The Yellow Brick Road to Gold

By Maddie Kanda 

The “Wizard of Oz” movie and dressage… It doesn’t seem like there’s a connection, right? But maybe there is. Just like Dorothy following the yellow brick road with the companions she met along the way, I followed the “road” to my USDF Gold Medal. And like the friends Dorothy found on her journey, I, too, was fortunate to meet many people along the way who lifted me up and helped make the dream of earning my gold medal on a 14.1-hand grade pony a reality! 

Just like many of you reading this, I grew up a horse-crazy kid! I could hardly wait until my eighth birthday, because that meant, in the summer, I could attend the week-long horse camp that I had been dreaming about for what felt like forever. 

Horse camp turned into lessons, leases, buying a horse that didn’t work out for me, more lessons, United State Pony Club (USPC) certifications, and finally, the purchase of my heart horse, Billy Bob. 

When Billy Bob joined my family, I was planning to focus on eventing. In my mind, dressage was just boring 20-meter circles. I went down the eventing path in Pony Club, and earned my C-2 eventing certification (equivalent to Novice level eventing), and then my C-2 Dressage and H-B certifications. Around this time, my instructor, Jenny Warner, and multiple clinicians helped me realize that dressage was more than just those 20-meter circles! 

Over the next four years, I continued my dressage training through weekly lessons, and as many dressage clinics as my parents were willing to financially support. In late 2015, Billy Bob and I earned my USDF Bronze Medal. I was ecstatic to receive that certificate and pin in the mail. Then I began to wonder, “Could we go further?” 

So, I spent the following summer improving our Third Level movements, and jumped into creating musical freestyles. After performing that first musical freestyle, we were both hooked! 

Billy Bob always knows when his music is playing, and we dance around the arena in a harmonious partnership. In 2017, we had our first experience at the Great American/USDF Region 4 Dressage Championships, winning both the Third and Fourth Level Junior/Young Rider Championships. 

At every dressage show, I always noticed the beautiful, regal-looking shadbelly jackets, and wondered if I’d ever get to wear one. I decided to have faith that Billy Bob would show at the level where a shadbelly is required, so I ordered one for myself and was determined to keep training until I got to wear that lovely jacket. I wore my shadbelly for the first time in 2018, when Billy Bob and I made our Prix St. Georges debut. 

That summer, I learned about the National Dressage Pony Cup, and began dreaming of competing there with other ponies. 

Mentor Suzette Sontag trailered us to Lamplight Equestrian Center for our first long-distance competition, where we earned a career highlight: scoring an amazing 76.5% with our Fourth Level freestyle. We danced to the music of Bruno Mars and Fall Out Boy, and were  NPDC Champions at Fourth Level and Fourth Level Freestyle. 

In 2019, I started showing in the Open division, competing at many shows, including a return trip to the NDPC. We competed at – and won! – the Intermediate-1 and Intermediate-1 Freestyle. I didn’t know if getting to Grand Prix was an achievable goal or not, but I decided to give it a go and see what we could accomplish. 

The COVID-19 pandemic forced a year-long pause in showing, but it also gave us the opportunity to really focus on our training. 

In 2022, we set out to try the Intermediate-B and Intermediate-2 tests with the help of Anne Cizaldo. Anne believed in us despite Billy Bob’s size and breeding. We again set out for NDPC, winning the I-B and I-1 Musical Freestyle. 

Although I wasn’t quite sure how it would go, in 2023, we made the leap into the big sandbox: the Grand Prix. 

Our first-time down centerline earned us a 55.978%. This helped me realize our journey was on the right track, but we had work to do. A minor lameness issue put our show season on hold for two months, before returning that August, and earning my first Grand Prix score for my Gold Medal with a 61.196%. Later that month, we earned our final Gold Medal score of 61.957%! 

As I write this on paper, I realize our journey to Grand Prix appears relatively simple, but this could not be further from the truth. 

At the beginning of our journey, we struggled for years with correct connection and suppleness. Billy Bob objected by putting his head straight up in the air! After that trick got old, he tried other maneuvers to get out of work, but we negotiated and succeeded through work, perseverance, and listening to my horse. 

Some of his attempts to get out of what he considered difficult dressage work actually helped us develop the skills we needed to move up the levels. Little did Billy Bob know, his airs above ground trick helped him learn flying lead changes, because it gave him more time to figure out how to switch leads. It wasn’t until Fourth Level that he stopped leaping in the air for every flying change. 

When we started working in the double bridle, he discovered that he could put his tongue over the bits, and pop the curb bit upside down with his tongue and a flick of his head to rotate the shanks. These clever maneuvers always caused a pause in our ride so I could fix our tack. He is definitely one smart pony! 

Our biggest struggle, by far, was learning the piaffe and passage, neither of which came naturally to him. While working on the passage-piaffe transitions, it was very common for him to come to an abrupt halt, and back up. In our last couple of Grand Prix rides, we managed to pull off his best version of a piaffe without flying backward! 

Over the course of our journey together, I was told many times that Billy Bob wouldn’t be competitive in dressage; however, instead of dwelling on what others thought he couldn’t do, we accepted the challenge of proving that, even on a pony, we could be competitive! 

One of my favorite moments was at Regionals, leading the victory lap in the canter and having seven other horses trailing behind us at the trot. It’s not size or breeding that matters, but rather heart, courage, and persistence.

After our last Grand Prix ride in 2023, I chose to semi-retire Billy Bob from the show ring. Although I had wanted to earn my Gold Freestyle Bar with him, I also did not want to risk the health and longevity of my best friend. Instead, we decided to transition into Working Equitation. 

As much as it felt like I lost a part of me when I decided to retire him from the dressage ring, I knew we would both love having a new challenge to face head-on. 

For those of you unfamiliar with the sport, it starts with a Working Equitation Dressage test, followed by an obstacle course that is scored similarly to a dressage test, with a percentage given at the end. The final phase is a speed round, going through the same obstacles. In some competitions, a fourth phase of team penning is added. 

At the upper levels, all of the challenges must be ridden one-handed, which led to us spending the whole winter learning a new way of riding! In addition, we had to learn how to work cattle – which was definitely a new challenge for both of us. I had to learn how to read cows, and he had to learn how to react on his own despite my telling him for the last 16 years of our partnership not to make his own decisions. 

In 2024, we debuted at Level 6 (out of 7 levels), the equivalent of a combined Fourth Level and Prix St. Georges test, earning scores up to 72%! Our new goal is to earn rider awards at L6, and we plan to start showing L7 at the end of the year. 

I give credit to Billy Bob for everything I’ve accomplished so far in my career. From learning how to make the most out of a “non-traditional” dressage horse to creating my own training business, he has been at the center of all of my success. He taught me to believe in the pony with “average” gaits but a huge heart, because what he may lack in athleticism and flashy movements, he makes up 100% in his level of “try.” 

Billy Bob has taught me to persevere and believe that correct training and riding will always matter. I would not be the trainer I am today without my partnership with him; it’s one I know I won’t ever be able to replicate with my next horse. I will always cherish our relationship, and I love watching him teach students how to do tempi changes with ease. 

Not only has he been my reliable dressage partner, but he has also stepped up to teach young horses to be brave on the trails, how to behave at horse shows, and what it means to try your hardest. I will be eternally grateful that I was able to have him as my partner on our journey to Grand Prix. 

Thank you, Pony, for giving me more than I ever dreamed possible.