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In the summer of 1996 Cindy watched Combined Driving for the first time at The Festival of Champions held at the United States Equestrian Team Foundation in Gladstone, New Jersey.  Cindy connected instantly with the sport. Little did she know that less than two years later, she and her son Matthew would be competing on that very spot.  Matthew won the 1998 Single Horse Junior Trials at Gladstone and competed with Cindy for several years.

  In 2000 Cindy entered and won the Mighty Mini Challenge with Sammy, a “36-inch pony with a 16-hand heart.” Cindy and Sammy successfully competed for several years, winning at Lord Stirling CDE, Garden State CDE and many other events.

 

  Cindy had a dream of owning and driving a pair of Friesians. Her dream came true in 2001 when Cindy, with hubsand Steve’s encouragement, found a pair of four year old Friesians through her friend and driving instructor Amie Bauman. Amie discovered Sieme and Rein on a whirlwind trip to the Netherlands. Cindy imported both of them, and competed them as single horses in pleasure shows and CDE'S for several years. Wiebe Dragstra from Dragstra Stables in North Carolina then put them together and drove them as a pair, in tandem and also as part of a four-in-hand. Cindy drove Sieme and Rein as a pair and received the 2005 Garden State Pleasure Show Multiples Championship in October at the Horse Park of New Jersey.

 

  In 2006, Cindy and Steve purchased four Arabo Friesian weanlings from the Netherlands.  This new and unique breed has 82% Friesian blood and 18% Arabian blood resulting in better endurance and stamina, while retaining the character and look of the traditional Friesian.

 

Two of these horses Dark Timke and Dark Upke have competed as a pair in Combined Driving at the Intermediate Level with great success. They are two time ADS Intermediate Pairs Champions

They  are the wheelers on Team-Turbo USA, Arabo-Friesian four in hand team!

Also, ADS Intermediate Four In Hand Champions

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Cindy believes strongly in the benefits of cross training for the mind and body of both horse and rider and all four are  regularly schooled in ridden dressage, liberty work, trick training as well as being ridden out on the farms challenging trail system. Cindy even took two of them to a cattle practice at Mike Feister's farm.

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