Windhorse Ysis, Sport Elite – 2021 Performance Ridden Dressage Champion

Windhorse Ysis, Sport Elite – 2021 Performance Ridden Dressage Champion-By Jamie Bain Hedges

Growing up in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., the notion of riding horses was pretty far from my mind.  Summertime trips to the small mid-western community my parents hailed from gave me the opportunity to see horses on a cousin’s farm, and I recall my parents taking me and my sister to a Lipizzaner show, but that was the extent of my exposure to horses.  Nobody I knew rode horses and it never occurred to me that there might be such a thing as riding lessons.

Ten years after graduating from college, I decided to move from the suburbs to the nearby countryside. I enjoyed hiking and gardening, and most of all, the peace, quiet and beautiful scenery it afforded.  This nearby countryside also happened to be right in the middle of Virginia horse country.  Foxhunting and all manner of other equine activities abounded. But, other than noting horses as beautiful additions to the scenery, the thought of riding a horse never crossed my mind.

Soon after moving to the countryside, I met the man who would become my husband.  Jeff had ridden horses off and on for much of his adult life.  He dabbled in foxhunting and mounted cavalry re-enactments, but mostly rode for pleasure.  He had a small barn and a couple of horses. I enjoyed spending time around them and watching him ride and interact with them. Over the next few years, we had horses in work with a longtime family friend and a trainer, both of whom were three-day eventers. We began to go to events to watch our horses, and as I spent more time at these events, I came to appreciate the partnerships between horse and rider and the time, energy, and commitment that went into building them. While a blue ribbon was likely the aspiration of many, it became apparent to me that the real reward for these competitors was spending time with their equine companions and making their best efforts to achieve their personal goals. Being able to ride and enjoy that special relationship was the real prize.

As I continued to spend more time around horses a desire to experience an equine partnership firsthand began to grow.  I was in my forties and had not ridden before and I knew that jumping  and cross country were beyond my courage level and likely to end with some broken bones. When one of the horses we had in training sustained an injury that ended his jumping career, I asked if Mozart might be suitable for me to ride and learn dressage.  Our trainer friend said yes and I promptly got Mozart set up at a wonderful dressage training facility just minutes from my home.  I figured since I was getting a late start with riding, and not getting any younger, I would make a full commitment to this endeavor. After all, I was the one who needed the training, not the horse.

As it turned out, Mozart re-injured his suspensory and my burgeoning dressage adventure was almost over before it began.  My trainer at the time asked if perhaps we had another horse I could ride instead.  We did – a thoroughbred named Dancer, who had competed at low level eventing and could reliably walk, trot, and canter.  He was a bit neurotic, but somehow took good care of me in the indoor arena.  I rode him in lessons several times a week, including many cold winter evenings after work.  It didn’t take long before I was hooked on riding and looking forward to my next “fix”. Unfortunately after a few months Dancer was not sound to ride and I was out of horses at home that were suitable for my skill set.  Just as I was about to give up hope, my current trainer’s parents offered to let me ride their semi-retired 20 year old mare named Kodi.  Kodi got me to the verge of my first horse show before she had to be permanently retired, but she taught me how special a relationship with a good mare can be.

At this point I had been riding for about eighteen months, but was still very much a beginner and needed a safe mount.  I really wanted a horse I could build a partnership with and hopefully ride for many years, learn dressage and possibly show. I had been around enough horses by this time to know that what I was looking for was special and might be difficult to find.  I wanted a horse that was smart and athletic enough to help me achieve my riding goals, kind enough to tolerate my mistakes, and had a temperament suitable for a 45 year old novice.

The barn I trained at was full of traditional dressage warmbloods and I had seen enough naughty behavior from some of the younger ones to scratch them off my list of potential “dance partners”.  I thought Friesians were absolutely gorgeous and quickly learned that Iron Spring Farm in Pennsylvania was just a short drive away.  Even better, their website listed a Friesian mare for sale that seemed like a good prospect, so I asked my trainer if we could arrange to see her.  My trainer said she liked many things about Friesians for me, especially their temperament, but wasn’t sure that a five year old mare was ideal.  She was having a hard time envisioning any five year old horse that would be safe for me.  But the sales manager at Iron Spring assured us this particular mare had never put a foot wrong and would indeed be suitable for an amateur beginner.

I met Windhorse Ysis (eye-sis) on a fall day in 2012 at Iron Spring Farm.  After taking her for a test ride, my trainer confidently turned the reins over to me.  We did a little walk and trot and tested the “brakes”.  Now it was time to canter, which Ysis did the first time I asked.  We cantered a couple of circles, and I felt perfectly safe, but when it was time to trot again it took me a while to bring her down.  I remember getting off, looking her in the eye, telling her how lovely and special she was, and thinking that was the last time I would see her.  The ride had been absolutely wonderful, but I left thinking she might be a bit too forward for me.  Over the next few days, all I could think about was Ysis.  I wanted to ride her again – I thought she could be the “one” – I just needed to have the confidence that I could bring her down from a canter.  So off we went to Iron Spring Farm again, and this time, I got the downward canter transition right away!

