When Guenter Seidel entered Princeton at the Los Angeles Winter Dressage, Jan. 28-29, he just wanted to get his young horse accustomed to the Equidome at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in Burbank, Calif. He had ridden him there in the USDF Seminar in early December, and Princeton was quite nervous in the indoor ring.

So Seidel decided to enter Princeton in third or fourth level at the December show the following weekend, but the only scratches were in the Prix St. Georges classes. He said, “Oh well” and entered him at Prix St. Georges, winning one class and placing second in the other with 70 percent scores. But the classes were held in the outdoor ring, and he still wanted to compete in the Equidome.

Since Princeton did so well in December Seidel just kept him at Prix St. Georges for the January show. This time the classes were in the Equidome.

Princeton was quite nervous, but he held it together and scored 68.25 percent on Saturday (third place) and won on Sunday with a 73.75 percent, which was the highest FEI score of the show. Saturday’s test had one mistake, and he was tense in the walk. Sunday’s test was better, but he still had one mistake.

“He has a great presence in the ring,” said Seidel. “He can be a little bit of a hot horse, but he’s very well behaved. He’s just a very comfortable horse to ride–fairly simple I’d have to say.”

Seidel said Princeton was a little bit of a late developer since he’s so big. “I’m afraid to measure him, but I think he’s over 18 hands,” Seidel said with a laugh. “I’ve really not been pushing him much. The main thing with horses this big is taking the time to build their strength. I’m just trying to let him get experience and get stronger.”

Seidel purchased the 8-year-old, Westphalian gelding (by Popcorn) four years ago. Seidel’s assistant Lauren Ogden rides his young horses and showed Princeton up to third level.

Steffen And Shannon Score At FEI
Steffen Peters won Saturday’s Grand Prix on Floriano with a 72.91 percent, edging out Seidel on Aragon, Christine Traurig on More Magic and Sue Blinks on Mark. This is Peters’ third year riding the 16-year-old, Westphalian gelding, owned by Laurie and Steve Browning of Agua Dulce, Calif.

“The test was very solid with no mistakes,” said Peters. “His passage was very regular. Sometimes he can get a little bit overly active with his right hind leg. I watched the video and he was very regular in the passage. The piaffe looked good. I was able to ride the piaffe more in place than I was last year. Overall he’s a whole lot more relaxed, and I can ride him a little bit more.”

Floriano did a good job of showing off his strongest points–his extended walk, collected walk, and the trot half passes. “He just felt like a very seasoned Grand Prix horse. That’s what we need for this year,” said Peters.

Peters’ wife Shannon also had a good show. She won Saturday’s big Prix St. Georges class on Luxor (70.00%) and placed second in the Intermediaire I on Sunday (69.75%).

“Shannon did a wonderful job,” said Steffen. “She had a very clean [Prix St. Georges] test with a little bit more expression than last year. Their Intermediaire I was quite good too. There was one little mistake in the extended trot, but she still had a very good test. Things are looking good for this year.”

Shannon and Luxor, a 12-year-old, Dutch Warmblood gelding by Ferro, were the reserve USEF Intermediaire champions last year at Gladstone (N.J.). Luxor is owned by Annie Hewitt of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.

Seidel and Aragon placed second to Floriano (70.20%) in Saturday’s Grand Prix in Aragon’s first show since last summer, and Seidel decided to try a different warm-up with him.

“I didn’t warm him up as much as I usually did when I thought he might blow up,” said Seidel. “I wanted to take the chance and see how he is with much less riding than I usually do. He was actually very good. It was a good experience, and I think it keeps him a little happier and a little stronger.”

Aragon used to get a little tense in the connection when Seidel warmed him up for a long time. “He would spook all the time, and I would ride him for hours on end. So this time I schooled him just like I school him at home and not any longer, and he behaved very well. He did one blow up going around the ring, but in the test itself he was quite good,” said Seidel. “I was really pleased with the outcome.”

A Strong Start
Mette Rosencrantz of Topanga, Calif., and Edelweiss De Bonce won Sunday’s Intermediaire I with a 70.00 percent. This was Rosencrantz’s first show with the 13-year-old, Selle Fran�ais stallion, who was purchased by Cory Walkey of Mill Creek Equestrian Center eight months ago. Edelweiss is by the grand prix jumper I Love You.

“That was a fun ending to the show to win the Intermediaire I,” said Rosencrantz. “It gives me confidence that this is just the first show of the year. I think the whole season is going to be good. When you get out in January you have kind of a feel of where you are [in your training], and I think I can still do a lot of things much better than I did in the Intermediaire I. Even if I didn’t have any big mistakes I didn’t feel that this is the max that I can do with him. Just by making him stronger he will be better.”

Rosencrantz also showed Basquewille to a win in the Grand Prix Special (65.80%) on Sunday. This was his first show in four or five months, and his Grand Prix test on Saturday was a little rough.

“He was so excited in the Grand Prix,” said Rosencrantz. “Once in a while he just feels that he knows everything and he wants to do it right now. I want to say, ‘hello–stop’ but you can’t just stop in the test, so you go on with it. Then he gets so high in the passage and he has legs all over the place and gets very strong. When he is like that in a test it’s a done deal; I can’t really change him.”

But in the Special, Rosencrantz had much better rideability. “He was great there. I had two big mistakes–one was my mistake and the other one was a horse mistake. So I didn’t really have a super clean test. I got 8s on my ones, and 8s on my twos, and he was clean in the piaffe and passage work. I feel that if I can put all the things together at one time he’ll be very competitive.”

This is the second season at Grand Prix for Rosencrantz and Basquewille, a 14-year-old, Danish Warmblood gelding by Woermitz out of Mette Smed.

The 6-year-old, Oldenburg stallion San Rubin (by Sandro Hit), owned by Laurie and Steve Browning (who also own Floriano), earned the show’s high scores of 84.05 percent and 83.42 percent at second level with Peters aboard. In both tests the judges gave San Rubin 10s on the free walk, the counter canter and the halt. He received 9s for gaits and 8s on everything else.

“He’s a very, very powerful stallion with three exceptional gaits,” said Peters. “If I could have a gelding that would have his temperament I would call it a blessing. But him being a stallion and having that kind of temperament is pretty amazing.”

The Brownings purchased the stallion in December of 2004 and left him in Europe to compete (very successfully) in the young horse championships there with Dr. Ulf Moeller. San Rubin then came to California in October of last year to be in training with Peters. This was his first show with Peters.