Day One--Mile Marker 271

         We left the farm about noon. The morning was spent packing, washing the truck, and cleaning part of the house so that Melinda--who was looking after things for us--wouldn't be too grossed out when she came in to feed the dogs and cats. Fabayoso and the trailer were wanting for us at Marsha Hartford Sapp's Southern Oaks Equestrian Center just east of Tallahassee, where he had been training with Sally, Marsha, and Sandra Beaulieu for the last several weeks. We had been excited a few weeks before when we learned that another of the stallions to take the Advanced Performance Test was to visit Marsha's from his home in snowy Michigan. We had hoped to see this big bay stallion and his owner and trainer, who styled themselves "Team Reesling." Unfortunately, they decided to trailer Reesling directly to Jupiter so that he and his trainer, Kellie Trosin, could become familiar with the terrain (and the vastly different weather).

         We arrived at Southern Oaks, loaded up our stuff, put Bayo's front boots on, and loaded him without the slightest stallion recalcitrance. He just walked right in, looked out his window, and seemed to be saying, "Okay, let's go!" Maybe he thought he was going back home. He was wrong.

         On I-10, fortified with some Subway sandwiches, we cruised comfortably despite the lack of air conditioning in the truck. Actually, we had taken the truck in to be serviced only a couple of days before, not only for a tune-up, but to get its ailing AC system rejuvenated with a shot of Freon-the bute of AC systems. Unfortunately, the mechanic found that the entire compressor was shot and that there was nothing to be done until it was replaced. Well, time and money being what they were, we had to take off without it, but the temperature was a fairly comfortable 73 degrees.

         Approaching the Agricultural Inspection Station, we both came to attention. In a previous trip, we had been talking so intently that we blew right by and were stopped and reprimanded by an angry officer, who still managed to refrain from giving us a ticket. To make matters worse, our truck had then refused to restart and we had to call a towing service, who told us it would be several hours before they could get someone capable of towing truck and trailer and horse. It wasn't a good day for us at all, but the truck eventually cooled off enough to start before the towing service could get there. We managed to get home before midnight, but it put a fear of the Ag Station in our hearts. This time, we drove in carefully and were passed through in a couple of minutes.

         But would you believe it, again the truck refused to start. Again the towing service had to be called. It was a different problem than before and we thought that all we needed was a jump, but Donnie the tow trick driver saw the new problem right away. The very AC compressor we had put off getting replaced had overheated, seized up, and stopped the entire engine from functioning. Donnie left and said he would be back with a bigger towing truck to get us into the shop to replace it. So Bayo had to stand in the trailer for a couple of hours, but he stayed calm the whole time. Much calmer than Sally and I.

         We had both been looking forward to this trip almost since the day Bayo was born. In was a dual-purpose trip--both to get him inspected and to pass a rigorous 10-day Advanced Stallion Performance Test. The Inspection would allow two or three German judges to get a good look at him from a conformation standpoint and to see his gates, his jumping, and the way he moved at liberty. We knew that jumping would probably be his weakest score--as a dressage horse he had not had much jump training--but we liked his chances in the rest. The Performance test would include Sally riding two dressage tests and having at least three guest riders give him a score on dressage potential and rideability. Sally, Marsha, and Sandra had worked on the tests and we were pretty sure that he would get excellent scores on the very important rideability portion. We had decided that if he didn't pass the initial inspectionk, we would return home instead of going through the Performance Test, but we liked his chances. We discussed all these things for the hundredth time, then took out our books and tried to pass the time reading. I was finishing a Taiwanese novel called Rose, Rose, I Love You, and Sally began the latest Inspector Chen mystery by Qui Xiaolong. Time passed slowly there at Mile Marker 271..

         Finally, Donnie got back with another truck but also another compressor, which he proceeded to install on the spot. We are eternally grateful for this unexpected kindness. By installing it there, we were saved at least three hours of travel time. We still had no AC-he would have had to flush the system and put in new Freon, which could only be done in a shop-but we were back on the road, although $450.00 deeper in the hole.

