We were watching this living carousel of beautifully muscled horses walking 'round and 'round, loose in their sectioned-off automatic walker, bathed in natural sunlight from the skylights and in light from the enormous golden chandelier above them. I wanted nothing more than to leap onto one of their backs and reach for some imagined brass ring as if I were at an old-fashioned amusement park. Fortunately, that moment passed, and my husband and I turned to follow the red rubber brick road back to the indoor arena in Hailey, Idaho to continue watching dressage rider Debbie McDonald, who really IS on the quest fornot a brass ring, but a gold medalat the upcoming World Equestrian Games in Spain this summer, and perhaps the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004.
The Idaho-based Debbie and her top horse, 11-year-old Brentina, have had a steady series of successes over the past several years, the latest of which was winning the US Freestyle Dressage Championship at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in late February. Peggy and Parry Thomas, owners of River Grove Farm in Hailey and of Brentina, also took four of their other Hannoverians, plus a sixth horse, to the same showeach horse was either champion or reserve champion in its respective division. Clearly, something is clicking with Debbie's training. She is quick to point out that her success depends on her teamthe Thomases; her husband, Bob; her competition students, Jane Thomas and Danica Yates; show grooms, Laura Hedrick and Ruben Palomera; and home-base grooms Antonio Pina and Juan Ruiz. The horses are the stars, of course, and include Beaurivage, Brentina, Donatello, Felix, Wishful, and the lone non-Hannoverian, 12-year-old Danish-bred Schmel'ze, owned and ridden by Danica Yates. Waiting in the wings is three-year-old client-owned Bocelli, who is Brentina's half-brother and "has an incredible canter," according to Debbie. "He is unbelievably balanced for his age." So, what's the story behind all these horses and Debbie's connection to them?
Bob McDonald, Debbie's husband and top hunter/jumper trainer, clinician, and judge, has been associated with the Thomases for 32 years. Both he and Debbie trained for the Thomases in California and moved with them when they relocated to Idaho in 1983. About 11 years ago, Debbie switched saddleslargely due to an accumulation of injuries and neck and shoulder surgeries resulting from her two decades of riding, training, and showing hunters and jumpers. Peggy and Parry's daughter, Jane, who has ridden with Debbie since the age of nine, said her knack for getting along with the problem horses, the kids' stubborn ponies, and the greenies all ironically contributed to the physical necessity to switch to dressage so that she could continue her riding career. Peggy was delighted. "For years I was the only one in the barn interested in dressage, so when Debbie changed everyone got excited."
Now, Parry too, can hardly contain his enthusiasm for his horses. He's proud to say that of the top 40 or so international-quality dressage horses in the world, he's "got three of 'em in his barn in Idaho," referring to Brentina, Donatello, and rising 5-year-old star, Felix. Both Bob and Parry refer to Felix almost as a freak; he is so elastic and athletic. His hind-foot overreach at the walk is almost a full foot, and his overall 5-year-old class score in LA was a whopping 9.5. They think he may be the best one yet.
The River Grove team customarily looks for promising three-year-olds, preferring the Hannoverian breed and often choosing from among the many conveniently presented at the auctions in Verden, Germany. Debbie tries them and trains the ones they end up with. Bob rarely rides the horses, but sometimes will get on one at the beginning if it seems to be too strong at home or doesn't know anything about turns at all. Since they've been buying specifically for Debbie, he says, he hardly has to do that anymore.
Debbie's seemingly quick rise to the top levels of dressage, according to Bob, is really the result of years of steady focus and concentration on getting her horses to perform their jobs as consistently as possible. "She's always been good at her half-halts and her ability to get her horses collected. So collected," he laughs, "that she could get flying changes from a goat if she wanted to." Debbie herself attributes much of her consistency to "the discipline factor of the hunters. Getting deep into the corners and planning your turns is so important there, and it's no different in dressage. Obviously, having great horses makes it a whole lot of fun, too." She also gives Klaus Balkenhol, Hilda Gurney, Lilo Fore, and Steffen Peters much credit for helping her along the way.
