United States Eventing Association

South American Charm

We’ve all seen and heard it: ‘Irish Sport Horse imported from Ireland’, ‘Trakehner imported from Germany’, ‘Thoroughbred imported from New Zealand’. Event horses are imported from all around the world to compete here in the United States. But when’s the last time you heard ‘Lusitano imported from Brazil’ over the loudspeaker at an event?

Julie Christensen has owned Victoriano IGS, a Lusitano gelding who was indeed imported from Brazil when he was three and a half, for nearly two years. She purchased him in Southern Pines, NC after attending an adult eventing camp with her then 23-year-old event partner.

“’Vico’ was owned by a woman who wanted to do Prix St. George dressage, but he just didn’t cut it,” said Christenson. “He’s a little on the compact side and doesn’t have that big dressage horse look. Plus, he loved to jump!”

Julie took a chance on the gelding and brought him back to Connecticut where she fell in love with the cheeky boy.

(Right: The adorable Vico leaps easily over a Novice jump at the AEC. Erica Larson photo)

“Vico is a very funny horse,” Christensen laughed. “He sticks his tongue out to one side and then shakes his head really fast so his tongue makes this really odd sound – thank goodness he never seems to play this game under tack! He is a very easy keeper and has great barn manners, although sometimes he can be a bit of a ‘Drama King’ in the cold weather.”

Julie and Vico began their eventing partnership in May of 2007…just about two months after Julie met him for the first time.

“I started eventing him at Beginner Novice in May,” Christensen explained. “He ended up being Beginner Novice Horse of the Year in Area I and third in the nation.

“After that, I figured it was time to move up, so we are now competing Novice. We probably should move up to Training, however I have small kids and can’t really give eventing the 100 percent that I wish I could. He would do fine though. I call him my ‘little dirt bike’.”

(Left: The Little Dirk Bike gallops boldly across the cross country course – ears pricked looking for his next jump. Right: Vico’s snappy little knees on cross-country make him a photographers’ dream! Emily Daily photos.)

Julie credits Vico’s best phase to be dressage and she said that he could use the most work in the show jumping arena.

“His best phase is dressage for sure. The best score I ever got was around a 23, however my trainer scored a 19 with him!” she smiled. “I definitely think Vico being a Lusitano has given me an advantage in dressage. He is such a pretty mover and judges seem to really like him. He has three equally great gaits and is very comfortable to ride. My other horse is a little clunkier and takes a lot to get on the bit…Vico is one of the first horses I’ve ridden that you don’t feel like you need a shoulder massage after a flat lesson!

“The worst phase for both of us is stadium. He feeds into my nervous energy. He doesn’t refuse or blow rails too often…he just looks at the crowd and back off from fences a bit. We have improved, however the flying changes are not auto pilot yet. With a different person on his back, he would probably be a lot better. But he is perfect for me because he really makes me ride to every fence, so I have gotten to be a much better rider. I’m so thankful for that.”

(Left: Julie put all nerves aside at the AEC, and her and Vico put together a lovely double-clear show jumping round in the pouring rain. Erica Larson photo.)

Julie says that not only is Vico a star in the arena, he is also a very easy keeper and has not had any injury problems since she purchased him

“I think the best thing about him is how easy of a keeper he is,” she said. “He can go out on plush grass in the summer and just dirt paddocks in the winter and his weight remains the same. He has been on 2 quarts of grain per day for the past 2 years and he looks perfect. Knock on wood… his legs are pretty amazing, too. Like I said, he’s like an agile little dirt bike. I ran him almost every weekend and so far, so good.”

Of course, no horse is perfect, and Vico has his quirks too.

“The only thing I would love to change is how ridiculous he acts in the cold weather,” Christensen added. “I have to sympathize with him, coming from nice warm Brazil to cold nasty Connecticut, but hopefully the second winter will be an improvement.

“And he’d probably never even seen an indoor before he came here. He also loves to feed on other horses’ energy. If there is another feisty fresh one in the arena, Vico thinks it’s fun to join in with the bucks!”

Julie and Vico competed at this year’s AEC in Wayne, IL in the Novice Amateur division. The pair added just 4.4 time faults on cross-country to their Dressage score to finish with an even 46.0. Despite the downpour that plagued their show jumping round, Vico performed flawlessly and Julie was thrilled with him!

(Right: Julie & Vico enjoy their round at the AEC this year, as they gallop through the first water complex. Emily Daily photo.)

Be sure to watch for this talented pair next year as they cruise around Novice courses everywhere, winning judges over with their Iberian charm!

All Roads Lead to Kentucky…

There is nothing harder than saying good-bye to a horse that you love. But at the same time, there is nothing more exciting than finding a horse that turns out to be your ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ partner. This is exactly what happened to Lowelle Messner when she said good-bye to her homebred and met her new partner, a Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse named Tessie’s Brite Star.

“Six years ago, I had to sell my homebred Appendix Quarter Horse, because I had developed a bad back and was in a back brace,” Messner said. “At 16.3 hands, he became to difficult for me to handle. I started looking for a gaited horse that was to be my ‘old age’ horse. The very first horse I looked was an almost three-year-old Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse filly who had just been backed.