         It was only a couple of hours later that we pulled into Canterbury, about halfway between Black Bay Farm and Jupiter. We had reserved a stall and hook up several days before, but it was already dark when we pulled in. Luckily, Teresa, the Night Stall Security guard, made us feel welcome and did everything in her power to let us know we were in good hands. She had a stall waiting for Bayo right next to a hookup for our rig. We fed Bayo, plugged in the trailer, and retired to the comfort of our overhead bunk, where we both slept well and comfortably-knowing that Theresa was on the job.

         Day Two--Smooth Sailing for Team Fabayoso

         Up at about 8-actually 9 because of the change to Daylight Savings Time. We had a light breakfast at the concession stand, then fed Bayo his beet pulp, rice bran, and alfalfa pellets.

         Sally took Bayo to a vacant roundpen and lunged him for twenty minutes or so. He looked very good in both directions, very correct and regal. He happily rolled in the thick dirt between directions. He then walked right in the trailer without having to be coaxed in the slightest. This may not seem like a big deal to some of you, but if you have ever had to (or had to watch your spouse) tussle with a 1,500 pound stallion who simply refuses to load, you would change your mind quickly.

         So, except for a dead right headlight, a back gas tank gauge that reads empty when it is full, and no AC, it was smooth sailing on the turnpike. Six hours later, we arrived at the beautiful Lady Jean Ranch in Jupiter, Florida, about half an hour north of West Palm Beach. LJR is 50 acres of paddocks and roundpens, with an enclosed arena, a dressage ring, a jumping field, trailer-parking facilities, and, oh, yes, stalls, stalls, stalls. The beautiful scenery includes dozens of Royal Palms lining the driveway and a large pond stocked with bass and other local varieties of fish. The pond is noteworthy for other reasons than its fish, though. It also has a large geysering fountain and a pair of decoy ducks that serve to hold in place the pipe system running out to the fountain. And on one of these decoy ducks is usually perched a large dark wading bird--at first I was convinced it was a baby Anhinga because of the way it would stand with its great wings outspread, drying in the warm South Florida breeze. I later spoke to Michelle Cronin--daughter of the owners of LJR--and she told me that people simply referred to it as a Loon, but I now think it was probably a Florida Cormorant, who dry their wings in the same way as an Anhinga, but have much shorter necks. Over the next few days I always looked for the bird-swimming, diving for small fish, or just standing on her wooden decoy duck in the middle of that pond.

I enjoyed watchng her as she swam and preened.

         Soon after we arrived, my sister Sam, who lives in the area, drove up and helped us set up our things. Much more gregarious than Sally or I, Sam is usually our ambassador at any horse shows she attends with us. She has a charming smile and a quick way of making friends that has helped us on many occasions and in many ways. Although living over 400 miles from Grand Ridge, Sam has always been a part of Black Bay Farm and a major member of Team Fabayoso.

         As for the titular head of the team, Bayo got acquainted with his new stall-a wooden floors covered with shavings, an automatic waterer, cement walkways outside, and barred windows that allowed him to see out in three directions. After a smack, Sally put him out in a nearby paddock and let him work out the kinks he'd built up during the long hours on the trailer. He pawed the ground and rolled delightedly, then romped up and down the long paddock, showing us how ready he was for his inspection. His trot and canter were as close to perfect as we had ever seen. Two hopes up-way up! The fact that he threw one of his new shoes during this romp was the only downer, but Sally quickly contacted a local farrier to replace it the next morning.

