Trude Hestengen Recalibrates Career After Sale of Yard and Horses

Wed, 01/08/2025 - 19:31
Norway
Trude Hestengen at the 2022 CDI Troisdorf :: Photo © Astrid Appels

Norwegian team rider Trude Hestengen is recalibrating her equestrian career after the sale of her two Grand Prix horses and her yard in Denmark.

Trude told Eurodressage that the financial pressures and responsibility as single, independent business owner were weighing down on her. 

Two Decades in Top Spor

Trude's international career began when she was a junior rider competing in her first major Championships in 2001 on Lope N (by Landau x Zalmeco). He took her into the big tour. She also showed Le Mont H (by Leandro x Raimondo) as a young rider in 2004. 

Trude moved to Denmark in 2008 and was based at Mikaela Lindh's Solyst farm in the beginning.

Tobajo Pik Disney became Trude's career launching horse. The pair competed at the 2011 World Young Horse Championships and at the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Caen, where they were 56th. they became the Norwegian Grand Prix Champion in 2013 and 2015.015 European Dressage Championships in Aachen where they finished 24th in the Grand Prix Special. Trude sold him to Sweden shortly afterwards after which a six-year break from international showing followed.

Standing On Her Own Two Feet

Trude trotting up Tobajo Pik Disney at
the 2014 World Equestrian Games
In 2013 Trude and her then-husband Lasse Kasparek bought their own property, Tystoftegård,  in Skælskør, Denmark, but it required extensive work and investment as there were no horse facilities present. 

"We had to convert the machine building into a stable, build an indoor arena and make paddocks and pastures so I started up my business in January 2014," she told Eurodressage. "The first horse to move in was Tobajo Pik Disney."

Hestengen also invested in new young horse stock but suffered a blow in 2019 when she was forced to put down her rising Grand Prix horse Strandagergårds Deluxe. In 2020 she divorced from Lasse and procured sole ownership over the farm.

The two horses that carried her through were the now 12-year old Danish warmblood Christianslund Furstino (by Furstenball x Cape Town S) and the 10-year old KWPN bred Kick Pleasure (by Sezuan x Wynton).

Kick Pleasure and Furstino

With Furstino at the 2022 World Championships in Herning
Trude debuted Christianslund Furstino internationally in the medium tour at the 2021 CDI Troisdorf and moved him up to Grand Prix at the 2022 CDI Lier. The pair showed in Opglabbeek, Troisdorf, Exloo and Falsterbo, to clinch a spot on the Norwegian team at the 2022 World Championships in Herning, where they were 87th in the Grand Prix (61.770%).  They won silver at the 2022 Norwegian Championships. She competed him through 2023 with their last show being Herning in October of that year, shortly after placing 57th (65.994%) at the European Championships in Riesenbeck. 

Trude bought Kick Pleasure as newly saddle broken 3-year old stallion and produced him to Grand Prix level. They also premiered at the 2021 CDI Troisdorf, in the 6-year old division. In 2022 she rode him in Troisdorf in the 7-year old tests and in 2023 he moved to small tour level at the CDI Redefin. The black had his international Grand Prix debut in April 2024 in Kristiansand and competed at the Nordic Baltic Championships in Skaarup Fyn (DEN), where he was 13th in the Special. Their last international was in Falsterbo in July 2024. She posted 63.674% in the Grand Prix and withdrew from the Special. 

Recalibration in 2025

In 2024 Trude began slowly thinking up a new plan for the future, recalibrating her life. 

With Kick Pleasure at the 2022 CDI Troisdorf
At the start of December she sold Kick Pleasure to Wellington, Florida, while Christianlunds Furstino has now found a new home in Sweden as a schoolmaster for junior rider Wilma Bornhager. Her yard in Denmark also sold and the deed of ownership will be handed over on 1 April 2025.

"

I’m a bit tired of it (all) and the sale of the farm is also due to economic reasons. Everything has become so expensive so it’s hard to make a living," she admitted. "I have bought a house together with my fiancé Allan Bruun and plan to stay in Denmark and get a “real” job."

When asked where this fatigue of running a horse business comes from, Trude was honest in her reply. "I think mainly the financial aspect and the responsibility," she confessed. "I have only one employee, so when she is sick or on vacation, I have to do everything myself and it’s a 24 hour job. I have had my farm for 11 years now so I thought it was time to try something else."

With no sponsors or more staff backing her up, it has become too much a burden and Trude wants to explore new paths.  She has a bachelor degree in health and nutrition, but "I don’t think I want to work with that, so we’ll see what happens."

No Life Without Horses

Trude has not said the horse world a final goodbye. She has retained one horse which she wants to produce to Grand Prix level and compete along the way, one "to have fun with."

At the 2022 World Championships
"I am not quite ready to fully give up on competitive horse sport so that’s why I’m keeping Hot Boy but I don’t want to ride professionally any more," she told Eurodressage.

Svalegårds Hot Boy (by Donkey Boy x Hotline) is an 8-year old Danish warmblood which she bought  at the Danish Warmblood Elite Foal auction after he was named Danish Warmblood Colt of the Year in 2017. 

"He is the full brother of the stallion Svalegårds Hot Driver and is a very talented horse and I look forward to developing him and see how far we can make it," she said. "We have quite good results in young horse classes and M level and he just made his debut in Prix St Georges this weekend. I still want to go to competitions and aim to get back on the Norwegian team in the future!"

Photos © Astrid Appels - Ridehesten

Related Links
Norwegian Team Selected for 2023 European Dressage Championships
Norway to Send Team to 2022 World Championships Dressage
Norwegian Horses Selected for 2020 World Young Horse Championships
Hestengen Loses Rising Grand Prix Horse Strandagergårds Deluxe
Tobajo Pik Disney Passed Away
Tobajo Pik Disney Sold to Sweden
Norwegian Team Selected for 2014 World Equestrian Games
Tobajo Pik Disney II Passed Away
Rimestad, Andresen, Christensen, Hestengen Win 2013 Norwegian Dressage Championships
Three Norwegian Horses Selected for 2010 World Young Horse Championships