Expressive horses can often be like lightning in a bottle–sometimes they shine, and sometimes they explode.

Jennifer Hoffman had a little of both with Petit Danseur at the Woodside CDI in Woodside, Calif., on July 14-16. After a flashy–but tense–Grand Prix, they emerged victorious in the Grand Prix freestyle with a score of 68.40 percent.

The flashy bay is an incredible athlete who lives up to his name, dancing through the intricate Grand Prix movements with ease. His only downfall is a mercurial nature that causes his athleticism to boil over at times.

“He does have a personality,” said Hoffman with a laugh. “But I think they need to be a little hotter to get the expression you need at the top levels. It’s his attitude that brings him a bit more brilliance in the ring and allows him to be just a bit above the rest.”

His exuberance left them second in the Grand Prix, but a few unsettled moments in the freestyle–the horse balked violently just as they entered the ring and later broke into a few steps of passage in the walk sequence–couldn’t keep him from the blue ribbon. Hoffman chalked his nervousness near the A end of the ring up to being spooked there by some machinery earlier in the week while schooling.

Hoffman rode her freestyle to music from Sarah Brightman’s Las Vegas concert–electronic music with an Arabic flair. Karen Robinson assembled the freestyle, but Hoffman and owner Georgia Griffiths were very active in picking just the right piece of music and choreographing each section to suit the horse’s strengths.

Hoffman’s husband, Jurgen, found Petit Danseur, a Dutch-bred gelding, in Germany four years ago. Griffiths, a sponsor of Hoffman’s, wanted to buy Jennifer an international-caliber horse, and Petit Danseur fit the bill.

“He was only doing third level,” said Jennifer. “But I knew the minute I saw the guy get on him and ride around. He was gawky and had these long legs, but there was elasticity, and an elevation and a presence, about him. I just knew.”

Petit Danseur started Grand Prix in 2005, but he suffered a minor injury early in the year. He and Jennifer had qualified for last year’s USEF Grand Prix Championships, but when that trip became impossible, the Hoffmans decided to back off competing him and really concentrate on his training and steadiness at home. He returned to competition at the Del Mar (Calif.) show in April, his first competition in exactly a year.

“We wanted to get everything just better–and give him time to grow in to the work,” said Jurgen.

The Hoffmans hope to qualify for the 2007 FEI World Cup Final in Las Vegas (Nev.). The CDI season is essentially over in California for the year, so qualifying means “going to Florida or Europe,” said Jennifer. “So we have travel in our near future. In the meantime he’s getting stronger and stronger, and we are figuring each other out in the Grand Prix–things are getting easier.”

Luciano Sings In The Grand Prix
Karen Ball is another Californian with her eyes on the 2007 World Cup Final, though she admits she has more work ahead of her to make it happen.

“The hardest thing about doing Grand Prix is that you get one shot at it,” said Ball. “At the lower levels, you do multiple tests at the level, but at Grand Prix, you go in once, and that’s your shot.”

Ball has been riding Jill Cordsen’s Holsteiner Luciano for seven years and has produced him to the top levels herself. She put in a confident and correct Grand Prix test to win (64.33%). The big, handsome gelding has expressive movement, but Ball said it’s his temperament that she cherishes most.

“This horse has the most amazing work ethic. His character is absolutely optimal for this sport. We’ve been struggling a bit since Flintridge [in May],” she said. “He’s not been quite right–not lame, but just something was amiss. He had six weeks off, so it was a real push to come here, but he tried so hard.”

Ball’s admiration for her horse is clear. “The opportunity to grow with a horse like this is unbelievable. I’m so blessed that [owner Jill Cordsen] has given me this opportunity and left him with me when she moved to Colorado. He’s truly my partner in every way,” she said.

Luciano came from the Holsteiner Verband in Germany. The 12-year-old is by Lasandos out of Petunia, a mare from the Libretto line. His pedigree is considered heavy with jumping blood, and Ball is excited about the possibilities Luciano’s success presents for the Holsteiner breed.

Ball has had to work on her own throughout most of her career, but this spring she took the opportunity to train with David Wilson, an effort she said has helped her gain more consistency and put the polish on her riding. She hopes to do the same thing next year and to earn a slot at the World Cup Final, but she is also patient with herself and her horse.

“I’m not frustrated–I’ve only been doing this since last year. Last year I couldn’t even do my ones. So I’m pretty happy with my scores and my progress,” she said.

Ball and Hoffman have been traveling and competing together this spring, and they were thrilled to share the top two places at Woodside. “With everybody else off in Europe, we’ve been swapping places. It’s been a lot of fun,” said Ball. “[Petit Danseur] is such a phenomenal horse, and they’ve done such a great job with him.”


Canadians Dominate Small Tour
If the Grand Prix riders are thinking toward the World Cup Final, the riders in the small tour are focused on the Pan Am Games. Canadian Leslie Reid has one Pan Am gold medal to her credit with former mount Mark, and she hopes to have a repeat performance with new star Orion. The chestnut Dutch Warmblood by Jazz showed he’s well on his way by winning the Prix St. Georges (67.66%).

