Gaitpost Magazine - Mar. 2016

mARCh 2016iSLANd dERBY CRoSS · ChASE CREEK EvENTiNG · dRY GuY BLANKET REvivAL

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Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag4 March 2016 www.gaitpost.com

mARCh 2016

contentsfeatureS

14 derby-cross and field Hunter events coming to vancouver island for 2016 by Sue Ferguson

17 eventing, revamped mustang powder Style by Nick Holmes-Smith

22 Saddle Sense

departmentS

8 tidBits Spirit of the horse Bits

20 industry news Triple Winner Belinda Trussell recognized with rider award

31 fei news Kristina Bröring-Sprehe and Desperados FRH New World Dressage Number One

33 discipline reports Egypt’s Nayel Nassar and Lordan Win Qualifi er at hITS Thermal

36 gaitpost approved product review Dry Guy Blanket revival

in tHiS iSSue 12 Headline news 39 Sales catalogue 42 equestrian properties 44 BciHJa news 45 ontario equestrian federation news 45 Horse trials Bc news 46 noticeboard 47 advertisers’ index 47 competition calendar

ON THE COVER:Brenda Cook and Joey navigating the water at Avalon Equestrian Center on Vancouver Island. Photo by Outer Limits Digital Photography.

“I was in utter shock to come out winning such a huge class with top competitors…Anton is a miracle,” said Belinda Trussell of her seasoned partner, who only returned to top level competition shortly before the 2015 Pan Am Games. See page 35.

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HeadsUp!

Coming soon in future editions of Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag

apriL 2016Breeding Special! The Stallion Feature continues, with more information about breeding and foaling.

May 2016The real Estate Feature! Ask [email protected] for more information.

The Mane Event issue Thousands of copies distributed!

Note early deadline! april 1st.

juNE 2016The Farm & Field Feature

Disclaimer: Reproduction, printed or electronic, in whole or part of any material contained in this publication, without prior written permission of The Publisher is strictly prohibited. The information and services listed are intended to facilitate accessibility to the professionals, products and services of the horse industry. The GaitPost has been compiled with the greatest of care, however, the Publisher does not assume responsibility for errors, omissions or subsequent changes. Further, the Publisher does not imply endorsement of opinions, images or services, whether solicited or unsolicited. No responsibility for loss occasioned to any person as a result of any material in this publication can be accepted by the Publisher, editor or contributors. Submissions: All photographs and submissions will be handled carefully. The Publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material. We reserve the right to edit or refuse any material not deemed appropriate. Submission does not guarantee publication.

Publisher Gaitpost Publications Inc.

258 – 224th Street Langley, BC V2Z 2V6

Editor Eleanor Klawer · [email protected]

Sales Andrea Beaulieu · [email protected]

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Lori Boughton

Contributing Writers Eleanor Klawer · [email protected]

Sue Ferguson · Nick Holmes-Smith · Jochen Schleese Lesley McGill · Isauro Flores · Lindsay Adams · Danny Kroetch

Editorial Submissions [email protected]

Phone: 604-534-9665 Toll-Free: 1-855-534-9665

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Volume 16 Issue 3

CANADA’S GREATEST LITTLE HORSE MAG


Sancerre SpiritOne such story received is that one of the

most successful Junior/Young Riders in Canada in dressage, Naima Moreira-Laliberté, has just imported an exciting new mount with whom she hopes to rise to the highest levels of the sport. Moreira-Laliberté has won medals at the last four North American Junior/Young Riders Championships (NAJYRC) on a variety of horses, most recently earning the Gold Medal in the

TIDBitS by Eleanor Klawer

As show season approaches, (or begins if you are fortunate enough to be in the south!),

we have been getting wonderful news submitted to the Gaitpost, of new matches and new achieve-ments, and we love hearing everyone’s news. Hearing the tales of dreams achieved and goals reached is inspiring for everyone, and we hope everyone, at all levels of competition, will keep us all informed through the Gaitpost.

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Naima winning Freestyle Gold at the NAJYR Championships 2015.

Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag March 2016 9www.gaitpost.com

2015 YR Freestyle as well as the 2015 YR Individ-ual Bronze. The 19 year-old trains with Albrecht Heidemann and Janine Little, dividing her time between Quebec and Florida. After an extensive search for just the right mount to accompany Moreira-Laliberté to the next level, Janine Little — a successful FEI rider and coach who was short listed to the Canadian team in 2011 — scouted the 9 year-old black stallion Sancerre on a video from Europe. Ironically, Sancerre (Sir Donnerh-all x Rubinstein) was the Grand Prix prospect of fellow Canadian rider Dana Hewett — a World Cup rider who operates a training and sales fa-cility in Ede, the Netherlands. “I immediately liked the elegance and fluidity Sancerre possesses, and thought he would be an excellent match for Naima, as she is a sensitive rider with good feel,” Little explains. After contacting Hewett, the two flew to Holland to try the horse. Moreira-Lalib-erté is very excited for the upcoming season and is looking forward to making her debut with Sancerre at the events at Global Dressage Festival once he is released from stallion quarantine.

HigHScore SpiritJanine Little also had some great news herself

— she started the Florida season well for Canadi-ans at the 2016 Adequan Global Dressage Festi-

val, winning the first week’s The Horse of Course High Score Award. Little and Ebony, a seven year-old Friesian mare owned by Kelowna’s Shawneen Jacobs, earned the highest score of the entire week of competition, 75.370%. Despite the tor-rential rains and a tornado warning during the pair’s First Level performance, they achieved the competition’s highest national score.

“I genuinely appreciate having clients who are dedicated to developing their horses to their potential. It truly takes a village to build a Dres-sage horse,” Janine acknowledges. Beyond sup-portive owners, the horses’ well-being and suc-cesses are made possible thanks to professional groom and working student, Larisa Anderson.

Young rider SpiritDoug Woywitka of Rideauwood farms in

Ontario wrote to let us know of his daughter’s achievements in Florida — congratulations to Yanina for winning the FEI Test of Choice class in the National Competition at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival in Wellington! Yanina was riding Bakari, an 11 year old Hannoverian gelding, and scored a very impressive 68.29% in the Prix St Georges class. The pair will continue to train and show in Wellington for the season. In addition to winning their Class, Yanina and Bakari were selected as “Best Turned Out Com-bination” of all horses ridden, no small feat in itself! Congratulations, Yanina!

Tidbits continued on page 10

Ebony, a seven year-old Friesian mare owned by Kelowna’s Shawneen Jacobs.

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Yanina Woywitka and Bakari receiving their Turnout award.

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communitY SpiritWe also received mail from the South-

ern Alberta Equine Centre Society, which is organizing a fundraiser for their facility im-provements. Recently, they had an outbreak of Influenza and Strep Equi (Strangles), both of which are not uncommon in large scale equestrian facilities, and noticed that there are areas in which they can improve their general biosecurity and quarantine procedures in or-der to better protect animals on-site and also the public traffic coming in to use the facility. These changes should help to limit exposure of horses on-site to horses hauling in to use the facility, and vice versa. They would like to raise $2,500 to make these improvements, which would serve to pay for the materials needed. It would be in the best interest of all horsemen in the area that use the facility to chip in to help with this project — everyone needs to be aware of biosecurity these days!

tHerapeutic SpiritHope Haven Therapeutic Riding and Fam-

ily Camp Inc. in Markdale, ON is also raising money on FundRazr for their 142-acre CanTRA-accredited Therapeutic Riding Centre. Below is a link to their campaign video which shows the incredible value of the work done by Hope Ha-ven, and features Fred, their beautiful Norwegian Fjord Horse therapist. https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/0yqc8/ Please consider helping this accredited riding centre to achieve its goals.

Spirit of tHe georgeThe Gaitpost also had several inquiries regard-

ing a previous mention of a new book by George Morris, and finally we found the relevant infor-mation to go with it! In George Morris’s own words—in UNRELENTING The Real Story: Horses, Bright Lights, and My Pursuit of Excellence, feel the love, (and possibly the misogyny), put up your feet, and order your copy from Trafalgar Square Books (www.horseandriderbooks.com).

