by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 7, 2022
In its 35-year history, the Show Jumping Hall of Fame has never had a dinner to induct those being honored. Last night, that changed forever, as 180 people packed a dining room at the Wanderers Club in Wellington, Fla., to salute not only those being installed this year, but also many of the stars who have joined the Hall’s ranks over the decades.
“It was such a wonderful idea and so well received,” commented Melanie Smith Taylor, a 1984 Olympic gold medalist and longtime Hall member.
“The electricity in the room was incredible,” said Hall of Fame Executive Director Marty Bauman.
“This was truly one of the most moving nights I have experienced in my 50 years on the show jumping circuit,” noted Show Jumping Hall of Fame chairman Peter Doubleday.
“Seeing so many of our sport’s legends together was a thrill and the inductees’ acceptance speeches were very emotional. It was a night that I know most of us will never forget.”
The dinner’s success means it will be repeated on the same weekend every year, the night after the show jumping Nations Cup. The new tradition also includes the addition of blue jackets given to Hall members (think of the green jackets received by winners of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National club.) The jackets were paid for with contributions from Peter and course designer Steve Stephens, both members of the Hall.
Inducted this year were Beezie Madden and the late Mason Phelps. Although Beezie, an Olympic and world championships multi medalist is still competing, the Hall allows those over the age of 55 who remain active in the sport to be honored, because so many people stay involved through middle age and beyond.
Beezie Madden gets her Hall of Fame jacket from the organization’s chairman, Peter Doubleday. (Kind Media photo)
A case in point about why that’s important involves Mason, who died suddenly last spring at age 72. The irrepressible former National Horse Show president and founder of the Phelps Sports public relations agency would have gotten such a kick out of joining the hall in person.
Marty, his close friend, spoke about Mason’s contributions. He noted that Mason was the person who brought him into the sport, and as a result played a major role in both his career and his life.
Here are Marty’s remarks, which were straight from the heart:
“It is my belief that everyone wants to be loved – especially by those we love. And everyone wants to be appreciated – especially by those we care about. This was very much the case with Mason.
“And there was no one he loved more than his many friends in the horse show world and nothing he cared about as much as the horse show world to which he devoted his life, doing everything he could to try to help it and make it better.
“There were really two keys to Mason’s success. One is that he thought big. Real big! Like having four future Hall of Famers make a grand entrance into one of his Denim & Diamonds benefits riding on the back of an elephant.
Mason Phelps at the Kentucky Horse Park, a destination that was a bold choice for the National Horse Show when he decided the show should move there. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“The other key was that once Mason decided to do something, he gave it everything he had, putting his entire being into it and spending every waking moment doing everything he could to ensure its success; whether it was his American (later International) Jumping Derby, which to this day remains unrivaled as the most spectacular horse show our sport has ever seen; or his Denim & Diamonds benefits which were the Party of the Year every year and which raised millions of dollars for the U.S Equestrian Team and other charities.
“Or Phelps Media Group, which he built into the biggest public relations agency in equestrian sports, or re-establishing the significance and grandeur of the National Horse Show.
“Being elected to the Show Jumping Hall of Fame would mean everything to Mason because it would say to him that the people he loved so dearly, love him too. And that what he accomplished in his life truly did make the horse show world better.”
Hall induction used to take place at the American Invitational, at one time the country’s signature show jumping event. When it was no longer held, the ceremony moved to the Devon Horse Show, but it was cancelled for the last two years due to Covid.
So the dinner, which listed Lauracea as a sponsor, not only inducted Beezie and Mason from the class of 2021, it also paid tribute to McLain Ward’s late mount, Sapphire, and Margie Goldstein Engle.
Margie Engle tells her joke (she is known for her jokes) as Hall Chairman Peter Doubleday looks on. (Kind Media photo)
They had missed out on their moment in the sun as members of the class of 2020. Margie took the microphone to tell a joke, something for which she is known, but asked Peter to read her acceptance speech. He does have that announcer’s voice, after all.
In the speech she wrote, Margie notes her admiration for the Hall members who are “giants in our industry.
These are horsemen and horses that we have learned from and continue to do so as we gain insights into how they had achieved success in our industry from watching how they train and how they perform.”
