Patience and focusing on the basics pays off for this rider.

Sometimes all the pieces fall into place, and for Sarah Chatfield, that day came at the Heidelberg Cup where she went home with the Heidelberg Cup trophy aboard Pattent for her high score in the Prix St. Georges (70.78%).

Although Chatfield has her own business riding and training horses, she generally only shows one horse at a time. The special bond she’s built up with “Bobby” over the past three years made her win at the Apopka, Fla., show, held March 28-29, that much better.

“He’s just wonderful. Bobby is a dream boat,” gushed Chatfield. “He’s such a fun horse to get on every day. I appreciate him so much. I’m grateful that he came into my life.”

Chatfield has been a dressage enthusiast for the past 20 years and splits her time between Lincolnville, Maine, and Cocoa, Fla. She used to work as a landscape designer, installing and maintaining perennial borders in Maine during the summer, but now she’s just focused on riding.

“I started coming to Florida in 1999. Tasha Zubrisky and I came down to train with Shelly Francis. I continued and started working with other people,” said Chatfield.

Now she regularly trains with Lisa Wilcox and Ernst Hoyos when he’s in Florida, as well as Wolfgang Kutting. During the summers she still trains with Zubrisky.

Chatfield found Bobby as a 9-year-old going second level, but she saw far more potential in the Dutch Warmblood gelding (Ragazzo—Lady, Cocktail).

“He wasn’t fit at all, but I could get an idea of what was in there. I had a sense of his quality even though he had no muscle and wasn’t legged up,” she said. “I spent six months legging him up by doing hill work, cavaletti and trot sets. He needed muscle. I built a top line and then started bringing him along. Once he could be straight and had a stronger hind end and top line, he took to the FEI work really easily.”

The pair was able to come out at fourth level and quickly moved up to Prix St. Georges. This year they’ve started showing Intermediaire I, and Chatfield is aiming to qualify for Dressage At Devon (Pa.)

The pair contested their first CDI in February at the Palm Beach Dressage Derby (Fla.), but that didn’t go so well, so Chatfield decided to take a step back and reevaluate her program.

“I wasn’t as relaxed as I am for a regular show. Now I’ve done it, and I know what to expect. I can go back and do another CDI and be a lot more relaxed,” she said. “It’s just another dressage test, and we do our best every time whether it’s a CDI or a small local show.”

But it wasn’t just Chatfield who was feeling tense. She’d been working many of the Grand Prix movements with Bobby prior to the CDI, so she decided to take things back a notch and get him feeling more secure and comfortable.

“I changed bits,” said Chatfield. “I put in a bit that had much less port. He loved it. I worked on getting him more over his back, more through and more relaxed. He came out to the show, and he was relaxed. Then all the movements were just movements. Because I had him right there, it was easy to do it and do a good job. Those basics are so essential.”

Chatfield knew things were going in the right direction after a strong warm-up.

“I’ve learned from watching other people and from the people I’ve trained with to be really methodical and mentally present in the warm-up,” she explained. “I need to be quiet, calm, harmonious and fluid. He needs plenty of stretching. He responded so well that we took that right into the ring. In the test we had this fluidity and harmony that I can only get if I have that success in the warm-up.”

Judge Margaret Freeman commented on the clear power and expression Bobby expressed during the test. “He was so in front of my leg and so on the bit and listening to me. I could just have fun and breathe and relax and ride the movements,” said Chatfield.

The pair also contested an Intermediaire I on Sunday and placed third (63.42%). “We were both tired,” she admitted. “I try to take it a day at a time and have some humility about it. I feel really blessed to have this horse come into my life. He’s opened a lot of doors for me in my riding and my opportunities.”

She plans to ride in two more shows in Florida before heading back to Maine for the summer.

If It’s Not Fun, It’s Not Working

While Chatfield decided to focus exclusively on horses later in life, Melissa Torreano made the opposite choice when she found being a professional horsewoman took the enjoyment out of riding.

She gave up her professional status a few years ago, sold her Grand Prix horse and started working part time for NuTech National, an alarm servicing company based in Maitland, Fla.

“When you’re riding your own horses, you’re in control of your training and their progression. When you’re riding other people’s horses, you’re working on their schedule. It was more of a job. At the end of the day after riding 12 horses, I didn’t even want to ride my own horse,” said Torreano. “Concentrating on my own horse has made riding fun again.”

Torreano, 30, earned the highest adult amateur score at the Heidelberg Cup, a 71.94 percent in first level, test 2, aboard Ulano. She went on to win two more of her first level tests and ended up with the high score for a Dutch Warmblood.

The experience of returning to amateur status has allowed Torreano to take the time she needed with “Uli.”

“You need to let your horse tell you what works for him and what doesn’t,” she said. “They will let you know when it is time to push and when it’s time to slow down and reinforce the basics. That’s what I’ve done with Uli, and it’s paid off. He enjoys his work and looks forward to it. Because of his positive attitude and trust in me, it’s easy to introduce new movements to him and do them well.”

Torreano imported the Dutch Warmblood gelding (Metall—Gemona) as a 2-year-old and showed him extensively as a 4- and 5-year-old, but he had two years off to stand in a pasture while she sorted out some personal issues.

“He had a chance to grow up. The break did his brain a lot of good. He’s not a spooky horse. He’s been there and done that,” said Torreano. “He’s only been back to work for a year now.”

The pair qualified for the Great American/USDF Region 3 Championships last year at training level and placed third. Now Torreano is aiming to qualify at first level.

“This year I haven’t done a lot of competing. Moving him up from training level to first level, there were a few bumbles,” she said. “Two weeks before this show we got our groove back. I was thrilled with his scores. It reinforced that what I was doing was correct.”

The Winter Park, Fla., resident trains with Sandy Dziak. Torreano credited her for helping develop and show off Uli’s gaits as well keeping her focused on the training pyramid. But Torreano also attended a recent clinic with Lendon Gray and gained some valuable insight into how to train Uli.

“She gave me some advice about moving him along. He’s so talented and bright that you’ve got to push him a little more because he gets bored. She had me start working some second and third level movements,” said Torreano.

Uli sported an unusual look at the Heidelberg Cup, thanks to Torreano’s practical groom, Alixandra Fleischauer.

“Alix roached her horse’s mane to accentuate his neck. Then Uli had allergies in the summer and would constantly rub his mane, and it was extremely thin and difficult to braid. Alix roached it so he wouldn’t be so itchy, and she didn’t have to braid it. I was shocked, but the look seems to work for him and people love it. There are now three horses from Sandy’s barn with roached manes. Maybe we’ll start a new trend!” said Torreano with a laugh.