Spirit of tHe HorSe gardenIf Young Riders’ aspirations, Therapeutic

centres’ achievements, and the ever-entertaining George Morris don’t embody the Spirit of the Horse, I don’t know what else could, except per-haps the drive and passion that Joy Richardson has brought to the horse world for decades. Joy was the original force behind the lovely Spirit of the Horse Garden in Campbell Valley Park, a quiet space in the park for people to commemo-rate their horses that have passed. The Garden is in need of a little love and attention, and Joe Har-gitt, Executive Director of the Pacific Parklands Foundation, along with Joy, have asked for some help spreading the word. They wish to upgrade the greenspace around the memorial to include lower-maintenance, more shade-providing shrub-bery and trees. They would also dearly love for a sponsor to step up to take care of the facility ev-ery month, either with the costs, or the labour, of keeping the memorial trimmed and tidy, which shouldn’t be an onerous task for anyone. This seems to us here at the Gaitpost as the perfect op-portunity for a group or company to help out a worthy cause. Another way to support the Garden is to buy plaques in the Garden, giving you a time-less reminder of the pleasure your horse gave you. Please call Joe Hargitt at 604-451-6168 for more information regarding the Spirit of the Horse Garden. The Pacific Parklands Foundation is a small group with a big task, and any help would be greatly appreciated. This is something our community can do, I am sure! Watch for adver-tisements and notices in upcoming Gaitpost issues regarding the Spirit of the Horse Gardens.

Tidbits continued from page 9

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CANAdA’S ERiC LAmAzE WELComES ChACCo Kideric lamaze has acquired Chacco Kid, a ten-year-

old chestnut oldenburg gelding (Chacco Blue x Come

On).

The 2008 canadian olympic champion has

formed a group of owners, known as the chacco kid

Group, to secure the horse for canada. Along with

lamaze, the owners include Rick and Sara mershad,

ludi and carol Sollak, and Andy and carlene Ziegler.

“it is a horse that Simon Delestre told me about

at the Geneva horse show in December,” said lamaze.

“his father, marcel, has been training the colombian

team, and they felt it was an interesting horse and

decided to purchase it. The horse flew from colombia

to quarantine in miami, and then came to me with the

idea to get it legged up, either for Simon to ride or

to be sold. The horse really impressed me, and i put

together a group to buy him.”

The chacco kid Group is comprised of lamaze’s

long-time supporters, Andy and carlene Ziegler of Ar-

tisan Farms, where lamaze is based year-round. ludi

and carol Sollak have had horses with lamaze over

the years, and were looking for a new opportunity af-

ter recently selling Brooklyn Blues to young canadian

rider mackenzie edwards. Rick and Sara mershad are

new owners for lamaze. Their daughter, Gabriela, be-

gan training with lamaze last fall, sparking an inter-

est in joining the chacco kid Group.

“i think Chacco Kid is a very special horse and

incredibly talented,” said lamaze, who won individ-

ual gold and team silver medals at the 2008 bei-

jing olympic Games. “he’s had experience up to the

1.50m level in colombia and had some good wins.

he does not have 1.60m experience yet, but i think

he has everything in him to be an incredible horse. i

think he’s going to go all the way and do big things.”

Chacco Kid joins a strong line-up of horses in la-

maze’s stable. in addition to his 2015 Pan American

Games team gold medal mount, Coco Bongo, lamaze

is also competing at the top level with Check Picobe-

llo Z, Fine Lady 5, Houston, Powerplay, and Rosana

du Park, all owned by Artisan Farms in partnership

with lamaze’s Torrey Pines Stable.

lamaze is currently competing at the 12-week

HEADLINEnewS Bit by Bit


Winter equestrian Festival in Wellington, Fl, running

through to April 3. in the first four weeks of competi-

tion, lamaze has already scored three consecutive

victories in the weekly $35,000 Ruby et Violette WeF

challenge cup and won the $216,000 cSi4* Ariat

Grand Prix.

dAvid mARCuS CLAimS ThE FiRST ShoWChiC TuRNouT AWARd oF 2016

before David marcus officially entered the show

ring for the 2016 Adequan Global Dressage Festival,

he began his show season by winning an award — the

Showchic best Turnout Award.

Throughout the 2016 Adequan Global Dressage

Festival, Showchic is partnering with companies such

as omega Alpha, kastel, and cavallo at the cDi jogs

to provide various prizes for the handlers and horses

who embody Showchic’s passion for equestrian style

and function.

According to Showchic founder michele hundt,

Showchic searches for riders who dress for suc-

cess by incorporating fashion, flair, coordination,

and uniqueness into their look. During the cDi jog

on january 13, David marcus and his own long time

partner, Chevri’s Capital, were worthy recipients of the

prize. They entered the jog in smart style, and earned

the beloved award as they passed inspection in fly-

ing colours.

The canadian Dressage professional marcus

was happy to win the Showchic Turnout Award and

its prize, which included a bag of products from this

week’s jog prize Presenter, omega Alpha. omega Al-

pha, also canadian-based, produces natural formu-

las to enhance equine health and performance.

like Showchic, marcus believes that starting out

the Wellington winter show season on the right foot

is crucial — right down to excellent presentation in

the first cDi jog. “There are two reasons why i think

presentation is important,” marcus said. “Firstly, we

want to show that we are professionals. Secondly,

we want to show respect to the judges and everyone

who shows up to support our efforts.” These senti-

ments showed loud and clear as far as Showchic was

concerned, and the fashionable equestrian boutique

awarded marcus for the efforts he put into his jog

appearance.

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Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag14 March 2016 www.gaitpost.comCanada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag www.gaitpost.com14 March 2016

VANCOUVERiSlandREPORT by Sue Ferguson,Contributing Photojournalist

Two exciting new sport events are evolving here on the Island which should spark the interest

of Hunters, Jumpers and Eventers alike. Island Derby-Cross and Field Hunters is the

brainchild of internationally known Course De-signer, Peter Holmes, of Cowichan Bay, BC.

The idea came to life when Peter and a group of friends were standing around ringside at one of the Fall SSITS shows. While watching the jumpers in the grass ring, a few of us started to reminisce about cantering long distances through fi elds and trails and jumping easy fences

along the way. Who didn’t love doing that?!! As the conversation gained momentum, Pe-

ter suggested we should create a “new” style of sport event. “Something more gentle… a softer style of cross country jumping” — something that would appeal to the hunters as well as the jumpers and be a completely different than the events held here on the island.

“It will be similar to a derby, but with stadi-um style jumps. It would be the fi rst of its’ kind on the island.”

The concept is for riders to enjoy the beauty

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Derby-Cross and Field Hunter EventsComing to Vancouver Island for 2016

Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag March 2016 15www.gaitpost.com Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Magwww.gaitpost.com March 2016 15

Derby-Cross and Field Hunter EventsComing to Vancouver Island for 2016

of (safely) cantering through open property while going over many types of obstacles. The obstacles would be “soft” (ie. show jumps) and event style jumps would not be part of the course (although they may be used in the course for other reasons).

The courses will be designed so that they are not so demanding they will wear out a horse and rider. Riders will have the opportunity to ride at least twice a day. Overall, speeds will be slower, jumping will be gentler, and it is intended to be more about the enjoyment of open riding over

a distance in a safe environment. There will be something for everyone.

The courses will be set up in the south fi eld at Avalon and there will be two tracks. The short track will be 600 – 1500 meters for the beginners with fences up to .7m. The long track would be up to 2 kilometers. Some features on the event-ing fi eld may be used, (ie/going through the wa-ter obstacle feature, but there would not be any water in it). A portion of the course may wind through the forest trails.

Derby-Cross continued on page 16

The beautiful fi elds of Avalon will be the site of the new derby-Cross and Field hunter Trials on vancouver island.


Jeff Winship, owner of Avalon Equestrian Center (Duncan, BC) has offered to host the event. The first show is projected to be held at the end of June or early July. Dates will be an-nounced.

Avalon will be available for coaches to bring groups of students and for clinics prior to the event. Anyone who is interested in booking can email Avalon at [email protected]. The fields should be open and useable (weather permitting) by March of 2016.

Most riders on the island are familiar with Avalon’s facilities. There is ample room for trail-ers, and some camping on-site. Overflow stabling is generally arranged at other nearby barns or the fairgrounds. There is a 200 x 300 sand ring which will be available to use for a warm-up ring.

So far, there is nothing like this on the island. It will be somewhat reminiscent of the hunt field with softer and more natural fences. Hunter Der-bies have given new life to the show world over the past 10 years in other areas of Canada and the US.

This will just add one more component to fun events that are held on the island for anyone who is involved in any of the jumping disciplines.

It will be especially appealing to riders who have always longed to ride cross country, but found Eventing a bit daunting. Also, it will be great for riders who want to do something new and fresh with their horses outside of the Hunt-er/Jumper ring.

More information about the Derby-Cross and Field Hunter events will be announced in 2016. If you have general questions you can email [email protected] In the meanwhile, we can look forward to more excit-ing news over the upcoming months.

