The weather’s changing, fall is here, and so is our final contestant in the final round of our first ever EN Who Wants To Be A Blogger? competition. By now, I’m sure you know the topic (Money In Eventing). Lacy Cotton brings us her best…will it be good enough to win? The EN judging panel has a serious task to crown a champion, and your votes/comments at the end will help!
To read Lacy’s previous work, click here.
Chatting with Boyd Martin: On Making Money By Not Trying to Make Money
Hello EN Readers!
Eventing as a sport has gained a reputation for valuing the rise from humble and unsuspecting roots to experience well-deserved success. We eventers cherish the underdog because so many of us are underdogs ourselves, and we admire those who rescue the hopeless cases and give them a new lease on life, despite adversity and stacked odds.
So with our collective love for the underdog, one would think that money wouldn’t matter, right? Well… not quite. Sure, money isn’t everything. It certainly isn’t a guarantee that you’ll be winning your next event. But it does determine whether you get to event at all. The unfortunate reality of our sport (and any equestrian discipline) is that it’s an expensive sport involving expensive animals and expensive instruction. Whether you’re in Europe, Australia, America or Tim-Buck-Two, you’ll feel that pinch on your wallet from time to time.
I recently had the opportunity ask Boyd Martin about his take on the financial state of the eventing sport, and whether money was on his mind as much as it was my own! One late afternoon in south Texas, just days after his return from Burghley, Boyd and I sat down across from one another at a picnic table and shared a few bottles of Amstel Light. He chivalrously broke his belt buckle trying (and failing) to open my bottle for me. Apparently, a wedding ring works best. Who knew?
“So!” I chirped (when I’m nervous, my voice climbs into that octave range likened only to small birds and dog whistles), “I have a few… questions?…”
I felt silly and starstruck, even though he’d spent two solid hours that morning coaching me over stadium fences. It’s one thing to take instruction from a guy like Boyd, another thing entirely to look him in the eye and ask, “So, what are your thoughts on money?”
But once Boyd found out my topic, it was all I could do to keep up with him via my little notebook and pen!
Differences in Eventing – from Australia to the States
It’s an acknowledged fact amongst American eventers that competing in the U.S. is expensive and time consuming. Boyd discussed the challenges of paying costly fees and traveling long distances, and he pointed out the marked differences in countries like Australia.
“Oh yeah,” he said, “In Australia, it cost about $40 to shoe your horse, another $40 to enter an event. When you went, you built your own yard for your horse and just left it up. The horses stayed on grass the whole time”
He pointed out that eventing in Australia was inexpensive enough to open doors for those who weren’t rich, but wanted to train and compete. By comparison, American eventing is costly enough to keep promising riders from ever owning a horse and attending competitions.
Even professionals like Boyd struggle with the high costs. The lack of funding and high overhead trickles down to affect the amateur rider as well, causing higher prices by facilities and trainers to cover their own expenses. Boyd agreed that entry costs are steep, but asked, “Where is the money going?”
“Eventing has got to come up with a way to become cheaper in America.” He said. “They need to get the overhead down a bit. You know Jonathan Paget? Just placed 5th place at Burghley. Great kid, right? Jocko worked as a bricklayer when he started eventing. He made enough money as a bricklayer in Australia to ride and train his horse in eventing. You couldn’t do that in America.”
And it’s more than that. The attitude towards pursuing eventing as a full-time career in America is wary at best. Young riders are not encouraged to pursue the sport without a back-up plan for financial stability. Boyd brought the distinction to light by telling me about his own youth. “You know, the day I finished high school, not one teacher ever asked me about university or college. My parents didn’t bring it up, we never even talked about it. I finished school and the next day I moved the bunkhouse at Heath Ryan’s farm as a working student.”
Living in the bunkhouse, Boyd worked seven days a week. All his living expenses were paid for, and he was allowed to keep one horse at the barn for free. Even two meals a day were provided. He recalls his time there as hard labor, but rewarding and without the financial burdens many working students in America suffer through (for those unaware, American barns charge working students a monthly fee for the privilege of working and training with their mentor).
“There was no pressure to go to college.” Boyd recalled. “Most Americans won’t decide they want to be professional riders until they graduate college and they’re 24. I already had five years experience in the saddle by then. I’m not saying don’t go to college, I’m just pointing out the different attitudes. Kids in a country like Australia, they’ve got nothing to lose.”
Neville Bardos – Not a Cash Cow, Just a Great Horse
From bumming around at shows to competing in Australia’s only four-star, Boyd’s success story began in much the same humble way Jonathan Paget’s did. Before moving to the states in 2003, he bought ex-racehorse Neville Bardos quite literally off the glue-factory trailer for $850 dollars. Neville had already been deemed “no good” as both a race prospect and a jumper, and Boyd laughingly said he nearly sent him back! He joked, “the bastard [friend Gordon Bishop] didn’t tell me he cribbed when I bought him!”
But despite a humble beginning and a turbulent first year, Neville began to show great promise as an eventing partner for Boyd. In the ten years that have followed, both horse and rider have become legendary for their international success and personal accomplishments. But despite that, Boyd made the financial decision to syndicate Neville’s ownership.
“I carried Neville’s costs for ten years,” Boyd explained, “I had to figure out a way to keep him, but find someone to take on his expenses.”
