked out.
Dressage became Marcus’ career, the couple got married in 2008 and the funeral home was sold.
Steffen Peters, who taught Marcus in a 2013 clinic, urged him to become a U.S. citizen, saying he foresaw being on a team with Marcus someday. That actually happened last summer, when both were on the U.S. squad at the Olympics in Versailles.
The fairytale dissolved in an unhappy ending, however, when Marcus was eliminated with his mount, Jane.
The Olympic riders had been given a diagram showing “how we should go in the arena and how we should go out,” said Marcus, explaining that the rider before him “didn’t follow the rules. We had to go out on the long side by the judge at E; (instead) he went out by H, where we should go in. Jane saw the horse leaving and she’s like, `Okay, I’m coming with you.’
“She made a U-turn and scratched herself.”
The mare was upset, but under Marcus’ guidance as they began their test, “Step by step, she started relaxing more,” recalled the rider, who was receiving marks as high as 7.6 for the half-pass.
“That was like, `Wow, I actually have a chance now of performing.”
Then an insignificant scratch on Jane’s white right hind fetlock caught the eye of the ground jury’s president, who rang the bell because of the blood rule.
Although Marcus got an apology, that didn’t make up for what happened. While comparing the scratch to “a mosquito bite,” he conceded, “it’s a tough call. I don’t blame them. The most important thing is the welfare of the horse.”
But he added, “When you can clearly see it was an accident, let the test finish.” Then a veterinarian can make a decision afterwards about whether the horse should be eliminated.
As he pointed out, everyone is on edge because of public scrutiny in the wake of horse abuse cases, and the fear that equestrian competition will be dropped from the Olympics. However, it would have been impossible for anyone in the stands to see a scratch that was so small (and, which, by the way, would not have been visible at all on a black leg).
In the aftermath, he observed, it was, understandably “one of the first times I was ever depressed for a few days.”
Marcus and Jane. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Marcus was hoping to finish riding the Grand Prix test at Dressage at Devon, but he and Jane’s owner, Alice Tarjan, were disappointed yet again when the mare wasn’t ready to compete after slipping as she exited the van on her arrival at the showgrounds. Although Marcus went on to win two classes with another of Alice’s horses, JJ Glory Day, the disappointment remained.
There was a bright moment for Shannon when she won her Prix St. Georges test with a personal best on Kathryn Williams’ All of Harmony, marked at 71.912. That was quite an achievement, since the Dutchbred horse hadn’t shown for two years and Shannon had only recently finished her recovery from a broken hip. She was sidelined as Marcus prepared for the Olympics, so they brought in Amit Kovos, a member of the Israeli dressage team based in England, in order to fill the gap before Shannon started her strenuous training routine again.
Still hoping to make his Olympic dream come true (Jane is only 10 years old), Marcus continues to work hard with lessons, training and clinics, as does Shannon, who also is training her own 4-year-old, King, by For Gribaldi.
“This is our own place, we don’t have big sponsors,” said Marcus, who would like to have more backing as he looks toward the 2026 world championships and the 2028 Olympics.
“I love the farm and want to bring it to what I dreamed of it to be,” said Shannon.
“But step by step, we can only do it when we sell horses.”
Marcus had one horse of his own, but sold it. While that “was painful,” he sighed, he’s practical.
“Now it’s time again to put some money into the property.”
He would like to have his own horse at some point.
“It’s nice to make your own decisions,” he said His relationship with Alice, however, is unique.
“She’s a true horsewoman, so she understands what it takes. There is zero pressure. You cannot pressure the rider or the horse.”
Marcus notes it’s hard to train horses for the big European competitions while in America, since there are so few experiences that can be compared with being in a European stadium, though Dressage at Devon is one.
But he likes the fact that horses at his New Jersey farm get accustomed to activity around them, which pays off when they get to an atmospheric show.
“When the trains come through and the geese are flying off the pond near the outdoor ring, clients are apprehensive,” Marcus observed.
