Blog: Wellington 2026 - What's Your Flava?

-- Text and Photos © Astrid Appels - NO REPRODUCTION ALLOWED (no screenshots for social media!)
This article expresses Eurodressage's' eye-witness account and opinion

My Wellington trip for 2026 is one week in and times flies when you are having fun. While I'm sitting here behind the computer at my "home away from home" and pulling my "elevensies" into a grand canyon, I'm trying to solidify my impressions, feelings and experiences into words for another fun blog. If I need to summarize the week, I can't help but think of the chorus of Craig David's song "What's Your Flava".

For the past few years and thanks to the generous hospitality of dear friends I have been spending more time in Wellington in winters, going from the typical 10-day holiday trip to an extended one-month stay, which transforms the Florida experience from a whirlwind tour into a more real-life immersion of the Wellingtonian lifestyle. Suddenly there is time for dinners, going to Polo and show jumping, spending afternoon on the beach, getting your nails done, go to Disney and Universal, or pop over to Miami. There is opportunity to savour a life away from the show ring. 

The Palm Beach area has so much to offer - and if you obliviously ignore how money draining it is to have a good time here - you are in for a total blast. Each year I ponder that 30 days is not enough, but with family, a house, pets and a business in Belgium, the responsibilities and commitments, which I happily dumped overboard for the month of February, keep whispering in the back of my mind.

Cornucopia

I arrived right on time to jump straight into the deep end and begin working the first CDI of a trio in February. With 48 combinations across the levels the show was a walk in the park with plenty of time to chill, relax, network and chat as well as overindulge in the food in the tent.

The cornucopia of bites permanently on offer at the horse show is a true mental test for this "foodie" who is trying to diet and stay fit, for once in her life. While there are healthy choices galore with salads, fruits, and egg white omelet it's the portion control and resisting temptation that are the challenge. I'm making an effort of not side-tracking on my workout schedule and aim to go to the gym six times a week, just like at home. After the culture shock I experienced stepping into the jungle of Crunch fitness last Wednesday, I went back for a second time on Saturday and found my stride working that very intimidating room every single day since. I regret that the TV screens show commercials non-stop instead of the news or a movie, but at the start of the week they began broadcasting the 2026 Winter Olympics with figure skating and that's more fun to watch while getting sweaty and out of breath on the cross trainer. 

A friend of mine asked if I had seen anything "hot" in the gym that piqued my interest, but I told her spotting attractive men there is like going to Ikea. You want to decorate your house with a few new pieces of furniture, but there is so much on display that you feel hit by a tsunami. In the end you only walk out with a scented candle and a new light bulb while your house stays exactly the way it is. 

Waiting For Godot

Every year in Florida I wonder where certain horses are. With World Championships in Aachen as year highlight and the 2028 L.A. Olympics in two years, one would expect U.S. Dressage to come out in full force... NOW, but at the moment it's only a few meandering the show grounds.

Indian Rock, Heartbeat, Dunensee and Jane competed in January and it's not sure if they will turn out again anytime soon... Lyle's Lars van de Hoenderheide is all question marks. Sarah Tubman showed First Apple in the national for the first time since July. Ashely Holzer hasn't shown her top horse Hansel yet... Anna Buffini quit the sport (where's Fiontini?), Anna Marek passed on the ride on Fire Fly to Jim Koford, who withdrew from showing him at the CDI Ocala two weeks ago.. I haven't spotted Vividus yet. Bohemian has been doing a string of national classes, mostly "Hors Concours," the latest fad in Florida to avoid a public score. This weekend in Ocala Lehua Custer is showing P.J.Ramzes for the first time in a CDI since January 2024. Out in California it's still waiting for Sabine Schut-Kery to really break through with Sonnenberg's Jersey at Grand Prix level. The horse is 12 now...

And not talking about team contenders.. Where is P.J. Rizvi and her cute Lusitano Vanille Ice? They were the show stoppers last year, bringing the funk to Friday Night Lights. 

Where are the Critics?

One of the topics we keep discussing in horse circles is that there is no critical equestrian press left in the world. Not a single American/Canadian magazine does critical show analyses, but the majority choses to write human interest stories. They certainly have their place in journalism for a feel-good, positive vibe on the sport, but careful assessment of what happens in the show ring, the judging, FEI policy making are rarely, if ever, dissected in "print." 

The same can be said of European equestrian publications though. While there are two or three out there putting the finger on the pulse in the breeding world, for dressage there seems to be none left since the horrific demise of St. Georg. Some publications analyse their own team riders, but hardly ever take the time for a broad inspection of the classes. When they do it's often a one-sentence mention or the biased undertone in favour of certain stallion stations/riders/owners undermines their authority and relevance. 

