Meet Romeo, My World Class Super Star
“I knew the first time I sat on him years ago, that he was a world class horse.”
Bred for the job, of course Romeo is ridiculously talented and fancy. He’s got the big gaits and beautiful conformation that make him an eyecatcher to anyone who sees him.
But, what really makes him special is his temperament. He is cool as a cucumber in any situation. He’s got an amateur friendly temperament but can get fired up in his body in a good way that makes him a super fun horse for me to ride.
He’s also very confident and has no trouble expressing his opinion! He’s very sure of himself and very much in charge of himself.
He likes people a lot, he's a super friendly guy! Just don’t touch him where he doesn’t want to be touched - those ears will tell you what’s acceptable to him or not!
Romeo has actually been in my life for about 9 years now. In the last year, I was able to purchase him and am now honored to call him my own. He’s made a few appearances in the Academy, but my hope is that soon, everyone will know his name and his story.
Romeo is coming 12-year-old Oldenburg gelding by Rousseau. He was born and bred in a small town in Wisconsin (like me!). His breeder, Jill Schabel, (who has sadly since passed away) had sent him as a 3-year-old to be started by Jessica Davis, who was a trainer in my program. I was able to coach them at the Young Horse Championships at Lamplight when he was a 4.
When we made the big move to South Carolina, Jess came with us and was able to bring Romeo as well.
As Jill’s illness progressed, Romeo needed to be sold and fortunately, was purchased by Ilene Boorman, who was already in my program, and who graciously shared the ride with me and also allowed him to appear in some Academy videos.
I was able to show Romeo for one season in Florida in early 2021. He had an amazing year competing at Prix St. George with a median score of 69.967%. He also won the Prix St. George Challenge at the Colonel Bengt Ljundquist Memorial Champions (CBLMs) with a score of 71.76%. His first and only Intermediare-1 ride was a CDI1* with a score of 70.421.
He handled the atmosphere at these big venues as he does everywhere: With a quiet, cool demeanor; basically, he was unimpressed.
We all were very excited about the future.
Then breast cancer came along and changed a lot of things. While I have been so fortunate to be thriving after treatment, it gave me the gift of clarity. Time waits for no one, and I realized I needed to really pursue my dream of making the team, and decided to pack up and head to Germany to train with Michael Klimke.
I had hoped to take Romeo with me, but Ilene did not want to be away from him for the 8 months I had planned to be away, and it was decided he would remain here. Ilene would share the ride with my trusted right-hand, Ashley Perkins. Ashley did an incredible job riding Romeo during those 2 years.
Earlier this year, as I was preparing to return to Germany for the second time, Ilene made the difficult decision to get out of horses. She offered Romeo to me to purchase. I knew I had to do whatever it took to keep this horse! A couple of loans and a flight to Germany later, Romeo was able to spend a few months with me while we trained with Michael Klimke.
This incredible horse has made stunning progress in his training and I am SO excited for what is to come.
He has of course returned to Florida with me and we are currently getting ready to do his first Grand Prix this season. Watch for us in the CDI ring this season in Wellington!