“This is a completely different type of horse [than Mark],” said Reid. “Mark was loose and relaxed, but you had to create more. This is a tighter type of horse but with a superior gas pedal. His will to go is very nice.”

This is only Orion’s second year in competition, although Reid has been working with him for three years. With the sale of Mark last year–U.S. rider Sue Blinks now rides him–she’s been able to turn her focus squarely on Orion, 10.

“He’s a very sharp horse, and quite spooky, but very sensitive to rise and very light. He finds the movements very easy,” she said.

The struggle with him is to keep that expression but also keep him focused and obedient. “I’m always working on his looseness and elasticity,” said Reid. “But I don’t want to lose that ‘on-the-edge’ feeling. I think it gets you more marks if you can keep them on that edge.”

Patricia and George Hatch have owned Orion since he was 4, and they and Reid hope to see him on the Canadian team next year.

“I can now start to put a little pressure on him to move more. I can push because he feels safe and secure in the movements and has the confidence to go bigger,” said Reid.

Orion topped the Prix St. Georges, but some tension in the Intermediaire I test cleared the way for fellow Canadian Karen Pavicic and her own Lionheart to take the victory.

The 9-year-old Hanoverian has been with Pavicic since he was 5, but he wasn’t the horse she was looking for. She was in Germany looking for horses for clients and was keeping an eye out for a 2- or 3-year-old for herself.

“I had him in mind for a client of mine,” she said. “But then I rode him, and when I got off I turned to my client and said, “I have got to have this horse.’ I’ve never felt that about a horse before or since.

“He was being ridden at first level by an amateur, so he wasn’t expensive, but he was still more than I thought I could pay. So I called my husband and said, ‘I know it’s more, but he’s something special.’ We managed to scrape together enough and get him. When you aren’t looking, they just come in to your life.”

The bay son of Landseigeri is an expressive and elastic horse, and Pavicic’s affection for him is obvious. “He’s extremely kind, generous, and willing. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t love riding him–and it’s nice that he’s mine. I love my horse.”

Pavicic runs her own Centre Line Stables in Richmond, B.C., with the support of husband David and children Katie and Niko. She too is aiming for the 2007 Pan Am Games.

Pavicic had trained with Dietrich von Hopffgarten since she was 12, but with his death earlier this year, she decided to go south and work with Steffen Peters.

Yes, Eventers Really Do Dressage
Event riders have long endured good-natured joking about whether or not they do “real” dressage. But several eventers from all levels were at the Woodside CDI, putting their money where their mouth was and competing in a big-time show against “real” dressage riders.

Gina Miles has competed at the four-star three-day event level with the Irish Sport Horse McKinlaigh, but she had “Big Mac” at third and fourth levels and a younger horse, Phillipa, at second level. McKinlaigh scored consistently in the low and mid 60s and emerged victorious in third level, test 3, while Phillipa scored in the low 60s and took the blue in second level, test 4.

“The dressage is so competitive now, you almost have to come to the dressage shows and score well to have a chance,” said Miles. “Even McKinlaigh, who is pretty good in dressage, scores in the 60s, but I know for him to be competitive at [the Rolex Kentucky CCI****], he needs to score at least 70 percent. Until he’s competing in this company and getting that score, I know I have work to do.”

Miles also finds benefit in the format of dressage shows.

“It’s really important for event horses to come in and do multiple tests. At the horse trials they know they can get away with being naughty, because they know they do one test and then go jump. So it’s great to do a bunch in a row and practice riding the test well, getting the ring practice, and work on riding the movements in the ring, which is always different than schooling them.

“McKinlaigh’s had lots of practice doing his flying changes this weekend,” she added with a laugh.

Despite the benefits, Miles acknowledged the challenges of time management to compete in two sports. At Woodside, she competed on Friday and Saturday, but then left at dawn on Sunday morning to make the long drive to the Event At Rebecca Farms (Mont.), where she was competing the next weekend.

For Paula Wong, spending a weekend at the dressage show is never a hardship. “I enjoy dressage. I know for most eventers it’s kind of a dirty word, but I’ve always enjoyed it,” she said.

Wong has been a winner through the intermediate level with her off-the-track Thoroughbred, Just Right, but after he started to have some problems in his jumping phases this spring, Wong decided to spend some time focusing in her dressage while sorting through Just Right’s issues.

“I’m exploring other avenues and trying to decide if it’s mental or physical. I’m hoping he’ll get back to eventing, but he’s the best horse I’ve ever had, and he doesn’t owe me anything. If he doesn’t want to event any more, that’s OK. He’s just a very cool horse,” she said.

The handsome gray performed well in multiple tests at third level to finish in the top three, with scores ranging from 61.78 to 64.78 percent. Although she had competed at straight dressage shows before, this was her first foray at a CDI.

“It’s much tougher here. There are nicer horses, better competition, and better judges. There are no giveaways at this level, no, ‘Oh he’s so cute, looks good–8.’ It’s, ‘Needs more–6,’ ” she laughed.