         So we were there at last, our stuff stored away in our trailer and in the tack stall next to Bayo's, and we had seen that he was ready to go. But the most pleasant aspect of the day was yet to come. After Bayo came in from his paddock romp, two women approached us with smiles on their faces and introduced themselves. Tracey Schork is the owner of Reesling, the giant bay stallion who we had just missed seeing a month earlier at Marsha's. In her very early 40s, Tracey had started Reesling under saddle until he had become simply too big and powerful for her to feel comfortable training. Kellie Trosin, a longtime friend, was Reesling's current trainer and rider. Kellie, who is just short of 30, looks demure at first, but her little-girl demeanor vanishes as soon as she dons her riding clothes (or gets a few shots of Hot Damn into her). They, and Reesling, are from Michigan. Kellie had been at LJR for a month, while Tracey had arrived only the day before. They became our constant friends and supporters. That night the five of us-me, Sally, Sam, Tracey, and Kellie-sat outside Bayo's stall drinking White Zinfandel (not Riesling, or even Hot Damn) and telling horse stories deep into the evening.

         Day Three--Getting Adjusted

         Two more stallions arrived today. The first was Romeo, another striking bay from Virginia owned, trained, and ridden by Lynn Jendrowski, who also became a friend. The second horse, Royal Crusade, arrived from Wellington. Originally from Wisconsin, he had spent the last several weeks in Florida getting used to the great difference in temperature. Roy, as I came to call him, is a very long and imposing black stallion-well over 17 hands-who was actually too big for his stall. He arrived without his owners or trainers, so we talked to him, gave him carrots, and generally made him feel like he wasn't alone in a strange world.

         There was no riding for Bayo today, although Sally was itching to get on him. The first order of business was to get his front shoe replaced. The farrier arrived a couple of hours after we expected him, but was a pleasant, if ironic, man in his early 50s. He was able to hammer out and replace Bayo's shoe without tranking him-something Sally appreciated.

         Right on the heels of that, an equine chiropractor arrived to give Bayo a tune up. Bayo had received a couple of extensive chiropractic sessions in the weeks leading up to this trip, so this visit was simply to work out any kinks he might have acquired since his last check-up. Yet this session seemed to go on and on, with the doctor saying that Bayo had a number of deep problems that we were not aware of. As he worked on him, though, Bayo never relaxed as he (or any horse) was expected to do during the session. He seemed to be in discomfort the whole time, but after digging us a bit deeper in the hole financially, the chiropractor pronounced Bayo perfectly adjusted, although he cautioned against riding him that day.

         Later, Bayo settled down for a nap, but in getting up later, Sally noticed that his back hooves slipped on the wooden floor--something that could easily cause injury. So we lugged a thick rubber mat from our trailer, and put it under the shavings in his stall. After adding more shavings, we felt better about his safety. Most of the day was just spent walking around, talking to other owners and trainers, and simply getting adjusted to our new surroundings.

         That evening, we didn't party with the others but--after taking Bayo for a walk--just went back to the place we were staying (my mother's condo), and had a long family chat before going to bed.

         Day Four--Weiner Bra

         After a good sleep we were up and out to LJR by about 9:00. After the usual chores, Sally took Bayo into the indoor arena. After lunging him for a few minutes, she got on and rode for about 20 minutes or so. Lynn and Romeo were already in the ring, but Bayo didn't seem to mind having another stallion share his space. Lynn later said that Romeo actually relaxed with another horse in the ring. In a few minutes, though, one of LJR's resident trainers rode in on a mare to practice dressage. Neither of the stallions reacted to the mare, nor to another horse that entered shortly afterward, ridden by another resident trainer. Bayo was a bit sluggish because of the chiropractic work that was done to him the previous day, but he was still about 75%. Kellie--who watched the session with Tracey--was impressed enough to comment that she was sure Bayo would pass his inspection.

         Sally then rode Bayo out to the jumping field, situated just across the driveway from the pond. She worked there for a while, then walked him around the track encircling the jumping field. Then it was out to the dressage arena to see how Bayo would react to the mares stabled in the nearby barn. He took everything very calmly. In fact, he slept most of the rest of the afternoon until his walk at about 5:00 p.m.

Looking sleek and wonderful in the dressage arena.