Derby-Cross continued from page 15

Everyone and every horse should experience the open field!

The beautiful rolling hills of Avalon Equestrian Centre.


Mustang Powder (Chase Creek) is running Back to Back horse trials over the long

weekend in May 20th – 23rd. It is basically two complete horse trials run over 4 days. We did this format back in the ’90s and have revived it again as it is a great concept. Let’s face it — horse trials, while wonderful, are also terribly un-user-friendly. You drive big distances and pay big en-try fees and basically get one kick-at-the-cat. One mistake in cross country or show jumping and you are out of the ribbons. Unlike Show Jumping shows, you don’t have another class later in the day or tomorrow, in which to redeem yourself. It is a soul-destroying sport, and if it wasn’t so much fun, nobody would do it!

The trip over the Coquihalla or Rogers Pass is a bit of a journey. At Mustang Powder Horse trials, you get a lot more action and fun as a re-ward for doing this trip. Show Jumping shows

have gone this way many years ago — the 2 or 3 day jumper show is a thing of the past. Competi-tors ‘settle in’ at Thunderbird or Spruce Mead-ows and spend a week or two. The strenuousness of Eventing precludes us from doing week-long competitions, but we can certainly do two horse trials in succession. Attaining two ‘qualifying’ events is another benefit of attending the Back to Back event as we are continually trying to get a successful event record to upgrade to higher levels. A back to back event allows us to get two qualifying score in one long weekend.

Day one is Dressage and Show Jumping. Day two is Cross-Country — first event com-pleted, awards are presented. On the evening of day two the Cross-Country courses will be totally changed and re-flagged (actually not totally changed – there may be a couple fences that remain the same). Day three is Dressage with a new test, and Show Jumping with a dif-ferent course from the first event. The final day is Cross-Country, early in the day so that competi-tors can leave and make it home that night. One might argue that two events in succession is too much pounding on the horses. This is wrong. High speeds and long distances are what break horses down. The Preliminary horses will have a reduced cross country speed in the first event — 475 meters per minute. In the second event their cross-country will be at 520 mpm. The dis-tances for both events will be on the short side. For a properly prepared horse the ‘four days at Mustang’ will not be overly strenuous. We ad-vise people NOT to upgrade at this competition, since Chase Creek courses are on the challenging side. Also, it is not our intention to have horses enter one level at the first event and upgrade at the second.

eventing, revamped muStang powder StYle

Submitted by Nick Holmes-Smith

Mustang Powder continued on page 19


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FREquENTLY ASKEd quESTioNS: 1. Can I just enter one event? No. 2. If I get a qualifying score on both events, will

this count as two qualifying scores? Yes. 3. Is the Coquihalla really a ‘Highway thru Hell’?

No, that TV show is stupid. Except for the last half hour, the drive to this event is on 4-lane freeway from Vancouver and Seattle.

4. Are the Cross-Country courses as tough as we hear? The courses are designed to look really tough when walked, but not cause significant problem. We hope you come to Mustang Powder Horse

trials — we are offering Preliminary down to En-try divisions.

Mustang Powder continued from page 17

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out the Adequan Global Dressage Festival to riders who demonstrate winning performances or contribute to the overall quality of the show series in some other way.

Trussell and Anton (Antaeus x Shirley, Malit), a 16-year-old Sachsen gelding owned by Trus-sell’s mother Robyn Eames and her husband Mark Trussell, jump-started the wins by earning the blue ribbon nod from the judges in the FEI Grand Prix with a 72.860 percent in the most recent CDI at the Adequan Global Dressage Fes-tival. She and Anton’s Friday night Grand Prix Freestyle set to new choreography and music confirmed that Trussell was a woman with a mis-sion when she notched another blue ribbon win with a 75.025 percent. She and her own Tattoo (Traureg x Renaissance, Ramiero’s Son), a 13-year-

INDUSTRYnewS Business Matters

Belinda Trussell was on fire when she claimed top scores in the Grand Prix and Grand Prix

Freestyle aboard Anton, and again in the Interme-diaire II division on Tattoo at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival CDI-W 3*. The Canadian Dres-sage athlete is attempting to earn scores to pro-pel her toward representing her country at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil this summer. With results like the ones she and her family-owned horses just chalked up, she is one step closer to making her dreams come true.

Three wins — most notably two major wins in the Grand Prix — in just one weekend stood out to Custom Saddlery, the Official Saddle of the U.S. Dressage Team. The company awarded Trussell with the Custom Saddlery MVR (Most Valuable Rider) Award, which is given through-

triple winner Belinda truSSell recognized witH rider award

Congratulations to the 2015 hCBC Award Recipients!

horse council bc’s annual awards serve to honour outstanding achievement within bc’s equestrian community. These awards acknowledge those who have stood out from the crowd over the past year and who have made a positive impact on the community as a whole. each award recipient was nominated by two or more other horse council bc members for an award.hcbc is reaching out to the various equestrian communities throughout bc so that we are able to present each award at a recipient’s club, event, competition, or barn party of their choice, surrounded by their friends and the people that support them.Congratulations to the worthy recipients of the horse Council BC’s 2015 Awards! 2015 lifetime Achievement Award – borge olsen2015 coach of the year – jessie blackmon2015 horse industry Professional of the year – Noel Asmar of Asmar equestrian2015 junior Athlete of the year – Natalie Alves2015 horse of the year – competitive – Wallabee owned by jolene benham2015 horse of the year – Non-competitive – Norseman owned by esmee inghamThank you also to all the nominators for letting us know about the amazing people in our horse industry!

HORSE COUNCIL BC NEWS


old Westphalian gelding, also took the top score in the Intermediare II division. It was Tattoo’s fi rst Intermediaire II test as well as the fi rst time he had transitioned from piaffe to passage in the ring.

As a winner of Custom Saddlery’s Most Valu-able Rider Award, Trussell received a ribbon, a beautiful Custom Saddlery saddle pad, a cloth bag, and an embroidered towel from the Aiken, South-Carolina, based company— the maker of the Offi cial Saddle of the U.S. Dressage Team through the 2016 Olympics and a sponsor the Adequan Global Dressage Festival 12-week se-ries.

hoRSEWARE TRiumphS AT BETA WiTh FouR AWARdS

Horseware, the global leader in innovative equestrian, rider and pet products, is delighted to announce their success at BETA International in Birmingham this month, winning three inno-vation awards and the TSM Excellence in Social Media Award.

Horseware was the winner of the Equestrian Clothing Category with their AA Platinum Mo-tion Lite Jacket, and highly commended in the General Category with their Horse Pal Tempera-

ture and Humidity Monitor. Horseware also won the TSM Excellence in Social Media award at the BETA Ball.

As we head into spring, it’s time to put our thoughts into ensuring that all of our tack and equipment will work for the upcoming training months, and for the shows we intend to compete in. Especially if your horse has been ‘laid off ’ for the winter months, you will need to ensure that the saddle is fi tted properly to allow him comfort and freedom to muscle up again when you begin training in earnest. While it can take four weeks for a muscle to build up with consistent training, it takes only one week for the muscle to lose its original shape (which is negative development). Thus, even if you have given your horse just a week off from training, you will fi nd that your saddle may not fi t the way it did and the way it should, so you should have a diagnostic evalua-tion done and the saddle adjusted by a certifi ed fi tter before you begin training again.

A quick diagnostic can be done using our 9 points of saddle fi t evaluation.1. SAddLE BALANCE

A saddle too high in the pommel and too low in the cantle causes pressure on the horse’s back. It will be very diffi cult for your horse to engage his back because too much of your weight is on his last 2 fl oating ribs.

If too low in the front, it will pinch into the horse’s shoulder — very restrictive for your horse. Your saddle is too high in the back so your leg goes forward and you fall into a chair seat to bal-ance. The pommel and cantle should be level.2. WiThER CLEARANCE

The saddle should have 2-3 fi ngers clearance on the top and around the side of the withers to accommodate the shoulder rotation upwards and backwards during movement.

