HOK Talks with 
Karl Mikolka
by Lelia Smith

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Photos used with permission from the Karl Mikolka archives. To see and learn more about Mr. Mikolka, visit www.karlmikolka.com

Issue 4, 2003

HOK Talks with Karl Mikolka
by Lelia Smith

Mentioning the Spanish Riding School of Vienna usually captures the attention of Baroque Horse enthusiasts. Many realize the value this school holds in equestrian history as a link to the prestigious riding masters of the past. Historical voices must echo off the very walls of the arena, passing tradition down through the "generations", and being heard only by those who have ridden there. Karl Mikolka is one of the few individuals who have served as a Riding Master in Vienna, and his name sparks recognition in many Lipizzan owners and those familiar with the Spanish Riding School. Although he now calls Gloucester, Massachusetts his home, Mikolka's thoughts and philosophies continue to reflect those Viennese voices. Today, Baroque horse enthusiasts can benefit from the link Mikolka provides to these traditions and many other aspects regarding these magnificent breeds.

"The school in Vienna was built on information given from mouth to mouth. There is nothing in writing," states Mikolka about learning from the "old masters." "The masters of the past were concerned about the proper education of the horse," he continues, "and gradual development of body and mind." Mikolka spent 14 years at the Spanish Riding School, and moved through the ranks of eleve, Bereiteranwarter, Bereiter and Oberbereiter or Chief Rider. When going into detail about three of his teachers from the Spanish Riding School, he states, "Although I was given the opportunity to ride with Chief Rider Weibold, Colonel Handler and Georg Wahl, I must say that Cerha, Irbinger and Lauscha exercised a much greater infl uence on me than all others. I consider them my most important mentors who shaped me into the horseman I am today." In his own words, soon to be pulished in an autobiography, Mikolka describes these special Riding Masters:

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