The Canadian anthem seemed to play continuously as Ashley Holzer took home one blue ribbon after another in every class she entered at the Gold Coast Opener Festival CDI in Loxahatchee, Fla., Jan. 19-22.

The Grand Prix boasted an impressive field of competitors. Charlotte Bredahl Baker travelled from California with Komo, and Canadian Evi Strasser and Colombian Cesar Parra were competing with their 2005 FEI World Cup mounts, Quantum Tyme and Galant du Serein, respectively.

But Holzer, a Canadian who splits her time between Wellington, Fla., and River-dale, N.Y., held them off and piaffed to the front with a 70.16 percent aboard Imperioso, her 2004 Olympic mount.

At 16 years old, the Dutch Warmblood stallion (Cocktail–Bonita) just keeps improving. “He’s my pet,” said Holzer. “I’ve had him for six years, and he just keeps on trucking. Riding him is like wearing an old pair of great shoes.”

She thinks the Grand Prix might have been the best test he’s ever done, with a light and correct piaffe and passage. “Now I know him very well,” said Holzer. “It’s giving me a lot more confidence.”

“Peri” also gave Holzer the confidence to win the Grand Prix freestyle on Sunday. She’s added more difficulty to the ride with double pirouettes and flying changes on circles.

The light piano music enhanced Peri’s flowing, easy movement while a track from The Princess Bride during the walk made everyone smile. But Holzer and Karen Robinson of Applause Dressage are working on changing the music for the next CDI.

They did make a mistake in the two-tempi changes during the freestyle, but Holzer attributed it to the loudly flapping tent next to the arena. Gusting winds throughout the show gave all of the horses a bit more brilliance than riders were expecting.

Holzer wasn’t concerned about the spook or the inclement weather, though. “They’ve got to deal with more than this at the big shows,” she said. She raved about the footing and commented that the close speakers and tents were good preparation for the more testing environments at the World Equestrian Games or similar international competitions.

Gambol Pays Off
Peri may have the spotlight for now, but his stablemate, Diane Fellows’ Gambol, is coming up behind him. The impressive 12-year-old Dutch Riding Horse (Gabor–Arella) placed fourth in the Grand Prix (68.70%) and won the Grand Prix Special (70.28%).

“He’s an exciting horse,” said O-level judge Stephen Clarke of Great Britain. “The first mark I gave him [in the Grand Prix Special] was a 9.”

Gambol just competed in his first Grand Prix last April. “I entered, scratched and then entered again,” Holzer said of that first test.

A mare drew the stallion’s interest in the warm-up, causing Holzer to pull him from the class. But then they changed warm-up arenas and his focus returned, so she decided to go in the ring. Then he got distracted again, and she had to tell the judges that if she cantered in she was going, and if she trotted away she wasn’t!

“He went in and he was fabulous,” said Holzer. “He has not let me down. He’s very green and you would never know it.”

Holzer compared training Gambol to training a whale or a dolphin. “He does something well and I give him a treat,” she said. “He does something well and I give him another treat. Once he knows his program, he won’t fail you.”

And if two solid Grand Prix mounts weren’t enough, Holzer has another rising star in Pop Art, who won the Prix St. Georges (71.90%), the Intermediaire I (71.90%) and the Intermediaire freestyle (74.67%).

“Poppie” was extremely competitive last winter in Wellington, Fla., and he just keeps improving. Holzer admitted that she was planning to move him up to Grand Prix this summer, thus they had some one-tempis by mistake in her Prix St. Georges.

“He’s the sweetest, easiest and friendliest horse,” she said. “He’s just a happy horse and never, ever bad.”

The 9-year-old, Dutch Warmblood gelding (Jody–Prinses) has a lot of impulsion and expression according to Clarke, who waxed enthusiastic about the entire field of horses in the early season CDI.

“We haven’t had anything bad,” he said. “They’re mostly in the 60s and some are in the high 60s.”

And the competition should only heat up in March when big guns like Leslie Morse and George Williams arrive to contest the Grand Prix.

But Holzer won’t be intimidated. She’s looking to qualify for the WEG with Peri or Gambol.

“They’re very different, but all horses are different,” she said. “I try to pick a mentality that at the end of the day is going to want to work. We’re all riding fabulous horses, and we all ride well. On any given day any one of us could win. You need to have a horse that is going to pull for you.”


