It was a magnificent morning at the beautiful Fairlane Farms in the exquisite upscale equestrian community of Mallet Hill in Wellington, Florida for the preview of the latest Vivace saddle by Hermès. A picture-perfect venue was designed for Hermès riders Caitlyn Connors, Karen Polle, and Lucy Deslauriers to learn and perform with Olympic equestrian, Anne Kursinski on the grass field adorned in beautiful pink bougainvillea florals.
Designed by master saddler Laurent Goblet, the Vivace is the thinnest and flattest of Hermès’ collection of finely crafted calfskin leather saddles. “This new saddle is amazing, and the horses actually use themselves even better in this saddle than many others,” stated Anne Kursinski.
Approximately 20 of us spectators were thoroughly engaged in watching this intimate clinic taught by Anne while she focused on the art of the flatwork, preparing the horses for their jumping session. Karen Polle chose to ride a friend’s horse since her horses took the day off, so it was great getting to see her work a completely new and green horse at a new farm. Caitlyn Connors and Lucy Deslauriers both rode their own mounts for the clinic. Other Hermès riders who were in attendance for the event included Nick Dello Joio, Rodrigo Pessoa, Daniel Bluman, and Ben Asselin.
Anne spent some time focusing on rideability exercises like bending and flexing on the flat, small gymnastics fences, and working on shortening and lengthening of strides such as jumping a six stride to a three stride, then working the same line in a five stride to a three stride on the field. All of these exercises prove to be mentally and physically challenging for both horse and rider.
“This saddle is all about the balance and the lightness… Everything about it is very traditional and classical, just like my riding. Hermès is all about the ‘less is more’ mentality, and I really believe in it tremendously,” stated Anne Kursinski talking about the new Vivace masterpiece.
The Vivace saddle offers a first-of-it’s-kind close contact feeling between the horse and its rider. The panels are flat and thinned to spread the contact surface on the horse’s back, and it’s perfectly suited to riders who like to ride “out of the tack” when jumping. It combines forward balance, stability, and comfort. The saddle comes in both natural and black leather and in sizes 16.5, 17, 17.5, and 18. Hermès also offers on site saddle fitting services to help fit both horse and rider for the right saddle. If you’re in Wellington for the Winter Equestrian Festival, visit their boutique at the International Arena at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center located right next to the Tiki Hut.
“It was refreshing to experience such a well organized and beautifully decorated riding clinic in an intimate setting. From the elegant equestrian inspired table decor to the Hermès prize decorations throughout Fairlane Farms stables, everything was put together with great attention to detail. Watching the Vivace saddle in action gives me the confidence to say it will be a top contender in both Hunter and Jumper rings this year on the A-circuit,” explained Ashley Cagle, founder of Equestrian Stylist.
For more information on the Vivace, please visit https://www.hermes.com.
Special thanks to Aurelie Ferrut and Jimmy Sardelli from the Hermès Equestrian team for inviting Equestrian Stylist to this exclusive event.