SaddleSense

Gaitpost’s Annual Saddle Feature

Canada’s Greatest Little Horse Mag www.gaitpost.com22 March 2016

Saddle fi tting to the horse and rider is an immensely personal and unique experience — no two pairs are the same! We asked some of the experts for some input regarding the process, or to discuss items of importance to them as they fi t their saddles — their methods can be as unique and different as their clients are, and giving our readers/ riders broader knowledge can only help in determining what the right selection for them and their horses is.

the 9 Points ofSaddle Fit

by Jochen Schleese

A horse whose saddle pinches his withers may be reluctant to go forward. More extreme signs of insuf-fi cient wither clearance are patches of white hairs or sores on the top or on the sides of the withers. 3. ChANNEL/GuLLET WidTh

A channel or gullet that is too narrow or too wide can cause permanent damage to your horse’s back. The width of the spine determines how wide his saddle’s gullet must be, which should be the same throughout the entire length. 4. FuLL pANEL CoNTACT

The panels should make even contact with your horse’s back all the way down to distribute the rider’s weight evenly. Ensure that it doesn’t bridge or rock.5. BiLLET ALiGNmENT

Billets should hang perpendicular to the ground in the girth area. Too far back and gravity will pull the billets (and the saddle) forward into the girth area. The girth always fi nds its position at the narrowest point of the rib cage.

Billets hanging too far forward into your horse’s elbow area may make him sore in the el-bows. Gravity will drag them (with the girth and saddle) back into the girth area, resulting in too much pressure on the panels at the rear.6. SAddLE STRAiGhTNESS

The center of the saddle should be in align-ment with your horse’s spine. Most horses have a left shoulder that is larger and more developed than the right. The larger shoulder kicks the sad-dle over to the other side during motion.

A rider who sits unevenly can compress the stuffi ng more on one side of the saddle, dragging it over to that side. 7. SAddLE LENGTh

The length of the saddle support area deter-mines the panel length. The saddle must sit be-hind the shoulder. If too long, it can get driven forward into the shoulder. The saddle should not extend past the 18th thoracic vertebra. 8. TREE ANGLE

The angle of the tree (at the tree points for the gullet plate) must match the angle of the horse’s shoulder. During movement the shoul-der rotates upward and backwards. The angle of

the piping on the saddle should match the angle

of your horse’s shoulder.

9. TREE WidTh

The tree width must be wide enough for the

horse’s shoulders to

move freely.

If too wide, the

entire saddle may

rock or slip from

side to side when

ridden, or the back

of the saddle may

twist to one side.

Tree width and

tree angle need to be

adjusted together.

Changing the fl ock-

ing from the vertical

panels won’t solve the problem — the gullet plate

needs adjustment. Some self-adjustable gullet

plates will accommodate angle adjustment, but

won’t allow width adjustment (over the wither

area).

Hopefully these basic tips will help you get

ready for a successful show season while ensur-

ing your horse has the freedom to perform at its

potential! Happy Riding!

by jochen Schleese, cmS, cSFT, cSe. ©2016 Saddlefi t 4 life. All Rights Reserved


This thermographic image shows a saddle with panels that bridge front to back, resulting in greater pressure at the pommel and cantle areas.

The angle of this saddle is the same as the shoulder angle of the horse.


There are a few things that are happening with your horses this time of the year that can affect your saddle fi t or ride. Many mares are having their fi rst heat of the season and this can cause them a lot of pain and discomfort while under saddle. All the horses are preparing to blow their winter coats - this is a three stage process where fi rst the coat dies, then it starts to shed, then a new coat starts to grow in. I believe that this process or the change in season in gen-eral is quite taxing on your horse and his health and physical well-being. It is quite common for them to look a little poorly, loose some top line, loose some condition, and you may even see some changes in temperament during this time.

There are many questions from people de-scribing rubs on their horses’ backs at the rear of the saddle - these are usually caused by the edg-ing on a saddle pad. Since the horses’ coats have died, they are very brittle and will rub off quite easily. If the horse goes bald there or is sore, then I suggest you get your saddle checked. Often adding a half pad will solve the problem till the horse is done changing coats.

It is also very common this time of year for horses to develop some odd bumps under the saddle area. There are many explanations for what actually causes them. Here are some of

these theories: Ingrown hairs, the remnants of worm larvae in the horse’s body being expelled through the skin after worming, dirt in pores, hardened bug bites, pressure sores caused by the saddle, friction bumps caused by the saddle, irritated skin from clipping under the saddle, blocked sweat glands, protein/collagen bumps, nodular collagen granulomas, nodular necro-biosis eosinphilic granuloma, and, in most cases, they are a form of allergic reaction, meaning the immune system gets stimulated on a foreign body, and builds up tissue or fl uid around it.

Why, you ask, are they consistently under the saddle area? This is because this area of the horse has large open pores and sweat glands. We then place a saddle pad and saddle on top of dirt, sweat, oils, and hair and we create friction and pressure, grinding this into these pores. Also a lot of heat is created in this area and when there is heat, there is an increase in blood fl ow. The re-sult is the unappealing list above.

The next question is what do we do about them? I feel if you have a cluster of these bumps directly under the saddle area, then you have a saddle fi tting issue. I see these happen the most when there is extra friction when the saddle has dropped a bit in the pommel and the rear pan-els of the saddle have less contact on the horse’s back. When the horse’s shoulders move back and forth it causes the rear of the saddle to “fi shtail” on the horse’s back. This action causes a lot of friction and can grind the hair follicles or dirt into the skin’s pores. Rarely are they sore to the touch; they start off soft and get more fi rm over time. I have actually seen these clusters go away in days after we fi xed the fi t of the saddle. One single bump is probably not a saddle fi tting is-sue; however when they are big enough to get the

Saddle Fitting in the Spring

Unidentifi ed Back Bumps and Rubs! by Lesley McGill


hair rubbed off them, it is worth getting them checked. Single bumps usually run their course and the body will clean it up and it will go away. Your vet may offer to inject them which can work in some cases.

I think they come up more at this time of year because our horses are dirtier, bathed less often, have hair growing/changing/brittle and dying, have more oil in their coats, have less topline, and are on a higher protein diet. I cannot recom-mend strongly enough that when you clip your horse you leave the coat on under your saddle’s weight bearing area. Often just adding a sheep-skin half pad under your saddle, ideally having

the sheepskin directly on their backs, will solve

the problem quickly, and you can take it out

when the horse is done changing its coat. Brush

well under the saddle and girth area, and moni-

tor the bumps when they appear. If you are con-

cerned at all, please contact your saddle fi tter.!

The Saddle Doctor, lesley mcGill, is the only qualifi ed interna-tional independent Saddle Fitter by the Society of master Sad-dlers in the uk, whereas most fi tters are trained by individual saddle brands. She also attends The horses inside out annual conference held in the uk on horses’ backs, therapies, move-ments and conformation, as well as The Saddle Research Trust 2nd annual conference on horses, Saddles and Riders. She makes it a priority to stay well ahead on all aspects in regards to Saddle Fitting.

An ill-fi tting saddle can have devastating ef-fects for the horse. Many horses will give you subtle signs that they are uncomfortable or in pain, others will bite, kick, buck and be down-right dangerous. We have to pay attention to what they are trying to tell us and not accuse them of just being badly behaved. Saddles are like shoes, you wouldn’t run a marathon in shoes that don’t fi t so why would you expect your horse to perform in a poorly fi tting saddle?

The saddle fi tting process is a lengthy one with many steps! The horse’s conformation is a big factor in saddle fi tting and should be exam-ined in detail. The back, shoulders, chest, spine and girth should be checked for heat, swelling and pain. The horse should also be checked for any lameness by watching them move in straight lines and circles.

Several templates are then made to make a model of the back. These show discrepancies in the muscular structure of the back and shoul-ders. The templates are then fi tted to the un-

derside of the saddle showing exactly where the saddle is or is not fi tting.

The saddle is then placed on the horse, and wither clearance, shoulder pressure, angle of the points of the tree, bridging, gullet width, level-ness all should be examined. The saddle’s centre of gravity should closely match the horse’s. If the centres of gravity don’t match, the rider often feels in front or behind the horse.

Continuing with rider up, the saddle is checked for wither clearance, bouncing, rocking and/or slipping. After the horse is warmed up, the saddle is then removed and Thermal Images of the horse’s back and panels of the saddle are taken. This image allows the contact between the panels and the horses back to be evaluated.

If the saddle is a good fi t then adjustments can be done to make it better. If it’s not a decent fi t then a different saddle needs to be found. This can be a diffi cult undertaking but the saddle fi t-ter will help you fi nd a saddle that will keep your horse happy and pain free.

