Lexington, Ky.—Nov. 8
In a sea of warmbloods during today’s open third level freestyle championship awards at the U.S. Dressage Finals, pint-sized Lipizzan Favory Rigitta II held his own, enjoying the victory gallop with his rider, Rachel Tomczak. The pair earned 10th place with a score of 65.82%.
Tomczak, Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, fell in love with the gelding, now 8, two years ago when she was a working student at his breeder Kate Phillips’ Mississippi View Farm.
“I kind of just fell in love with the little gray pony that would always snuggle with me in the stall when we would clean stalls,” she said. “My Quarter Horse at the time was kind of starting to struggle with the level he was at, and I talked to Kate to see if he would be a possibility, and she put me on him and had me ride him for two months just to make sure that it would be a good fit. I fell in love, kind of from the moment that I met him.”
Tomczak, 27, now works for Phillips, who specializes in breeding Lipizzans. She rides client horses and teaches while also working full time as an oncology nurse.
Tomczak said Phillips believes there’s a market for “a little powerhouse” horse on the smaller side for dressage, which is why she started her breeding program. Since the world-famous Tempel Lipizzans breeding program shuttered in 2023, Phillips’ breeding program has become the largest in the U.S. Tomczak said the breed averages between 15 and 16 hands, but “Reggie” tops out just a hair above 14 hands, so he has his pony card. She described the breed as almost dog-like, loving their people and getting very attached.
“They need a confident rider, someone to kind of lean into and kind of show them the way,” she said. “And it’s been a heck of a journey. But he’s felt like he’s been on the same page this last year, and it was really fun to get to go in the Alltech [Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park]. When we were here for first level freestyle a couple years ago, I had to have Kate lead him in because he’s been a little bit hot and spicy, which is great. We love that for dressage, but it was kind of fun just being able to go in the Alltech [today] and have him be a confident show horse and show them what he’s got.”
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She described her partnership with Reggie as extremely close. “It’s fun walking him around, like hand walking, because if something scary happens or if he gets uneasy about something, he’ll turn and look at me and then touch my hand, and then keep walking,” she said. “It shows he’s kind of processing what’s going on, but he looks to me first. They really need to bond to their person. So that’s why it kind of seems like it takes a little bit longer, or at least in Reggie’s case, just to get him to trust me.”
Reggie’s sire, Favory Canada, died just a few days ago at age 23. He sired 27 foals and competed at dressage finals eight times. Tomczak and Reggie rode down centerline today in his old saddle pad as a tribute. Tomczak also rode Peter Trick’s Lipizzan Siglavy Filipana to 10th place in the open first level freestyle championship.
Fellow Mississippi View Farm trainer Sam Martinson designed Reggie’s freestyle, which featured Willy Wonka music. “I’m so proud of him,” said Tomczak. “I am so proud of the last few years and the time that we put in together. I know that’s kind of cheesy and whatnot, but I’m really excited to dig into a winter training and see where the journey takes us next.”
Tomczak’s job in the oncology unit at the local hospital can be trying and emotional. She lives on the farm and relishes her time with the horses as well as sharing the joy of them with her patients.
“It’s emotionally draining to be at the hospital, but it’s always fun sharing the stories of Reggie and showing [his performances]. I’ve showed freestyles to patients, and it absolutely brings a smile to their faces. It’s definitely been a balancing act. But we all [the team at the farm] make it work. We have a great team. We all lean on each other when we need it.”
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