Team #704 Adrian Burgess and Hyli

Team #704: Adrian Burgess and Hylander MV
From: Norwood, Colorado
Ages: 75 & 25
Combined Age: 100
Test: First Level Test 3
Date: August 5, 2023

I did not sit on a horse until I was 31. I was in Kathmandu, Nepal, when I met my wife, Lorna. I was a professional climber there to make the first winter ascent of the West Ridge of Everest. She climbed a bit and scoffed at the idea because it would probably have been the hardest climb in the world.

We were married nine months later, and I began to ride with the Arapahoe Hunt of Denver. I was hooked. The adrenaline rush suited my personality. A few years later I began to event at the lower levels. Then Hylander MV (Hyli) came on the scene. He was born at Meadow View Farms in northern Alberta. A Trakehner of four years old, he had already placed in two events at Novice. I was pretty green at this kind of stuff, but through the years we learned together.

For 10 years we competed, and he taught me a lot. He is a very gentle horse until he gets to cross country. Then he would eat up the ground. When he reached his mid-teens, I decided to save his legs and ride pure dressage. His father was a fancy German dressage horse so it was pretty easy for him but a bit of a struggle for me. So now he is 25 years young. He still gallops around the field like a youngster.