She remembers feeling like the laughingstock of the Orange County Fairgrounds, though. When she started jumping, she said she fell off every single day and that people would line up at the show waiting to see how she would do. "Bob was so meanhe had us boo-hooing every day," she jokes. "That's probably why I try to be a more compassionate teacher now." Bob also remembers the day he had to change his teaching tactics. He was riding in a George Morris clinic, doing well and feeling pretty good, when George mentioned that some people have such a natural gift for riding that they don't even know what they're really doing. He basically said that "young Mr. McDonald there" would have to figure out WHY he rode well if he was going to be able to teach it. Bob realized then he would have to make some changes in his teaching methods. Now, both he and Debbie win high praise from students for their ability to explain clearly what they mean.
Jane, who is now riding Debbie's older Grand Prix mount, Beaurivage, plus her own mare, Wishful, says that "Debbie is brilliant with young horses. She has the feel to know when to start playing with the upper-level movements. Our philosophy at River Grove is consistent schooling, a belief in not pushing the horses too much, too soon, and not drilling." She added that Debbie teaches all her horses to respond to her style, because as a petite female rider, she knows she can't really get the progress she wants if the horse seems to require a much stronger rider. This is where Bob's talent for choosing horses comes in. He is known for his eye and for his ability to find a "diamond in the rough," says Jane. Foremost, he looks for that certain attitude that tells him a horse will be a cooperative learner. Bob adds that "even though you might notice a horse's spectacular gaits first, if the right attitude isn't there, we pass him up."
Debbie, small in stature and with a short leg, also knows what kind of feel and sensitivity she needs in a horse so that she can best bring out its potential. Brentina is a case in point. She had a great walk and canter, but her hind end looked a little weedy and no one was certain that she could do extended trots. She had that star-quality attitude, however, and the trot is the one gait that can improve, Bob says, adding that "Now she gets 9's on her trot." Brentina beats the competition, says Jane, because she's so consistent and never loses her rythym in the trot work and transitions. Sometimes Debbie might look at a horse and think it's too big for her, but then Bob might point out that it has a narrow build, or a certain flexibility, and she'll try it. "I can tell usually in one ride if it will work," she says. Of the horses she rides now, eight-year-old Donatello is probably the one she has to concentrate on the most to keep from getting too strong. Her secret with him, according to Jane, is almost constant half-halts. To keep him listening, paying attention to Debbie's light cues, she can't allow him "even one instant of the wrong feel." Debbie says he is the one who, as he has gotten older and more muscular, tends to get nervous in the show ring and loses concentration. In LA, however, he shone, winning his FEI Intermediaire I test with a score of 72.2%.
A typical day at River Grove starts with Debbie's horses going to the automatic walker for the first of their twice-daily exercise sessions there. They go 20 minutes each way. A video monitor is set up in the central tack-up area so that any problems can be caught immediately. When the timer dings, someone invariably says, "Cake's done!" and goes to change the horses' direction. Since part of the farm's philosophy is "no drilling," these walker sessions are essential. They get the horses' heart rates up, keep them fit, and provide a nice pre-school warm-up before Debbie mounts up. The walker is compartmented and the horses are loose within, moving at a fast walk. In the afternoon the horse go back on the walker for an additional forty minutesa real necessity in their snow-bound Idaho valley.
Depending on the horse, schooling sessions typically average only 25 to 30 minutes, four or five days a week. Another session might just be a relaxed hack on a long rein. Debbie varies her patterns all the time, and to my untrained eye, maintains a soft seat, barely perceptible leg aids, and a steady hand connection. She rewards constantlywhether by voice, release, or SUGAR FROM THE SADDLE! Debbie grins, "That's kind of my signature, I guess."
Asked if they do regular bodywork on their horses, the McDonalds do whatever works. They use massage, magnetic blankets, and some chiropractic. Donatello in particular seems to benefit from anything that relaxes his back, because that's where Debbie says he carries his tension. Debbie ruefully admitted that she could benefit from some of those therapies herself, but can't seem to fit them into her demanding schedule.