They’re far more worried than the horses, who take it in stride.
He knows all the activity is good for getting the horses accustomed to different circumstances, and they don’t turn a hair over that or the wildlife, including deer and fox.
Shannon Stevens and Marcus Orlob take a ride between the paddocks on their farm. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
As for the trains, “The horses graze next to the tracks and don’t even lift their heads,” he said with a smile.
He’d like to see more spectators and activities at the U.S. shows, so horses will not to be afraid when a loose dog is barking or running around. In Ermelo (Holland) “You see 10, 20 Jack Russells running between the stallions, and nobody cares. Everything in the U.S. is about liability, it doesn’t help us to be always careful and shy,” Marcus maintained.
Here’s his idea: In Ocala and TerraNova (Myakka City, Fla.), during a dressage show, “invite the town for free beer and hot dogs. Don’t just have horse people there. Maybe make it a farmers’ market.”
He suggests the organizer could offer everything from face painting for kids to free popcorn, just asking spectators in return to “sit in the stands for one hour and clap” as they watch the horses perform.
“Maybe you can attract more people into dressage.” But first, he points out “You need a reason to go there.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 3, 2024
Six years after Amanda Steege and Lafitte de Muze won the World Champion Hunter Rider Professional Challenge at the Capital Challenge Horse Show, they did it again Wednesday night in Maryland.
Scores of 93.66 and 91.16 over two rounds gave Amanda a total of 184.82, 6.08 points ahead of runner-up David Wilbur with Four Aces.
Amanda Steege and Lafitte de Muze (Shawn McMillen Photo)
On Friday night, Scott Stewart took the $30,000 WCHR Pro Hunter Rider Final, in which the top four riders rode “donated” horses they had not competed previously in a format like the Final Four, which used to decide the world show jumping championships.
It was the eighth time that Scott, 60, had won the title.
Despite his record, “I still get nervous,” he conceded.
“It’s a great honor to be included in these group of riders. I’m hopeful that I’ll get to keep doing it. I’ve won it enough, and I just enjoyed doing it, so I wasn’t really expecting to win, but I was, I would say, probably the most relaxed I’ve ever been.”
Scott had a 20-point margin over second-place Geoffrey Hesslink. Amanda was third and Nick Haness, the 2022 winner, finished fourth.
Of her victory earlier in the week, Amanda said, “We pick certain classes throughout the year that we really aim Lafitte for and try to have him peak at.”
Lafitte, who is owned by Cheryl Olsten, has the right bloodlines for victory. The son of Darco is out of Everlychin de la Pomme, a mare who won the Grand Hunter Championship at Capital Challenge in 2013 with Scott Stewart aboard, after she had campaigned in the jumpers with Shane Sweetnam.
Amanda, who is based in Califon, N.J., and Wellington, Fla., has a motto of “calmly confident” with her 13-year-old Belgian warmblood mount, “just trying to go out there and pick up the canter and show a little pace without overdoing it and attacking the jumps.”
“To win this same class again is very exciting,” she said.
“I think it’s remarkable to have a horse like Lafitte for seven years and have him still be so at the top of his game. Every round that I do on him, he tries so hard. He never comes out of his stall and feels like he doesn’t want to go to the ring. I just am so thankful to have him for the last seven years, and I’m looking forward to quite a few more.”
Amanda noted that Lafitte is “unbelievably intelligent” and “really a ham” who is always up for a photo session and posing with his prizes.
The rider gives credit to her partner, Tim Delovich, who “is so responsible for Lafitte being Lafitte.”
“Lafitte is amazing, but he’s an athlete and he’s sensitive,” she explained.
“Tim is his person and sort of pulled it all together with him. I really do think Lafitte understands this whole thing and that he’s really supposed to be showing off when he’s out there. He makes us all better.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 6, 2024
Germany collected the trophy for the first final of the new Longines League of Nations Sunday in Barcelona, but the clever course by Santiago Varela didn’t make it easy.