Sapphire’s owner Tom Grossman and her rider, McLain Ward. (Kind Media photo)
Citing the love of horses enjoyed by everyone in the dining room, she noted that has offered an opportunity to “learn some of life’s lessons of patience, kindness, faithfulness, perseverance and responsibility. The passion that we all share for them is what brings us all together.”
She thanked all those who have helped her, including her husband, Steve Engle, and also mentioned the late Dr. John Steele, a 2008 inductee, believing “he is looking down with a tear in his eye and a smile on his face as he sees Beezie and I sharing this honor.”
Marty said since the Hall was established, having a dinner had been mentioned, but it never worked out until now.
“Things happen when the time is right” he observed, and this obviously was the right time.
Melanie mentioned that in the future, she would like to see more of the young riders attend.
“They need to learn the history of the sport,” she explained.
“The awards are not just for the riders and horses, but also the people who started the organizations, who started the circuits. The course designers, the announcers, the stewards, the people who have been so influential in every aspect. It’s not just the people who are still alive, but you learn about the Gene Misches and other people who are no longer with us who made the sport what it is today.”
Laura Kraut, another show jumping multi-medalist who just won the USET Foundation’s Whitney Stone Cup for her contributions to the sport, said she originally came to the dinner just because of who the inductees were this year. But now it’s on her calendar for good.
“I will never miss this,” she vowed.
Here’s the key to who’s who in the feature photo. Front row: Beezie Madden, Karen Golding, Margie Goldstein Engle, Melanie Smith Taylor. Back row: Peter Doubleday, David Distler, Anne Kursinski, Steve Stephens, Leslie Burr Howard, Norman Dello Joio, Robert Ridland, Michael Matz.
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 27, 2022
Talk about pressure! Last night, Bliss Heers found herself as the only American in a five-horse jump-off for the $406,000 Lugano Diamonds 5-star grand prix under the lights at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center.
In 2021, when Covid restrictions limited the number of spectators at the Winter Equestrian Festival venue, Bliss recalled, “even winning the Nations Cup, there was really no home crowd.”
But this year, from the VIP area to the Tiki Hut, box seats and the Beachside dining area, the place was packed and fans were into the action.
Bliss Heers and Antidote de Mars. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
“When I walked into the arena tonight for the jump-off and everyone was cheering, it was unbelievable,” Bliss recalled in a chat after the awards ceremony.
“You had the atmosphere; even my horse felt the adrenaline and the tension. It was so fun just feeling that. Galloping down to the last fence and hearing the crowd, it was unbelievable. It was a big responsibility. You don’t want to mess that up.”
And of course, she didn’t.
Next-to-last in the jumping order for the tie-breaker with her valiant little stallion, Antidote de Mars, she was shooting at a clear round set by Ireland’s Bertram Allen on Pacino Amiro.
Bertram Allen checks to make sure all is well at the last fence in the jump-off aboard Pacino Amiro. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
“It was a little hard to know how fast to go with only five in the jump-off,” Bertram reflected.
“It was a question of getting the line right between going mad and too fast and having a rail, so I tried to have as good of a round as I could without going mad. He’s got a great length of stride, and any time there was an option, I was able to take one less and I suppose that’s what helped me today.”
Bertram Allen had the winning formula with Pacino Amiro. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Daniel Bluman of Israel, who logged the initial fault-free effort on Ladriano Z in the first round had already dropped a rail. So did the Belgian rider, Nicola Philippaerts, aboard Katanga vin Dingeshof.
So when Bliss came into the ring, the heat was on to try and beat Bertram’s time of 44.14 seconds, while keeping the rails in place and also worrying about the final rider in the tie-breaker, another Irish speedster, Paul O’Shea on the imposing chestnut Chancelloress, a daughter of the great sire, Chacco Blue.
“It was a fine line between going too much and not enough,” Bliss explained.
“Knowing that my horse is naturally very, very fast, I could have taken a bit more risk than I did and trusted his footspeed a bit more,” she mused.
“I think I definitely lost some time just by being more cautious, but then again, you can take a risk and knock one down. I did my plan and I’m very happy with the results.” (Click here for results of class.)
