Celebrity Reining closes the SVAG CS Classic

A crowd pleasing ‘Celebrity Reining’ closes the SVAG CS Classic as Micheal Schumacher and RS Esplendidos Olena slide to the highest step of the podium!

The seven celebrities that showed in this years’ edition of the SVAG CS Classic VIP Celebrity Reining thrilled the crowd as most of them performed, for the very first time, aboard a reining horse.
They all tried their best to step on the podium, and once their circling, stopping, and sliding was over, Micheal Schumacher and RS Esplendidos Olena, owned by Corinna Schumacher, found himself doing what he is best at doing: using the horsepower he has and standing on the ‘number 1’ titled step of the podium!

Celebrity Reining Podium - From left to right:  Melanie Winiger, Michael Schumacher, Ronny Mengo - Courtesy Andrea Bonaga Photography

“Micheal is such an all around athlete he can do just about anything!”, said his professional trainer Shauna Larcombe. “Until yesterday he was supposed to ride another horse, we only tried this horse twice and he did really well both in and out of the show pen!”.“It was really good fun and I enjoyed it just as much as I did last year,” said Micheal. “Reining is a discipline that takes up a lot of time, energy and training – we had fun with it, but when you really start showing, it’s a very difficult and serious sport. I would like to thank all of my friends that took up this challenge, they made it special!”

‘Awesome’ is the definition well-known actress and model Melanie Winiger used to describe the horses, the  riding and the Celebrity Reining. “You’ll definately see me on a reining horse in the future, infact I am planning on showing in the Rookie class soon,” Melanie claimed once the awards presentation was over.  The beautiful new ‘lady reiner’ infact placed second behind Schumacher riding Docs Antares, graciously made available for the occasion by Cilia Wernli. Coaching Winiger was Canadian professional Morey Fisk who was impressed by her performance.

A super enthusiastic Ronny Mengo, Mediaset F1 reporter for many years, placed Arc Lighting Players, also kindly made available for the occasion by Italian owner, Sara Riva, to third place. Renzo Canciani and Volker Schmitt ‘trained’ the eversmiling Ronny. “This has been a wonderful experience for me. I didn’t know anything about reining horses before this and I found out that there’s a beautiful world out here. These horses are just incredible and I hope to be able to carry on riding them,” said Ronny. “Being here for me was an honor, stepping on the podium with one of my idols, ‘Schumi’, wow, I just cannot describe the feeling!”.

Taking part in the competition that lit up the CS Ranch arena was the late entry and a big suprise for all: Lukas Podolski, the incredible German National Team soccer player! He thrilled the public as well as Micheal and Corinna. “We were so happy that he could make it!” said the couple. Micheal is a keen soccer fan and comes from the Cologne area.  He and Lukas have met several times before but when ‘Prinz Poldi’ announced that he would be there to compete in the Celebrity Reining, he was thrilled. The Koln attacker rode his very first reining horse, Jokers Que, owned by Sylvia Maile and was trained for the occasion by NRHA professional Grisha Ludwig. Lukas ‘had a great time’ and Grisha stated that teaching such a great athlete was ‘superb’!

Making the excitement rise were also Laurent Dupin, TF1 France, who presents F1 and who had never heard of Reining before but who enjoyed it thoroughly! He rode Laurent Deniel’s CDs Teddy Spat Berry and was trained by reining professional Sigfried Weber. “The first time I rode I was nervous but Sigfried helped me gain self confidence. Now, when I get on a horse, I have a huge smile on my face.  On such a kind horse, it was easy to get the right feeling,” he stated.

Andreas Troll, the ARD D presenter specialized in F1 and skiing. He also rode his first reiner – Jokers Que – and was trained by Grisha Ludwig. This was the second time in his life he ever got on a horse! “I was curious to see how reining horses worked. I practiced the first time last Tuesday and had a great time. It’s been a great experience,” said Andreas.

Rolf Fuhrmann, SKY 3 football presenter in Germany, rode TJ Classic Guigon Jin made available by owner Janina Thomi. He was coached by Ludwig and enjoyed his second time riding. “The only time I got on a horse was seven years ago for two hours in Camargue... I was sore!  This was great fun and a superb promotion for this sport.. you can call me Rolly Wayne!”

The CS Ranch would like to thank all the owners of the horses made available for the occasion and the time the Reining professionals dedicated to the famous ‘rookies’! A special thankyou to the main sponsor of the event SVAG  (Schweizer Vermögensberatung) and corporate partners Banque Baring Brothers Sturdza,  Audemars Piguet, Navyboot, E.I.Sturdza and Nimbus for their support.

The SVAG CS Classic & Celebrity Reining was held during the 2011 NRHA European Affiliate Championship finals. For the EAC this was the 10th anniversary and as NRHA Executive Director, Dan Wall, stated: “This show was a great success thanks to the wonderful hospitality the Schumacher family showed towards the competitors, the owners, the horses and to the reining fans that attended the event. On behalf of the National Reining Horse Association I would like to thank them for their efforts and great support to the sport of Reining.” CS Ranch would like to thank the NRHA corporate partners: Bob’s Custom Saddles, John Deere; Kiser Arena Specialists; Montana Silversmiths; Rios of Mercedes / Anderson Bean Boot Company; SmartPak.

Check out the CS Ranch website all the information and news regarding the event at www.cs-ranch.eu