World Cup Lead-Up: Get to Know Brian Moggre and MTM Vivre le Reve
February 26, 2020 (Via Practical Horseman)
Brian Moggre has taken the show-jumping world by storm. In March of 2019, Brian and his Westphalian gelding MTM Vivre Le Reve, or Erkel, picked up their first international win at the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup Ocala. Brian was just 17 at the time. His World Cup qualifier success continued into the current season, where he and Erkel won yet again—this time in Lexington at the prestigious National Horse Show. One week later, the pair placed third at the Royal Horse Show in Toronto. He’s now in second place in the World Cup Eastern Sub-League rankings behind Olympic gold medalist Beezie Madden. This position guarantees his ticket to the 2020 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final in Las Vegas, which is quickly approaching in mid-April.
I caught up with Brian at trainers’ Ken and Emily Smith’s base in Wellington at the beginning of January to hear more about his World Cup season, what it would mean to compete at the World Cup Final in Las Vegas and more about his partnership with Erkel.
You were only 17 when you won your first World Cup qualifier last March in Ocala, and then you went ahead and did it again in Kentucky in November. To what to you attribute such early success?
The first win really caught me by surprise. That horse show at Live Oak—I wasn’t even sure I was going to show there until about the week before. I really didn’t have any expectations for how the week was going to go. My horse had been performing wonderfully all winter. He not only won the grand prix, he also won the qualifier just a few days prior. That was a surreal moment for me and it was a huge eye-opener that maybe I can do it and I’m so thankful that it was with that horse because that made it even more special to me that I can do it and he can as well.
[Winning] at the National Horse Show was amazing. I competed in Washington the week before and had a medium result in Washington. I was happy with my horse, but I could have performed a bit better. So again, I didn’t really know what to expect and it could’ve gone any way. It was amazing. I cried [laughs]. I cried both times. It was super great to win those two classes not only in the same year, but with the same horse. It was just a spectacular 2019. I had always dreamed of winning my first three-star and my first four-star and for those to be in the same year when I was 17 and 18 is crazy to me.
To read the full article (https://practicalhorsemanmag.com/competitions/world-cup-lead-up-get-to-know-brian-moggre-and-mtm-vivre-le-reve)