• SNEAK PEEK”Q & A with Magali Delgado and Frédéric Pignon

the founding stars of Cavalia talk about their new book GALLOP to FREEDOM

North Pomfret, Vermont  (Oct. 14, 2009) — On a recent Saturday afternoon in the South of France, Magali Delgado and Frédéric Pignon took a break from training horses at the family’s Lusitano breeding farm and made a phone call to the United States to discuss their new book Gallop to Freedom from Trafalgar Square Books (www.horseandriderbooks.com).

Question:  How did you manage to write a book on tour?  You did seven shows a week on the road with Cavalia.  Did you stay up all night or what?

Magali answers:  It was not easy.  Many times David [co-writer David Walser] could just come for a few days, so we would speak with him during our day off.  Then, he usually came to see us working.   At night when we came back from the show, we would talk about the book until 3:00 in the morning.  

Question:  You dedicated your book to Dao and Templado, two of your world-famous Lusitano stallions.  Describe what each horse contributed to your philosophy . . .

Magali answers:  For me, Dao opened a door to encourage me to work deeply on the mind and on the body of the horse.  It was like a revelation every day I was riding him. It was like, ‘Uh-oh, there is another way to work.  Open your mind.  Open your senses.’  Dao showed me that.    

Frédéric answers:  When I started to work with Templado I understood that he was very special.  He was one of those horses who makes you understand that every horse is very unique.  There is no rule.  There are no mathematical ways to understand a horse.  Templado was a unique personality.  He was not like the hundreds of horses I worked with before and he made me understand that when we work with a horse, we have to adapt ourselves and even adapt everything we’ve learned [before] to this new unique personality.   He taught us a lot, but the way he opened my mind . . about working with a new horse using all we know and trying to learn more.  When you work with a horse, I think it’s important to realize that he could probably teach you much more than you already know.

Question for Magali:  There are some incredible shots of you on the beach in Malibu, California, in the book.  You were galloping Dao without a bridle in Paradise Cove!  Were you sure he would stop?  

Magali answers:  At the beginning, I was feeling like he could gallop all the way to Los Angeles and we would both be happy.  (Laughs)  Both of us were so excited.  It was such a special feeling to be free with him on the beach.  I didn’t care if he was running fast and I don’t think he cared either.  You know that feeling—the horse starts to run and you don’t want him to stop.  It’s a magical moment in your life.  We did a lot of cantering on the beach that day.

Question for Frédéric:  The book has photos of your two Friesian stallions Phoebus and Paulus when they first arrived on tour at one-and-a-half years old.  It also shows them all grown up, performing at liberty.  How did you train them on tour, along with performing, rehearsing, moving from city to city, and everything else?

Frédéric answers:  That was the difficult part of having young horses on tour. It was like a work in progress.  For me, it was interesting to let them learn how it works with music and a show, but sometimes they were like two Friesian teenagers.  That’s why now, I’m enjoying the time I can spend with them.  It’s much easier, but they had good experience [on tour] and now they are very professional.

 Question:  You always look cool and calm in the photos where you’re performing.  Don’t you ever get nervous when you’re going on the stage with a horse for the first time or competing?  

Magali answers:  For me it’s not nerves.  I’m really excited.   When I have a new horse, I’m always really excited by the results of my horse in the show and to see the reactions of the people.  For me it’s like a positive energy, but I know it’s not the same way for everybody.  I’m lucky.  I’ve been in shows since I was very young and I know myself very well.  I need that little point of excitement inside when my heart is going boom, boom!  (Laughs) But I’m not afraid and I’m not tense.  I’m just very focused, concentrating, and full of energy and that has helped me a lot for the competition and for the show.

Questions for Frédéric:  How do you deal with pressure situations, like when you’ve got five loose stallions to control?  

Frédéric answers:  You have to first work on your own stress. It’s why I do yoga.  We have to first control ourselves and our emotions.  If you can control yourself, then you can help the horses. 

Full-length versions (1,500+ words) of this Q&A interview: “Magali Delgado and Frédéric Pignon talk about their new book Gallop to Freedom” and photos are available for reprint from Elizabeth McCall at [email protected].