Looks can be deceiving, even with horses.

When Spanish Riding School senior rider Herwig Radnetter met the Lipizzan stallion assigned to him, Radnetter was so disappointed in the horse that he thought his career at the famous Viennese institution would end abruptly. He was wrong.

"I thought he was too laid-back. But that horse never blew a show in 17 years," the Austrian said. "Even at an advanced age or when he was tired, he never made a mistake. I still get goose bumps when I think of that."

Radnetter is in an elite profession. Only 10 men — and no women — are chosen to be senior riders in the longest-running horse show in the world, which will come to Columbus this weekend. The training is long, demanding and competitive for both horses and riders.

Once achieving the peak Grand Prix level, which takes about six years, the horses are pampered, given premium hay and grains, allowed to "dance" on only the safest surfaces, groomed to the point of gleaming and given two months off each summer to frolic in the Austrian countryside.

"It’s like a miracle. When they come back in the fall they are so willing and relaxed, and they don’t forget anything in their routines," Radnetter said. "It’s not that they ever get injured or anything, but after a season of performing, they can have little aches and pains. The rest does wonders for them."

Radnetter doesn’t get quite that amount of time off, but by American standards, his calendar looks enticing: six weeks of paid vacation and a long Christmas holiday. The Spanish Riding School employs one group of professional riders, with seven youngsters in training at any given time. All schooling and living expenses are covered for the 15-year-olds accepted into the program.

The riders are first put on experienced horses for two lessons a day for at least one year, Radnetter said. They cannot use stirrups or reins to support themselves.

Once promoted to senior rider, the select few ride six or seven horses six mornings a week and get afternoons off. Radnetter spends the free time with his wife, Nicky, and their 3-year-old daughter.

Riding remains Radnetter’s passion, even after 23 years at the school. He often visits his first horse, named Converzano Mantua — now 27, retired and sometimes in stud service — and gets a warm greeting each time, he said. His family has three horses, so it’s a family way of life.

"Every summer we go to Greece for vacation," he said. "After three days on the beach, I am missing the horses."

bzuck@dispatch.com