Her clocking of 45.17 seconds in a fault-free performance would be good enough for third, ahead of Daniel and Nicola, as Paul gave it a go with his mare but still fell a bit short in 44.49 seconds to take runner-up honors.
Paul O’Shea and Chancelloress. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
The riders agreed the course, put together by designers Anthony D’Ambrosio and Andy Christiansen, was quite a challenge.
“I think it was a proper 5-star grand prix course; there wasn’t one bogey fence and all three combinations were tough. The whole way around the course you had no real let-up, so it was a well-built course,” said Bertram.
Seven riders retired and two big names–former World Cup champions Rodrigo Pessoa of Brazil (also and Olympic and WEG champion) and Mario Deslauriers of Canada–fell off but were unhurt.
Bertram, who collected $133,980 for his victory, won the same class last year when his mount, aptly nicknamed Buddy, had been in only one 5-star previously. Buddy, a son of Pacino, is even more of a threat now with mileage, having also competed in the Olympics last summer.
Paul commented, “When I walked the course, I thought it was tough, but the standard is so high here because there are so many top riders and horses.”
Here’s another way to judge how tough it was. Those who did not make the jump-off included half of the silver medal U.S. Olympic team with their Games horses, McLain Ward (Contagious) and Laura Kraut (Baloutinue); individual Olympic gold medalist Ben Maher of Britain with Ginger Blue (who was not his medal mount) and Germany’s impressive Daniel Deusser (Scuderia 1918 Tobago Z).
Continuing to discuss the course, Paul said, “Eveything I walked made me think it was difficult and it had a lot of options, so you had to make a plan. It was an advantage for me to go later (he was fourth from last in the first round) because I could see a lot go and make a good plan. The first few riders really had it tough because the time was so tight; they extended the time (allowed), so that was good, but for the first three or four, it was very difficult.”
Paul has to handle his mare delicately.
“She’s very sensitive and very nervous of other horses,” he explained.(To find out how a dressage rider handled her mare who has the same issues, click here.)
“She’s afraid of everything, but when she goes in the ring she’s like a lion; in the warm up, I don’t know how many times she stopped on me because she was nervous or saw a horse. She’s very unusual in that she’s very timid outside the ring, even in the stable, but when she goes in the ring, she’s very brave and tough, which is a great quality.”
Paul O’Shea, Bertram Allen and Bliss Heers on the podium with Craig Dickmann of Lugano Diamonds. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Bliss got her mount through Stevie Macken, a family friend who is the son of the great Irish rider/trainer Eddie Macken. He had sent a video of the stallion to her father. At the time, Bliss was injured, having broken her back and dislocated a hip in a shattering fall.”
Her father suggested she needed a nice horse. Bliss was a bit reluctant, because “I’d always loved young horses and I didn’t want to find something (already) going and doing it.”
She had only been on a horse twice since her accident, but she went to France to see the 8-year-old anyway.
“I tried this stallion and he looked like a pony and I fell in love,” she reported about the horse previously competed by Pierre Cimolai. The Lugano class was her best finish with the Selle Francais, now 12, since she was third in a Mexican 5-star last October. Her horse is by Diamant de Semilly, a brilliant sire who died this month.
Bliss, 34, who was long-listed for the Tokyo Olympics with her stallion, is from California but is seeking a base in Wellington and is looking at farms while she is here for the WEF.
She would love to do the Paris Olympics (how cool to bring her boy “home” again for that) but isn’t really pointing toward this summer’s world championships in Denmark, noting they are quite rigorous, as opposed to the Olympic format that she feels “is a bit nicer on the horses. I’ve got to pick my battles. I’d like to take a little bit of an easy year and enjoy my horse and take all the pressure off him.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 26, 2022
The winners of last night’s 5-star dressage Grand Prix Special and Freestyle were the same admired competitors as in the qualifying classes earlier this week, but the atmosphere in the International Arena lifted riders and spectators alike into a new dimension of excitement at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center.
You couldn’t over-estimate the effect of having a larger stage–and a larger crowd–than at the Equestrian Village, the home base of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival a half-mile down the road in Wellington, Fla.
