Earlier this summer, Morgan Hill’s Elaine Enick returned in
triumph from an eight-day trip to Eastern Europe where she spent
time doing something she loves
– testing horses for her next show jumping venture. And, she
returned with a new friend, a resplendent Oldenburg warmblood of
high breeding with which she hopes to elevate her competitive show
jumping career.
Morgan Hill – Earlier this summer, Morgan Hill’s Elaine Enick returned in triumph from an eight-day trip to Eastern Europe where she spent time doing something she loves – testing horses for her next show jumping venture. And, she returned with a new friend, a resplendent Oldenburg warmblood of high breeding with which she hopes to elevate her competitive show jumping career.
But even as she celebrated her good fortune, her mind couldn’t have been far away from her old friend, a horse named Arcady with whom she shared a transcendent 2004 season. A horse without whom her future success likely would not have been possible.
Arcady now resides on a ranch in Carmel, retired from sporting competition after being sold by Enick earlier this year. And, it may not be such an entirely romantic notion that he, too, remembers the brief moment in the spotlight that he and Enick shared last year.
Competing out of Morgan Hill’s Five Star Farms, where she had trained for a decade in preparation, Enick and Arcady dominated California’s Adult Amateur Jumper Division last year, sweeping a raft of awards from every show in which they competed. The pair were named champion or reserve champion in all 11 shows last year.
“That we would have a year like last year, I could never have imagined,” Enick said. “It was a dream. We won a lot, we worked well together and (Arcady) is priceless. It’s not a year I could ever beat.
“But I hope to have another year like it at a higher level.”
After competing at the 3-foot-9 height last year (the sport’s difficulty increases with height levels), Enick is planning on moving up with her new horse, named Grandeur.
According to Enick, she hopes to develop the 6-year-old Grandeur into a Grand Prix competitor eventually.
According to her trainer, Lisa Niva of Five Star Farms, Enick has the ability to do just that.
“She;’s really trying hard to learn the details of riding,” Niva said. “She’s a very particular person and that helps in this sport – to be precise.”
Niva, who accompanied her protege to Europe in search of a new mount, said Enick’s new horse will be the ideal partner as she rises through the ranks.
“Elaine and Arcady became a great team and Arcady was a great horse at the Adult Amateur level, but she’s moving up to a higher level now,” Niva said. “(Grandeur) is going to be perfect for her.”
Enick said she’s been preparing for a year like last year’s since she began riding horses in Pennsylvania at the age of 8, and has been dreaming about competing with a horse like Grandeur at the highest levels of competitive show jumping ever since she began competing in the sport.
According to Enick, a key component of her success has been the support of Five Star Farms, including Niva, and owners Janet Graham and Doug Ginter.
“This is the best show year I’ve ever had,” Enick said. “One never to be taken for granted or forgotten.”
