Our industry is full of many types of people with diverse backgrounds who all share one thing, a love of horses. But there is so much more than meets the eye to many of these people. We asked 2013 AQHA Congress Champion Cathrin Gutmann of Austria to list the Top 10 things she loves and hates. Cathrin and her horses, including 2014 AQHA World Champion Boys Move Over and Congress Champion OnlyAfraid Inthedark, have been competing on the U.S. show circuit in the western pleasure and hunter under saddle. Check out her revealing comments below!
10 Things I Love
1. My daughter’s wit. She just amazes me constantly with the things she notices and expresses. She is very funny too.
2. Walking into a freshly dragged arena in the morning.
3. My coffee machine in my arena. It is the next most important thing in there after my iPod docking station.
4. Music…anytime, anywhere. Most importantly in my arena, in various styles, from Led Zeppelin to Iggy Azalea.
5. My arena. We’ve really made it the way I’ve always wanted it. I can open up the long sides in the summer and we have put everything in there to make it functional and comfortable: great footing, big mirrors, lots of poles, a seating area, coffee machine. I spend so much time in there doing what I love.
6. Nail art and getting my nails done. People around me know of my obsession with nail craziness, plus it’s one of the very few times I have only for myself.
7. A book that catches me that I just can’t put down. I love to read a lot, Russian literature especially, but also for example, TC Boyle to name an American author.
8. My dog’s snoring. He is a Pug and Pugs in general, are such great little clowns.
9. Collecting things from shoes to show pads to nail polish. It’s a never ending story.
10. Food–anything. I’m not afraid to try something new, and when there’s enough time, I love to cook something that’s special and challenging.
10 Things I Hate
1. My very big talent is losing things within 10 seconds, normally my keys or my phone, very often also both at the same time and several times a day. I drive everyone crazy including myself.
2. Dentists. That’s why I probably don’t see them as often as I should.
3. When major European shows interfere with major shows in the U.S. and I have to decide which one to miss.
4. To clean up. I’m a mess very often, but at the same time I hate any kind of mess or disorganization at the barn and in my tack room, especially.
5. Often I have to buy extra suitcases coming back home from my U.S. shows (mostly because of horse stuff shopping for my European friends and me). We have a remarkable suitcase collection at home already because of that reason.
6. Naysayers and people who constantly complain about anything. Oh and drama! I don’t like drama. Always try to surround yourself with positive people and life is so much better.
7. If I have to decide things fast and don’t have the time to think about it at least a thousand times, make lists, destroy lists. But at the same time, I hate indecisiveness! You’ve got to know what you want.
8. Bad coffee or decaf coffee. I can stay anywhere, even in an RV underneath the train track behind the Gilligan at the Congress for three weeks with three hours of sleep a night. But the coffee needs to be strong and good.
9. Wind. I’m okay with cold; I’m okay with rain; I really don’t like wind; I can sometimes almost feel personally offended by wind.
10. An unhealthy focus on political correctness. I sometimes may offend people with my opinion but I think one should have one.
Thanks Cathrin!
