When she arrived at the L.A. Winter Dressage CDI-W, amateur rider Christine Ekstrand immediately began talking herself out of the classes she’d entered with Concetta.

It had been nearly two years since the pair last showed consistently, and it was Ekstrand’s first CDI. With the thought of multiple judges, more experienced horses and riders, and the pomp and circumstance of a CDI on her mind, Ekstrand nearly walked into the show office to scratch.

“Honestly, I was terrified,” she said. “I found out afterward that you can’t [scratch] once you’re signed up [for a CDI]. Once you’re signed up, you have to go. It was so intimidating—five judges and all the people there. But I’ve been working with Hilda [Gurney] once or twice a week for the past six months, and she said, ‘The horse looks great. Go for it.’ ”

In the end, Ekstrand needn’t have worried, as she and Concetta won the Prix St. Georges with a 68.63 percent and placed third in the Intermediaire I (65.36%) on Jan. 28-31 in Burbank, Calif.

“It just all came together,” she said. “I was able to focus and put everything aside. It seemed to flow. She was totally there for me, and it was a great feeling. Now I know what I’m striving for.”

Ekstrand’s journey to the dressage ring is an unusual one. She didn’t start riding until she was 30 and juggles her job as an orthopedic surgeon with a family that includes seven children, including three sets of twins.

A German native, she moved to the United States to attend the University of Texas on a tennis scholarship. She met her husband, Rikard, who was also on a tennis scholarship, and then she went to Texas Tech University for her medical degree.

Christine had always dreamed of riding, and she spent a year vaulting when she was a child, but the reality of owning a horse didn’t come true until she was completing her residency in New York. She decided it was time.

“My husband supported it, and we got my first horse,” she said. “He was green, and I was green. I tried jumping, but I wasn’t good enough of a rider to do that. I think my personality fits [dressage] better too because it’s very precise. As a surgeon, everything I do has a purpose and is precise.”

Christine learned the basics of dressage from Lendon Gray in New York, and she eventually made her way to California to take a job at the University of California-Los Angeles as an orthopedic surgeon, where she worked with the school’s sports teams.

She began training with Mette Rosencrantz, who brought her up to Prix St. Georges.

When it came time to look for her next partner, Christine found Concetta, a 13-year-old Hanoverian mare (Contendro—Baroness H, Buenos Aires) through a friend in Germany. The mare had started as a jumper and didn’t begin dressage training until she was 6.

Christine, 47, brought her up from third level to Intermediaire I and spent a year traveling to train with Steffen Peters in San Diego to continue her education. But in mid-2013, Concetta broke her right front coffin bone in a pasture accident.

At first the injury was misdiagnosed, and Christine was instructed to walk the mare three times a day for two weeks. Upon further examination, it was determined the injury was more serious than originally thought. During a year of stall rest, Christine used her expertise in human medicine to help her horse.

“Being an orthopedic surgeon, I used all the tools I have in my tool bag, so to speak,” she said. “I used a human-grade femoral bone stimulator on her and got her fracture to heal.”

Though it was “touch and go” bringing Concetta back to work, late last summer Christine finally returned to the show ring. She started out at second level, then did a few fourth level tests before entering the CDI at Burbank. She recently started working with Gurney, who she says has steered her on the right path in the show ring.

Balancing It All

With seven children and a busy private practice, Christine decided to move Concetta closer to home. She bought a ranch near Santa Monica, Calif., and she now owns a retired horse for her children to ride, as well as a Grand Prix schoolmaster, Fleur Rouge. She also recently bought a 5-year-old from the PSI Auction in Germany.

“One thing about amateurs is, I feel like if you want to get better, you have to become a better rider,” she said. “The solution isn’t a better horse. You need a good horse, but you have to really become a better rider, and if a more difficult horse teaches you that, I think you’re on the right path.”

With her children a little older now—13, 11, 8 and 6—Christine is enjoying riding with them. Two children, Sophia and Markus, are interesting in competing. Sophia even made her showing debut during the national show held alongside the CDI.

“That was a new experience—to coach her while riding my horse and getting the CDI done!” Christine said.

Christine juggles her time with help from Rikard, lots of planning, and “my groom Cesar Andrade, without whom I could not do it!

“Every day is a little different,” she said. “I’m lucky that my husband is flexible, so he can help drive the kids to school or take them to tennis after school. There are certain days where I’ll focus on work and try to ride really early before work, go to work, and then meet my husband and my kids at home. Or I’ll take the kids to school, go ride, go to work, then he picks up the kids. I ride between four or five times a week. Everything is scheduled to make it work. I’m lucky with my work that I can make my own days and schedule surgery ahead of time a couple of weeks, so I know how it’s going to work with my riding schedule.”

Christine Ekstrand with Concetta, her husband Rickard, and her seven children. Photo courtesy of Christine Ekstrand

She uses riding as a mental break too.

“Riding is what keeps the circle of life going because it gives me the relaxation, and it gives me different focus. I’m totally refreshed afterwards,” she said. “I need it for my mental well-being, and I think physically it keeps me motivated to stay fit and stay strong, to work out and eat healthy.”

She said it’s also good for her children to see that healthy behavior.

“They see that Mommy cares,” she said.

Christine is hoping she’ll compete Concetta at Grand Prix eventually, but for now she’s content to have her partner back and healthy.

“I’m just happy I can compete at a CDI and even win one,” she said. “I have to pinch myself that it’s really happened. She fits me like a glove. She likes to compete. I think she’s even better at shows than at home because she’s more attentive to the light aids I give her. The biggest thing I think is to just get more self-carriage. She has really expressive gaits, so if I can let her show her gaits I think she has really big potential for the big tour.

“I wish I could go back 10 years because I feel like I’m just getting on a roll,” she continued. “But that’s the great thing with dressage—it’s like a red wine, and you keep getting better. I had no idea that I could compete at that level, or even in the open level because I’ve never ridden against an open rider. It’s good to see that I’m on the right path, and I’m going to keep rolling with it and keep enjoying it and keep the horses healthy while I’m doing it.”

This story originally appeared in the Feb. 22 & 29 issue of the Chronicle. Enjoy it? Consider subscribing!