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Eurodressage F.O.C.U.S.
Fighting Windmills, Friesian-Style
June 6, 2006 - Text and Photos by Barbara Schnell
 Competing a Friesian horse at a more serious level can be an experience
similar to fighting windmills.
Several respected
trainers from Germany have witnessed on this account.
"I am only interested in extraordinary horses. If the character and
quality are right, I don't care about the breed. When I started competing
the Boenniger ponies over a decade ago, the judges were flabbergasted,
just like they are now when they see a Friesian horse.Well, they'll
have to get used to it," said Stefanie Meyer-Biss, the seasoned trainer
behind the successes of pony champions like Dornik B and Deinhard B.
 "If you take a Friesian to a competition, everything has to be 'top'.
You just have to shock the judges," Sabine Schut Kery agreed – and
unlike Meyer-Biss, who has trained various Friesians over the years but
never shown one, she does ride several Friesians successfully at
Advanced and Grand Prix level, far away in the U.S.A.
But over here in Europe, when a Friesian enters the dressage arena, the
comments running through the crowd – and the judges' boxes are
invariably the same. From "a horse like that doesn't belong in a
dressage competition" to "well, they are lovely cart horses." The
range of the prejudices is as narrow-(minded) as it is firmly planted
into the heads.
 Fortunately, the young German rider Jessica Suess and her Friesian Zorro keep doing fighting the windmills and are doing it with great style. Furthermore, they've just been rewarded. It may have been a small step for the dressage world, but a big one
for those who stubbornly insist on sticking to their "Black Pearls,“
when Jessica Suess and her 7-year-old Zorro (by Brandus x Pike) won
the M class (Fourth level) at the regional show in Krefeld Huels near Düsseldorf last
weekend, scoring a 7,7.
Although you do see the odd Friesian in
beginners' classes, their numbers peter out at L level (third level), and beyond that,
it's a true rarity to see one competing, leave alone competing successfully.
Which is, in part, the fault of those who own them – and often don't
take their training seriously enough. "Many people approach these
horses in a far too naive fashion," said Sabine Schut. "You can't expect
such a heavy horse to react like a Porsche. But when a Friesian does
start dancing, it is the greatest feeling ever."
 But in part, it is also the judges who have to take the blame. "I never
know what to expect when I enter the arena," said the 21-year-old Suess,
whose Zorro leaves mouths agape and spectators rethinking their
preconceptions wherever he appears. "I can walk away with a
five, and I can just as well walk away with an eight. Either the judges
love Zorro, or they hate him. The only thing I never get are so-so
grades with a six before the comma."
 Like Schut-Kery, Jessica Suess has a lot of show experience but loves
the challenge of competing with talented „outsiders“. Born into a circus
family, she spent her childhood touring Europe with the Zirkus
Busch-Roland and the Moscow State Circus. When her family joined Günther
Froehlich's horse musical „Der Zauberwald“ nine years ago, Jessica
started taking riding lessons.
At age fourteen, she got her first show
horse, an Andalusian stallion named Mescalero. Three years at a boarding
school in Warendorf also sparked her competing ambitions, and when „Der
Zauberwald“ closed its doors in 2004, she started an apprenticeship with
Heiner Schiergen.
Until early this year, she shared Zorro's training with former
„Zauberwald“ colleague Thorsten Huesken, but since the horse started
competing at M level, she rides him alone, mostly during her lunch
breaks or, sometimes, under Schiergen's now open-minded, appreciating
supervision.
 In March, the pair premiered at the renowned „Turnier der
Jungen Pferde," winning a third place in a Young Horses' M, scoring a
7.0 – the class was won by Heiner Schiergen on Lord of Loxley. A second
attempt in a similar test left them with a 5.9 four weeks later – but then
followed by their triumph in their first double-bridle class last weekend.
This victory leads right back to judge Jutta Held's refreshingly brave way of
judging in fact "what-she -saw," totally disregarding the local favorites, serial
winners and other kinds of common dressage politics. She rewarded a ride
that was a lesson in harmony, elegance and verve and encouraged a
talented rider to keep furthering her young horse's considerable
potential. Even though that horse just happened to be a Friesian.
Text and Photos (c) Barbara Schnell
Related Links
Belinda Wertman competing Goffert in The Netherlands
Mary Alice Malone of Iron Spring Farm purchased Winad 405
Dressagedaily: Sabine Schut-Kery and Jorrit
Dressagedaily: The Friesian Horse
Dressagedaily: The Iron Spring Farm Friesians
Dressagedaily: Belinda Nairn-Wertman and Goffert Go For It!
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