The Saddle Fitting Process

by Lindsay Adams


CoRRECT poSiTioNiNG oF ThE SAddLEThe vast majority of us are used to placing

the saddle too far forward with the misconcep-tion that this puts us over the centre of gravity of the horse. The saddle needs to be positioned so that the tips of the tree head are BEHIND the shoulder blades. Regardless of what saddle you have and whether the saddle fi ts or not, just this one thing will make your horse more comfort-able.ThE ANGLES oF ThE TREE NEEd To SiT pARALLEL To ThE ANGLES oF ThE BACK WhERE ThE SAddLE SiTS

Regardless of the type of tree (wood, carbon fi bre, plastic) if the angles are not in line with the horse’s back, the horse will experience discomfort. The most common situation is the angles of the tree being too steep since this gives wither clear-ance and most people think that if you have ample wither clearance your saddle fi ts. A too narrow tree will always give huge wither clearance.

It amazes me in this day and age of advanced technology that 99% of the saddles being man-ufactured cannot be fi tted to horses! When a saddle doesn’t fi t properly, it interferes with

CoNSiSTENT CoNTACT oF pANELS WiTh ThE BACK

oF ThE hoRSE

Run your hand face up along the entire length

of the panels while the saddle is on your horse with

no saddle pad. You should feel steady even contact

all the way from the front to the back of the saddle.

Any tight spots or gaps will cause pressure on your

horse’s back. If your saddle has foam panels you

can try to make this better with corrective saddle

pads. If your saddle is wool fl ocked, you will need

to get a good saddle fi tter to make the adjustment

for the optimum fi t.

I trust these three points (out of 12 main

ones) assist you in making your horse’s back

more comfortable. Let us have properly fi tted

saddles for the horse’s sake .

Article submitted by isauro A. Flores, b.Sc., master Saddler’s As-sociation certifi ed Saddle Fitter, 604.841.7407, www.saddles.com [email protected].

muscles and bones causing pain and resistance! The horse is just expected to tolerate this. This is unacceptable!

So how do we create true shoulder and back

For the Horse’s Sake

Correct saddle fi t is not a trivial undertaking. It requires a trained eye with experience to get the perfect fi t for both horse and rider. However, there are

a few components of the process that we should all apply for the horse’s sake. Here are 3 points that will help your horse. by Isauro A. Flores

All about Shoulder Freedom

by Danny Kroetch


freedom? Get out of their way!!!We hear a lot today about “shoulder relief”

or “shoulder freedom” but to accomplish this we need to be able to stay out of its way. When a horse is moving, the scapula/shoulder needs to be able to easily rotate under the saddle panel/tree point. The bigger or longer stride a horse has, the farther back the rotation; it moves back 5”-6” or more every stride. In motion, the scapu-la fi lls the wither pocket so there needs to be no pressure in this area. The only way to create this relief is by having the contact of the tree point 9” below the top of the wither. The reason this is important is that the top part of the trapezius muscle has a horizontal grain and therefore is not a weight bearing muscle. When saddles with these shorter types of tree points are used, the tree and panels are pulled into the wither mus-cle on both sides when girthed. This pulls this muscle apart and restricts its ability to move and causes pain and discomfort to the horse.

The saddle should bear weight with the tree points 9" down, bringing it below the shoulder’s rotation and making contact with the vertical muscle of the thoracic serratus which is a work-ing weight bearing muscle. Even if a saddle has a cut away panel, it still is bearing wrong pressure if the tree points are short, and that being said,

the cut away panel must sit on the upper part of

the tree point not below the shoulder blade as

this has no effect or relief to the shoulder.

It’s of the utmost importance for the horse’s

comfort, and therefore performance, to have suf-

fi cient weight bearing surface in the panels of

your saddle. Most saddles with a cut back panel

sacrifi ce this by shrinking their panels so where

contact is needed most, these panels are lacking.

We are seeing a similar problem with girths,

claiming to create shoulder freedom. The girth-

ing system is very important for the forward mo-

tion of our horse’s shoulder. The thoracic serra-

tus muscle which grows in motion is connected

to the bottom of the scapula and runs down and

connects to the lower rib cavity. If the billeting

system of your saddle is on top of this muscle

we once again have restriction, causing a loss in

movement and resistance.

To conclude, the only way to truly create

a free shoulder is in the tree points, not in the

panel or girthing system!

Danny kroetch, owner of Dk Saddlery, is a world-renowned master saddle fi tter and designer based in calgary, Ab. in the past 20 years, Danny has fi t over 60,000 adjustable saddles in all disciplines around the world. his deep understanding of equine biomechanics enables him to fi t even the most diffi cult horse, thus he is one of the only saddle fi tters published in The Veterinarian journal.

Saddle Sense Buyer’s GuideBuyer

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a narrow twist allowing the rider’s leg to fall and hang naturally, an

innovative shoulder relief panel to allow complete freedom of movement for

horses with big shoulders, with Schleese’s patented AdapTree™ that fl exes with

your horse’s lateral movement for superior comfort and protection. merçi — your

horse will thank you! www.schleese.com, 800-225-2242 or [email protected]


NSC BEEBA dRESSAGE SAddLE. After 5 years in the designing

process, we got it right! The beeba concept was really trying to fi nd a

tree that would function on the majority of horses and be comfortable

and supportive to the active dressage rider. considered an off the shelf

saddle, there is no waiting to get in your new saddle! The wood and

steel spring tree is fully adjustable, made in top english buffalo leather,

and pure wool fl ocking. Two options of thigh blocks, 4 seat sizes and

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ouTSTANdiNG FEATuRES oF ThE dK SAddLES

Dk Saddles are 100% adjustable with a fl exible tree that moves well with your

horse. They have air-fl ocked panels that move/massage your horse’s muscles

and have the ability to fi t horses’ asymmetries. Dk Saddles provide total shoulder

freedom, created from long tree points and correct girthing system. The extra wide

gullet avoids interference with dorsal ligament, especially in lateral work, and the

totally balanced seat helps correct rider position with extreme comfort. We have an

amazing selection of styles, colours and ideas! The sky’s the limit!

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Pan American Silver medalist Crystal Kroetch on Lymrix riding in the Bond 11

� e tree and panel system of all our saddles have been designed through research that DK did at veterinarian universities, studying the biomechanics of the shoulder

and back and how it interacts with the saddle. � e saddles allow maximum shoulder freedom which creates a more active hind leg and supple back, thus maintaining a very

happy equine athlete and willing partner.

DK o� ers dressage riders the choice of an external or internal thigh block in a mono � ap design. � ese saddles are 100% adjustable. � ey improve horse movement and performance and give comfort and support to the rider. Brittany Fraser has been riding in the DK saddles for the past 14 years and they have helped her to win many gold medals along the way!

www.dksaddlery.com | 877-326-3487 | Danny Kroetch 403-615-5435

Brittany Fraser on All In, silver medalists at the2015 Pan American Games riding in � e Freedom


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with women of all ages.”Bröring-Sprehe started riding aged three,

after being surrounded by horses from an early age. Her family owns and operates Gestut Sprehe Stud near Löningen in Germany’s Lower Sax-ony region. Her husband Christian Bröring had to cycle to London to watch her compete at the London 2012 Olympic Games, after promising he would travel there by bike if she qualified. The trip took him six days.

iN mEmoRiAm: SpRuCE mEAdoWS FouNdER, RoN SouThERN (CAN), 1930-2016

Ron Southern, founder and Co-Chairman of Spruce Meadows, and iconic Alberta entrepre-neur and businessman passed away at his home. He was 85.

FEInewS

KriStina BrÖring-SpreHe and DESPERADOS FRH new world dreSSage numBer one

Germany’s Kristina Bröring-Sprehe (GER) and Desperados FRH, team silver medalists

at the London 2012 Olympic Games, have taken over the world Dressage number one slot, relegat-ing British duo Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro.

Bröring-Sprehe, who also secured team gold and individual bronze at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2014 with Desperados FRH, rep-resented Dressage athletes around the world last November when International Olympic Commit-tee President Thomas Bach visited the FEI’s Head-quarters in Lausanne (SUI), the Olympic capital.

“Equestrian is the only Olympic sport where men and women compete against each other for medals in all the disciplines,” she said at the time. “It’s only when you get a bit older that you realise just how special this is, and it’s one of the many reasons why equestrian sport is so popular

Kristina Bröring-Sprehe (GER), team silver medalist at the London 2012 olympic Games, is the new world dressage number one with Desperados FRH, pictured here with international olympic Committee president Thomas Bach.