Windhorse Ysis (Winand 405 x Heinse 354, Sport/Pref.) arrived at Iron Spring Farm as a filly alongside her dam (Cleo van het Binnenveld, Star).  At five years old she had impeccable ground manners, had shown successfully at Training level and was schooling First level dressage.  The care and training that Iron Spring put into Ysis gave us a solid foundation to build our new partnership upon. I will be forever grateful to them for giving Ysis such a wonderful start in life.

Ysis and I started our dressage partnership in earnest in January 2013 and we schooled through the winter. I was so excited to compete with her in my very first show at the Virginia Horse Center in Lexington that May.  It rained a lot in the days leading up to the show and the arenas were a mess, but that wasn’t going to stop us.  Ysis and I made our competition debut riding Introductory Test C and returned to the barn covered in mud.  I had a huge smile on my face and a tremendous sense of accomplishment.  The 64 and blue ribbon were just icing on the cake.

The rest of that summer and following year Ysis and I showed at Training Level.  My appreciation for the camaraderie among the ladies (and occasional gentleman) in our barn grew.  These were smart, professionally accomplished people, with a wide range of equestrian experiences.  They supported each other at shows and cheered each other on in the ring.  I am fairly introverted, but it was easy to talk to these people who shared a common interest in horses and dressage. Even more inspiring was seeing people in their sixties and seventies competing at dressage shows.  Perhaps it wasn’t too late to start learning dressage in your forties if you could ride into your seventies!

The following three years Ysis and I competed at First Level.  Around this time my then and current trainer, Allison Spivey, showed Ysis at Second Level to “fact check” her schooling as I was hoping to move up a level.  Allison and Ysis took first place and received the first of several high score awards their first time in the ring.  After that show Allison remarked that Ysis was a little more up in the arena than she expected – in a good way, but it required more management than she expected.  This is one of the very best attributes of Ysis – she knows when it is show time and feeds off the energy of competition and busy venues. She is always safe, but her energy has to be managed or she will plow through half halts and rider becomes passenger rather than partner.  As a novice, my perception of Ysis’s show “persona” was simply that everything went faster than it did at home.  At Training and First Level the expectations for roundness and throughness are not what they are at Second Level and beyond.  I didn’t realize I needed help to channel her extra energy and competitive spirit.  I was just having fun, and every test at a competition was rewarding to me because I had never expected to be there.  Managing Ysis at shows is something that I continue to work on.  It is nearly impossible to replicate that energy level at home, so the only way to get the experience is to show more!

Trying to stay two levels ahead of me, Allison began schooling Third Level with Ysis in late 2016.  Things were going well, but flying changes were presenting a real challenge.  Allison is an accomplished rider and runs her own dressage training business with fourteen horses in full training and more that trailer in for lessons. She has her Dressage A and Traditional B Pony Club ratings and USDF Bronze and Silver medals (she is only one score away from her Gold medal).  But Ysis was the first Friesian Allison had taught changes to, and the training tools she had at the time were not yielding the desired result.  We were optimistic she could get some pointers from Julio Mendoza who was scheduled to do a clinic nearby.  The clinic with Julio in January 2017 was an absolute game-changer for Allison and Ysis. Julio gave Allison a better understanding of Friesian’s thought processes and how their biomechanics differed from more traditional dressage horses.  He gave Allison new tools to continue Ysis’s training. For the first time, Allison and I saw that Ysis had the potential to get to the upper levels of dressage.  They both left the clinic exhausted, but we were excited about the future.

Allison and Ysis participated in two more clinics with Julio over the next year and each time Ysis showed the ability and willingness to do harder and harder work.  Julio kept turning up the pressure and Ysis responded.  She was trying so hard and was so eager to please.  I began to think about revising the goals I had for Ysis.  I don’t like to see talent wasted, in people or horses, and it was obvious I was not going to be able to ride Ysis at the upper levels since we had not even made it to Second Level.  I still had my personal riding goals and loved riding Ysis, but I also loved watching her perform at a higher level and seeing her partnership with Allison grow. It was clear Ysis loved the work, so we began what continues to this day – shared riding and showing on Ysis.  Allison rides Ysis three to four times a week, I ride her two to three times, and at the beginning of each show season we plan out which shows each of us will ride her.

Allison and Ysis competed throughout 2017 at Third Level and placed fourth in the open division of FHANA All-Breeds.  In 2018 they moved up to Fourth Level and placed second in All-Breeds.  That year they also made their debut at Dressage at Devon (Pennsylvania) and did well enough to join in a victory lap around the Dixon oval.  The following year they made their Prix St. Georges (PSG) debut in Florida and placed third at that level in All-Breeds.  At each of these levels Allison and Ysis were competitive, scoring in the mid 60’s. They qualified for and competed in the Region I GAIG USDF Championships.  They also achieved the scores necessary for Ysis to earn her Sport and then Sport Elite predicates.

