The Los Angeles Mid-Winter Dressage Show at the L.A. Equestrian Center offered Steffen Peters a rare opportunity to ride his horses. The over abundance of rain in Southern California this spring caused Lake Hodges in San Diego County to overflow its spillway, placing the racetrack and all-weather dressage ring at Delta Farms, where Peters is based, under four feet of water.

“We have a few ducks floating down centerline,” said Peters with a laugh.

But that didn’t stop Peters from a hat trick in all three of the USEF/HP Grand Prix classes, Feb. 25-27, in Burbank, Calif. Floriano, with whom Peters was the alternate at the Athens Olympics, won the Grand Prix (71.31%) and the Grand Prix freestyle (72.04%). His new Grand Prix mount, Lombardi II, won the Grand Prix Special (67.00%) and was second in the Grand Prix (67.77%).

Peters has been riding Floriano for about a year and a half. He first saw the Westphalian gelding (Floristan–Weinberg) while teaching a clinic at owner Melanie Pai’s Canaan Ranch in Fulshear, Texas. Floriano was going to be for sale after the Olympic Games, but as a Christmas present for Melanie, her husband Joe decided they were going to keep him.

“It was a Christmas present for me, too,” said Peters with a smile.

Judges Axel Steiner, Jane Weatherwax and Joan Macartney all scored Floriano over 70 percent, and all placed him first in the Grand Prix.
“Floriano’s Grand Prix could have been just a little more forward, but it was very clean overall,” said Peters. “I think with a little more forward energy the score could have been higher. But I’m not complaining at a 71 percent!”

At the age of 15, Floriano is in even better shape than he was last year, said Peters. “Floriano has a tremendous amount of energy,” Peters said. “He still feels very elastic and very energetic. His piaffe is getting a little more reliable. It has always been his weakest point. He still seems to sometimes get a little stage fright about the piaffe, where he can leap and be a little silly, but it certainly was good enough today.”

Floriano’s piaffe was better in the Grand Prix freestyle on Sunday. This was the debut of a new, more difficult freestyle for Floriano. He showed flying changes on a curved line, half pass in passage, and quarter pirouettes in piaffe. The music is new also, a mixture of Fleetwood Mac, John Lennon, and Supertramp songs.

“It’s a good balance,” said Peters. “The horse is not overwhelmed with the difficulty. I think that is always important. It’s usually good when you can come out of the ring after your test and say that it was fun. When it was fun then it’s usually a pretty decent score.”

Stepping Up

Lombardi II, who performed the Grand Prix test for the first time in competition at last month’s show, made his debut in the Grand Prix Special.

“Sometimes you just have to try,” said Peters. “I tried the test at home and it felt good. It looked respectful enough that I could present it in front of the judges so I did.”

Peters has only had the 13-year-old, Holsteiner gelding in training for a year. Akiko Yamazaki of Los Altos Hills, Calif., purchased Lombardi II two years ago. Yamazaki decided he was a little too much horse for her and asked Peters to try him.

“He’s definitely a very complicated and sensitive horse,” said Peters. “I loved him after the first two months. The first six weeks were difficult. You could certainly see that he had three good gaits. But he was so severely resistant about any type of collection–walk pirouettes, canter pirouettes, piaffe, passage. He spent a lot of time on his hind legs–not the way it’s supposed to be–but only on his hind legs.”

At first, Peters told Yamazaki that, at best, he would be an average Prix St. Georges horse. “Then I called her again two months later and said, ‘Akiko, he’s going to be a very competitive Grand Prix horse.’ And now I love to think he could be a very competitive international Grand Prix horse.”

In the Grand Prix Special, Peters made two mistakes–in the two-tempis and the piaffe. “In the Grand Prix you do the one-tempis off the left lead, and in the Special you do them off the right lead. So he thought for sure when we came off the left lead today that he had to do the one-tempis instead of the two tempis. Those are perfectly normal things for a green Grand Prix horse.

“The transitions from piaffe to passage are still something we have to work on,” he added. “Coming from the passage to piaffe is already quite good. But from the piaffe to passage, that’s still our main hurdle at this point.”

The judges gave him 9s on his one-tempis and 8s on his canter pirouettes.

“So it’s just a really, really good start,” said Peters. “I think next year will be the year for him to shine a little bit more, but it’s certainly great to get our feet wet.”

Transformation

Peters’ student Alaska Culmone of Del Mar, Calif., won the USEF/HP Prix. St. Georges on her 15-year-old, Oldenburg gelding Fantastico (69.00%).

“It felt like he had a lot of power and activity,” said Culmone. “My aids were all working, and all the stars were aligned.”

Fantastico placed second in the Intermediaire I (65.33%). Culmone thought that he got a little spooky in the ring and went a little flat. “He’s kind of an explosive horse,” she said.

Culmone purchased Fantastico, who is by Fashion King, 21³2 years ago. She was a western rider competing in reining and breakaway calf roping when she lived in Texas. Seven years ago she moved to California and got hooked on dressage. “I needed a challenge,” she said with a laugh.

When Culmone purchased Fantastico she had the opportunity to spend three months working with Debbie McDonald in Hailey, Idaho. Fantastico was so explosive at the time that Culmone couldn’t keep him on the ground.

“Debbie really got me through all that because she’s really good with that type of horse,” said Culmone.

By the time Culmone started with Peters a little over a year ago Fantastico was a lot more manageable, and she was able to start showing him. “Steffen’s really taught me a whole lot,” said Culmone. “He’s just an amazing teacher and trainer. He’s taught me how to ride the upper level movements. He’s taught me how to be a quiet rider, but an effective rider, which has been really good for Fantastico since he’s so sensitive. We’ve just been going like gang busters ever since we got to him.”

Last October Culmone and Fantastico won the GAIG/USDF Region 7 adult amateur championship at Prix St. Georges.

“I’ve really fallen in love with him,” said Culmone. “We get along really well and have good chemistry together. He’s just been wonderful for me. Fantastico’s got a huge heart, and he gives me 150 percent every time I ride him. He’ll be with me for the rest of his life.”

Kathleen Raine and Nirvano, in his second season at this level, won the USEF/HP Intermediaire I class (68.75%). He was second in the USEF/HP Prix St. Georges (66.58%).

“He’s really honest,” said Raine. “He’s really a lot of fun now. He’s a lot more solid and confident in the work. I can start to push for more brilliance and he stays relaxed.”

Nirvano was a little tense in Friday’s Prix St. Georges, which Raine attributed to the shadows in the Equidome and the wind. He relaxed on Saturday in the Intermediaire I and was more dependable. Raine plans to start him in the Intermediaire II in a few months.

“He does everything in the Grand Prix,” she said. “I just decided that I would do the selection trials, do a few shows, and then move him up.”
Kim Carter, Raine’s neighbor in Murrieta, Calif., owns Nirvano. She imported the 10-year-old, Dutch Warmblood by Jazz a few years ago. “He’s too big of a horse for Kim,” said Raine of the 17.1-hand gelding. “But he’s fun for me!”