Vertigo

Vertigo, named after the Alfred Hitchcock film, is a Holsteiner-Quarter Horse cross. He is the last foal by the Holsteiner sire Calme. Vertigo is our clown and has been known to beg for a snack or ten. He is a fearless jumper who loves to play and will remind you not to take life too seriously. He is actually owned by me, Dr. Amy Nelson. 

Vertigo was born at my family farm in Kansas, his mother is my wonderful horse, Taxi. Many of you who took horseback riding lessons from me in Oregon and California likely rode Taxi. She was a horse I started when I was 14 years-old and rode over 20 years. I can tell you, there is no other bond like that. Taxi is now retired at that same farm in Kansas. 

I give all the credit for Vertigo’s jumping training to Grace Gaines. Vertigo was at a great age for riding when I gave birth to my little son. So, unfortunately I could not give Vertigo the attention he deserved. Fortunately, Grace was a horse-crazy teen who also had a yearning for jumping. Together they cultivated their passion. To this day, when riding Vertigo, I always set up a small jump or cavaletti to capture his attention. You can really feel him get excited when a jump goes up. 

I am not the bravest jumper. One day, I was approaching a medium-sized jump and I had one of those regretful moments while cantering at top speed. I was so pleased with how Vertigo took care of me over the jump. He could have gone bigger (I could tell he wanted to), but listed to me and became more careful. I just laughed and promised to find him riders who love to jump. If that rider is you, Vertigo would be thrilled to meet you.