         One of the highlights of the day came just after we got back from lunch at an Italian restaurant in town. A new stallion had arrived, and to our surprise, it was one we knew quite well. We had been a fan of his for years and had also become familiar with his owners, Petra and Phil Wilder, as well, so we were delighted to see them all. We had attended many of the same shows and Sally and I had even been to Monty's (Diamunde's barn name) inspection in Georgia two years ago. Monty is two years older than Bayo and is a magnificent black stallion by any imaginable standard. His almost-Baroque and regal appearance are most reminiscent of a horse on a chessboard.

         Another of the pleasures of the day was just sitting around and schmoosing with the other owners and trainers-and with Helmut Schrandt, the ISR/Oldenburg Stallionmaster who arrived about the same time as Diamunde. Between one task and another, some of us were sitting outside the office on some of the attractive outdoor furniture furnished by LJR.. Tracey was in the middle of trying to track an important-but lost-Fed Ex package, but while on hold, she was remarking-as stallion owners are wont to do-on the size of Reesling's testicles and bemoaning the fact t hat there was no way to keep them from swinging like twin pendulums when Reesling worked out. She assumed it must be uncomfortable and made any frontal photos of him jumping unusable. Helmut immediately piped up that, in fact, there was a kind of jockstrap for stallions. "It's called a Weiner Bra," he said, and for the next few minutes we were all trying to figure out how the straps would be attached and what it would actually look like. Eventually, it got sorted out to our satisfaction.

         Now if Tracey's package would only arrive.

         Day Five--This Is Not a Dressage Test! A friend of mine from high school came to visit and watched as Sally took Bayo into the arena for a warm up, then out to the jumping field to get some comments from Helmut. The field is simply a large, grassy area that contains cavalettis and several types of portable jumping fixtures. Neither Sally--nor the other riders--have any plans to use the jumps, but it is a great area for open riding.

         Bayo looked good and well rested, but I had noticed earlier a couple of worrisome signs. When Sally was brushing him before putting on his saddle, he winced sharply when she touched high on the left side of his back. He was clearly uncomfortable there. And when she was walking him outside prior to getting on, I noticed that he was carrying his tail way to the right-something he hadn't done since he had been adjusted for the first time back in January. Still, he worked well, but Helmut kept yelling that his canter had to open up more. "You don't want the judges to be bored," he said. He kept urging Sally forward, faster and faster until Bayo was moving faster than he ever had under saddle. Bayo had followed the extra-large Reesling onto the jumping field and his strides are nowhere near as long. Reesling looks like a streamlined freight train coming around a corner. Bayo was not as Juggernaut-like but he was far calmer and under better control. Still, Helmut shouted out, "This is not a dressage test! It doesn't matter if his nose goes down, it will go up again. He needs to go more, more! He needs to have more spark."

Sally and Bayo: magnificent in a canter.

         Bayo did the best he could, but I could see that it would have to get better if Bayo were to pass the Performance Test.

         After this ride, the last stallion arrived. Rosall (barn name: Riley) is from Wisconsin, but had been training in Wellington for weeks with his trainer, J. J. Tate, who had been a guest rider at the last ISR Performance Test back in 2007. J. J. is a very friendly but professional woman in her 30s and we hoped to get to know her better as the days went by. All in all, we felt that we were in very elite company.

         At 2:00 the jump chute was ready for practice in the indoor arena. In fact, Phil Wilder and I--along with Helmut--had moved the standards from the jump field and set them up. Bayo followed Monty, who looked fab as usual. In an attempt to conserve energy, Helmut asked Sally to let him jump without running at liberty as is usual before a jumping session. So he had several jumps and cleared them all except for one in which he was obviously off-stride. He jumped without seeming to exert much effort, but was more horizontal than vertical and he jumped without tucking his front legs up under his chin properly. Helmut told Sally that he wasn't a jumper (we know this and never plan to jump him again after this test), but gave Sally pointers on how she might be able to get him down the chute to his best advantage.

