AIKEN - Sleek, thoroughbred horses sauntering down a dirt road in the cool dawn hours is not an uncommon sight in Aiken.

They are as much a part of the landscape as the live oak trees that grace South Boundary Road. So it's no surprise that world-class equestrian Shawna Harding chose to make her home in Aiken. Ms. Harding won the Intermediare I class in the Wellington WEF Dressage Classic in Wellington, Fla., on March 24.

The 37-year-old made her home in Aiken 1 years ago after spending time in Europe training and competing. Ms. Harding said she remembered Aiken when she lived here six years ago, before her time spent in Europe.

"I fell in love with it," she said. "My mother has a house here and my aunt lives here, and I have a nice facility - the Black Forest Equestrian Center - to work out of."

Dressage is an Olympic equestrian sport but it is also a basic training discipline for the "backyard" horse, teaching a horse to be obedient, willing, supple and responsive.

According to the U.S. Dressage Federation, the object of dressage is "the harmonious development of the horse in both mind and body, and every horse, regardless of its type or use, can benefit from this training."

Such training helped Ms. Harding before last month's victory.

"It was definitely a long wait, over two days and 40 some horses," she said about waiting to find out if she and her horse, Come On III, had won. "It was pretty intense and very exciting. It made the drive home back to Aiken a lot shorter."

The win placed her in the top 15 in the country in the qualifying race for the Pan-American games to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, this year.

Ms. Harding said there is one more CDI/International competition and the top four from it will compete in the Pan-American games.

Reach Michelle Guffey at (803) 648-1395, ext. 110, or michelle.guffey@augustachronicle.com.