This past weekend, Feb. 20-21, I was fortunate to sit in and photograph the Eventing High Performance Training Session with Capt. Mark Phillips at El Campeon Farms in Hidden Valley, Calif. A friend from the barn invited me, and it sounded like an opportunity not to be missed. 

Although I have done some eventing, my focus was the hunter/jumper scene. In addition, I worked for several cutters and worked cattle and horse ranches for a number of years. Then I took a 15-year break from the horse industry.

If I were 20 years younger, pre-multiple sclerosis and 40 horse-accidents earlier, I would love to event again. But for now, I get to photograph the excitement and feel the adrenaline as the riders plunge into that water, finding balance with their horse while overcoming obstacles of intense stability. 

I should have known who Mark Phillips was and what I was about to experience, but I was simply excited to get out on a gorgeous day and see something new. We left our barn in Flintridge and toodled out to the country less then 45 minutes away. And then we drove through the gates of El Campeon. 

The facilities are generously beautiful, but what I’m talking about were the horses. Each and every one came out beautifully fit, ready to work, awaiting a command. 

Several horse-and-rider combinations practiced dressage or jumping under the skillful eye of Capt. Mark Phillips during my stay. They included Amy Tryon, Tamra Smith, Kristi Nunnink and Allie Slusher. Amongst royalty in many ways. 

As the teams practiced and took instruction, it was easy to see the horses taken to a higher level within minutes. The communication between horse and riders was near invisible, but the results were overwhelming.

Relationship is the word that comes to mind when I think of these horse/rider combinations. What also comes to mind is rock climbing—man on belay. That is your horse in eventing. If you don’t trust each other, you might as well let go now and fall hard, because you aren’t going to make it. 

I only watched a few of the many participants, but what I saw in the eyes of horse and rider was trust. Not different than a group of rock climbers camped out the night before a good scramble. This is fun horse stuff. Real horse stuff. 

The sun came out. Horses and riders were shining. The instruction was a quiet symposium between instructor and client that excluded the audience from a consistent audio, but the visual changes were undeniably present. 

Much of Capt. Mark Phillips’ instruction was similar to what we’ve all heard as riders before but worded in a new way. It must have been a more effective way, because we could see the results instantaneously. The improvement in riders as I reviewed more than 1,200 photographs was even more obvious than it was during the clinic. 

Bottom line, stay out of the horse’s way. But, help him when needed. Control the uncontrollable. Control your self. 

A lesson well learned.