Claudia & Tizón (Germany)

Claudia & Tizón

At the end of October 2016, I travelled to Catalonia for the fourth time to go on a trail ride with Rudi. It was my second Pirates Trail. As always, I allowed Rudi to surprise me and choose my horse for me; this time it was Tizón! Back then, Tizón was rather new at Panorama Trails and this was his first tour in the mountains. Rudi asked me if I would like a challenge and to have the honour of going with him on his first mountain tour! Of course, I said yes! This is how it all started ......

HE was simply fantastic (using Rudi´s words). Super soft to ride, responsive and he reacted sensitively to my needs. Considering his young age, he was very brave, confident and interested in everything around him. At the time of the trail, I was going through a difficult phase in my life and the ´little black one´ – as I used to call him – brought me so much joy, he was the greatest pleasure! During the trail, he helped me to forget all about my worries at home and turned out to be exactly what I needed during that moment in time!

To question my feelings for him again, I did two more trails in April and October 2017 (living beyond my means a bit, I must say!). On these occasions, I did not want to be surprised with a new horse – I only wanted Tizón ? I had him on both trail rides and quickly fell in love with him all over again :)?

On the 29th October 2017 following my trail, I decided to be brave and bite the bullet. Unbelievably, Rudi and I shook hands; he had decided to give Tizón to me, I had bought him, and he was all mine! Tizón – my buddy, my partner and so much more!

After that, everything happened rather quickly. Rudi was planning to go to the “Pferd & Jagd” (Horse & Hunting) trade fair in Hannover, Germany and he suggested to bring him there himself. Rudi handed him over to me at a riding stables near Hannover, six weeks after my Bandits Trail on the 6th December 2017 (the best Christmas present in the world!). I let MY little black one stay there overnight, because we could not have reached our final destination that day. The next morning, we loaded him into a trailer for the last 450km of the journey. Unfortunately, we had a few issues and had to find emergency accommodation 30km from Tizón’s new home! A storm was coming, and for safety reasons, it was prohibited to transport cars with trailers: the car shuttle simply would not take us on our way!

Tizón’s new home is situated in the northernmost part of Germany, on the island of Sylt. It can only be reached by ferry or car shuttle. After a night in a box at Friedrich-Wilhelm-Lübke Koog, we reached Morsum on Sylt on the 8th December 2017! Tizón was not a big fan of the ferry passage because he was facing backwards. Sometimes he was nervous and galloping on the spot! Tizón’s new home is right behind my house in an outdoor stable. I already have two horses (a 24-year-old mare and a 25-year-old gelding; both of whom have been with me since they were foals). They are now retired, and my new youngster Tizón is the third in the group. Initially separated and slowly getting used to each other, step by step my little herd is coming together! Three days after his arrival, winter arrived immediately, and it was snowing …. a bit of a culture shock for the Catalan! He reacted in the same way that he had on the trails when I came to know and love him; up for anything, he overcame any difficulty! His curiosity and sociable character were his advantages in the herd. Friends of mine told me that I should not cross Tizón and ruin our relationship – as this bold horse would declare his independence ?.

I was not looking for a new horse, but as any animal lover will know when you meet that special one you cannot say no: I had found Tizón and Tizón had found me!

For many years, I have meticulously ridden dressage on warmbloods, a couple of years later I ended up in endurance races, and when my hoses became too old for the sport, we simply went on hacks. For several years, I went on trail rides in many places around the world – 6 of them with Panorama Trails in Catalonia, 3 of them on Tizón. I am not completely sure what I am planning to do with him now and where our path together will lead, but I know for sure that I am looking forward to having a great time with him. Together, we will develop something special, and one thing is certain: it’s going to be good!

Thank you to everyone who has encouraged and supported me and helped me to realise my dream – I am truly grateful! A special thank you to Daniela and of course, how could I forget, to Rudi! A million thanks to you all!