         All in all, it was kind of depressing. Bayo was trained to be a calm, gentle horse, very controlled and rideable. Yet Helmut indicated that he needed to do just about everything but fly. No doubt Bayo is capable of this, but Sally's training has taught him a much safer, quieter way to achieve his dressage potential. She mentioned that if she started spurring him and smacking him with the whip at this late date, he would only be confused. As for his jumping, well, we never thought he would score well, but we thought he could get through with a passing grade. Certainly he had showed good form at Marsha's the week before, and even at home, but his practice jumps today had not looked promising. Strength was not at issue; everything was form. It was beginning to look like Bayo would not pass the Inspection, much less the Performance Test. But later in the afternoon, things changed abruptly and surprisingly.

         Sally was talking to Tracey about how dire things were and how she was not looking forward to running Bayo in the in-hand part of the Inspection tomorrow morning. Her legs were just not up to it anymore. After a few back and forths, Tracey looked at Sally and said, eagerly, "Want me to run him?" Sally blinked. Her first inclination was to say no, thank you. After all, Bayo is her horse and they have come this far together, why let someone else step in at the last minute? But her second thought was that not only was Tracey a younger and stronger runner than she is, but Sally could act as ground person, giving suggestions on how Bayo looked at what pace. This second thought prevailed and they did a few test runs. Sally showed Tracey how to use the outside rein to keep him pointed in the right direction and tried different speeds and tempos until they decided on one that kept Bayo's hind legs under him And when they also got his walk up from a 7 to a 9, Sally was starting to feel very good about his chances.

         TThen something else occurred, again quickly and unexpectedly. After the ring practice, Sally was telling Kellie how she had trained Bayo to be calm and rideable-not the firespark that typifies some stallions' behavior. She was despairing about the difficulty-or impossibility-of her being able to change his whole mindset in less than 24 hours. She looked at Kellie and asked, "Will you ride him tomorrow?" It had been a hard thing to ask, but Kellie didn't hesitate for a second. "Sure," she replied.

         Day Six--Another Day

         We spent the morning watching other riders and trainers and in braiding Bayo's mane. It seemed like an eternity until noon-the scheduled time for the Inspection. But it wasn't until twenty minutes later that the last judge arrived in a Mercedes and we were able to go into the ring for the in-hand presentation. Tracey did a wonderful job of running him, getting a good 75% of his potential in both walk and trot-better than usual for Bayo's in-hand work. I rated it good, maybe a 7, but I knew that it would be borderline for the judges.

         Before the jumping, they let him loose in the enclosed arena and let him run wild. It was then that he really showed off. He was completely wow. Watching him gallop and skip and hop from one end of the arena to the other, head and tail held proudly high, I thought that there was no way that anyone in the world could give him a bad score. Sally, however, noticed from her vantage point in the ring that he was wide behind--something that she has never seen in him before.

         But the free-jumping, taking place after Sally caught him, was more uneven than his in hand work. He knocked down a rail almost every time, but never the same one. As in practice, his jumps looked effortless, but not correct and sometimes off-stride, legs uneven and not tucked in. But he learned from each mistake and could have jumped much higher than the 3'9" height that they topped him out at. I think that the judges made him jump more than usual, as if they wanted to give him every chance to perform well, or every chance to let them see that, in fact, he was not able to jump in as correct a manner as they would have liked. If I were judging him, I would have given him a low passing score, but I suspected that the judges would score him far lower. So far, I guessed that his two scores would be something like this: in-hand: 7, jumping: 6. Although I was not aware of the niceties of the scoring system at that time, I still thought that if his under-saddle work went well, he would pass..

         And it did go well, but not immediately.

         Remember that Kellie was going to ride him, and also remember that Kellie had never ridden him before, so they hurried out to the jumping field for a few minutes of getting to know each other. Kellie was very aware that Bayo needed that "spark" that the judges were looking for. "I'm going to put a firecracker up his ass," she told Sally. Bayo let her get on without complaint, but when Kellie introduced him to her rowel spur (an abbreviated version of the kind that Western cowboys used to wear), he said no thank you and deposited poor Kellie onto the turf. Although she was shaken up and in pain, she took off the spurs, remounted and had two or three minutes of well-behaved warm up before going into the ring.

