Volunteers are the backbone of the sport of eventing. Working long hours on their own time, these generous people are those who keep our events running, even at the highest levels. From the jump judges, to the ring crew, to those picking up the show jumping ring on the last day when everyone has gone home, the volunteer is truly the unsung hero of the sport.
Most, if not all, of us have spent time volunteering at events, and upper level riders and members of the USEA are not exempt from this. Just this weekend, we spotted USEA CEO Rob Burk rolling up his sleeves to help out as a volunteer at Virginia Horse Trials, along with several other riders and their family members.
We’ve spotted Rob out and about at several events, including a cameo at our Insanity In the Middle Tailgate at Rolex. In his words, he was taking some time off from his duties as a vital part of “the little horse show” running that weekend:
It’s like a venerable game of “Where In the World – Rob Burk Edition”, spotting Mr. Burk out and about. Here are several sightings we found over the weekend:
Even while working hard, he still found time to snap a few selfies. Perhaps a selfie stick is in order next time, Rob?
But when it came to crunch time, Rob was all about the job at hand:
We even found him as a part of the jump judging crew!
Leslie Threlkeld had the right words when she said that this is definitely one way of leading by example. With that in mind, we tip our hats to you, Rob, and to all of the other hundreds of volunteers who take time out of their busy schedules to help keep our sport running.
Don’t forget, if you’re an Area II competitor, there is an exciting new volunteer incentive program that has just launched! We hope to see more of these programs cropping up throughout the country. Even if you only have a spare hour in between rides at your next event, stop by and see how you can help. Eventing is nothing if not one big community, where everyone pitches in a helping hand.
Go Eventing.
