Christine Stephenson's 2010 Olympic Dream Trip Journal

Day 1: Monday 28 June 2010: Travel Day

Today was travel day. I left my house around 3am feeling not the least bit tired. I was nervous and anxious to get on the road. I got to the airport, waited through line after line and eventually got to my plane. The six hours between Los Angeles and New York seemed to go by really fast. When I reached JFK airport I couldn’t wait to meet the group. It’s a really great thing I liked the group so much, because we got to spend the night in the airport together. Our plane was delayed almost an entire day because of mechanical difficulties. Scary? Kinda! For dinner we all grabbed handfuls mini pretzel bags and water bottles that the airport crew had left by the hundreds to help quiet a group of hungry and unsatisfied travelers. It was really unfortunate, but we made the best of it and used the extra time to get to know one another.

Day 2: Tuesday 29 June 2010: Travel Round Two

We woke up at 7am in extremely uncomfortable positions and got up feeling 60 years older. We finally got on our plane and on our way to Germany. Everyone on the plane cheered as we took off. We were all so excited to actually be getting out of there. Almost on cue, we hit cruising altitude and I fell asleep. Next thing I know, our landing gear hit the ground at the Frankfurt airport and screeched us to a halt. We were in Germany! Woo hoo! That night we again slept in the airport, but this time in a Sheraton! It was definitely a little more comfortable.

Day 3: Wednesday 30 June 2010: Ann-Katrin Linsenhoff’s Schafhof at Kronberg.

This barn was absolutely stunning. Cobble stone walkways, gorgeous old white buildings covered in ivy, a pack of friendly Rhodesian Ridgebacks to greet us at the gate. As we walked through, I couldn’t help thinking that this was the kind of barn everyone dreams about having. We first met with Matthias Rath. He was extremely hospitable and chatted with us about this and that. He offered us drinks and showed us to seats front and center in their beautiful covered riding ring. As we sat down, Ann-Kathrin came in to ride. She introduced herself and her husband Klaus-Martin Rath. They were all very gracious in showing us their day to day activities and training program with each horse. The quality of horse was excellent here! At Schafhof they are continuously breeding and bringing up young horses of the best quality. So year after year they always have something nice coming up the line. I was most impressed with everyone at the barn and left feeling very inspired. We went to a quiet part of the city, had lunch and talked about all we had observed. We drove out to our next destination, the Ibis hotel in Munster. It was a small place, but quite nice.

Day 4: Thursday 1 July 2010: Michael Klimke, Warendorf State Stud, Munster.

Today we met Michael Klimke. My instant impression of him was that he was a kind and very fair rider/trainer. His philosophy with the horses started with a lot of long and low stretching warm up to really get the horse warmed up through his back and moving forward. After a walk break, he gradually increased the pressure and expectations on each horse until it was working in an uphill frame with more expressive movements. Another big thing we observed was that every horse, no matter the age, had begun to “think of the idea” or was truly working on in hand piaffe. Michael and his assistant both explained how essential it is to get a horse thinking about engaging and quickening his hind end from an early age and to use that within all his work through the levels.

After Michael’s, we went to Warendorf and visited a tack shop and the State Stud. The stallions at the Stud were practicing dressage drills. There were probably 20 of them, young and old, in the tiny ring together. It WAS as crazy as it sounds. Their coach was booming commands in German over a loud speaker for a solid hour. The stallions were expected to work hard and behave appropriately with each other. (Some of which did so only marginally.) It was an amazing sight to see and definitely worth the watch. When the drill practice was finished we walked through the stables and looked around. The facility was old and absolutely gorgeous. The stone and ivy covered buildings were spectacular. I‘ve never seen anything like them in my life.

We got back to our hotel in time to walk out into the town of Munster for dinner. Though I was absolutely enjoying every moment of the horses, I was glad to have time to experience a little of the local food and sights. The stone churches throughout the town were breathtaking with their impressive size and stained glass windows. The small city was bustling with activity, and it was really great to be a part of it for a short time.

Day 5: Friday 2 July 2010: Ingrid Klimke and Helen Langehanenberg

When we met Ingrid Klimke I was struck with her completely congenial nature. She must be one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met! I think it runs in the family, because her brother, Michael, had been the same way the day before. Ingrid gave us a tour of her barn and introduced us to all of her super star eventing and dressage horses. She had some of her English speaking students scheduled for lessons, so we could hear her philosophies as she taught. It was extremely interesting to me how she incorporated cavalletti work into her training of each horse. She explained how the use of cavelletti will help the horse A) strengthen his hind end and B) get him thinking about regulating his own rhythm. We all took home a few exercises to try!