A Partnership Solidifies
Parra was happy to have Horses Unlimited’s Galant du Serein pulling for him in the Grand Prix. “He’s taught me a lot,” said Parra.

The pair placed second in the Grand Prix (68.75%) and second in the Grand Prix freestyle (73.72%).

“He’s a big horse with a big personality,” said Parra of the 12-year-old, Selle Francais stallion (Apache d’Adriers–Sojornet). “We’re more of a combination now whereas we were more like business partners before.”

Parra had an excellent warm-up for the Grand Prix, but some pilot errors in the test cost them points. “We had a mistake in the one-tempis and in the last piaffe,” he said. “It’s my fault. We haven’t shown since October. There’s no such thing as an easy Grand Prix.”

Still, he was enthusiastic about their improvement. “He’s just getting softer and softer,” said Parra. “He’s becoming consistent, and my goal is to be over 70 percent.”

Parra also had mistakes in the changes in his freestyle, and he said that a better canter rhythm before the changes would have helped.

The 42-year-old Colombian splits his time between Whitehouse Station, N.J., and Jupiter, Fla., and trains with German Olympian Hubertus Schmidt.

The entire weekend might have gone by without a note of the “Star Spangled Banner” if it weren’t for Caroline Roffman of Wellington, Fla. She placed first and second in both of the young riders classes in the CDI, winning the team test with Bulgari V (69.20%) and the Prix St. Georges with Rigaudon (67.00%).

At 17, Roffman could have opted to spend one more year in the juniors, but with the help of trainer Silke Rembacz, she decided it was time to challenge herself in the young rider ranks.

“I went in with low expectations,” Roffman said. “I just wanted to get 60 percent.”

It was Roffman’s first time competing at Prix St. Georges and also the first time for Rigaudon, an 11-year-old Hanoverian (by Ramiros Bube). She’s used to winning with Bulgari, a 12-year-old Hanoverian (Baryshnikov–Evita), and was one of the top-ranked junior riders in 2005 with him.

They had their usual solid performance in the team test, but on Saturday the whipping wind and loudspeakers got to “Bully,” and his performance was more electric than Roffman might have liked.

“We had communication difficulties,” Roffman explained. “I need to learn to ride him better in the ring. I had less warm-up with him, and I knew going into the ring that he was going to be hard to hold together. I have to go in with less pressure for Bulgari and give him more confidence.”

But the mistakes with Bully meant that Roffman was especially proud of “Tony”, who put his best foot forward and insured that they still left with a blue in the Prix St. Georges. “He stepped up to the plate when Bully had mistakes,” said Roffman.

She was excited to ride in the more difficult tests since she’s been practicing the movements for some time now. “It’s a different way to ride the test,” she explained. “I take more risks.”

Not only did Roffman take home blue in the tests, but she also managed to grab best dressed at the jog-up with her stylish appearance.

As a senior in high school Roffman is still uncertain what next fall will bring. She’s hoping to qualify for the North American Young Riders Championships and is positive she will continue riding.

A Team Of Winners
Ashley Holzer was proud of her horses, but she might have been even prouder of her groom Danielle Gallagher, who rode Holzer’s Jornello to a win in her first Prix St. Georges (67.62%).

“I have a great team,” said Holzer with a smile.

Gallagher’s mother Allison is a friend of Holzer’s, and she used to ride with her. They reconnected at the World Equestrian Games in 2002, and Allison asked if Danielle could work for Holzer.

“I got on the next plane to New York,” said Danielle, 26. A native of St. John, New Brunswick, Danielle has spent the last four years working for Holzer. “I used to event,” she explained. “But Ashley started fine-tuning my seat.”

For the last six months she’s been riding “George,” a 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood (Stornello–Simmertwirre). He’d been off for the past few years after surgery, and Danielle bonded quickly with the hot gelding.

“He has the most personality,” she said. “If he doesn’t like you, you can’t touch him or brush him or anything.”

Danielle competed at training level last year, but this was her first time competing at the FEI level. “I was really nervous,” she admitted. “I’ve been going over the test for past eight weeks, thinking about how to ride it.”

Her favorite part of the test was the extended trot. “His feet almost hit his belly,” she said. “It took me a whole summer to sit his trot, because he has so much power.”

After watching Holzer ride every day, Danielle is inspired to continue her dressage career, but she hasn’t forgotten her roots. “I still want to jump,” she said. “I like to take them out and gallop sometimes.”