A Swan Song for Slogan

By Diane Little

I think many people, myself included, are born with a “horse lover” gene. We have been enthralled with the beauty of horses, and we long to ride from our earliest memories.

I was born into a non-horsey family and had little opportunity to ride as a child, aside from taking a walk on my grandfather’s work mule on Sunday afternoons on occasion.

My young adult years were busy with college, marriage, raising a child, and helping support us while my husband completed his medical training and military obligations.

After moving to Ohio, I was finally able to quit work to become a stay at home mom. I was bored.

One evening, my husband and I bet on who would win a Duke/Carolina basketball game. I won and he bought me a $500.00 Quarter Horse. At that point, I decided a few riding lessons might be wise.

I had my first riding lesson at a hunter barn when I was 38. It didn’t take me long to sell my Quarter Horse and buy an Off-Track Thoroughbred.

My love of dressage came when a friend and I went to Portugal to ride Lusitano stallions. I had barely ever cantered a horse, this trip was my introduction to the full bridle, and I got to experience the piaffe for the first time. I was blown away and wanted to learn more. Unfortunately, there were few opportunities to work with dressage instructors in our area at that time. So I primarily learned with once a month lessons from Bill Fields, who traveled into our farm during the summer months from Paris, Kentucky.

On our 30th wedding anniversary, my husband presented me with a brown paper bag with a pretty black bridle in it. He told me to go buy myself a “good” horse to fit the bridle. Little did he know that I would go to Germany in search of a “good” horse! Two of my friends agreed to go with me, and my teacher, Bill, agreed to meet me at the Fall Hanoverian auction and help me find a horse. We chose my next partner, Wolfgang Amadeus, by committee. I had Wulfi almost his entire life. With many lessons and a lot of help, I was able to get my First Level scores on him towards earning my USDF Bronze Medal. I lost him in the Spring of 2019, when he was 27. I was heartbroken and did not plan on buying another horse for myself. However, I did want to continue riding, and so I opted for a partial lease on a horse at our barn.

In the fall of 2019, Bill called, and with enthusiasm declared he had the perfect horse for me. I agreed to look at some videos of him. Bill said there was nothing wrong with him except one thing – he was old.

Slogan, a KWPN gelding, had been imported to Florida when he was 11, and was sold to a Young Rider. When the young rider sold him, he was advertised as a bombproof, Fourth Level/Prix St. Georges schoolmaster. He was sold to a woman named Mimi in Alabama. After owning him for a number of years, Mimi, who had not ridden him in over two years, felt that his training was going to waste and was willing to give him to a good home. Bill knew Slogan, and felt I would get along well with him. After seeing the videos of him being ridden by a professional rider and talking to his owner, I thought that Bill might be right. At that time, Slogan hadn’t been to a show in over eight years.

I picked up my 20 year old gift horse in late August, and Slogan and I began to develop a partnership from the beginning. As I rode him, he began to look and feel like a much younger horse. It was obvious that he hadn’t forgotten his early training. It was also obvious that he knew much more than me!

Then COVID came along. Slogan and I continued working together, and I kept trying to sit his trot. There were times I felt like I was being ejected from the saddle and doing my own “airs above ground”.

When shows began to be offered again, I took him to a schooling show to see how we could do. We scored above 60% there so I decided to try a recognized show. Unfortunately we didn’t reach that 60% goal. At that point, I decided we were too old to compete with the youngsters.

I had always wanted to do a Century Club Ride so that became the next goal. In October of 2022, Slogan, age 23 and I, age 80, completed a Third Level Century Ride at the Kentucky Horse Park. For people who don’t know, rider and horse have to have a combined age of at least 100 years to be accepted for a ride.

A friend went with me as groom and hand holder. I decided to enter Second and Third Level classes for the weekend, and make the Third Level Century Ride Slogan’s retirement ride, his swan song if you will. 

Doing the Century Ride was one of the most fun things I have ever done. Many of my friends came to cheer us on, and I was presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers and a gorgeous Century Club ribbon from The Dressage Foundation. Slogan and I became team #597 in the Century Club. The very best part of the weekend was that I earned two qualifying scores toward my USDF Bronze Medal. I was thrilled and so proud of my horse.

Then I set one more goal. I promised myself, and Slogan, that if he would do one more show and give me one more chance to achieve those last two elusive scores needed for my bronze medal, that I wouldn’t ask him for more. We worked hard with my teacher Christina Bingham, trying to improve my tests during the winter. In the spring, we went to a show and earned the last two scores for my bronze medal, as well as the scores for my Master’s Challenge Award at Third Level. It was a wonderful year. We achieved more than I ever dreamed possible.

Slogan has been my horse of a lifetime. He is kind, forward, attentive, and the best thing about him is his wonderful mind. He has been very solid and willing, and is truly a schoolmaster. He always tries and has endured my learning without complaint.

I would like to encourage other riders who are older or riders who are just beginning to ride, to not overlook the older horses. So often, their training and experience make them wonderful reliable partners. Slogan has taught me more than I could have ever imagined during my time with him. Yes, there are maintenance issues at times, but that can also happen with younger horses. Owners will sometimes be willing to take a reduced price or settle for a good home for former upper level competition horses. After all, dressage for horses is like yoga for us. It helps keep our aging bodies flexible and in good shape.

Just for fun, I checked who the oldest rider was when they earned their USDF Silver Medal. 94 seems to be the record. Humm — that means thirteen more years for me, in case another Slogan happens to fall into my lap! In the meantime, Slogan and I will be doing trail rides and listening to the birds sing.