The Germans had a total of 12 penalties over two rounds. Can you believe the worst score in the second round was two knockdowns from Checker 47, ridden by Christian Kukuk, who just won individual gold at the Paris Olympics? (and where Santi was the designer, with Gregory Bodo of France).
The Netherlands was second on 16 penalties, while the podium was completed by Sweden with 20, which included 0/4 for two rounds from world number one Henrik von Eckermann and King Edward.
The U.S. wound up sixth of nine teams with 28 penalties and no clean rounds, just a bunch of 4 fault trips and one 8 fault round.
Coach Robert Ridland called the team of Alex Matz (Ikigai/4), Lucy Davis Kennedy (Ben 431/4 and 4), Aaron Vale (Carissimo 25/ 4 and 4) Spencer Smith (Keeneland/4 and 8) “relatively inexperienced.”
“It was one of those days that we fell victim to four-fault rounds,”he said.
“Everyone put in solid rounds and dug deep to deliver a good result. Our primary target this year was the Olympic Games, where we won team silver. None of the team medalists from Paris were on the podium here (gold medal Britain did not compete in the final), which shows just how many talented nations there are in jumping and that everything has to go your way on the day.”
click here for results
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 19, 2024
In the wake of the announcement that the last three shows of the season at Princeton Show Jumping have been cancelled, the Princeton Equestrian League Year-End Awards Party has been rescheduled. It will be held Oct. 5 at Hunter Farms, 1315 The Great Road, Princeton, N.J.
The party begins at 3 p.m., the awards will be at 4:30 p.m.
The party is free for all 2024 PEL members, trainers, and their families. Princeton will supply pizza and drinks; those attending should feel free to bring desserts or other items to share. Click on this link to RSVP by Oct. 1.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 1, 2024
It was a change of pace for me recently when, instead of asking the questions, I became the one being interviewed. I was a guest on this week’s episode (number 754) of The Dressage Radio Show, the official podcast of the U.S. Dressage Federation, to discuss “Riding Through,” a book I wrote with Olympian Debbie McDonald that was published in 2006.
Debbie McDonald and Brentina, 2008.
The “how-to” dressage tips it details are timeless, which is why it has been chosen as the first offering of the U.S. Dressage Federation Book Club, a benefit for the federation’s members. The club will have a discussion about the book in a webinar Oct. 8 at 8 p.m. Eastern time. Evelyn Lancione, USDF’s member education coordinator, is in charge of the webinar, during which members will discuss the book and ask me questions about it. To register for the webinar, click on this link. To submit a question, address it to bookclub@usdf.org
The podcast was hosted by Reese Koffler-Stanfield and Megan McIssac. Here are links to the episode on the Horse Radio Network and on Apple Podcasts. The entire 47-minute episode of the podcast is interesting, since part of it deals with the Paralympics. However, if you want to go directly to my segment, you can fast forward on your podcast app to the 30-minutes-30-seconds mark, or you can just click on this link to listen to my segment of the podcast on YouTube starting at that time stamp. To hear what Evelyn had to say, go to the 23-minute mark.
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 27, 2024
How does she do it?
Silva Martin has three rambunctious little boys at home (and an energetic eventer husband, Boyd Martin). At Dressage at Devon she is riding five horses.
No, make that six, because five wasn’t enough.
Friday night, Silva got on her retired mare, Rosa Cha W, dressed the horse and herself in colorful hippie garb (complete with lights and a giant (fake) joint, produced what amounted to an impressive little freestyle and won the second edition of the Devon Dance-Off.
Who’s that hippe? Silva Martin! (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
So back to the question, how does she do it?
Silva said her only responsibility was to “put on the outfit and ride the horse. So it didn’t take much for me.”
The costume that charmed the judges (which included breakers Nemesis and 2024 Olympic gold medalist Phil Kim — better known as Phil Wizard—as well as dressage rider J.J. Tate), took weeks for Silva’s friend Cheryl Griffith to make and design. Why did she pick flower power for her outfit?
