A special event was held in conjunction with the 2009 NW Region 6 Dressage Championships. On Saturday night, in the elegant indoor arena at DevonWood Equestrian Centre in Sherwood Oregon, I had the great honor of retiring my dressage partner of 22 years, Wez.

Wez is a 14.2 hand, 26 year old Norwegian Fjord Horse gelding who is well known, not only in the Northwest, but all around the world for his unique accomplishments in the show ring.

Wez was bred by my cousins in Alberta, Canada as a potential pack horse. I brought Wez down to Olympia as a two year-old to train and sell. I soon noticed that he was an exceptionally fast learner. One day in a lesson, my instructor Kari McClain said,“Let’s see how far he can go.” And go he did.

Over his 22 year career Wez achieved the unimaginable. He started as an event horse and screamed around courses through Training Level, achieving many top placings.

He was a super jumper, but when the gallop work started wearing on his shoulders, I decided to specialize in dressage. Kari McClain was our guiding force, providing training, unwavering support, and long-term vision every step of the way. We got occasional help from outside clinicians including Hilda Gurney, Carol Lavell, Stephan Peters, Lendon Gray, Heather Bender, Paul Baselic and Christian Garweg to name a few.

• Together, Wez and I accumulated quite a number of honors both national and regional. These include:

• Placed 9th in the nation at 3rd level in the USDF Horse of the Year Awards.

• Won USDF All Breed Awards for Norwegian Fjord Horses at all the levels.

• Won several Washington State Horseman high point awards including High Point at Intermediare in 1996

• Won ODS FEI honors.

• Consistently placed in the ribbons against all breeds at countless open shows throughout the Northwest and at Regional and Northwest Championships.

• Won Region 6, 4th level USDF Championships in 1993.

Besides competitions, Wez and I performed many exhibition rides though out the Northwest, often with other fjords, in a pas de deux format. Wez was famous for his Spanish walk and lavade that Kari and I taught him on a whim. It took less than a day with the help of a carrot!

The pinnacle of our career came when, after earning our USDF Bronze and Silver Medals, Wez not only reached Grand Prix at the age of 19 but at 22, we earned the coveted USDF Gold Medal.

While this is a distinguished achievement for any horse/rider combination, Wez has the historic distinction of being the first Norwegian Fjord Horse in the world to ever reach Grand Prix, let alone achieve the USDF Gold Medal.

It was not always an easy journey. Wez was built to pull loads. His draft horse conformation is generally not well suited for FEI dressage work. Carrying weight behind was never easy for him and he only got light in the hand near the end of his career. My biceps became legendary! One clinician likened him to riding a condominium! Yet, Wez proved that steady temperament and an incredible work ethic could help surmount many of his physical challenges. In his early years, cantering a 20-meter circle was a project—yet he eventually learned to perform respectable canter pirouettes.

In many ways, Wez represents a fundamental truth about the sport of dressage. From the outside it sometimes looks like a haughty sport, where pedigree, wealth, and—some think—force can buy you success. And yet, the truth is that it is a difficult and exacting sport, where cooperation and hard work are the only way to gain the skills to succeed. Wez’s work ethic helped him achieve the unimaginable.

Through his achievements Wez earned respect and admiration all over the world. I received countless letters and comments from people of all ages, saying what an inspiration and role model he has been for them. People otherwise daunted by the outward formalities of dressage have gained the courage to go out and compete on unconventional breeds. A judge once rose at the end of a Grand Prix test and asked the audience to join her in a standing ovation because it was so rare to see this breed of horse performing so correctly and successfully in this sport at this level.

Wez has also been quite a “Cover Boy.” He was featured in a Norwegian documentary film, has graced the cover of numerous magazines, appeared in several calendars, and has been featured in numerous articles in horse magazines both in the U.S. and abroad. Once, while traveling in Europe, I discovered an article about Wez in an airport magazine. He was much sought after for demonstration rides, considered for a Breyer Horse model, and invited to Equitana repeatedly.

While Wez thrived in the show ring, he was just as much a star at home. He was steady and brave in all situations and was routinely used to pony young horses on the trail. He was also trustworthy with novice riders and safely carried riders from nine months to 84 years old. He was always patient as school groups swarmed him and gave rides to lines of giddy children at occasional weddings. Of course he also had a naughty streak, and was known to occasionally squeal and bolt, but he seemed to choose his moments carefully.

Finally, it is hard to talk about Wez without talking about food. We would love to think that he loved his work, plain and simple. But the truth is he loves food more than anything, any food, all food: grapes, chips, plumbs, bananas, apples, carrots, blackberries, candies…anything except Bute. He’ll drool at the crinkle of a bag. Pulling his head up from grazing was next to impossible. I once got a call from a neighbor, saying that Wez was inside her house, eating their dog food. The house was across two big fields, separated by three fences.

A standing-room only crowd gathered for a final ovation for Wez on Saturday night. While Wez’s freestyle music was played and the story of our career was read, we two rode carefully around the arena. An injury prevented Wez from being able to perform at more than a walk, but he was so excited to see his “people” that he pranced and offered to lavade and piaffe, which I quietly discouraged. His big moment came when I asked him to Spanish walk and he proudly strutted down the center line to cheers from his fans!

The end of the ceremony came when Wez halted for his final salute. I dismounted and, with the help of Kari and his closest grooms, his tack was removed, a cooler with his name and farm logo was put on him and finally, a beautiful garland of red carnations was draped over his neck. It was a very emotional moment for many and yet Wez stood tall and proud, relishing the attention and fame. This was his moment;. his party, and he rose to the occasion in typical Wez fashion to soak up and enjoy every moment of it.

The evening ended with a party at Wez’s stall where there was a big cake with his picture on it, wine, champagne and best of all; all the carrots he could eat…his career dream come true!

Wez will be retiring to a life of spoiled leisure at his home at Creekside Farm, Olympia, Washington. He’ll have plenty of company with Anne’s 12 other horses, including six Fjords. Anne took Wez’s half-brother, Misha, to Intermediate-1 and is currently competing an 11 year-old mare at First and Second Levels. She is also competing a Dutch filly at First and 2nd Level. She still has her first horse, a 32 year-old, retired Appaloosa who was once her eventing and dressage horse. Anne Appleby is a USEF ‘r” dressage judge. Her real job is as a shellfish farmer (mussels).