Wine, art, some cheese, and friendships. What do they have in common? They all get better with time – just like the Senior Superstars we’re celebrating on YourDressage throughout the month of March!
Here, a rider from Region 2 tells us about her seemingly ever-growing Dutch Warmblood and how – from tackling repeated bouts of therapy to earning a USDF Silver Medal – they worked together through all of life’s ups and downs.
By June Scholl
In August 2013, after looking for what seemed like a very long time, I saw an ad for a four-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, named “Easy Street,” for sale at Megan Moore’s Team CEO Eventing barn near Lexington, Kentucky. And geez, I knew I was going to buy him just from looking at his photo; I instantly fell stupid in love.
As a 54-year-old, petite, 5’4” lady, I really needed a large pony or small horse, but you know how that goes. Ideally, an older, trained, smaller horse should have been my search criteria, but that wasn’t within the budget. So, talent, temperament, and price were. I had to sell three cheaper horses to be able to afford him, and it was the most I’d ever paid for a horse. Still, by today’s standards, that price is laughable. Easy was a green but willing, wide-bodied, 16.1-hand Dutch Warmblood by Sir Sinclair, known for passing on his rideability to his offspring. His ad said he was 16.3 – I guess they were prophetic.
My trainer and I made the short trip from Lebanon, Ohio, to Lexington, and one look was all it took. I had a sweet but embarrassing moment when trying him – unbeknownst to me, I was cantering around on the wrong lead, grinning madly, completely ignoring all instructions from my poor trainer. I couldn’t buy him fast enough. A plain bay, with a massive tail, Easy was quiet, calm, and so sweet. The future looked bright.
After coming home, I realized I was in trouble when we could not pick up the right lead canter, and he also did not seem to have brakes. He was never really naughty, just lanky, unbalanced blubber with big gaits. Still, he was too much horse to go barreling down the long side without proper control. Luckily, he was kind and put up with all sorts of amateur mistakes. It was a steep learning curve to find out that just because your horse is sweet, doesn’t mean you can ride him.
None of that mattered when, in December, Easy had a freak colic, which entailed surgery at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital. I cried for days over my new, lovely partner being cut open, but with the expert surgeons’ care, Easy healed uneventfully, and we started back to work.
A few months later, Easy came up lame. Radiographs showed a small coffin bone fracture that a month’s rest and front shoes would take care of with no further problems – big breath of relief. Again, we started back to work. I learned to canter on the right lead and how to start getting him on my aids. But now, I couldn’t get him forward. My trainer likened him to a burly football player who only wanted to sit on the couch and eat Cheetos. He also grew a couple of inches – I, on the other hand, did not grow.
Training progressed, as it does, in fits and starts, hills and valleys, ups and downs, but I was enjoying the journey. We showed at First Level with scores up to 73%. Next year came Second Level, again with scores in the high 60s. We had the world by the tail. We took a couple of years to learn changes and canter balance to then try Third Level in 2018, again with great scores. In 2019, we tried Fourth Level with scores in the low 60s, and I knew I needed to confirm some things at home.
Unfortunately, COVID brought more than expected, and Easy came up lame again. This time, due to a suspensory strain in the left front. I was crushed. It was now 2020, and we did the proper protocol of shock wave, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, and reconditioning to rehab without incident. I was staring down Fourth Level when Easy came up lame again in 2021. My heart sank. Sure enough, another suspensory strain, this time also in the left front, but in a different location. Unbelievable. I felt such doom and crushing disappointment. With the help of friends and offers of rides on other horses, we managed to get through rehab once more.
Finally, in 2022, we went out at Fourth Level and killed it, earning scores in the 70s. NOW, we were on our way!
What’s that saying? “We make plans, and God laughs”? I was not laughing when Easy went lame yet again in 2023 with a right hind suspensory strain. At this point, I vowed I was only going to do the rehab protocol one more time. I felt I didn’t have it in me to keep this up as I was getting older, and sadly, so was Easy. We rehabbed uneventfully and returned to work.
In 2024, I was determined to go out and try Prix St. George (PSG) before we both retired, so we signed up for the National Dressage Pony Cup show in Wilmington, Ohio – what an enormous show, with nine rings going all day for four days! My generous gelding and I scored a 60% and 65.8% at PSG to complete my USDF Silver Medal requirements in just two rides. I was over the moon.
Today, Easy is 16, and I am 66. I found yoga about three years ago, and it has saved me. I still have arthritis, and my balance is dismal, but I can still throw a leg over and be halfway credible. My reaction time is slower, and my body disappoints me sometimes, but I don’t feel I have anything to prove, so each ride is really more relaxing and enjoyable.
Easy has a robust program of Adequan®, Legend®, periodic joint injections, and a careful training program designed to help him remain the amazing dressage horse he is. We’ve reduced our rides from five days a week to four (which helps both of us), and each ride is carried out with thoughtful intent.
I am eyeing the Intermediate Levels, and if we get there, great. If we don’t, we’re pretty awesome the way we are. I do plan on showing again at PSG to improve that 60% from last year. I try to enjoy every single minute I’m with him and pay close attention to any funny steps, swelling, or other anomalies. I’m thoughtful with his training and pay close attention to our balance when riding. He is also on a strict shoeing schedule and wears egg bar shoes on his hind feet.
I’m thrilled to have received the USDF Master’s Challenge Award at Fourth Level and look forward to receiving it at the FEI Level. USDF has many programs and awards that honor and recognize senior riders, perhaps realizing we are an aging population and there are just more of us competing at older ages.
All these ups and downs initially wreaked havoc on my emotional state, but as the years passed, the sharp edges have softened, and acceptance and patience have taken their place. I won’t say I’m glad the disheartening times happened, but I am glad to mentally be where I am now – with my horse, my riding, my aging body, and my happiness. I’m not as driven as I used to be, and I don’t feel nervous that time is running out. It really is all good.
My wish for all senior riders out there is to take the time to listen to your bodies. It’s natural to slow down, but slow doesn’t mean stop. It means adjusting, accepting, and being at peace with it. You’ll age anyway; might as well be okay with it. Keep showing if that’s what floats your boat. Or don’t. Ride western. Or not. You’d be shocked to find out how many people care that you don’t ride like Carl Hester (the answer is no one cares, except maybe you). So use every scrap of horse time, riding, grooming, mucking, or smooching that soft muzzle, and enjoy every second. Horses are such a gift to us, and if you are lucky enough to be with them in some way, you are lucky enough. Peace out, everyone.
P.S. Now, I’m only 5’3”, and he still hasn’t shrunk!
Wise words, nice story