After Ingrid’s we headed down to Helen Langehanenberg’s barn. Helen was riding when we arrived. She’s an extremely tiny woman and I was quite impressed by how effective her riding was. It really affirms my belief that yes, strength is great to have in your toolbox, but correct aids and training are more important. If you have a talented willing horse who is trained correctly, you shouldn’t need to muscle him around. We all very much enjoyed seeing her lovely horses and touring her facility.

Day 6/7: Saturday/Sunday 3-4 July 2010: Langenfeld/Rheinland Horse Show

This weekend we attended the Regional Championships for Rheinland. We were able to watch a good deal of dressage, show jumping and even some vaulting. I thought it was really interesting how they combined all these disciplines into one championship venue. We met with German judge Christoph Hess and talked about the differences of dressage in Germany versus back home in the States. We learned about the differences in rider programs and in bringing kids and horses up the levels to produce the “next generation of champions”. It’s a really important part of the sport that is missing in other countries. I feel like the US is really starting to adopt this idea and provide a ton of support for the upcoming juniors and young riders.

We were able to watch a dressage rider class for young children, developed by Nicole Uphoff. Its main focus is on the seat, correct posture and effective aids. Children as young as 8 years old were riding school ponies to rider scores of 9! It was adorable to watch, but also provided an insight into why Europe produces such great young riders. They have so many steps in the educational ladder for children. It’s fantastic to see! Another interesting thing going on at the show was the FEI pony championships. I couldn’t believe the quality of these ponies and pony riders. The pairs looked like miniaturized FEI Grand prix combinations. The ponies were stunning and the riders were exceptional… especially since the kids looked no older than 14.

In addition to the pony classes, we were able to watch the Junior, Young Rider and Grand Prix divisions. It was kind of nice to see that the riding wasn’t all that much better than back at home. Yes there were some super nice horses, but riders still made mistakes and had some of the same issues that we see daily in our own horses. I took away the single fact that no mater where you are, or what horse you have, we’re all riding the same sport and we can all learn from each other.

A side note of the weekend: We were completely engulfed in “fussball fever”. World Cup soccer dominated German life. When the German team played, it was on every TV in EVERY café and even at the horse show! They have so much pride in their country and in their sports. It was fun to get a little caught up in it.

Day 8/9: Monday/Tuesday 5-6 July: Klaus Balkenhol

Everyone in the group was super excited to meet Klaus. When we arrived I was struck by how beautiful the landscape and facilities were. The natural trees in the area were enormous green towers that turned the barn into an isolated dressage sanctuary. There were flowers and bright colors everywhere! I can’t imagine a more gorgeous place to ride my horses. Klaus and his wife Judith were so nice! They allowed us to watch while they and daughter, Annabel, worked all of their up and coming young horses as well as Annabel’s Grand Prix horse. It was great to see the family working together to get the best out of the horses. I loved the fact that they always explained each of the different horses’ stories, ages and training. It made the training techniques we were viewing all the more relevant and we could really see the various problems being corrected. We watched Klaus ride a few horses and teach a few lessons. He’s such a super rider with impeccable timing. A recurring theme that I noticed here, and at all the barns we visited, was the use of a long slow warm up. They insisted that the horse have enough time to develop his movements. Klaus really showed how relaxed and harmonious dressage can look. Even when asking for difficult work from the tricky horses, there was not a trace of frustration present. He definitely didn’t let the horses slack off, but proved to be a master of putting an easy consistent pressure on the horses until all of a sudden they turned from a normal horse warming up to a seriously impressive animal. He worked the same way with his students. It was very much an inspiration to watch!

Day 10: Wednesday 7 July: Hubertus Schmidt

Our last day was one of the most horse-filled of the whole trip! We visited the training stable of Hubertus Schmidt. It would be difficult to pick, but if I had to choose a favorite day this would be it. Hubertus was SO fun to watch ride. Everything he did was in a precise pattern that didn’t vary much from horse to horse. Talk about consistency! He would take a very average looking horse and, within the span of 20 to 30 minutes, have it looking like the best thing on four legs! Here we were again able to watch two or three lessons taught in English. This was great, because we could more accurately see the problems of the horses and solutions given by Hubertus. We watched a large number of young horses and again noticed the quality of the animals. It’s hard to beat the breeding in Europe!

Day 11: Thursday 8 July 2010: Home

Today was our travel home day. It was kind of a daze because we were all pretty tired, but we were definitely happy to be on the way home with so many wonderful things to take back with us. On the long plane ride back to LA, I had time to reflect on the horse packed trip that had consumed the last 10 days of my life. This trip to Germany definitely helped cement the direction my life is taking. It was an amazing adventure that I am eternally grateful to have been able to participate in. I learned so much about dressage in Europe and about the sport as a whole. I can never thank The Dressage Foundation enough for giving me this kind of opportunity and these wonderful experiences. I’ll certainly remember it forever and hopefully the training I observed will carry through into my own riding and horse life.