Boyd sold Neville as a syndication to ten hand-picked owners for one third of his market sale value. Each owner, once having purchased a share, also agreed to take on 10% of the horse’s yearly costs by paying $3,000 annually.
The syndicate agreement stated that owners would “get the thrill of owning and participating in an international quality three-day event horse at a fraction of the cost of individual ownership.”
Boyd was refreshingly honest about the financial situation with this amazing horse. He told me, “This wasn’t about financial gain with Neville. I probably took a hit in selling him for less than his worth, but that wasn’t important to me. I wanted to make the idea of owning him attractive to the right people, so it was smarter not to price him at market value. I made sure all the people were in it for the right reasons.”
And while every other aspect of Boyd’s business is profit driven, he said that neither of his two top competition horses (Neville Bardos and Otis Barbotiere) were intended to be sources of profitable gain. “The biggest thing owners should know is that it’s not about making them money. I needed people who had an emotional connection to me or my horse, who were serious supporters, or were students. They needed to believe in doing this for the love of the sport, not be in it for financial gain. When I was selecting my ten owners for Neville, I turned a few people away.”
He reminded me that while money is often an influential force in our sport, even more so are the relationships we form by interacting with our colleagues and peers.
It’s About Who You Know, Not What You Own
Boyd was cracking open his second Amstel Light when we broached the topic of getting started in American eventing. Even as a top level rider in Australia, it wasn’t without its obstacles.
“When I first got to the U.S., I knew the financial aspect of keeping a horse in competition here was challenging.” He said. At the time, Boyd didn’t know Phillip Dutton personally, but that didn’t stop him from applying for a job.
“There wasn’t a job for me at Phillip’s barn, but I made a job for myself. I worked for him, riding younger horses owned by the owners of his competition horses. They needed a rider to compete these young horses. I earned [Phillip’s] confidence to compete these horses, and I understood that his owners were his owners and would never be my owners. I got the chance to go out to compete.”
Soon Boyd has his own group of supporters outside of Phillip Dutton’s circle, people that wanted to support him based on his riding talent. He acknowledged that Phillip was instrumental to gaining these sponsors, both by being a mentor and as a point of connection with horse owners. He said, “Phillip was great, he introduced me to his friends and their friends. Not everyone will do that.”
By 2006, Boyd was competing successfully at CCI**** events. He and wife Silva Martin would then develop their own training and competition team in 2009. With his supporters assistance and his success as a clinician and horse trainer, Boyd has been able to balance the financial demands of the eventing discipline with the challenges of competing.
And his advice for other riders hoping to someday find financial success in the sport is much the same. He told me, “Up and coming young riders, the best thing they can do is find someone that’s really good and work for them. Even if they don’t have a job for you, go and just beg and beg them, even if you’re sleeping on a couch, broke and hungry. It’s your best bet.”
He asked me, “How many people are in America? 300 Million? Let’s say 300 million.” He gestured at the small group of us who had gathered to listen, “Out of 300 million people, there must be 1 million that have passion for eventing and the financial ability to help out a rider. You just have to find them. Start sorting through the 200 million people to find those willing to give support. Find a way to make connections, through teaching, clinics. Find a way.”
Eventing for Mere Mortals
“But what about those of us who already have full-time jobs, that event on the side and don’t necessarily want to make a career out of eventing?” I had to ask. Sitting across from Boyd, my beer growing warm beside my notebook, it suddenly seemed like a great, yawning chasm opened between us. Our perspectives on the sport were so different, backed by years of contradictory experiences. How could I (and the thousands of readers of Eventing Nation!) ever make use of Boyd’s financial advice? I’m pretty sure I’ll never see the inside of a starting box at any four-star event, no matter where I event!
Boyd understood what I was asking. He told me, “It’s hard to really succeed in eventing financially if you’re not 120% throwing yourself at it, but trying to live the life of mainstream society and find the best of both worlds. I wish I had an easy answer for you, mate, but I don’t.”
His immediate suggestions involved the use of common sense. “Look at everything that costs you money getting to an event.” He said, “Ask yourself, ‘Is this make or break for me to event?’ Sit back and really look at every cent, cutback where you can.”
The concept was simple, but the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. Boyd had a point about the average American riders’ dependency on their trainers. He believed that truly talented riders were often stunted by their perceived need for a trainer on the ground at every event. By forgoing instruction at a show, a rider could not only save money, but also learn confidence and adaptability as well. Cutting back could actually lead to a stronger breed of rider!
Boyd had other suggestions as well. He suggested using good horsemanship and careful budgetting in all aspects of horse management, from putting only front shoes on your retired event horse to attending Stadium jumping early so you can watch other riders attack the course.
“Camp it out.” He said with a grin, “Pitch a tent instead of staying at the Ritz. Say, ‘I’m sleeping under the stars in my swag!'” Apparently a ‘swag’ is an Aussie sleeping bag.
The interview developed into further outlandish suggestions from Boyd, and I began to think he had more experience competing like a poor person than he let on. One of my favorites was his suggestion to “Figure out when the competitors part was and eat as much as possible!” After a moment (and a final sip of his beer), he added, “Feed your grooms as well!”
Wiser words were never spoken. Always feed your grooms.
Go Eventing!
