Monday April 7, 2003

2003 Dressage at Equestrian Estates

Adriene Arkwright Wins First PSG

Seven years ago, Adult Amateur Adriene Arkwright of Montpelier, VA imported the gelding To Maar, (Maraton x Torega), from Sweden. Her first “real” dressage horse, the 15-year-old Swedish warmblood turned out to be more of a handful than she’d bargained on. But with diligent hard work, this Adult Amateur turned “Tommy Terrific,” as he is known around the barn, into a winning Prix St. Georges horse.

It was only their fifth test in competition and the first time at PSG for both horse and rider, and Arkwright and To Maar walked away with a score of 66.75% and the blue ribbon. Recently the gelding had his hocks and stifles injected and had to have some time off, so Arkwright had to practice the test by drawing it out on a piece of paper and had only the two weeks before the show to practice on horseback.

Originally ridden by an amateur event rider in Sweden, Arkwright said that Tommy “Knew tricks but none of the basics…he used to bolt away when we tried to catch him and even jumped out of the paddocks. When we did catch him, he would do anything to get out of putting on the bridle or saddle. Today, he nickers when he sees me coming to the barn and all those problems are gone.”

Taking things level by level, Arkwright has had to do most of my training with Tommy at home without any coaching, as she and her husband run a business together. “I don't even have an arena or mirrors to work him,” she said. “To me, this is one of the biggest accomplishments, because so many people have said you have to have the perfect arena, and mirrors to get a horse through the levels.” Instead, she works in a 20-acre rolling pasture, using the fence line when she needs a wall, and occasionally mowing figures in the grass so that she knows how big a circle should be, for instance.

Arkwright says that her coach, Linda Smith, has really helped bring things together over the last three seasons, which Arkwright spends in Florida training. “[Smith] had her doubts about Tommy when she first saw him, but each year she brought out major improvements in both Tommy and me. A lot of credit is due to her patience and keen insight into both horse and rider,” said Arkwright.

The path has not been without obstacles, some of the most recent including the switch to the double bridle and fine-tuning the saddle fit. “Tommy has a special skill at flipping his tongue [over the bit] even when the crank is really tight,” she said. “We almost went into the ring on Friday with his tongue flipped. Thankfully, Linda spotted it just before we went in! The saddle fit has been an ongoing thing, but none of my earlier coaches ever caught it.”

Tommy, while settled enormously, is still known to be very spooky. “When we entered the ring on Friday there was a big pile of manure at X. He spooked, twisted, and halted avoiding the pile, but landed square. The judge, S. Malone Casey, wrote, "Sorry we don't step in poop." It was nice to hear her laugh! Normally we make high marks for the entrance, but she only took off two points.”

Later in the test, Arkwright lost count of the three-tempi changes and did seven instead of five. “I thought it would be better to do too many than not enough. I lost another two points and the judge said, ‘not required, but very nice!’”

Arkwright continues, “Overall, we are very grateful to be here and the season has not only brought us better performances, but some wonderful friends. I never thought he’d be the horse he is today.”