Grand Prix Freestyle winner Frederic Wandres of Germany and Bluetooth Old. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
The VIP section, the Tiki Hut and box seats at PBIEC all were filled, and the general admission crowd also made its enthusiasm felt for a series of bravura performances in both divisions.
The fans were really into it, clapping in rhythm as freestyle winner Frederic Wandres of Germany made his final trip down centerline with only one hand on the reins, while his mount Bluetooth Old clicked out a finely tuned passage.
“This is always an incredible feeling,” said Frederic, who was beaming with satisfaction.
“I think as a rider, you know that it must have been not that bad when the crowd is already clapping on the last centerline, and it always also pushes the horses a little bit more to come out of them and to shine and to make themselves proud.”
Bluetooth Old was on his game in the freestyle. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
The crowd also cheered with justified enthusiasm for the USA’s darling, Adrienne Lyle, and Salvino in the Special. The stallion’s every step looked polished, a happy horse who knows his job under the guidance of a loving rider who has developed his potential by asking enough, but never too much.
I chatted with Adrienne’s husband, veterinarian David Da Silva, after her test and asked what he thought of her ride.
“Amazing. Flawless. Perfect,” he told me. That was an accurate sum-up of what I was thinking about a test marked at 79.511 percent, just a bit short numbers-wise of her two 80 percent-plus efforts in 2020 and 2021, although one judge had her at 81.489. But it still put her far ahead of runner-up Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén of Sweden, who scored 69.617 percent with Devanto.
The rapport Adrienne has with Salvino is the key to success based on mutual respect.
“Every time I ask for anything” Adrienne commented about the 15-year-old son of Sandro Hit, “he says `Yes,’ and `how much?’ You say `jump’ and he says `how high?’
“He’s just unbelievable in that ring. He brings me to tears. He’s feeling better, more solid, I can really take my foot off the brake. I can really go for it. He goes when I say `go.’ He’s right there, really balanced, he feels real strong behind in the collection.
Adrienne Lyle and Salvino were miles ahead of the competition in the Grand Prix Special. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
She added, “It’s really exciting. He loves it. I know him. I know when he feels 100 percent and when not, and I will never, ever push him when he doesn’t.”
That’s what happened at the Olympics. After the team secured its silver medal in Toky last year, Adrienne decided to let Salvino rest instead of pursuing individual honors in the freestyle. It proved to be a wise decision, as demonstrated by yesterday’s performance, only his second since the Games.
And she has the full backing of Salvino’s owner, Betsy Juliano, who is there for every competition to show her support. At this show, Betsy’s Havensafe Farm was also the presenting sponsor, which meant she had the option of giving away the trophy or keeping it!
The podium for the Special: Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén of Sweden, America’s Adrienne Lyle and Christoph Koschel of Germany with Betsy Juliano and judge Elisabeth Max-Theurer. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
I’ve told this story before, but I think it bears repeating. I met Adrienne in 2005 when she was a working student for Debbie McDonald. I was writing a book on Debbie, and Adrienne posed for photos to illustrate training concepts.
I’m not sure Adrienne would have believed me then if I had played fortune teller and said she would be a two-time Olympian, going on to win team silver medals in Tokyo and at the 2018 world championships.
But I believed from the start that she had the drive, intelligence and ability to take advantage of all she was learning from Debbie and bring it to the highest level of the sport. She impressed, even then, and for me, it’s been so satisfying to see her develop into such an outstanding competitor. No, make that outstanding horsewoman, because that’s more important than just winning.
In the freestyle, it’s interesting how wise choices of music can totally enhance a test, while unwise combos of, say, tunes that don’t flow together, can jangle the observer.
Frederic’s music included the crack of thunder at several moments. I never heard that during a freestyle before, and it added quite an element of drama to a ride graded at 81.165 percent for the high score of the night.
“It’s kind of modern and a mixture between everything,” he said when I asked him about the music, which had a distinct buzzy lift to it.
“It’s really into the beat and fits good for piaffe/passage. That was important for me when I created the music, to have something that fits good for the horse in piaffe/passage and is also is good into the ears of the crowd.
“They can start to clap and things like that. I think it’s important when you choose the music that it’s getting supported to the people that are watching you and cheering for you. I designed it with our freestyle producer.”
