Polish equestrian team training in Whitefish for World Equestrian Games

Whitefish equestrians Mark and Shirley Schmidt have added some Polish pizazz to Team Montana for the upcoming World Equestrian Games in Lexington, Ky.

A three-person team from Poland — a driver and two grooms — arrived in Whitefish on Tuesday to train with the Schmidts’ team of Warmbloods until they compete in early October.

The Schmidts sets their sights some time ago on competing in four-in-hand combined driving at the top-level competition. They had joined forces with a promising young Amish man to drive the team and had trained extensively with him, but when a disagreement erupted and they parted ways recently, it opened the door for another team to step in.

And the Europeans were champing at the bit for Schmidts’ Warmbloods.

Piotr Mazurerk, driver of the Polish team, said it would have cost him close to $250,000 to ship his horses to the United States, so when he learned the Whitefish horses had no driver but had qualified for the world competition, he quickly made the call.

“Mark is a hero in the driving world,” Mazurek proclaimed with a broad smile. “I have a good feeling about this.”

Mark Schmidt, an experienced whip in his own right, said the horses were doing well and it was a shame not to compete in the world games after the time they’d spent training them.

“We wanted to allow another country to be represented at the world games,” he said. “I was watching the Internet to see how he (Mazurek] was doing and he’s pretty good with dressage.

Mazurek, ranked 24th in the world in combined driving, began competing in pairs on an international level in 2007. He competed in combined driving in the world championships in 2008 in Beesd, Holland, and said he was happy to finish in the top half.

The Swiss team also wanted to use the Schmidts’ horses. Europe is the hub of combined driving and this is the first time the world games are being held outside Europe. For many the trip to America is just too costly, Mazurek said.

The games are held every four years and  last were staged in Aachen, Germany.

Training is intense at the Schmidt ranch right now. Mazurek said they work with the horses all day, driving in singles, pairs and as a team to familiarize themselves with the Warmbloods.

“I have to learn about the horses and I want to learn as much as possible,” said Mazurek, a veterinarian and fifth-generation breeder of Polish Warmbloods.

At the world games, each four-in-hand driver puts the team through three legs of competition — driven dressage, marathon and obstacle cones.

While driving horses for sport can be traced to the ancient chariot races held during the Olympic games in Greece, present-day combined driving is rooted in mounted military training exercises.

Combined driving began in England in the late 1960s and is an offshoot of the ridden three-day event in Olympic equestrian competition. At the World Equestrian Games, some portions of the competition require the driver to use only one hand as he guides the four-horse team.

“If the horses are behaving themselves, it’s not bad,” Mark Schmidt said.

The marathon is considered by many to be the most exciting phase of competition. Each team negotiates a challenging cross-country course of up to 16 kilometers and as many as seven obstacles. Drivers must memorize the path they’ve chosen so their time within the zone is as short as possible.

Cone driving, the final phase of the combined driving event, can be equally grueling as the horses are taken through a complex course of narrowly spaced cones and obstacles, racing against the clock.

Schmidt got into combined driving competition about 10 years ago. He used to drive an eight-up of mules, just like the Budweiser hitch, and once drove a 27-mule team, with three of his big mules in the lead.

After a bout with cancer a year and a half ago, he gave up driving. His spirit of competition is evident, though, as he accommodates the guest equestrians and helps them train. With a little bit of luck and a lot of skill, his Team Montana with a Polish twist will be the one to watch on the world equestrian stage.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com