PrintBill Schaub doesn’t consider himself a pony guy, but it’s an easy assumption to make about a man whose business card famously lists the measurements for small, medium and large ponies. While Schaub has trained top hunters in every division, he’s always had a special way with the smallest competitors at the horse show, both equine and human. His ponies and their riders have won most every award around, and he’s regularly seen center ring during the presentations at USEF Pony Finals, Devon (Pa.), the fall indoor shows and on the stage during the U.S. Equestrian Federation Horse of the Year awards.
With so many accolades with grown ponies, it was no surprise when Schaub started finding success in the pony breeding ring. He picked up second with Shenandoah Bonfire (Shenandoah Samoa—Shenandoah Ember) for Elizabeth Jones at Devon (Pa.) in the 3-year-old stallions and geldings class. And he’s recently started breeding his own future champions, recruiting Capital Challenge (Md.) grand pony champion Arabesque and Pony Finals grand champion High Fashion as his foundation mares.
The son of a frustrated cowboy, Schaub got his start in the horse world by begging and borrowing mounts and by teaching lessons as a teenager, staying just a step ahead of his charges. He forayed into the show world as a working student, and his career took off after he trained the legendary junior hunter Lyric for Courtney Kennedy and Ashley Kennedy Whitner in the late 1980s.
Now Schaub’s lengthy client list includes top horses and ponies from his home base in Sanford, Fla., and across the country. Schaub attributed his students’ top performances to a dedicated staff at his Over The Hill Farm, spearheaded by barn manager Melissa Vander Vennet and assistant trainer Molly Sewell Schott, but also to a positive attitude that sets the tone for his entire business.
“I quit drinking a year ago, and it’s been the most amazing change in my business,” he said. “We never have emotional decisions any more, and my karma has totally changed. I’m not short with the staff, I’m never grumpy in the morning, the ponies are happy, the clients are happy, the kids are happy, and all of a sudden great things keep happening.”
Name: Bill Schaub
Home Base: Sanford, Fla.
Age: 51
Describe your first horse.
She was a 16-hand, buckskin Appaloosa with a big blanket. She was an ex-barrel racer, and I used to ride her down the side of the road and take her swimming. We taught her to jump.
What’s the No. 1 quality you look for in a young pony you’re going to show or consign?
Attitude. Obviously, if it’s going to show on the line it has to be pretty, but it needs to have a good attitude first and foremost.
