Page 90 - Libro_MariaA_26agosto

María Alejandra Ramelli

re buying her, but from the first time I rode her, I fell in love with her. Lola
was a very healthy mare. My father had been her veterinarian since she was
born, so he knew exactly how healthy Lolita was. We were together for about
eight years, so we performed in competitions from the lowest classes to the
1m20 classes. I wouldn’t be the same rider if I didn’t own her because she
was a great teacher. When we bought her, I was living in Spain, so we also
went to competitions in Germany and the Netherlands. Lolita was like my
life partner. She taught me that horses are the only ones that can make me the
happiest person in a minute, and the saddest person in thirty seconds. After
having ridden for most of my life, I can say to all the people who are thinking
about buying a horse for the first time that beyond the sport and all the be-
nefits that horse riding has, the most beautiful thing about owning a horse is
the relationship that you create with your horse. However, you have to work
very hard on that relationship every day, because once you have your horse
by your side, he will jump on fire for you.”

Nicolás Florez

Nicolas is a professional showjum-
ping rider and trainer in Colombia.
He has competed in the best natio-
nal shows, and has also ridden in
Europe. Today, Nicolas has his own
barn where he trains showjumping
horses and riders for national com-
petitions, and has experience with
importing and breeding horses
from Europe in Colombia.

“The first horse my parents bought
me was called Santropel. He was an
eight-year-old palomino gelding,
but he didn’t have much experience
in shows though. Before Santropel, I tried four other horses, but the first
time I rode him I knew that he was my soulmate. Santropel was a very
beautiful horse. He was very appealing to people because of his color. His
color was golden, which is pretty hard to find in Colombia, and I liked to
groom him by myself before shows so he would look clean and shine. I
remember being really scared before his vet check because another horse
I had tried before had several problems on his back, which prevented me
from buying him. Santropel’s lack of experience in shows wasn’t a pro-

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