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GReG

G/Fe

i

FEI News continued on page 32


Ron Southern and his wife Margaret (Marg) purchased Copithorne Ranch south of Calgary with the vision of establishing a world-class equestrian facility. Spruce Meadows was built for their two daughters, Nancy and Linda, who had long been involved in the sport. The Southerns opened the doors to Spruce Meadows in 1975 and hosted the first tournament the following year. Over the last 40 years, as a result of the lead-ership and vision of the Southern family, Spruce Meadows has become an iconic sports venue that is today recognised as one of the world’s leading venue for international and national Jumping competitions, hosting 300 events annually.

An astute businessman, Ron Southern start-ed the Alberta Trailer Company in 1947 with his father with only 15 trailers. It eventually became the ATCO Group, a Calgary-based conglomerate with interests ranging from construction trailers to pipelines to natural gas distribution. ATCO now has operations in more than 100 countries, 8,000 employees and $19 billion in assets. Ron

Southern served as the company’s president for 48 years.

“It is with great sadness that we learnt of Ron Southern’s passing”, FEI President Ingmar De Vos said. “He was truly a remarkable man with a tremendous capacity for life and an incredible love of equestrian sport. His business acumen, passion, drive and vision, were evident in all facets of his life and were the characteristics that made Spruce Meadows such a hugely successful venue.”

“He was an incredibly generous man and community leader who gave so much and made a lasting impression on everyone he met. His legacy will live on in the generations of athletes who compete at Spruce Meadows for many years to come. He will be sorely missed.”

Ron Southern is survived by his wife Marg and two daughters, Nancy Southern and Linda Southern-Heathcott.

The FEI extends its sincere condolences to Ron Southern’s family and many friends, to Equine Canada and the global equestrian com-munity.

FEI News continued from page 31

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“I’ve ridden Catypso since he was 6,” said Na-vet. “He’s come a long way. It took a good time to get him to understand (jumping clear). He has unbelievable, with easy scope, and I feel like I can jump anything; he just needed to figure it out and improve his technique.

“I’m very proud of him and very satisfied to have such a great finish in a challenging course. I really feel like he did that easily (today) which makes me optimistic for the rest of the year and the rest of his career.”

Next in the jump-off order, Barge contin-ued to build her consistency in delivering clear rounds, leaving all the rails standing aboard her 11-year-old, Oldenburg gelding. A long gallop to the final Longines oxer also helped her take seconds off the clock to finish in 49.64 seconds,

DISCIPLINEreportS What’s Happening in all the Disciplines

egYpt’S naYel naSSar and LORDAn win qualifier at HitS tHermal

Under the desert sun, Egypt’s Nayel Nas-sar showcased his close partnership with

longtime mount Lordan to win in the $100,000 Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Thermal CSI3*-W. In the seventh and final event on the West Coast, the 25-year-old rider guided the 12-year-old, Hanoverian gelding (Lordanos x Landor) to a double clear that bested a field of 20.

France’s Eric Navet and Catypso (Catoki x Ca-lypso II) and the United States’ Jamie Barge and Luebbo (Lord Pezi x Stakkato) joined Nassar and Lordan in the final round. First to go, Navet had an uncharacteristic misjudgment of strides in the course’s first line, and the 9-year-old, Ha-noverian gelding forced a rail down.

“All three of us were fighters, and I was lucky enough to go last, and Eric had to go first and he had to take a big risk,” said Nassar.

Egypt’s Nayel Nassar and Lordan claim victory of the $100,000 Longines FEi World Cup Jumping in Thermal.

Discipline Reports continued on page 34

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but a more conservative track left the door open. “I worked with him a lot on his flatwork and

his rideability in the summer,” said Barge about her partner for the last two years. “If I can get the rideability, he’s got the scope and the heart to do it. I’m excited that it’s come together.”

But it was Nassar with his deceptively fast gelding that managed to stop the timers at 48.19 seconds, despite adding an extra stride in the second line. An inside turn and a faster gallop proved strategy enough to steal the lead and seal the victory.

“I only kind of saw Jamie go, but people said that she didn’t go inside the Longines oxer, going away from the gate, so I knew if I slipped inside there, I didn’t have to go crazy to catch her,” Nas-sar said. “I did six strides in the first line, eight in the second line; my horse has small stride. But then it was just a matter of jumping the last two

jumps clean.”So as the palm trees dotted the skyline and

the California temperatures soared, he returned to the winter circuit showgrounds of his forma-tive, junior years by making a big mark, after a year spent developing young horses and bringing Lordan back from an injury.show jumping results

$100,000 Longines Fei WorLd Cup Jumping ThermaL Csi3*-W resuLTs 1. Lordan (Nayel Nassar), EGY, 0 faults/48.19 seconds (JO); 2. Luebbo (Jamie Barge), USA, 0/49.64 (JO); 3. Catypso (Eric Navet), FRA, 4/81.59 (JO); 4. Flex-ible (Rich Fellers), USA, 4/76.31; 5. Tembla (Karl Cook), USA, 4/77.27; 6. Chacna (Enrique Gonzalez), MEX, 4/80.80; 7. NKH Quanto (Christian Heineking), GER, 8/76.86; 8. Cat Balou (Tamie Phillips), CAN, 8/78.67. $200,000 Longines Fei WorLd Cup Jumping in WeLLingTon resuLTs 1. Uceko (Kent Farrington), USA, 0 faults/40.30 seconds (JO); 2. Fibonacci (Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum), GER, 0/42.83 (JO); 3. Big Red (Richard Spoonder), USA, 0/42.89 (JO); 4. Adare (Paris Sellon), USA, 0/43.50 (JO); 5. Dixson (Ian Millar), CAN, 0/43.54 (JO); 6. VDL Wizard (Callan Solem), USA, 0/3.80 (JO); 7. Nougat du Vallet (Katherine Dinan), USA, 0/48.64 (JO); 8. HH Carlos Z (McLain Ward), USA, 4/41.75 (JO).

dreSSage reportBELiNdA TRuSSELL domiNATES WEEK ThREE oF ThE AdEquAN GLoBAL dRESSAGE FESTivAL

In her first competition of the 2016 season, veteran Canadian Equestrian Team member Belinda Trussell of Stouffville, ON, dominated competition during the third week of the Ad-equan Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) in Wel-lington, FL.

The 2015 Pan American Games Team silver medalist rode to victory not once, but twice, over the course of the week. Aboard her Pan Am Games mount Anton (Antaeus x Shirley), she captured the judges’ attention on Jan. 28 in the CDI-W FEI Grand Prix. She and the 16-year-old Saschen Warmblood gelding owned by her mother, Robyn Eames, and husband, Mark Trus-sell, earned a score of 72.860% for the win.

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Canadian olympian Belinda Trussell of Stouffville, oN kicked off her 2016 season with two winning performances aboard her veteran partner Anton during week three of the Adequan Global dressage Festival, held Jan. 28-31 in Wellington, FL.

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Discipline Reports continued from page 33


“I was in utter shock to come out winning such a huge class with top competitors,” ex-plained Trussell. “I am very happy.”

Just one day later, Trussell and Anton re-turned to the winner’s circle, this time claiming victory in the CDI-W FEI Grand Prix Freestyle with a final mark of 75.025%, placing them firm-ly atop the leaderboard.

“Anton is a miracle,” said Trussell of her sea-soned partner, who only returned to top level competition shortly before the 2015 Pan Am Games. “He just keeps getting better. He is 16 this year and feels the best he has ever felt in his life. I think the difference between last season and this show was his expression and my confi-dence to ride to his capability. He loves to com-pete and is such a good boy in the ring. It’s my job to present him to his best and I feel like we just get stronger as a team.”

As for her plans for the rest of the season, Trussell explained, “I hope to get great scores in Wellington to secure an Olympic spot for Rio. I will compete Anton in the CDI 5* during week five, and hopefully the nations’ cup as well.”

Fellow Canadians earning impressive scores during week three of the AGDF included Kar-en Pavicic of Surrey, BC. Riding her 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games mount, Don Daiquiri (Don Cardinale x Rubinstein I), a 14-year-old Old-enburg gelding she co-owns with Jayne Essig, Pavicic started out with a score of 70.840% for ninth place in the CDI-W FEI Grand Prix. They followed up with a fifth place finish in the CDI-W FEI Grand Prix Special after scoring 70.157%.

Two of Trussell’s 2015 Pan Am Games team-mates also claimed top-10 spots on the lead-erboard. Megan Lane of Loretto, ON scored 69.078% for ninth place in the CDI-W Grand Prix Special aboard her long-time partner, Cara-vella (Contango x Riverman), a 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare she owns with her mother, Cathy Lane. Brittany Fraser from New Glasgow, NS took ninth place (71.625%) in the CDI-W FEI Grand Prix Freestyle with her Pan Am Games

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mount, All In (Tango x Damiro), an 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding she co-owns with Marc-Andre Beaulieu.

