Romantico

ROMANTICO

The 1984 USA Dressage Olympian

by Michel Kaplan

This article is reproduced from 9th issue of S.E.E.

Published February 1988, by Beau Geste S.O.A.R.

ROMANTICO

In 1984,

in the eyes of

the public and in my eyes.

In 1988,

in his paddock

the spasm was still there.

Observing where he held his tension

and losening it from poll to toes, helped

by his T.E.AM. exposure,

I relieved him and got his approval.

Romantico's walk improved.

Romantico could now pass the T.E.AM. obstacles test with flying colors.

I had heard many stories about Romantico, but I didn't know what to believe. I had seen this beautiful horse in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles performing well for Robert Dover in spite of what looked to me to be a painful spasm in his right hind leg. Later, I heard how a well known coach forcefully tried to solve this problem. And, failed.

On January 22, 1988, Marnie Reeder, the head of the partnership that owned Romantico, invited me to Auistin to treat several horses with my therapeutic massage. As I saw Romantico walk in his paddock, I was sure the spasm I had seen in Los Angeles in 1984 was still there. I was also sure I could help him. Observing that his poll was very stiff and tight, severely restricting the movement of the two top vertebrae. I masaged this area and then gently rocked his top line until he relaxed and regained much of his sensitivity. Fortunately, Romantico had experienced a great deal of T.E.A.M. work and thus relaxed much faster than some of the other highly trained dressage horses whom I heve treated. To complete my massage, I worked on his legs, finishing with the problem leg. As I worked on the muscles of his right inner thigh they flinched and relaxed. Romantico heaved a huge sigh of relief and Marnie told me: "Whatever you are doing must be right; he sure likes it."

Romantico confirmed my work by his new way of walking. As I observed him I knew that he was relieved of his "charley person".

The next day I asked Marnie to lead Romantico over some T.EA.M. obstacles. She said that he used to go well through the labyrinth, but that he had difficulty with the others in that he tended to drag three feet even over poles on the ground. I said I was sure these days were over. Romantico performed beautifully over ground poles and T.E.A.M. obstacles, to Marnie's expressed satisfaction. I understand his canter has improved too.

This page was last updated on: April 2, 2002



ROMANTICO The 1984 USA Dressage Olympian by Michel Kaplan This article is reproduced from 9th issue of S.E.E. Published February 1988, by Beau Geste S.O.A.R.

ROMANTICO In 1984, in the eyes of the public and in my eyes. In 1988, in his paddock the spasm was still there. Observing where he held his tension and losening it from poll to toes, helped by his T.E.AM. exposure, I relieved him and got his approval. Romantico's walk improved. Romantico could now pass the T.E.AM. obstacles test with flying colors.	I had heard many stories about Romantico, but I didn't know what to believe. I had seen this beautiful horse in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles performing well for Robert Dover in spite of what looked to me to be a painful spasm in his right hind leg. Later, I heard how a well known coach forcefully tried to solve this problem. And, failed. On January 22, 1988, Marnie Reeder, the head of the partnership that owned Romantico, invited me to Auistin to treat several horses with my therapeutic massage. As I saw Romantico walk in his paddock, I was sure the spasm I had seen in Los Angeles in 1984 was still there. I was also sure I could help him. Observing that his poll was very stiff and tight, severely restricting the movement of the two top vertebrae. I masaged this area and then gently rocked his top line until he relaxed and regained much of his sensitivity. Fortunately, Romantico had experienced a great deal of T.E.A.M. work and thus relaxed much faster than some of the other highly trained dressage horses whom I heve treated. To complete my massage, I worked on his legs, finishing with the problem leg. As I worked on the muscles of his right inner thigh they flinched and relaxed. Romantico heaved a huge sigh of relief and Marnie told me: "Whatever you are doing must be right; he sure likes it." Romantico confirmed my work by his new way of walking. As I observed him I knew that he was relieved of his "charley person". The next day I asked Marnie to lead Romantico over some T.EA.M. obstacles. She said that he used to go well through the labyrinth, but that he had difficulty with the others in that he tended to drag three feet even over poles on the ground. I said I was sure these days were over. Romantico performed beautifully over ground poles and T.E.A.M. obstacles, to Marnie's expressed satisfaction. I understand his canter has improved too.



		This page was last updated on: April 2, 2002