Fun in Frigid Florida

Monday and Tuesday I had the pleasure of taking one of my clients from the cold North to sunny Florida to do a little horse shopping. We arrived at the Orlando airport to find that the temperature was a balmy 40 degrees, and the wind was blowing up a gale that would have sent Dorothy clicking her little red heels together for Kansas.

We arrived at Iron Spring Farm in Ocala and met up with Alex Robertson, who showed us a beautiful Friesian named Tsjesse. He was a real doll (Tsjesse of course!) and pet of a horse, but no slacker as he has shown successfully up to Intermediare I. Iron Spring is impeccably kept, with immaculate grounds, barns and buildings, and everyone was very friendly and welcoming. We both had a great ride on Tsjesse, saw a few younger horses, and then began the trip back south to Mt. Dora and Apopka to see our third horse.

In Apopka, we met our friend and trainer Nancy Smith, who was instrumental in setting up the remainder of our trip. She arranged for us to try Donatella, a stunning Westphalen mare that she competed to Grand Prix. Unfortunately, due to daylight we had to cut the riding short and decided to overnight in Mt. Dora instead of making the drive to Wellington, in order to give her a second try on Tuesday.

The day dawned clear and cold with temperatures hovering just above 25 degrees!!! Poor Dolly was shivering as I got on to warm her up even though she had a nice toasty quarter sheet on. I feel so priviliged to have had the opportunity to give Dolly a try...she is one special girl!

We continued on to Wellington, where it finally broke into the 50's by midafternoon, and saw several lovely horses. The best was waiting for last though and it showed up in a gorgeous chestnut Hanoverian mare named "Who's That Girl" aka "Gorgeous" to her friends around the barn. Gorgeous has the most amazing walk, a super trot and lovely canter. She is very kind and really tried her heart out for both me and my student.

Despite the cold weather and a misadventure or two, (WHERE's the tollbooth?!!) we had a great time and made it safely back to Cleveland around 10:30 pm Tuesday night. Now the real work begins, watching video and deciding which horse is the best match, and arranging second rides and vettings. Thanks to everyone who made this trip a success and everybody cross your fingers for "Gorgeous"!
I'll keep you posted. Literally.
Till then,
T