Fredric told me the base song for it was “Tuesday,” which I see has a music video. Bluetooth should star in the next video of the tune if they are thinking of a re-do. He could be another “rave horse,” like Suppenkasper was at the Olympics.
Also very impressive was the way freestyle runner-up Laurence Vanommeslaghe had her Edison dancing to “Smoke on the Water.” The crowd was with her every second, and clapped along in delight.
Laurence Vanommeslaghe of Belgium and Edison. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
A charming Paris-based Belgian who rides as an amateur, she won the freestyle over at the Equestrian Village two weeks ago and felt her horse was even better last night, earning 79.430 percent.
Third in the field of 13 with 78.925 percent was Juan Matute Guimon of Spain, a local favorite who spent a lot of time in Wellington before returning to his homeland.
He survived a life-threatening stroke in 2020 and is back stronger than ever with Quantico. He has big plans, looking toward the World Cup finals in Leipzig, Germany, this spring and then perhaps the world championships in Denmark this summer.
When I asked if he might have a chance to be on the team there, he gave me his trademark grin and said, “Come on, of course! I’m ready for the battle.”
The irrepressible Juan Matute Guimon and Quantico. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
It has been amazing to see such top dressage performances in an arena usually reserved for the show jumpers. (there were still jumps behind the dressage ring because of an 8 a.m. start for a jumper class this morning.)
I can guarantee this won’t be the last time dressage comes to PBIEC. For a fuller explanation of that, click on this link to read my story from Wednesday night’s class.
Click here for the Grand Prix Freestyle results.
Click here for the Grand Prix Special results.
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 25, 2022
With Donatella M, the warm-up is the hardest part of competing.
“She’s completely terrified of the other horses,” said her owner/rider, Alice Tarjan, who is competing at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival.
“It’s been a problem her whole life. She’s really honest about it. but you’ll go down and try to do a line of changes and if there’s another horse even coming across, she just shuts down. There’s nothing you can do, except stop and try to get out of the way. it makes the warm-up a little worrisome.”
Alice Tarjan is an expert at keeping her cool in the warmup, no matter what happens. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
But there’s a plus side to the equation, as we saw today when Donatella was marked at an impressive 74.347 percent for the FEI grand prix performance on the national side of this week’s show in Wellington, Fla. The score was by far the highest in the class, but because Alice rode as an amateur, she was marked only against one other amateur rider for her blue ribbon.
With Donatella, “The good thing is, if she’s so terrified in the warm-up, by the time you get in the ring, she’s really happy,” since she’s alone at that point, explained Alice, who is based in Oldwick, N.J., but spends four months in Loxahatchee, Fla., every year.
“If you put her in the stadium, she’s relaxed in there compared to the warm-up. I’ve learned if I can’t get my changes in the warm-up not to panic, because she’ll do it in the ring. They all have their own thing. When she goes in the ring, she does her job.”
Alice bought the 11-year-old Oldenburg as a 4-year-old. The mare, who is by Furstenball out of a Jazz Time mare, had a foal a few years ago, but now has settled into a performance career. Trainer Marcus Orlob of Annandale, N.J., was on hand to offer comments during the warm-up, where I was impressed at the way Alice handled Donatella’s little quirks, not looking the least bit flustered.
That’s Alice, who doesn’t let a horse’s mood faze her.
Donatella behaves once competition is under way. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
“Whatever it is, you’ve got to ride it. Emotion plays no part in this sport. It’s just wasted energy,” Alice believes.
“It doesn’t change the situation. Whatever the situation is ,you’ve got to deal with it so you might as well think rationally and keep your head on your shoulders.”
Lars Petersen, a Danish Olympian (now an American citizen) who also has had a hand in training Alice, admires the way she handles her horses, no matter how challenging.
“She’s on them if they’re wild or not wild, she’s not a wimp,” he said.
“She’s amazing. She makes her own horses; she rides them from young horses and trains them up to Grand Prix.”
Alice calls Donatella, “A work in progress.” She wanted to compete her in international classes this week, but the mare developed hives (“it’s a Florida thing, they all get hives at some point”) and couldn’t give her the requisite medication for the skin problem if she went in the 3-star CDI. So she will wait until next week and enter her in World Cup classes.
