- "Laurie Pitts. We go back many years. Laurie is like Melanie; she's a horsewoman. You're lucky to be with her because she knows details of the horse. It's all about details, people. You're going to think I'm meticulous and difficult and a detail person--and I am. Because that's how you get to the next level. That's how you get to this level. You don't get to this level by generalities. Laurie Pitts, backward and forward, is going to help you and improve the base you already have in horse management. What's the most important thing after you buy a horse is not the riding of the horse; it's the management of the horse. That's where we let ourselves down. There are a lot of sloppy managers in the world, not just in this country but other countries, too.
"We are very lucky to have one of my oldest friends--we rode jumpers together, we go back more than 50 years. We called him 'Good Hands.' We called Dr. Danny Marks 'Good Hands' because he had done dressage, and no one had done dressage in those days. They'd never heard of it. He's a vet of the highest class. He's been to many Olympic Games for Bert de Némethy and myself and Frank Chapot, and he's another giant horseman. He has a great slideshow that will help you buy jumpers. When you look at horses, you don't look at them just jumping a fence; you look at them in other lights besides jumping a fence. I'm just so lucky to be in this horsemastership course myself because I get to do all these other things.
"Susan Harris is another wonderful old friend of mine. We go back a long time. She's a horsewoman. She's forgotten more than most of us have ever known, and she's written it down. She wrote one of the classics of horse management books, and she's rewritten all the Pony Club manuals, which I'm rereading myself. But she's not just an armchair author; she's a hands-on horsewoman. I'm very lucky to have Susan here this year.
"Last, but definitely not least, is our Hong Kong Olympic course builder, Steve Stephens. It will be a great experience to be with Steve, especially just a few months before he's building the [show-jumping courses for the] Olympic Games.
"I feel very lucky to be with these people. You can see how lucky we are this week to be rubbing shoulders with all of these people.
"Knowledge is power, people. If you don't know that knowledge is power, you're stupid. This is where it's at. Everybody has talent. Everybody can jump a fence. Everybody can win over fences. Ribbons are a dime a dozen. There's always another horse show. This isn't a horse show. This is purposely stopping the horse show. The whole point of this is, 'don't go to the horse show.'
"The best part of my career in this horse business--and I'm a horse show addict just like the rest of you. I've been to more horse shows than all of you. But the best part of my career in the horse business wasn't at the horse shows. Those days with Bert; those days with Gordon Wright over crossrails. Those days going cross-country up in Golden Bridge. Those were the best days of my life in the horse business. If you like this horse business for horse shows and ribbons, you're going to have a sorry life. You're not going to have a very exciting end. You have to like this business for the sport and the art.
"See you tomorrow."
Stacey Nedrow-Wigmore is the managing editor of Practical Horseman magazine.