Not far behind Fraser in the Freestyle was Canadian Olympian Jacqueline Brooks of Ce-dar Valley, ON and her veteran partner, D Niro (D-Day x Napoleon 625), a 17-year-old Swedish Warmblood gelding owned by Mary Brooks and Brookhaven Dressage Inc. Together they scored 70.500% for 10th place.

oLYmpiC SupERSTAR WERTh WiNS REEm ACRA LEG AT AmSTERdAm WiTh WEiHEgoLD

Isabell Werth created quite a stir when win-ning the seventh leg of the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage 2015/2016 Western European League at the sold-out RAI Arena in Amsterdam (NED) with Weihegold. The lovely mare was com-peting in her very first international Freestyle, but in the hands of the 46-year-old German ath-lete who includes six Olympic gold medals and two World Cup titles amongst her career high-lights, the 11-year-old horse posted a spectacular score in the early stages of the competition and could not be beaten.

The pair’s success was all the more remark-able for the fact that the class was of an excep-tionally high standard, with top riders really rais-ing their game in the battle for points towards the Reem Acra Final in Gothenburg (SWE) in March. Werth admitted afterwards that her vic-tory was unexpected.

“It was a surprise because the Freestyle is really

difficult here in this atmosphere in Amsterdam, and there was an outstanding field of competi-tors. You know how it is in Freestyle, we did not have the best starting order so I was not expecting to win, but at the end of our test I felt really sure and safe - I’m so very, very happy!” she said.

driving reportChARdoN CLAimS FEi WoRLd Cup dRiviNG TiTLE

After an amazing battle between the best driv-ers, IJsbrand Chardon (NED) beat top favourite Boyd Exell (AUS) in the FEI World Cup Driving Final 2016 in Bordeaux (FRA) and re-claimed the title for the first time again since 2006. Winner of the first competition, Koos de Ronde (NED) finished third. The Final of the 15th season of the FEI World Cup Driving turned into a true thriller where the battle went on until the very last moment.

Chardon made the competition very exciting when his back stepper, his son Bram, lost his bal-ance for a fraction of a second at the last gate and almost fell off, which would have cost the Dutch-man his victory. But Bram found his balance in time and stayed onboard in the end.

Last starter Exell had to risk everything to beat the very fast and clear round of Chardon. The six-time World Cup winner had an unfortu-nate knockdown at obstacle 3, after which Exell put the throttle on even more to make up for that. It did look as if he was going to do it, but a second knockdown in the last half of the course prevented him from winning his seventh FEI World Cup title.

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blanket spray is specifi cally formulated for pet apparel, is mould and stain resistant, and can be bought in a concentrate as well, which is economical. It says it is good for all waterproof clothing, so I gave it a shot. A lot of shots, ac-tually! I sprayed an old favourite sheet that be-longed to my retired gelding. He has that retired pear shape that only a few blankets fi t well, and

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fi nd, for this west (wet) coast horseperson. Having been in horses for too many decades to mention, I have a signifi cant collection of blankets in my loft, as rain-sheets and winter blankets are a necessity for our clipped horses. I am embarrassed by the number of blankets that were too good to throw out, but just weren’t waterproof enough due to age and wear to use every day. They were kept as ‘Spares’. And so the collection began…

I have tried some of the commercial wa-terproofi ng out there — some of it makes the blankets all stiff and don’t last very long, others aren’t worth the rigmarole involved in applying the product, and others are just outright chemi-cal poison — grim stuff. Then I was introduced to Les Johnson, one of the owners of Dry Guy, at the Mane Event, and began hearing from loads of people about their great experience with Dry Guy. Being somewhat of a skeptic, and always looking for excuses to buy new blankets (it’s one of those horse addiction things, like saddle pads and polos — can’t stop!), I was going to take some convincing.

Dry Guy claims to preserve the breathabil-ity of modern membrane textiles, and is biode-gradable and free from fl uorocarbons. It is ap-plied with a pump spray bottle, and water is the dilutant, not solvents or alcohols. Their horse

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this was his favourite as well. It was an old nylon “Amigo” brand with minimal insulation, and the weave of the fabric, I thought, was too worn and spread apart. After washing and drying the blanket, I just sprayed the surface of the blan-ket, which took two minutes. I left an area on a hip unsprayed just to see the difference, and sure enough, he was dry everywhere but that hip, where it soaked through to his skin in no time. The spray didn’t completely stop water from getting into the fabric, and it didn’t look like a “coating”, but it defi nitely didn’t get all the way through to his hair where sprayed. I had another blanket with more insulation which I had stopped using because it would get so heavy when wet. The horse would stay dry because of the body heat generated, but the blanket was al-most unmanageable to lift when wet, and would take forever to dry. When sprayed with Dry Guy, it didn’t get to that point of being saturated, and didn’t take forever to hang to dry. The spray repels/encourages the water molecules to form

into droplets and they run off the fabric rather than soak in. This is what allows water vapour to get out of the fabric as well.

I also, out of curiosity, sprayed dog coats, my husband’s multitude of rain coats from inexpen-sive to quite costly ones, including Goretex, and even our BBQ cover. I bet it would be awesome on tents and awnings, too. I was impressed with how much drier my husband was under his usual rain gear. Dry Guy defi nitely gave new life to his coats. I gave some to a client and this is what they had to say: “I sprayed my 15 year old Rambo blanket that had been crumpled up in the tack room for years because it was like a sponge; it is now like new! I was shocked how fast, and easy to use Dry Guy was!”

So the good news is Dry Guy is easy to use, works really well and gives new life to those old “spare” blankets. The bad news is now you have no excuse to go out shopping for shiny new blan-kets… Dry Guy is marketed by Strathcona Ven-tures, contact [email protected] for more information regarding this product.

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Charlie “Miss Hap”: 2004 16.1 hh TB mare. Hunter/Jumper. Quiet in the ring, good ground manners. Shown Hunter to 3.0', 1.0m Jumper; schooled to 1.10m. Easy to load, trailer, bathe. Asking $11,000 OBO. Contact Stephanie 403-613-7508 or [email protected].

Don Celestino: 11 yo 15.1 hh grey Azteca gelding. A wonderful horse. He has done many things including parades, Jumping, trail riding, and Dressage, and excelled at all of them. A pleasure to have at our barn. [email protected]. Cochrane, AB.

Bellacoullaire: 8 yo 17 hh Swed-ish WB mare (grandsire Briar 899). Versa-tile, powerful, personable! Trailers, bathes, great for the farrier, etc. UTD vac-cines. $18,000. Contact 778-785-5838 or [email protected]. Langley, BC.

Pebble Beach: 15 yo 16.2 hh Han/Tb mare. Shown H/J & Jumper. Leased for Dressage. Smooth ride, good on the trails and in the trailer. Owner moving, $8,000 neg. Video avail. from [email protected]. Contact Trainers Laura 604-551-7768 or Lindsay 604-720-0047.


BroodmareS

Bravada RPH: 10 yo 15.3 hh chestnut KWPN Dutch Warmblood mare (Consul x Watch Me Walk Away) Impressive Jumper with elegant movement. Could have been a top performance horse — we used her as a broodmare and she has produced 5 fancy foals for us. Offspring are fl ashy and scopey. She is currently in foal to Aquilan Calypso and being sold with 2016 breeding to Checkmate! $15,000. Contact 250-301-1281 or [email protected]. Prince George, BC.

Fairmiah: 14 yo 15.3 hh dark bay CWB mare. Athletic, well mannered. Suit as broodmare; complicated to ride, not 100% sound. Great bloodlines (Popeye K out of Voltaire). Had foal in 2006. Contact 250-701-7438 or [email protected]. Victoria, BC.

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Ripley: 2006 16.3 hh CWB gelding. Bold and scopey. Schooling 3'6"-3'9", grids to 4'3". Shown in the 1.0m, moving to 1.10m. Not working to his potential due to lack of time. Fancy with tons of presence. $45,000. Contact 250-318-0332 or [email protected].

Valenzia: 2005 15.3 hh Holsteiner mare. Show miles in the Hunters. Suitable for a Jr/Am rider looking to compete in the Jumper or Equitation ring. Very brave and careful over fences with solid fl at work. Asking $20,000. Contact 604-619-2233 or [email protected].