Competitors were asked to select a decade for their theme, and Cheryl said the hippie era was the best.
“The costumes were totally over the top,” said Nemesis.
“It’s such an iconic show. We always say there’s special energy in the Dixon Oval, and our horses feel it,” J.J. commented.
“It’s such a great thing to have everybody celebrate dressage and celebrate horses and have some kind of fun across two different genres. Dressage really is dancing on horseback and so it kind of makes sense to bring dancing into it.”
It was Phil’s first time at a dressage show. He called it “super fun,” noting “the energy was amazing. and an interesting and different fusion It was cool to incorporate elements you find in breaking, which was dancing and freestyling and them interpreting it in their way, which was very cool.”
“I thought it was so fun,” said Silva.
“Dressage is very serious and a little stuck up sometimes, and I thought this was awesome and great for the sport. I had a great time doing it.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 29, 2024
A rider who was equally at home on jumpers and hunters, Patty Stovel can best be described simply as an incredibly hard worker who was a great horsewoman and teacher. She passed away Sunday at 67 after a long illness.
Trainer Otis Brown, a long-time associate of Patty’s, posted on social media: “So hard to say goodbye. I will forever cherish our 40 years as friends and business partners. From World Equestrian Games to six times champion of the International Hunter Futurity, numerous national champions and Grand Prix wins, I am forever grateful. Thanks for the memories, Patty.”
Patty grew up in Connecticut at her family’s Merrie-Land Stables, learning to ride under the guidance of her mother, Barbara Johnson, who instilled a love of horses in all her children when she built her business starting in the early 1960s. By the time Patty was 16, she was running her own little barn down the road. A working student for George Morris as a teenager, she finished second in the AHSA Medal Finals on her home-trained Brownstone.
Patty went on to work for Otis Brown in Tennessee. Among the top hunters she rode was Nashville Gent, who became the AHSA’s 1986 Regular Working Hunter horse of the year. Her most memorable jumpers included Volan and Frisco Kid. But it was Mont Cenis, the brilliant athlete she started riding when she went out on her own in 1990, who was her horse of a lifetime.
Patty rode him through the trials for the 1994 World Equestrian Games in the Hague, courageously meeting the challenge despite a broken wrist and collarbone to make the team. Patty finished as the best of the U.S. squad, in thirteenth place.
Among her many other accomplishments, she rode Frascati to the American Horse Shows Association Working Hunter Horse of the Year title in 1999 and 2000. She also guided Chippen in Style to the 2009 American Quarter Horse Association World Championship in Progressive Working Hunter.
Patty Stovel
Her daughter, U.S. Equestrian Federation National Breeds and Disciplines Breed and Program Manager Lexie Cerys Stovel, said on Facebook, “She lived and loved the horses for her whole life. She accomplished so much, from being the highest placed U.S. rider at the (1994) World Equestrian Games, to winning the American Gold Cup, to winning Regular Working Hunter Horse of the Year two years in a row.
“She was also the best mom. The number of animals she surprised me with over the years is uncountable. She is the reason I am the animal lover I am.”
In an interview, Lexie said that her mother was diagnosed with cancer in 2000, but had a “really good quality of life until the last eight months,” continuing her pursuits almost as normal for several years.
“She felt she was really blessed to have that time,” said Lexie, but noted that even when her mother was really sick, she showed in the Baby Green Hunters in June at the Kentucky Horse Park.
“She never wanted to not be doing it. She was committed to horses and the industry. It wasn’t something she was able to give up. She fought for over four years. She was always so strong-willed,” observed Lexie.
In addition to Lexie and her brothers, Robert Johnson and Donald Johnson, Patty is survived by her ex-husband, Ken Stovel. A celebration of her life is being planned for Ocala this winter.
Those wishing to make a donation in her memory may contact the Pancreatic Action Network at
www.pancan.org or
Paws4thecause.com, an animal rescue from which she got quite a few dogs.
