Renegade Champion: The Unlikely Rise of Fitzrada

That's what Jane Pohl Rust would answer, in her later years, when asked if she had had much experience on horseback. Pohl Rust ACTUALLY had done quite a bit of riding from 1945 to 1950 when she rode her horse Fitz (shortened for Fitzrada), a runty horse she rescued from death when her family bought him from the army in 1940. She had ridden Fitz at her father's Army base in Hawaii before the war and had been the only rider who could tame him. Pohl Rust - an Army brat - had moved around with her family, from West Point to Hawaii to Virginia. She was an avid rider and jumper - never owning a horse, but always working out with the Army equestrian teams at what ever base she was living. In 1940 she took Fitz with her when she entered Vassar College in New York. He was still difficult to work with and ride, but she gamely took him fox hunting at local meets. She also entered riding and jumping contests with him. After her graduation in 1943, she moved back to her family's home in the Loudoun area in Virginia. She entered meets and races and jumping competition in northern Virginia, ultimately going to New York's National Horse Show from 1945 to 1950, and sweeping the awards each year. She was aiming for a place on the 1948 US Olympic Equestrian Team, but it was still only open to Army officers. By 1952, when places on the team were opened up to all amateur riders, Pohl Rust had retired from competition and Fitz had died. Until her death in early 2001, she lived in the Boston area and then northern Virginia, where she raised her son, Richard Rust - the product of an early, unhappy marriage - and taught high school. She also rode to hunt with various northern Virginia hunt clubs and "kept her hand in" by teaching youngsters how to ride and jump. As you might be able to tell from my review, I know very little about horses, competitions, and fox hunting, but I love Rita Mae Brown's "Sister Jane" series of mysteries. Brown wrote the preface to Richard Rust's biography of his mother. Evidently, Col Rust died before his book's publication. He wrote a marvelous book about his mother and his maternal grandparents. If you're interested in riding or just reading a good biography, you'll like this book.

This is a heartwrenching true story of the bond between horse and human.Richard Rust made the time and tension come alive when telling of his mother's pain and passion for jumping and her great love, Fitzrada. It's the story of one human who fell in love with a horse and used that love to change the face of show jumping as we knew it.

This is a book to treasure and it will always be on my bookcase. Renegade Champion is a true story of a smart but dangerous horse named Fitzrada and the young woman, Jane Pohl, who believed in him. The story follows Jane and "Fitz" from their first encounter on an Army base to their unikely rise to fame in the horse show world, culminating with her performance in the Jumper Championship at the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden in 1946. Best of all, it is a good read, and keeps you on edge, wondering what will happen next. This book is a loving tribute to Jane by her son, Richard Rust. Unfortunately, I understand he died just before publication, so never learned how his book was received.

"Renegade Champion" is a heartwarming and sometimes heartbreaking story. It is beautifully written. Whether one loves horses or knows little about them, this story cannot help but remind us how perseverance pays off, and how rewarding the relationship with four-footed companions can be. It also reminds us that the teenage years can be the best of times and the worst of times. For those who do love horses, this book is a must-read. Jane Pohl's son must have loved his mother very much to write such a moving book that shows that she gave him great memories. For this reader, "Renegade Champion" is one of those rare books that is truly unforgettable. I will always picture Jane Pohl and Fitzrada -- a runt who was sentenced to death as a rogue horse -- flying over the show-jumping barriers -- with room to spare.