Lexington, Ky.—Nov. 7

Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn paused when she was asked what it was about Franzsis HSR that caught her eye when she saw a video of him as a newborn foal.

“He moved like a cat, and I was just really taken with what athleticism I saw and the handiness I saw in him, and that has not disappointed me,” she said. “Those qualities, they’re still in him today.”

The 8-year-old Oldenburg (Franziskus FRH—Simone HSR, Sandro Hit) showed off those qualities Thursday at the U.S. Dressage Finals in the open Prix St. Georges championship, which he and Fleming-Kuhn won on a score of 70.93%. 

“I was really thrilled with him today,” said Fleming-Kuhn, of New Berlin, Illinois. “He was very concentrated and really on my aids. We’ve been working throughout the summer to continue to increase his degree of engagement, and I really felt like today that came together. And so that’s also very exciting for me, for what the future holds for him.”

Fleming-Kuhn and her husband Martin Kuhn own StarWest Dressage, where they focus on bringing along young, U.S.-bred horses.

They bought Franzsis HSR from his breeder, Anita Nardine of Hidden Springs Ranch in California, at 2 weeks old. 

“Martin and I, we only ride horses of our own,” she said. “We buy them as foals and raise them and start them and bring them along ourselves. That’s kind of our thing. That’s what the journey is—it’s what we love. So, I feel very fortunate every day to have such a talented partner.

“I’ve never ridden a horse with his athleticism and sensitivity,” she added, “so it’s been, for me, a growth process and a learning process to be the best partner to him and to access his energy and his concentration within that sensitivity.”

At home, she describes the horse as a “bit of a playboy,” but very sweet. 

“He’s got a lot of personality,” she said. “He can be a handful on the ground. He’s notorious for going to turn out on his hind legs and just being a bit of an imp. He’s a super kind horse to ride.” 

Koford Gives A Favor To A Friend

This spring, Jim Koford got a shocking phone call from his good friend and fellow dressage rider Emily Brollier asking if he could take the ride on her 6-year-old Oldenburg gelding Secret Royal 3 (Secret—Luna, Rubin Royal OLD). 

Brollier had fallen from a horse after a hack, and no one had seen it happen. She was wearing a helmet and was just 40 feet from the barn, but she still suffered a brain bleed and was in a coma for two weeks. 

“When she woke up from a coma, I felt like I got a call from the dead,” Koford said. “It was like from beyond the grave, because we didn’t know if she was going to be paralyzed or … She called me up and said, ‘Hey, Jim, how’s it going?’ And I was like, ‘This is crazy.’ ”

Brollier asked if Koford would show “Roy” while she focused on a lengthy rehabilitation, and he immediately agreed. 

“That’s an easy one—of course I’ll take Roy,” he recalled. “So, it started out altruism. Like, of course, I’ll take the horse. Just send me the horse. Send me whatever you need. I got it.”

But what started out as a favor to a friend became a partnership, and Koford and Roy qualified for Dressage Finals. Thursday they led the victory gallop for the open third level championship (72.37%).

“This is so fun. I mean, he’s amazing. I can’t rave enough about him,” Koford said. “Sometimes I’ll be sitting on him, and even in the warm-up today, I just get chillbumps. This is unbelievable. It has sort of just whet my appetite to sit on a horse of this caliber again.”

Koford, who’s won multiple Grand Prix and Grand Prix freestyle championships at Dressage Finals with former ride Adiah HP, joked that Brollier made him go buy a short show coat. He hasn’t been spending a lot of time recently in national classes, but he also competed the gelding in the 6-year-old young horse class at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions (Illinois) this year.

“I literally had to go out and buy a short jacket because I haven’t done anything like this in forever, and I hate young horse classes. And yet, there I am,” he said with a laugh. “This one, literally, I just go around, usually in the warm-up, talking smack to all the people half my age. I enjoy talking smack, and then they really enjoy beating me. So, you know, they may be younger, have more physicality, but I’m old and sneaky, and I’ll find those points!”  

While he admitted their test Thursday lost a few points, he was still thrilled with the horse.

“I blew a walk pirouette, but I managed to find some points elsewhere,” he said. “He was super. It was a good, clean test, and it was quite happy. I think he’s going to be a super horse.

“It makes me a little bit emotional, because I just wanted to do such a good job for Emily,” he added. “So it’s great to share it with the horse, great to share with Emily and her husband—it really means a lot.”

The closer a person looks at Roy, the nicer they realize he is, Koford said.

“He trots around, and you think, oh, it’s a nice horse, whatever, and then the mechanics …  are extraordinary,” he said. “He has this way of using his body—his back is so loose, he can just put his hips down and, wow, it’s really fun.”

For full results, click here.

Follow along with all of the Chronicle’s coverage of the U.S. Dressage Finals here.