As is so often the case, Carlito’s Way’s sporting career – at that time still under the name Carlson – began in the Land between the Seas.

Claas Christoph Gröpper introduced the Casall-Lordanos son, bred by Johannes Petersen of Bredenbek, to competitive riding at the age of four and trained the gelding up to 1.30-metre level. Carlito’s Way made a positive impression at events including the State Championships in Elmshorn, and so it came to pass that, just a few weeks later, Markus Beerbaum and Christian Temme took turns in the saddle on the bay. “Carlito’s Way showed immense ability and talent even as a young horse. When he turned seven, Jim and Kristy Clark bought the gelding. He subsequently produced promising rounds in young horse classes and even managed to take first place in Wiesbaden,” recalls Meredith Michael-Beerbaum of the Casall son, who is now eleven years old. At the age of seven, Carlito’s Way made his debut in advanced level competitions and, just one year later, recorded his first successes in S*** show jumping over 1.50 metres under Markus Beerbaum.
At the end of 2019, Rodrigo Pessoa took over the riding of several horses that had previously been based at the Beerbaum stable. Among them was Carlito’s Way. Since then, the pair have enjoyed great success, competing primarily in the USA. Among other results, they placed in competitions up to 1.60 metres in Lexington and Tryon. In Wellington, the pair recently finished fourth in the Nations Cup and rode clear in a Grand Prix at 1.60-metre level to take sixth place. This Holsteiner is sure to make a name for himself in the future…

Photo: Stefan Lafrentz