Atlantica - 01.01.2006, Page 58

56 AT L A N T I CA
Some Horses Need a Haircut
The thing is, Icelandic horses get hot.
It makes sense; they are programmed to
grow thick coats in the winter, and shed in the
spring. Even if you take them hundreds of kilo-
meters south to Germany – where about 80,000
Icelandic horses tölt around today – they still
grow the fur that gets them through long winters
in the Icelandic highlands. (Along with stand-
ing in groups with their backsides to the wind,
another Darwinian trick that has made many a
motor tourist wonder.)
It is early November, and the afternoon debut
of Apassionata, an international horse show in
its third season that will be touring Germany this
spring. The event showcases horses and human
performers from all over the world in choreo-
graphed and costumed acts. This is the first year
that the Icelandic horse will be part of the show.
Six riders and six horses make up the Icelandic
event and some of them (the horses) had to be
shaved.
“We didn’t want to,” says Styrmir Árnason,
a three-time Icelandic horse world champion
who is coordinating their part of the show. “But
because it’s so hot in the hall and they have such a
thick coat at this time of the year, we had to do it.
They would have had problems breathing.”
Still, the six horses representing look pretty
good today. Small – next to some of the massive
The Icelandic horse tölts its stuff in German equestrian extravaganza Apassionata.
Text by Krista Mahr. Photos by Thorkell Thorkelsson.
breeds like the glossy black Frisen – but holding
their own.
Like a lot of things in Iceland, the Icelandic
horse is getting trendy. A pure breed and one of
the oldest on earth, its merits are no mystery in
its native country. Now, the horse is gaining more
recognition in horse riding circles throughout
Europe for its mellow temperament and strong
character.
Once a horse leaves Iceland, it can never go
back, a restriction designed to keep the breed
pure and disease free. There are about as many
Icelandic horses, if not more, in Germany today
as there are in Iceland. The first Icelandic equine
immigrants, Árnason tells me, were imported
to Germany in the 1960s by a horse enthusiast
who was trying to save foals from being eaten.
(Icelanders are nothing if not resourceful, and
horsemeat used to be a fairly common dish.)
“That was the beginning, of course, and then
people started to find out about the horse and
started to like it,” he says.
Icelandair and Island Tours, which promotes
tourism to Iceland from Frankfurt, both signed
on to sponsor the Icelandic horses’ participa-
tion in Apassionata. The music, choreography,
set, and story of Iceland’s segment were devel-
oped by singer Arndís Halla, an Icelander liv-
ing in Germany who is the official “Voice of
ICELANDa
“When I started Icelandic riding, all of my
friends were laughing. ‘Ha, ha, ha... go
ride fast in the woods,’” says a 26-year-old
Norwegian equestrian who is riding one
of the Icelandic horses in Apassionata.
“Now, it’s like ‘Oh, you ride Icelandic
horses? That’s cool.”
Continued on pg. 58 »
050-53 Atl 106 Suburbs+Ice.indd 56 16.12.2005 13:00:03