Hockaday sophomore will show Hygge at national meets
M.K. Connatser visits her teammate almost every day, deepening their chemistry and offering words of encouragement before their next competition.
She doesn’t get much of a verbal response from her 1,200-pound equine at the barn. But that unspoken bond is the key to success in the discipline of dressage, in which Connatser is one of the top riders nationally in her age group.
She will compete beginning July 29 at the North American Youth Dressage Championships in Traverse City, Michigan, where she is the top-ranked qualifier in her division. Then she will head to the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions on Aug. 18-24 in Chicago.
“I love working with an animal who doesn’t speak your language but you have to learn to communicate with them,” said Connatser, a Bluffview resident who will be a sophomore at Hockaday this fall. “They are so loving and feel emotions just as deeply as we do. To feel such a trust and a connection with them is amazing.”
Horse and rider are often described as dance partners in dressage, which involves a series of predetermined and precise movements that are judged for quality and accuracy within a ring.
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“Every horse is different. They reflect our body language. We’re in a partnership,” she said. “As the rider, I’m the leader and teaching the horse, but the horse is responding to me and communicating with me. If they don’t like something, I’m going to know.”
Connatser, 15, became passionate about equestrian at a young age and earned a top 10 finish in her first national competition in 2021, when she was still in elementary school.
“The minute she was introduced to pony rides at the zoo, she was hooked on horses,” said her mother, Aubrey. “We couldn’t get her off of them.”
Connatser won two gold medals in 2022 aboard Donny, who competed as Donau Hit, a gelding that has since retired. For the past two years, she’s been showing Hygge, a.k.a. Schnell’s Highlight, one of two horses she has stabled in Dallas.
With Connatser returning to the national stage for the first time since 2023, it will be an opportunity for Hygge to make his debut in the spotlight.
“There’s a lot of strong competition, but I’m looking forward to it and grateful for the experience,” she said. “It’s a great accomplishment to be able to show Hygge on a national stage.”