         And in the ring they were both marvelous. If it would have been a dressage test, they would have won. She even sat the trot down an entire long side without Bayo losing balance or concentration. His canter was super, very correct and ground-covering. But then it was over. I was elated, as were most of the spectators. I knew that he had done well and couldn't imagine anyone else thinking much differently.

         Scores were announced about 45 minutes later. Instead of presenting the horses (a pony stallion was also inspected along with Bayo) back in the ring, they called us all out in front of LJR's office area and read out the scores. Bayo did not pass. His score of 196 was 14 points too low. Out of about 30 different categories, his low score was 6--always better than average--and his high score was 8. Unfortunately, there were too many 6s and too few 8s to achieve the score he needed.

         We were disappointed, of course, but from that first day out on the jumping field we knew that his chances to pass were not great. Most of the other owners told us that they thought he had done well enough to pass. Others encouraged us to try again or to get him licenses through competition scores. Even Jean O'Brien, owner of the LJR and a knowledgeable breeder or elite sport horses, told me that she liked Bayo and was very surprised that he did not pass. So we were disappointed but not crushed. The pressure is off, and it is time to have fun again without worrying about scores or licenses or competition or finances.

Kellie Trosin, Sally, Sam, and Tracey Schork. No more pressure!

         That evening, we came back from a late lunch at the same Italian restaurant we ate at before, and I noticed Tracey, Kellie, Petra, Phil, Helmut, the two judges (Christian Schadt and Dieter Felgendreher) and a few others sitting outside Reesling's stall and drinking wine and beer. We added to their larder with a couple of bottles we had just gotten from the ABC as presents, then went about packing up the stuff from our tack stall. When we were about as packed up as we could get that evening, Sally, Sam, and I walked back to the party. Dieter was smoking happily and Tracey was talking about her stallion's balls, and it was a very lively and energetic group:one that we were about to have to leave.

         "Listen," I told them-I almost had to shout. "I want to say something before you're all too drunk to understand me." I got their attention, but the judges were a little nonplussed.

         "Some of you know that we have been looking forward to this inspection for years." Christian, Dieter, and Helmut had been aware of Bayo for a long time. "It didn't go the way we wanted it to go, but we are just as proud of our horse now as we would have been had he passed. I thought he did well, but I respect each and every one of you. You called it like you saw it. We're just glad that we had this opportunity to participate."

         And with that, we finished packing, resting up for another day.

         Final Thoughts

         Of course we are still disappointed, and pretty up in the air about Bayo's future. Here are a few things that are certain, though. First, Bayo will remain a stallion. Sally will continue to train him here at Black Bay Farm with no real thoughts of immediately competing him. We will probably begin to collect him, although actually breeding him is iffy unless we are approached by someone who simply wants an unlicensed Fabayoso foal. We may decide to have him inspected by other groups, such as the RPSI. We will certainly try to get him to the Prix St. George level in dressage; hoping that the ISR/Oldenburg N.A. group may ask us to see him again. And in a year, if he looks and moves like Reesling or Diamunde, we may decide to have him reinspected. It may have been a hard lesson, but we certainly know more now than we did before.

         I still think that Bayo is a fabulous horse and would achieve the goal of the ISR and all other agencies; that is, to improve the breed.

         I know that Christian Schadt and Dieter Felgendreher have been consistent in their assessment of Bayo over the years. Both have seen and rated him before this inspection and both rated him good, but not quite good enough. So there may be something they are seeing that is just not right for the ISR, I don't know.

         Would Bayo have passed if he hadn't been sore? Would he have been able to jump more correctly or move straighter? We'll never know. But these are flaws that can be worked on and fixed. Right now, rest and recuperation are the most important things. That and attending to the farm and to our leaky house and deteriorating vehicles.

         We have become part of Team Reesling, and also Team Diamunde, Team Romeo, Team Rosall, and Team Royal Crusade. Here's to the time when we will meet in the dressage ring in pursuit of new and different goals.

Home again, home again.