| Cynthia
Edwards |
| California |
Metolius
a.k.a. "Tol"
3 y.o. Friesian Gelding |
| 27
y.o. Dutch WB |
| Anglo-Trakehner |
| TB
Mare |
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Couch
Potatoes:
Spy & Chanel |
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Flying Horse - Metolius a.k.a. "Tol"
3 y.o. Friesian Gelding, A Perfect Gentleman
| I'm attaching my favorite photo of my newest horse, an exuberant 3 year old Friesian gelding, a perfect gentleman and wonderful athlete, Metolius
... I'm glad you like the photo of 'Tol'. He's just the best. |
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| I have 4 other
horses - a 27 year old Dutch horse who knows all the moves of GP, is still
sound and happily semi-retired; a brilliant but crazy Anglo-Trakehner; and
a lovely TB mom and daughter, rescued from the Premarin buyers.
For about a year, I searched for a horse that could be my upper level prospect, seeing a
lot of horses who were really nice, many trained to upper levels, but none
of whom made my heart sing. I was beginning to think that I was too old and
crusty to have my heart stolen again... so many of the horses I saw were
lovely, kind animals but I already had 4 nice horses and I was really
looking for someone very special.
I had decided to broaden my search from well-schooled warmbloods to any
breed of any age. In the process, I had contacted many importers and agents
of various sorts, one of whom was Tanja Barina of Windermere Farms. In our
first contact, she said she didn't have anything that fit my needs but wrote
back a few weeks later to say that there was a horse in Germany who I might
want to check out - she hadn't seen him but knew the breeders well and
thought she could trust their description. They had a 2 year old stallion
prospect - a horse that they felt was their second stallion prospect for the
Dutch registry in 22 years of breeding... but his dam didn't get her ster
title and he wasn't admitted to the approval process, so they had decided to
sell him. |
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Business took me to Europe the following week and Tanja arranged for an old
friend to take me to see him. I knew from the two small photos I had of him
that I liked his look... but when I saw him in person, he nearly made my
heart stop. Love at first sight. I took a video camera with me and as I'm
following the breeder and this young, handsome stallion out to the turn-out
paddock, you can hear my ragged breathing and silly mutterings... I could
hardly contain myself. When they turned him loose and I saw this incredible, expressive trot and a breath-taking gallop - he was one of those
horses that you just wanted to ride more than anything else in the world -
he's a fairy-tale horse.
Now that he's mine, I hear this repeated almost
daily - by everyone he meets. His nickname is "The Movie Star". [... and
he's already been in his first film! - an independent film producer is doing
a documentary on Women and Horses and we were interviewed - I haven't seen
the first tape, but according to at least a dozen people who have seen it,
he's one of the stars of the show! She filmed us during his third time
under saddle - he didn't bat an eye, even with a big crowd and a sound boom
hanging in the arena!]
I named him Metolius for the Metolius River in Central Oregon. The Metolius
flows mysteriously, as a fully formed river, out from underneath a mountain.
Its exceptionally beautiful. The river is calm on the surface, swift and
powerful beneath... a perfect metaphor for this lovely animal. |
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Metolius arrived at the ranch where I board my horses, just before midnight
on his third birthday. He strolled off the trailer completely unbothered
and adapted overnight, declaring me "his person" nearly instantly. He's
unbelievably intelligent - but the most amazing thing about him is his
maturity. He's completely focused on me and whatever I'm trying to teach
him. I've had horses for more than 30 years and I've never seen this kind
of complete focus. Its very humbling... a very great honor to work with
such an exceptional animal. He attracts a crowd at almost every workout and
this trait is noticed by almost everyone who watches us work.
I've ridden him about 20 times. Strangely, he feels like a schooled horse.
I know he's not but he's exquisitely sensitive, exceptionally well-balanced,
and pays attention to every movement of every muscle. The first time I put
my left shoulder back and applied a tiny bit of inside leg - only out of
habit in asking for a bit of bend - he instantly responded by doing a
picture-perfect shoulder-in the entire long side of the arena... I completely
lost focus because I was so excited! He'll be a challenge for me in all
sorts of delightful ways!! |
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He's so kind too - he loves people - this evening, when I had him out in a
small covered arena at the boarding facility where I keep my horses, about
12 little girls were admiring him... playing with his mane and hugging his
nose and petting him. I trust him completely - he loves the attention and
is very careful with the kids. I'm a lucky person to have such a horse in
my life.
I'm sure this is way more than you want to know about us, but he's a horse
that makes my heart swell - I can't believe my good fortune at having him in
my life. His movement is exceptional... now, its my job to ride well enough
not to interfere with him. He's just incredible and I love him to bits.
I'm attaching a couple more pics of him - the riding pictures are perhaps
his 4th and 7th time under saddle.
All the best,
Cynthia |
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Spy & Chanel,
Couch Potatoes
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™