“Tess was about 15 hands, scrawny, with her front legs almost coming out of the same part of her chest. The barn owner, who was not the seller, looked at me and said, ‘I have a nice, big Quarter Horse for sale that would fit you much better than this horse’. But I really wanted a gaited breed.”

Lowelle looked at several other horses, all Tennessee Walkers, but her mind kept returning to Tess. In a few weeks, she decided to give the filly a chance.

“It had taken me six months to agonize over the thought of selling my homebred gelding and only one week to find my once-in-a-lifetime horse after I sold him.”

(Right: Tess and Lowelle gallop to the second water complex at this year’s Wellpride American Eventing Championships. Erica Larson photo.)

So what exactly is a Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse?

“The Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse (KMSH) originated from the people of the Kentucky Mountains,” Messner explained. “These horses have a natural four beat gait, which is called an amble or rack. It is a very smooth gait that can be maintained over rough, mountainous terrain. The KMSH is known for their smooth gait, hardiness and great temperament. The breed registry was not begun, until 1989. Tessie’s dam is a Tennessee Walking Horse and her sire is a Rocky Mountain Saddle Horse.”

Once Lowelle had brought Tess home, she began the filly’s training to be her ‘old age’ gaited horse. Well, Tess had different ideas.

“When she turned three, I sent her down to a Rocky Mountain gaited trainer,” said Lowelle. “After a couple of weeks, the trainer called to tell me that she could not get Tess to gait and asked me if I had ever seen her trot. I made the trip down to watch my ‘gaited’ horse trot. Wow! Tess refused to gait, but she certainly did have a huge trot!”

After realizing that Tess wasn’t going to gait, Lowelle brought her back to a farm closer to her home. Despite still being injured and owning a horse she couldn’t ride, Lowelle still went out to see Tess regularly.

“We boarded at Crosswinds in Chagrin Falls, OH,” she explained. “They have two indoor arenas there – one for dressage and one for jumping. Since my back was still in a brace, I would just turn Tess out loose in the jumping arena and free school her. It did not take long, before she started heading for x-rails and jumping them. Now, I not only had a horse who loved to trot, but jump, too! By the time that she started jumping 2’6" verticals on her own, I realized that Tess had decided what her job was going to be and it certainly was not to be a gaited horse.

“During this time of not being capable of riding, I often called Tess my ‘therapy horse’ because she always made me laugh with her antics. Then, through the Grace of God and over six months of tests, a neurologist found the cause of my back problem. I started a treatment which resolved my back trouble and freed me from my back brace.

(Left: Lowelle got some great "therapy treatment" with her eventing partner as they enjoyed their round at the AEC this year. Emily Daily photo.)

“Tess was five when I actually started riding her,” Messner continued. “She loved to play in the water complex and jump over logs. In 2005, I started showing her in the Northeast Ohio Mini Event Series. In 2006, she was their Reserve Champion for Beginner Novice. In 2007, after only riding in three USEA recognized events, we qualified for the AEC. At the AEC’s, after dressage, we were in fifty second place. We finished on our dressage score in thirtieth place. Last year, Tess helped me get a Reserve Championship in Area VIII for Master Amateur Rider, too.”

Tess and Lowelle continued eventing this year and once again, qualified for the AEC. The pair traveled to Lamplight Equestrian Center to compete in the Beginner Novice Amateur division. The pair were off to a great start, receiving a 32.5 in dressage that placed her in a tie for tenth. Unfortunately, the pair were disqualified when they accidentally jumped the Novice Creep Feeder instead of the Beginner Novice one.

“Twice this year, Tess and I have gotten a TE for jumping a Novice fence instead of the Beginner Novice one,” Messner admits. “After seeing how well we jumped the Novice Creep Feeder at the AEC, I finally believe that it is time to move up to Novice!”

Lowelle is pleased with Tess’ performance in all three phases eventing and said that if she didn’t make a mistake, then Tess wouldn’t either. She does, however, admit that they used to have a slight problem with water obstacles.

“This year, we conquered our problem with blue algae killer in the water complexes,” she said. “More and more events, including the AEC, have started putting it into their water. A friend of mine calls it the ‘tidy bowl’. Our first experience with a ‘tidy bowl’ was at Lost Hounds in Erie, PA in 2007.

“We were in first place. Tess was cruising through the cross-country. When we came to the water complex, I kicked and tapped…she hesitated and then started forward. When she slammed on the brakes and dropped her head, I did a front flip, cannonballed into the ‘tidy bowl’ and managed to pull her bridle off as I flew over her head. I am still not certain how I did that one! Needless to say, we finished last. By the way, blue algae killer will not come out of your clothes!”

Lowelle and Tess have since conquered their aversion to bright blue water and hope to begin competing at the Novice level next season.

“The reason that I love eventing is because any breed of horse can do it and do it well. There is only one phase that is someone’s subjective opinion. The rest is just you and your horse. I am blessed to have had Tess come into my life. I am happy that I paid attention to what she wanted to be, instead of insisting on her becoming a gaited horse. My Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse has heart, temperament and talent. Who needs an ‘old age gaited horse’? Not me!”