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Bronty-haurus: 47 hh, aged Schoolmaster. BC-bred (millennia, not province). With age comes wisdom — this is one very wise animal! Bronty has taught generations to ride. Back is not swayed at all, still has lovely long neck. Eats any-thing, really. Contact [email protected]

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Sunshine: 10 yo 14.1 hh New Forest Pony mare. Exc. ground manners, schooling small fences, exc. Dressage prospect as well. Ready for fi rst show! Beautiful mover, exc. tempera-ment. Ridden by a Jr/Am. $7,500. Contact 250-318-0332 or [email protected].

Jazz: 6 yo 13.3 hh New Forest Pony gelding. Solid ground work & lunging. Well started U/S, walk, trot, canter, trot poles. Now started over fences. Sweet character and very willing to work. Suit any discipline. $6,000. Contact 250-318-0332 or [email protected].

Caspian: 7 yo 16.2 hh pinto CWB gelding. Su-per character. Solid fl at work with laterals & fl y-ing chgs. Brave to the jumps. Suit amateur for Dressage. Training equiv. to Lev. 2, schooling higher level movements. Asking $20,000. Con-tact 250-318-0332 or [email protected].

Aloe Vera: 2013 16.3 hh Oldenburg X mare by Sagnol, o/o Canadian Warmblood by Faust Z. Tall, elegant, sensi-tive Hunter/Dressage type. Not yet started. Asking $10,000. Contact 250-319-1091 or [email protected]

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MarchNews

THE BC INTERIOR HUNTER JUMPER ASSOCIATION was established in the spring of 2014 to promote and develop the Hunter Jumper sports in the BC Interior. The club operates out of the Prince George Agriplex. Since inception, the BCIHJA has had three successful shows, two Winter Development Series, two clinics with Ashleigh Charity, and two Year End Awards. At the recent 2015 Awards Dinner and Dance held January 30th, the Hunter Jumper community came together to recognize the accomplishments of fellow athletes, and to thank the many volunteers and sponsors who make the shows possible. Division 1: 18"-2' 1st place Robyn Yeager on Jazzman; 2nd Maegan Friess on All That Jazz; 3rd place Veronica Campbell on Zephyr. Division 2: 2'3"-2'6" 1st place Katya Zanozin on Lady Amy; 2nd place Dee Howard on Quixotic; 3rd place Kate Carter on Tango. Division 3: 2'9"-3' 1st place Lana Smith on Leeto Z; 2nd place Pam McGuiness on Cole; 3rd place Susanne McLeod on Boston. Division 4: 3'3"-3'6" 1st place Lesley Matthews on All That Jazz; 2nd place Lana Smith on Balto; 3rd place Dee Howard on Arielka.

The inaugural Super Bart Partnership Award was handed out to Emira DeCroos , in recognition of her sportsmanship and the care and compassion she showers on her equine partner, James. The Patty Sims Memorial Volunteer Award was determined by a membership vote and Janet Charlton was the volunteer of the year for 2015. 2016 is shaping up to be a great year with a continuation of the Winter Development Series jump days in January and February and a clinic with Ashleigh Charity in April. In addition to the BCIHJA Summer Classic in July and the BCIHJA Fall Finale in September there are three other points accumulation shows scheduled: Spruce Ridge Pony Club in May, NCBC CADORA in June and Rosenol Performance Horses in July.

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March News

1 West Pearce Street, Suite 201, Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 3K3 | Telephone: 905-709-6545 | Toll-free: 1-877-441-7112Email: [email protected] | Fax: 905-709-1867

horse.on.caGet ready for spring with the OEFCold weather can mean less time in the saddle, but it doesn’t mean you can’t continue to develop your skills or have a bit of fun. The Ontario Equestrian Federation (OEF) has you covered with some great upcoming events.

Course Design Clinic The OEF is introducing a new course design clinic on April 11-12 geared not only towards course design candidates, but also coaches and athletes. It will include hands-on training and demonstrations to build skills in walking and analyzing courses, analyzing a rider on course and building courses and tests to train for fun and competition.For details or to register, visit www.horse.on.ca/event/the-oef-presents-course-design-the-master-plan

Coaching Webinar Series LaunchedAs announced in the fall of 2015, all Equine Canada NCCP certifi ed Level 1, 2 and 3 coaches must transfer their qualifi cations to the new competency based NCCP. Equine Canada has launched a free Transfer Update Webinar Series to provide coaches

certifi ed in the old NCCP Levels program with the chance to meet the transfer update requirement for Competition Coach and High Performance 1 programs online.

To register, visit horse.on.ca/coaches/nccp-transfer-of-qualifi cations

Join us for OEF Day at Can-AmSaturday, April 2 has been declared OEF Day at the Can-Am All Breeds Equine Expo. Join us from 5-6:30 p.m. that day for an OEF Member Appreciation Party, generously sponsored by BFL CANADA. OEF members will be sent an email invitation to reserve their spot at the party. Please note that you must have general admission tickets to the expo to access the OEF party.

Special Can-Am Ticket Offer for MembersOEF members have access to a special pre-sale ticket off er that includes half price on the Saturday Evening Extravaganza show with the purchase of a general admission ticket. This deal applies to tickets purchased online for Saturday, April 2 only and does not apply to tickets purchased at the door. For details, visit www.horse.on.ca/oef-events/can-am-equine-emporium.

HTBC SPRING SERIES CLINICS• Lower Mainland at Island 22 Equestrian

Park, Chilliwack BC – April 9th and 10th. • Interior @ Johvale in Pritchard BC –

April 15th, 16th, and 17th. Will include Pace clinic.

• Vancouver Island Clinic at Avalon Equestrian Centre – date TBA – clinician TBA.

More info: horsetrialsbc.com - > Education Clinics

STARTER DIVISION 2016 (NEW)At the request of members, riders and

organizers HTBC has reviewed the “Guidelines to Organizers” for “Primary Divisions”, Starter Division, and added an Eligibility clause for those experienced Event riders that choose to use the Starter Division when

bringing a new ride into the sport. An experienced Event rider is considered

to be a rider who has previously competed at the Pre-training Level or above. We are asking those experienced riders to now enter the Starter Division “Hors Concours”. Please go to HTBC website to view Primary Division Guidelines.

TOPLINE 2016:EVENTING BACK TO BACK

For the 2016 Eventing season, Topline will be running their Events as a “Back to Back” which means two separate events over four consecutive days. Each will have ribbons to eighth place and prizes for the top three placing riders.

Six levels of competition will be run this year including a new combined division of Prelim and Training, where riders will be doing a prelim Dressage and Show Jumping test and running a Training Level Cross Country course.

More info: toplinestable.ca.


next Deadline: march 11th, 2016 for the April 2016 issue

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COMPETITIONcalendarBC EvENTS

Feb 28 - 27 2016 Pet Lover Show, Vancouver, BCIzabela: (604) 202-3743 or [email protected]

Feb 28 MREC 2 Phase and Dressage Schooling Show, Maple Ridge, BC. Jack: (604) 467-5616 or [email protected]

Mar 5 - 6 Gateway Dressage Schooling Show, Thunderbird Show Park, Langley, BC. Chris: [email protected]

Mar 12 - 13 LMQHA Horsemans Bazaar, Thunderbird Show Park, Langley, BC. www.horsemansbazaar.com

Mar 13 MREC Schooling Show, Maple Ridge, BCJack: (604) 467-5616 or [email protected]

Mar 19 - 20 Gateway Season Finale, Thunderbird Show Park, Langley, BC. Chris: [email protected]

Mar 20 MREC 2 Phase and Dressage Schooling Show, Maple Ridge, BC. Jack: (604) 467-5616 or [email protected]

Apr 4 - May 13 Advanced Equine Massage Therapy Course, Kamloops, BCSidonia: (519) 562-9992 or [email protected]

ALBERTA EvENTSMar 19 - 25 Equine Massage Therapy Course, Edmonton, AB

Sidonia: (519) 562-9992 or [email protected]

Mar 26 - Apr 1, Equine Massage Therapy Course, Edmonton, ABSidonia: (519) 562-9992 or [email protected]

WAShiNGToN EvENTSMar 19 - 20 Seminar – Lightness Proof of Balance, Bellingham, WA

Linda: (360) 966-4407 or [email protected] 8 - 6 Karen O’Neal Eventing Clinic, Cle Elum, WA

Natalie: [email protected]

Please confi rm with event organizers before attending any events. Some events are changed or cancelled without our knowledge. Submit calendar events at www.gaitpost.com/calendar. Calendar events must be submitted by the print deadline, in order to be considered for inculsion in the next issue. The GaitpostCalendar is a free service.

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Gaitpost Magazine - Mar. 2016