Donatella is a star when it’s time to perform. ( Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
She’s not planning on trying for the World Cup finals this year; it’s too late in the season to think of it. But she’s interested in the prospect next year, when the finals will be in Omaha.
Alice isn’t one to plan too far ahead, though. She just enjoys being in the moment and having the opportunity to spend time in Florida during the winter.l
“It’s beautiful weather and you get to ride horses and that’s what I love to do,” she said.
“So life is good.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 24, 2022
Dressage returned to the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in a big way last night, with a sold-out VIP section that was treated to a brilliant performance by U.S. Olympic team silver medalist Adrienne Lyle and the stunning stallion Salvino.
Adrienne Lyle and Salvino. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Their mark of 76.500 percent in the qualifier for Friday night’s Grand Prix Special at the 5-star-rated show was the highest score of the evening, which also featured a qualifier for the Grand Prix Freestyle.
Adrienne had ridden previously in the International Arena (which usually hosts the Winter Equestrian Festival’s jumpers) when the Olympic selection observation trial was held there last spring. But there were few fans on hand for that competition because Covid restrictions were in place then.
“It’s so wonderful to be in this venue. It’s really fun to be back, with more spectators this time. We’re really thankful for this opportunity,” said Adrienne.
Her enthusiasm was matched by that of Germany’s Frederic Wandres, who topped a field of 13 in the qualifier for the freestyle with Bluetooth Old on a score of 74.631 percent.
“The stadium is fantastic. It was almost a full crowd and the Americans are always creating a super atmosphere. We love to be here,” he said.
The dressage ring was set on the VIP side of the arena, behind an incongruous backdrop of jumps. What was this, some newfangled combined training test?
Then I learned the dressage ring couldn’t be located in the middle of the arena because it would have meant moving the gazebo that is a permanent fixture. And the jumps remained because a jumper class was starting at 8 this morning, and the jump crew would have had to get up really early to set the course if the arena had been cleared entirely.
Dressage shows used to be held at PBIEC before the Equestrian Village, home of the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, opened down the street. But Thomas Baur, AGDF director, said his requests to stage dressage again at PBIEC were turned down when Mark Bellissimo was running the property. It was sold last year to a group led by Andreas Helgstrand, a dressage horse dealer, and the new owner understandably was eager to host some dressage.
There obviously is an appetite for dressage at PBIEC, judging by the enthusiasm of the audience, who eagerly took part in a spectator scoring opportunity through an app or their phones.They enjoyed a lot of emotion. It was heartwarming to see the joy expressed by 24-year-old Juan Matute Guimon after his fifth-place finish on Quantico. Juan hovered between life and death in 2020 after suffering a stroke, but came back stronger than ever and delighted in his participation.
Juan Matute Guimon and Quantico. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
The crowd gave Adrienne a lot of love, well-deserved by the rider and her horse, a son of Sandro Hit out of a Donnerhall mare.
“I thought it was one of the best tests she’s ever had,” said Debbie McDonald, Adrienne’s trainer and mentor.
Adrienne withdrew Salvino from the freestyle after the team won its medal in Tokyo, feeling the horse was tired and not wanting to press him.
“That was Adrienne looking out for her horse. It was exciting to see the horse come out fresh and excited to be back in the ring,” Debbie said.
“I think the same as Adrienne–When you’ve got a happy horse who loves his job, I think you’re doing something right,” she observed.
Salvino really stepped out and up for Adrienne Lyle. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Debbie noted Adrienne, like most riders who went to the Olympics, gave her horse a lot of time off afterward. He spent much of it enjoying the pasture in Colorado.
“He loves it. They did a ton of trail riding,” Debbie reported.
“She’s been back riding him not even that long. But I have so much faith in her and the fact she has so much faith in the horse, she can go in and she feels she can ride a test right out of the pasture.”
As Adrienne remarked, “He’s certainly fit. He’s ready to do it all again.”
There were five in the GPS qualifier. Ashley Holzer was a distant second with a good effort on Valentine, marked at 70.696 percent.
