In 2013 Alexa Perkiel, who was working for Karen and
David O’Connor at their farm in The Plains, Virginia, began riding Mandiba. Alexa had competed to the upper levels, including representing the United States at the Macca- biah Games (also known as the “Jewish Olympics”) in Israel. Mandiba helped Alexa get mileage at the upper levels and to establish her name in the eventing world, as she planned to develop her career as a professional rider. The pair competed together from June 2013 until March 2014, including the CCI2* at Richland Park in Michigan and the CCI2* at the Virginia Horse Center.
“Everything you learn, you can bring to your next horse and into your future, because you learn how a horse should feel at that level.”
and started coaching me; she’d always done so well with him and knew how it felt to ride him. There’s nothing like having Karen O’Connor teach you on one of her long-time partners though; it was a pretty great experience overall.” Alexa says Mandiba’s owner, Joan Goswell, was also very supportive of their partnership. Today Mandiba is retired. After working for the O’Connors
for several years, Alexa, now 28, is based in Ocala, Florida, and has set her sights on a new business venture. “I had a good season with clients’ horses, but when every- one else packed up and headed north, I spent the summer here in Florida getting my real estate license,” she says. Her future as a professional rider is up in the air at the moment. “My plan is to use real estate to support my riding,” she says. “I know the farms and the area down here, so I thought it would be fun to be able to show people around and help them find farms as well as support the horses myself. I have to start out with a total desk job and later I’ll have some freedom.” “I didn’t see my life being forever six months in one place and six months in another,” Alexa says. “It’s a tough lifestyle and you have to be 120 percent in it. I had an owner with Mandiba, but that wasn’t going to be a forever thing, and it was time for him to retire, so I have to figure out my own future.” She currently has a nice young horse, RF Cool Play,
that Karen O’Connor and Marilyn Little found for her in Germany, but upper-level rider Kristen Csik Bond is riding him with the intention to sell him. Mandiba, she says, gave her an incredible—and some-
Alexa Perkiel competing Mandiba in 2013 at the Richmond Park, Michigan CCI2*.
“I was the first person other than Karen to ride and
compete him and that’s a lot of pressure,” Alexa recalls, describing what it was like to take the reins from a world- class rider. “He’d always been put in the perfect situation. He kind of wants steering from the rider; he doesn’t take the wheel and run, it’s good in that way; he’s a good teacher and isn’t out of control. He’s really trained on the flat and on cross-country he’s seen it all and was really great about letting me do my job. He’s a mellow kind of older soul and has definitely done it all: the Olympics, the World Equestrian Games, Badminton, Rolex...” When she first started riding Mandiba, she kept it low
key. “I kind of flew under the radar until that fall of 2013,” she says. “Karen was actually in Europe when I started riding him, with David coaching me. That was great because David had always been coaching Mandiba when Karen was riding him. I actually put more pressure on myself when Karen came back
24 November/December 2015
times stressful—opportunity. “There are some riders who have made their own horses and gotten to the Advanced level, but having a coach keep an eye on you with a horse that’s been there is more pressure to succeed, and you’ll get more limelight,” she explains. “People will notice you and if you want to start a career, that’s helpful. And everything you learn, you can bring to your next horse and into your future, because you learn how a horse should feel at that level.” “Karen is such a good rider that you wouldn’t know
Mandiba is actually quite lazy,” Alexa adds. “You have to spice him up a little bit to get a good score in the dressage ring. It’s a great chance to learn the ropes and how to do it right. Usually a horse like that will be watched over carefully, and that’s good too. He was so well trained on the flat, and things I learned riding him and different ways I rode him were help- ful to experiment on the next one.” “Any time spent with upper level horses and trainers is
an irreplaceable experience. Nothing beats the support of an owner, too. It was really important that I even had that opportunity. The sport really won’t be able to survive with- out such giving owners as Joan Goswell, and for Karen to say, ‘Alexa rides all right; I think she could ride Mandiba and get along with him’—that takes a lot of trust. Riding a school- master like Mandiba is really an amazing thing.” For all three of these riders, the chance to partner with an
equine veteran let them experience riding and competing in a valuable way. And for all three, it has shaped their approaches to training—likely for the rest of their lives.
Shannon Brinkman
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