I Am, Therefore I Must Have Been Born... Somewhere

There are certainly enough biographies of myself in greater or less detail, which have appeared throughout the past few decades in a variety of publications. To present yet another seems like an act of redundancy. But for those of you yet unacquainted with who I am, the following biographical particulars may suffice as an introduction.

I, Karl Mikolka was born in Floridsdorf, a suburb of Vienna, Austria in 1935. My mother informs me that as young as my stroller days I exhibited an insatiable curiosity about horses, a curiosity that later became the driving force behind my entering the Spanish Riding School after graduating from the Humanistische Gymnasium in 1955. Dashing my mother’s hopes of ever becoming a concert pianist or something useful like a banker, I remained with the Riding School for 14 years, moving through the ranks of elévè, Bereiteranwärter, Bereiter and Oberbereiter or Chief Rider before accepting an appealing offer from Brazil to establish a nucleus of Dressage in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

In 1972, following my four-year assignment in Brazil, my good friend Richard Ulrich made possible the realization of my boyhood dream of coming to America by inviting me to join him at Friars Gate Farm in Pembroke, Massachusetts. The United States has been my home since then and I have devoted the past thirty years to the preservation of Classical Horsemanship in word and deed through training, teaching, judging, coaching and publishing. I now live in Gloucester, Massachusetts with my lovely wife Lynn and three very charming and spoiled cats.

In between clinic assignments I enjoy pursuing my various interests: cycling, archery, target shooting, playing the piano, watching British comedy on PBS, making my voice heard on a number of political issues and lately, re-learning Russian, a language that was mandatory during my middle school years for children living in the Russian occupied zone of WWII Vienna. The physical pursuits of earlier years: Do-Shin-Kan-Karate-Do, skating, skiing, swimming etc. have recently been substituted by other activities such as ballet, Pilates and Escrima. A Motorcycle Safe Riding Course offered by a school in Beverly, MA was the highlight of this past summer. I only lament that there are never enough hours in the day to pursue any of these interests to the depth I would like.

I am the father of two fine sons, Alexander and Günther who is married to my daughter-in-law Sylvia. I am the grandfather of three: Julia, Maxi and Lena, all of who live in Vienna.