Adrienne decided to aim toward the Special, rather than the freestyle, since “We focused so much on the Special last year because that was what counted for the team event (at the Olympics). I just feel like I’m more fresh on that one. We haven’t done the freestyle since World Cup, I believe. We’ll get that one in, but it was easier to step into the Special the first time.”
Speaking of the World Cup, the finals are in Omaha next year, and Adrienne has that as a goal after this summer’s world championships in Denmark, but she won’t predict whether Salvino will be her candidate for the 2024 Paris Olympics. She does have an ever-increasing string of horses, a testament to her talent and affinity for the animals.
Last night’s class was sponsored by Havensafe LLC and Betsy Juliano, who just happens to be Salvino’s owner.
Frederic was delighted with his test, a mistake-free personal best on his son of Bordeaux, and at a 5-star, yet.
The jumps in the arena didn’t faze Bluetooth Old. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
“He gave me a super feeling. that is really what I’m looking for. We have been building him up at the season here. Now delivering that score is what I’m looking for daily. That makes our whole team completely happy.”
Second to Frederic was 22-year-old Ben Ebeling, on Illuster van de Kampert with a score of 72.478 percent.
Ben was overjoyed with his ride, alternating between jubilation and not being able to believe how well he and his horse had done.
Ben Ebeling had to hold onto his hat after hearing his score of 72.478 percent in the Grand Prix Special qualifier. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
I wondered how it felt to be riding dressage with the jumps all around, and asked Frederic about it.
He replied, “The jumps didn’t really bother me. When we are at home in Germany, we are on a big farm and there is also jumping going on. I think Bluetooth is used to these things. Maybe for some horses it can be difficult, but maybe I was lucky and Bluetooth was not getting irritated of these things.”
Friday night Special will be the last class in Florida for Bluetooth, as Frederic prepares to head home and get ready for selection of the team that will compete in the world championships.
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 18, 2022
“She is back with us,” trainer Emil Spadone said today about show jumper Cassandra Kahle, who was in a coma after suffering a traumatic brain injury in a fall from her horse at a show last month.
Cassie, a 29-year-old professional rider, moved a week ago from a Florida hospital to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, where one of the specialties is treating brain injuries.
“She is feeling much better,” noted Emil, who owns Redfield Farm in Ocala, Fla., and Califon, N.J., where Cassie rides and trains.
Cassandra Kahle.
“Now that she is over the hump of the pneumonia and other infections, she is making remarkable progress. I see in her eyes she is back with us.
“She is awake and whispering to communicate. She has moments where she is still a bit confused, but the doctors say this is to be expected.”
She fell on her left side when her horse took a tumble during a jump-off in a 1.40-meter class at HITS in Ocala on Jan. 29.
Emil commented previously she had a large bruise on her side as evidence of the fall’s severity. Now, however, her left side is getting stronger, he noted, and she can move her left leg.
“Left arm we hope is next. Still working hard in physical therapy. We are all thrilled with this week’s progress.”
When the Redfields crew returns to New Jersey after the Florida shows end, she can go to the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange on either an inpatient or outpatient basis, Emil has speculated.
Kessler is where 2008 dressage Olympian Courtney King Dye did her rehab in 2010 to recover from a serious head injury after her fall from a young horse.
Cassie Kahle in action. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Thousands of people have been following the progress of Cassie, a Canadian citizen who is very popular on the circuit.
A GoFundMe page to cover medical and rehab expenses for Cassie has been started by Liz Schindler McFadden. Click here to donate.
The fund is less than $2,000 short of its $150,000 goal.
“As a testament to Cassandra’s generous and loving spirit, her family will eventually donate any unused funds from this Go Fund Me to a charity of Cassie’s choosing,” Liz stated.
“We know the day will come when Cassie wakes up and learns of the generosity of this wonderful community and her first inclination will be to pay that forward.”
Emil hopes his insurance and workman’s compensation can pay for much of Cassie’s costs, though these situations are always tremendously expensive and not everything needed can be anticipated.
Cassie is an accomplished rider who won the $100,000 Grand Prix de Penn National last year and the World Champion Hunter Rider Pro Challenge at the Capital Challenge Horse Show in 2019.
