Winner at GCDA Made in the Shade 2019

Winner at GCDA Made in the Shade 2019

Marcel and his gray stallion Friend Do Vouga had a great show this last weekend at the Gold Coast Dressage Association Made in the Shade August summer dressage show in Wellington, FL. Placing first on Saturday in the Prix St. Georges with a great score of 72.7% in front of judge Anne Cizadlo.  Coming back on Sunday in the test of choice they rode a lovely FEI Intermediate I test to place third in that class. The pair was also happy to win the Triple Crown Excellence award for the weekend.

Winner at The Global Dressage Festival 2019

Winner at The Global Dressage Festival 2019

Marcel and Friend headed to the final Global Dressage Festival show of 2019 to compete in the Prix St Georges and I1 Classes. Its the first time together in the show ring for this pair and the PRE stallion was calm and focused putting down beautiful rides to win the Open PSG with a 70% and come in second in the I1 class.

He’s Approved!

He’s Approved!

Kenji 4 yr old Stallion owned by Lisa Jenkins, handled and trained by Marcel Van der Burg was approved by Anglo European Society during the winter equestrian festival in Wellington 2019. The AES is a highly regarded studbook registering quality sport horses. With members throughout Europe, AES-registration signifies a quality-bred horse.

A New Partnership off to a Great Start

A New Partnership off to a Great Start

Vinho Dos Pinhais and his well deserved second place.

Vinho Dos Pinhais and his well deserved second place ready to head home.

This past weekend Marcel was was thrilled to take his new FEI partner Vinho Dos Pinhais to the Gold Coast May Dressage Show in Wellington, Florida. This new partnership has been in place less than a month and while the two are still getting to know one another the results this last weekend were great. Marcel and Vinho placed second in the FEI test of choice with a 66.7% on Saturday and improved to a 67.6% on Sunday in the same class at Intermediaire I. Marcel and Vinho brought home second place honors on Saturday and third place on Sunday. Job well done for the new partnership, we can not wait to see how they do next time.

De Paardenkrant Interviews Marcel at Winter Equestrian Festival

De Paardenkrant Interviews Marcel at Winter Equestrian Festival

Marcel van der Burgh runs dressage farm amid alligators and hurricanes
From De Paardenkrant, by Dinette Neuteboom.

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Every year the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington attracts many Dutch horse people. Whether grooms who escape the Dutch winter for three months and want to earn good money or merchants who come and do networking; Dutch people are there every week. The seventh week of the WEF ‘De Paardenkrant’ spoke with Marcel van der Burgh, who has been running his own dressage farm for ten years just a stone’s throw from Wellington, in the slightly more northern town Loxahatchee. Van der Burg has not only seen the WEF develop to the biggest horseshow in the world but now sees the Adequan Global Dressage Festival going the same way. Both events take place in the winter, when the temperature during the day reach a pleasant 20 to 30 degrees and the weather shows little whims. Van der Burgh lives and works however also in the tropical summer when extreme heat, heavy rain and even hurricanes do not make life easier in South Florida. To top it off alligators are ten meters from the stables and paddocks in the canals.

LOXAHATCHEE – “Oh, the alligators aren’t that bad. There are very big, but I’ve never seen one lying in the paddocks. And you get used to the weather in the summer”, says Marcel van der Burgh laughing. “But the hurricanes, that is the worst thing there is. You cannot imagine how scary that is, you do not know what’s happening to you. I have experienced two heavy hurricanes now. One of them was not so bad, but the other was terrible. I thought I was going to die.”

But despite the alligators, the heat and hurricanes Van der Burgh is enjoying his life in Florida. “The weather is always good and you can earn decently with horses.”

Twenty years ago the Dutchman (41) went to America for the first time. “I had finished my education at the National Equestrian School in Deurne and I wanted to start a riding school in the Netherlands, but I quickly found out that this wouldn’t work. It was too expensive. Then I started traveling and through a friend and I came to work at a farm in New York.” Like many of the American horse people they spent their winters in Florida, in the south of the United States. After a few detours Van der Burgh eventually started building up his own stable. “It’s easier here than in the Netherlands to start your own horse farm. In the Netherlands it is only profitable if you have a large farm. You should have something like a hundred horses. Here the numbers are much smaller.” Van der Burgh usually has around twenty horses in his barn. “On the one hand, the costs are higher here, but people also pay more for the horses and the training and you have a lot less problems with regulations regarding manure for example.”