In  2020, we largely took a break from showing due to COVID.  Then in 2021 Allison and Ysis competed at PSG and Intermediare I (I-1) all season and introduced a really fun I-1 freestyle.  They qualified for and competed in the Region I GAIG USDF Championships in the open PSG, I-1, and I-1 freestyle, scoring solidly in the mid-sixties in all three of their championship classes.  They also placed first at the I-1 level for All-Breeds.  At the end of the season I was reviewing the FHANA awards program and saw the Performance Ridden Dressage award. I completed the application and was thrilled to learn that Allison and Ysis placed first in our region and first overall!  They have both worked so hard to be competitive at the upper levels and have developed a beautiful partnership. This very special FHANA award was a well deserved recognition of their accomplishments.

Over the years, Allison has worked to incorporate variety into Ysis’s training program to keep her fit for FEI level work.  Her cross-training includes hill work and weekly cavaletti sessions.  Learning how to peak Ysis and let her down has also been important; her level of work is really high when she is actively competing, but she cannot maintain that fitness level all year round. She is an extremely easy keeper so her diet has to be carefully managed.  Ysis always goes out in a grazing muzzle and gets enough roughage to keep her happy but the amount of grain she gets is closely calibrated to her level of work.  She is body clipped throughout the show season to keep her comfortable in the heat and humidity.  Ysis loves her rituals, including mugging me for bananas as soon as I walk in the barn, and the quiet time and “pre-flight check” she, Allison and her groom, Monica Davis, share between the warm up and entering the arena.

Last year I applied for an FEI passport for Ysis so that she could compete at CDI shows. I was overjoyed to watch as Allison and Ysis made their CDI debut in May at the inaugural Mid-Atlantic Dressage Festival and CDI held at the Virginia Horse Center.  Ysis was the only Friesian in the CDI.  She completed the small tour of PSG, I-1, and I-1 freestyle, placing fifth, sixth, and fourth respectively, on scores in the sixties. I could not have been prouder of Allison and Ysis. This was the first time Allison had ever competed at a CDI and the “cherry on top” was that she had personally done all of the training on Ysis to get her there.  My little Friesian mare who became my “dance partner” in 2012 had exceeded all expectations.  Allison and Ysis rounded out the show season qualifying for and competing in the Region 1 GAIG USDF championships at PSG, I-1, and I-1 freestyle and again placed first at the I-1 level in FHANA All-Breeds.

As Allison and Ysis moved up the levels, I continued to pursue my riding goals which include obtaining my Bronze medal. Ysis and I got my First level scores pretty easily many years ago, but Second level has proven to be more elusive.  Sitting the trot has been my biggest challenge.  Ysis is built ever so slightly down hill and keeping her round to have a place to sit the trot is not second nature for me.  Ysis is 15.1 hands (good things come in small packages!) and I am 5 feet 9 inches tall, so my legs don’t quite hit in the optimal position on her naturally and are frequently out of position.  It has taken a few years to get my Second Level scores, but this past fall I was finally able to do it!  I fully expect it will take me another few years to get my Third Level scores, but Ysis and I will have a lot of fun along the way.

As a result of their significant accomplishments at the upper levels of dressage, many people now recognize Allison as “the one who rides that little Friesian mare.”  Ysis can look like an absolute war horse in the arena, exuding strength, confidence, and focus, but once she has done her job she relaxes and happily greets her fans, especially those offering sugar cubes or bananas.  I like to think the fact that Ysis can be such a fearsome competitor at the upper levels and still fun and safe for a low level amateur has resulted in more Friesians coming into Allison’s training program.  Two of her clients have recently partnered with Friesians and several other clients who already had Friesians are coming to her now for lessons.  Wanting to continue to ride into my sixties, I made another trip to Iron Spring a few years ago and found another “dance partner” – Zander ISF (Teade 392, Sport x Heinse 354, Sport/Pref.).  Zander and I made our show debut last year at Training Level, competed in the regional championships, and placed second in All-Breeds at Training Level.  He also happens to be Ysis’s half sibling, and like his “sister”, he has that wonderful Friesian temperament, athleticism, and trainability. He has been the beneficiary of Allison’s training of Ysis and in 2021, Allison and Zander were the Reserve Champion in the FHANA six year old Sport Talent Cup.

I have been incredibly fortunate to have Ysis in my life.  We have had so much fun together over the years, in and out of the saddle.  She has improved my riding considerably and given me confidence.  We have successfully competed and worked our way up to Second Level and placed in FHANA All-Breeds at Training and First Levels.  On Ysis, I obtained my USDF Training and First Level Rider Performance awards.  She has given me that rewarding equine partnership that I wanted to experience when I began my equestrian journey over a decade ago.  Beyond all of that, Ysis is an inspiration to me.  Ysis is smart, hard-working, kind, forgiving, opinionated (always in a polite way) and confident – everything a mare, and a girl, should be.

 

Photo credits:  Janet Gallay & Molly Hayssen