We were delighted to be able to watch a teaching session with Jane on Beaurivage, and schooling sessions not only on the wonderful Brentina, but also Donatello, Felix, and the youngster, Bocelli. We also were able to watch Bob's daughter, hunter/jumper trainer Kim Kotch, school one of the new horses recently acquired for probable resale in California. While we watched with one eye the real horse in the arena, Parry also showed us video footage of the winning rides on those horses in LA. I almost went on overload, but the whole atmosphere was one of support and pride, with a good deal of laughter and compatibility thrown in.
That's a good thing now, because the River Grove team is well aware that the next two years will put huge demands on their time and energy, if they are to achieve their dream of a spot on the Olympic team in Athens. So they concentrate on one goal at a timethe next one is qualifying at Gladstone for the World Equestrian Games in Spain this summer. When asked if she is more nervous now, Debbie admits there is more pressure "When you're on top. Everybody expects a certain level of performance from Brentina. There are times when I feel like, 'Oh my gosh, I'm going to hyperventilate.' Once I'm on the horse I'm okay, and actually at LA it was so much better that I was busy running from one ring to the other to ride the different horses or to watch my students. I didn't have time to get too nervous."
Jane describes Bob as "The glue that holds us together. If he weren't there I don't know what we'd do at the shows." They pick shows in California because Debbie needs to get her CDI qualifiers each year by springtime in order to shoot for the international competitions. So far the Northwest doesn't have enough of those shows, and the difficulty of traveling out of their snowy southern Idaho locale makes going to California the logical choice.
There is also the added pressure of more travel time for the horses. "It's the number one fear," Bob and Debbie both admit. " But it's a fact of life at this level of competition and we just try to do everything we can to keep the horses healthy and comfortable." They'll be heading back to California in mid-April for more competitions. They take pains to schedule shows with a maximum amount of time off in-between (one of the main reasons for choosing the WEG over the World Cup in Holland this year).
As for future plans, both Debbie and Bob want to continue to give back to their respective sports. Bob will continue his hunter/jumper clinics, and ideally Debbie will do dressage clinics at the same time, even in the same locations. Debbie says she'd like to "End on a high," and then definitely teach. Asked if there were any plans to breed Brentina, the responses vary. Debbie might want to after her competition days are over, but Parry doesn't really want to. He cites Bob's philosophy, "Breed to sell; buy to show." And Debbie definitely doesn't want to consider anything at the present that might somehow change Brentina's attitude. "She's so unmareish-like that it really worries me to start messing with anything like that." What is in Brentina's future are tentative plans to do a freestyle grand prix with the Sun Valley Symphony. Tim Ryan, who covered equestrian events at the Sydney Olympics, is very enthusiastic about getting more coverage for dressage events at Athens, and thinks that an American-born, American-based rider could generate some excitement in the public's eye, according to Jane.
Whatever the eventual outcome, there's no arguing with the present system. It's working. Just look at the total results from the US Freestyle Competition:
Debbie on Brentina first in the FEI Short Grand Prix for Freestyle and first in the FEI Grand Prix Freestyle.
Debbie on Donatello first and second in the FEI Intermediaire I 2002 (two classes).
Debbie on Felix first in the FEI Young Horse Qualifier for 5-year-olds 2000, and second in the FEI Young Horse Warm-up for 5-year-olds.
Jane on Beaurivage first in FEI Prix St. Georges 2000, adult amateur; first in the FEI Intermediaire I 2002, adult amateur; and third in the FEI Intermediaire I, open.
Jane on Wishful first in Prix St. Georges, Jr/Am; first and third in FEI Intermediaire I 2002, (two classes); and fourth in Prix St. Georges, Open.
Danica Yates on Schmel'ze first in FEI Young Riders, Individual Championship Test and two third-places in the FEI Young Rider Team Test.
Becky and Jim Desmond formerly lived in Tacoma, where they owned and operated Blue Shamrock Stables, now known as Klear-Mont Farms. They currently live in Murphy, Idaho and continue to compete locally in adult amateur jumpers when both they and their horses are sound.