All-round

Van der Burgh is multifunctional in Florida. “I have an all-round farm. Purchasing and sales, I import many horses from the Netherlands, I train and show horses and I train riders. I also do the tricky beasts and real young horses. That piece is often missing here. Often people try to break in their young horses themselves and if it doesn’t work, they come to me to solve things. But I also have young horses I break in and train them for the first years and after a few years the owners can ride them easily themselves. People often forget how important that first part of the education of a horse is. If it’s done right, you can enjoy it for the rest of the horses’ career.”

As in the Netherlands the most stables in America cost a lot of money, so it’s admirable that Van der Burgh can earn a living just from his horse business. “It’s trial and error, but I survived it all. From hurricanes and flooding to the economic crisis. ”

Grand Prix

Van der Burgh also shows his own horses and horses of students. Now that is up to the Small Tour. “I have not shown Grand Prix yet. It is my goal, but I am very realistic. You never know how it goes in equestrian world. One day you think you have a champion, the next day he is crippled in his stable. Usually the horses are therefore sold before I reach Grand Prix-level. It is difficult to keep such horses, especially if they are my own.”

Asked whether it would be financially interesting for Van der Burgh if Dutch horse owners would provide a good horse, he responds with a resounding yes. “Good and nice to ride horses you can sell expensive here. And it’s worth it to invest time and money here. ”

Translation by Rick Helmink

Empire Marcel Lends Mount to Robert Dover Horsemastership Clinic

Empire Marcel Lends Mount to Robert Dover Horsemastership Clinic

At the fourth annual Robert Dover Horsemastership Clinic, sponsored in part by Lendon Gray’s Dressage4Kids program this weekend in Wellington, FL young riders got the chance to ride with legendary dressage trainers Robert Dover, George Williams, Charlotte Brendahl-Baker and Laura Graves.  Many of the participants traveled from a afar and were unable to bring their own horses to the clinic, that is where generous local owners and trainers stepped up by supplying them with mounts for the  clinic held in the Van Kampen Arena at the Stadium at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center from Saturday, Jan. 3 through Wednesday, Jan. 7.

Mattie Zepernick, 17, from Lafayette, Louisiana. Rode Leandro, an 11-year-old Westphalian gelding owned by Rebecca Reno and trained by Marcel Van der Burgh.  Leo is a barn favorite at Empire Marcel known for his goofy faces and sweet disposition. “He’s a really good horse but it’s been very hard for me to get used to him,” Zepernick said. “All my other horses are so forward thinking. It’s been very different but it’s been an amazing experience.” On Sunday Mattie rode with Dover and Saturday with Charlotte Brendahl-Baker in the clinic. “Marcel was so generous to lend him to me,” she said. “It was a little scary but I’m glad I had the opportunity.”

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Mattie Zepernick and Rebecca Reno’s Leandro Photo: Sue Weakley

Van der Burgh said he wanted the horse to gain some experience and that it’s important for young riders in this country to get experience as well. “I think it’s important for me to be supportive of this group,” he said. “She did very well on a borrowed horse she didn’t know. She just flew in and didn’t even have a chance to ride him before!”

To check out the clinic schedule for the rest of the Robert Dover Horsemastership Clinic, click here. Auditors are welcome to attend and a daily $25 donation to Dressage4Kids is encouraged.

For a complete story on all the horses lent to riders at this event visit DressageDaily.com.

 

Empire Marcel is Looking for a Working Student

Empire Marcel is Looking for a Working Student

Empire Marcel is in search of a working student for the 2015 Winter Season in South Florida. Ideal position for an individual seeking to advance their dressage, horsemanship, and stable management skills.  The barn is an busy facility with sale and training horses as well as clients, the working student will be riding and working in an active but relaxed environment. Housing available on the farm in Loxahatchee, close to Wellington and White Fences. You will work closely with Marcel and horses that range from young prospects to the FEI level. Empire Marcel competes at most of the dressage shows during the winter season at the Global Dressage Show grounds, Jim Brandon and White Fences. 

If you are interested contact Marcel directly, Cell 561-452-4244.

Lillian Floyd Featured in Sidelines

Lillian Floyd Featured in Sidelines

Marcel Van der Burgh and all the clients at Empire Marcel are thrilled that the amazing achievement of Lillian Floyd, one of Marcel’s clients, was celebrated in the December 2014 issue of Sidelines. Lillian just celebrated her summer of the vintage horse by completing 10 Century Rides!! See the full story below.  Way to go Lillian, can’t wait to see you back here in Sunny Florida this winter.

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