While I am mourning the lack of critical press in equestrian sport and having a "band of brothers" for support, Jeff Bezos - who made his fortune selling books from his garage - decided to the cut the legs off The Washington Post by firing 300 of its staff and cancelling the book review department. In a fantastic column on Bezos' self-immolation Tina Brown hit the nail on the head when she exposed Bezos' misapprehension that data shows readers no longer want investigative journalism. On the contrary, she argues that "it is the intellect and enterprise of journalists searching out stories that readers didn’t know and editors who push them to do so. It’s beating the competition with holy-fuck scoops that make readers stop what they are doing and start firing up their text chains. It’s excavating the way we live today with preemptive insights that readers have only just begun to identify themselves."

Circling back to Wellington, I sighed deeply when one rider presented a fabulously moving horse, but had little control in front and was see-sawing the double bridle with every halt-halt. The mouth was gaping throughout the test and the five panel ground jury awarded it 70%. One of the five was lower and was wearing (sun)glasses while scoring. Maybe I'm being "persnickety," one of the many new words and expressions I pick each year during my time in Florida.

The Great Divide

I think being critical is also a lifestyle, or maybe it's part of my education to question everything, get to the bottom of things, peel back the layers and visualise the strata.. not just in sport, but in life, relationships, where I'm positioned as a tiny speck on this earth. In my twenties I felt so self-confident and strong but I notice the older I become and the more I experience I get - having been whipped by life - the less sure-footed I feel about what is happening around me. Or has youthful cockiness been replaced by a more modest stance and quiet wisdom?

My extended stay in Wellington allowed me to experience a Superbowl party for the second, consecutive year. I was kindly invited to the home of a rider I have known for 25 years and who has always received me with open arms and no hidden agenda. A group of 50 people joined and the drinks were flowing and the buffet of food was mind-blowing. People were chatting, laughing, and having a great time until the half-time show came round. Suddenly we were warped back to Gettysburg: North vs South. There were two televisions, one in the living room and one in the kitchen and the great divide happened. A set of people frantically scraped for the remote to watch the Turnpoint right-wing show with Kid Rock, while in the living room Bad Bunny performed his glorious production, celebrating multi-cultural love and unity in the U.S.A. (nota bene: land stolen from the Indians by immigrants).

Last year I watched Kendrick Lamar as halftime show performer, but had a hard time understanding the lyrics of his rap songs. However, an analysis of the performance in The New York Times made me deeply appreciate the act. With Bad Bunny singing in Spanish, dancing, and depicting a generational story of life and community across borders, the message was loud, clear, and oh so understandable. Forty-five million people in the USA speak Spanish (14% of its population). In Florida it's even 20% (incl. the stable workers). The language of music and love is universal though and if you don't speak it, body language says it all.  Bad Bunny, who has two Friesian horses tattooed on his chest,  made history by winning the 2026 Grammy Award for Album of the Year for his Spanish-language album "Debí Tirar Más Fotos". The Puerto Rican becoming the first artist to achieve this feat and he couldn't have been a better choice for the halftime show, which in the end was the only thing I watched of the Superbowl. I don't understand the game: it's three hours of seven-minute blocks of commercials, which are briefly interrupted by five second-moments of football players trying to get a ball across a field. They run a little, then are stopped by the rival.. and they all need a 7-minute commercial break to catch their breath. 

The Daily Life

Disregarding the actual football game, I had a fun time at the Superbowl party, meeting people away from the show ring in their daily life. I'm not running with my camera from one ring to another, taking notes on paper, but can actually sit back, relax, and listen to their stories. 

The past few days I have emulated a normal daily routine: getting up in the morning, working on the computer, going to the gym, and finishing the day by reading in bed. I began my next romantasy novel, "Eldritch" (by Keri Lake), savouring the fantastical, magical adventure of the main characters and their idealized romance as the perfect form of escapism. On Monday we drove to Manalapan beach: gorgeous crisp blue sky, 24 ° C, a gentle wind and turquoise blue ocean to stare at and feel lost in. I walked the sandy beach with cracked shells and let the wind blow in my hair; gazing at the ocean. I felt deeply grateful for the amazing life I'm living. 

Oh, totally out of context it seems, but here is a photo gallery of pictures I took on Saturday and Sunday 7 - 8 February 2026. Enjoy !

-- Text and Photos © Astrid Appels - NO REPRODUCTION ALLOWED (no screenshots for social media!)
This article expresses Eurodressage's' eye-witness account and opinion

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