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Merrie Velden

When I was a kid I always dreamed of being a famous rider. I grew up on Washington Island, Wisconsin, a small island in the middle of Lake Michigan where there weren’t many horses. When I was nine years old my dad bought me a Shetland pony which pretty much started my career in the horse world. My parents then bought a couple of Icelandic ponies that I started showing at the 4H shows down the county. I would ride over with then on the ferry boats and be met on the mainland by a friend who would take us to the shows. After I graduated high school I went to Meredith Manor school of horsemanship in West Virginia to really expand my knowledge of training and help me enter the equestrian world. After  I graduated from there I moved to Scottsdale Arizona where I worked with many different types of disciplines from Western pleasure to Arabians and to 3-day Eventing. I move to San Diego in the late 80s I realized  I really wanted to be a Dressage rider so I bought a quarter horse that I train him up to Prix St. George. I knew he wasn’t a horse to go all the way so I traded him for a Dutch Warmblood by the name of Carlos who was notorious for taking off and running away with people. I turned him into a top FEI horse that I was able to qualify for the 1994 Olympics Sports festival in St. Louis Missouri where we were on the bronze medal team. Sadly Carlos wasn’t capable of going to Grand Prix and I really hope to represent the United States at some point in my career so I traded Carlos for a Grand Prix horse by the name of Da Vinci. He was very difficult Horse who was notorious for not only bucking people off but for Putting them in hospitals. I roll the dice on him and within two years of owning Divinci, we were competing in the Grand Prix and placing really well in CDI’s. He was the Grand Prix Champion at a CDI in Colorado and it was after that  I finally realized my dream of representing the USA when I made the 1997 North American Championship team where we were the highest placing American in the Grand Prix special where I placed 3rd.  I went on to do the World Cup finals in Washington International Horse Show in Washington DC where we finished in the top three. I was then invited to compete with Divinci in São Paulo Brazil and we were fourth in the Grand Prix and the freestyle. I trained a stallion named Sandomere from a 3-year-old to Grand Prix. 2009 he was the West Coast FEI 5-year-old Champion and the following year he was the FEI 6-Year-Old Champion.

I now run a small barn in Kerman California where I train no more than 10 horses and we raise at least one foal a year. Last year my Yearling colt was the USDF HOY Yearling colt by Fürstenball and he was also the recipient of the Traveling Trot Perpetual Trophy which Is given to the highest scoring Sporthorse in hand in the nation. I am currently riding a wonderful Fürstenball 4-year-old that I hope to qualify for the 4-year-old championships in Chicago this year. Over 15 years ago I got my first Schleese saddle and I’ve been riding in them ever since. I love that I have saddle fitter I can rely on and That I can get them fitted to my horses with each change as they go through the levels of Dressage. All of my clients also ride in Schleese saddles and they have also been very happy with them. I just got the new Bi-Nate Line saddle and I absolutely love it. It puts me closer to my horse then previous saddles and it really allows me to sit down deep into my horses back, plus I was able to customize it and it is absolutely beautiful. Fan for life here!

Territories

Fresno, CA

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