For the first two years that the Budweiser FEI World Cup Show Jumping Finals were held in Las Vegas, Nev., at the Thomas & Mack Arena, an icon of American show jumping designed the courses–Conrad Homfeld, the 1984 Olympic individual silver medalist and two-time World Cup winner.

This year, the assignment falls to a Brazilian whose name will probably be unfamiliar to most American fans–Guilherme Jorge. But have no fear, Jorge, of Campinas, Brazil, is more than up for the challenge.

Jorge, 37, may not have shouldered the task of designing at a major championship before, but he’s been one of the up-and-coming designers for years. His first international experience was as an assistant to course designer Linda Allen at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, and since then he’s been an assistant course designer at three Pan Am Games, the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, and three World Cup Finals. He was Homfeld’s assistant at the 2003 Budweiser World Cup Final in Las Vegas. As a full-time professional course designer, he’s built in more than 15 countries for the last eight years.

“It’s almost beyond my dreams,” said Jorge of getting the job. “I’ve already designed in most of the best shows of North America, and some in Europe, and I was very happy with the way my career was going. But, of course, as a course designer, to design the courses for a World Cup Final is one of the main goals, together with the Olympic Games and the World Championships.

“But I have to admit that I was quite surprised. It is for sure something very special for me.”

“I think he’s completely ready for this assignment,” said Homfeld. “For sure, he’s one of the best young designers out there. The first time I ran into him was in Florida two years ago, and I could tell instantly that he had a very good feel for it.”

Robert Ridland, one of the organizers of the World Cup Final in Las Vegas and a course designer himself, knows that Homfeld’s courses will be a tough act to follow.

“Conrad did such an exceptional job both years. Across the board, if you talk to the riders, spectators, anyone who was there, it’s hard to find fault with the absolutely exceptional job he did,” Ridland said.

But Ridland believes strongly that building in the same venue more than twice makes it very difficult for course designers to produce their best work yet again. “Once you get there a third time, often you’re repeating what you did the first two times. Unless you change styles as a course designer, there aren’t that many variations within your own style that you can create,” he said.

That in mind, he thought of Jorge as a worthy successor to Homfeld. “There were a ton of worthy candidates, but I felt that the time was right to give it to a young talent. And ever since the first time I saw Guilherme’s courses at our horse shows at Oaks Blenheim, I was tremendously impressed with his feel as a horseman and his organization,” Ridland said.

“His organizational skills are top-notch for a young course designer,” added Ridland. “He’s had tremendous experience as assistant for numerous great course designers, and a lot of that experience has been indoors. He knows that arena first-hand, and he has a lot of current experience indoors in Europe. He designed in Florida [at the Winter Equestrian Festival] this winter, and here at the Oaks, so he’s up to speed with the American horses.”

It’s Different In Las Vegas

Building courses for the world’s best in Las Vegas presents an unusual challenge. For one thing, the Thomas & Mack Arena isn’t a typical indoor ring.

“It’s 200 feet long, which is very, very short. Luckily, it’s wider than most indoors. At its widest spot, it’s 125 feet wide, but it has this keyhole shape to it. It’s not 125 feet wide for the full length, only for about two thirds of the arena,” said Ridland.

“The in-gate end has a little narrow keyhole shape. The course designer has to sort of slingshot riders out of that turn on a diagonal, which makes it very difficult to design there. You don’t have the full length down the sides of the ring. So, the only length in a straight line is on the diagonals. That’s a huge restriction.”

Being the assistant to Homfeld in 2003 gave Jorge invaluable experience, seeing how Homfeld designed around the challenges of the ring dimensions.

“One of the most important things I learned from Conrad is that the arena doesn’t allow you to build as big as you might at a regular indoor show,” said Jorge. “I went to ‘s-Hertogenbosch [the Netherlands], and the course was really, really big. We’ll have to see how the horses are jumping in Las Vegas, but I don’t think we’ll have to build as big as that. The arena, being so small, does a little bit of the job itself.”

Jorge will combine Homfeld’s influence with the knowledge he’s gleaned from working with Leopoldo Palacios, Allen, Javier Fernandez, Olaf Petersen, Arno Gego, Frank Rothenberger, Aky Illanne, Steve Stephens, Dave Ballard, Pepe Gamarra, and Helio Pessoa.

“I try to be very open-minded, and I get little things from a lot of different people. Sometimes, I’ll do a rollback like Leopoldo, sometimes a scope question like Arno Gego. It’s been wonderful for me to be able to work with so many people and end up with a style that’s myself,” Jorge said.

“Sometimes, if you work with just one course designer, you become not as open to other ideas. I realize that the more open I can be to other ideas, the better. It’s been helpful for me to work with so many different people.

“I don’t think there’s one course designer that my courses look like,” Jorge said. “I have seen riders say that they can walk a course and tell who built it, but I’ve never had someone tell me that about my courses.

“What I really try to get when I design my courses is to create a course that you must have prepared your horse for. Your horse must be ready to be obedient, and you must be accurate with what you ask of him,” Jorge continued.

“I normally start with the idea I have for that class, i.e. a line to the triple combination, a line with the water jump, some special jump. Then I come up with a track, and try to fit the other fences and ideas. We always look for a good and forward track, a good balance between spreads and verticals, left and right, short and long distances and so on.”

Best Jobs You Can Dream Of

Jorge backs up his talent with an affable personality. “He’s a great guy and very easy to work with. It’s really important that course designers be able to work well with their support team, and he’s very good at that,” said Ridland.

“To me, his horsemanship is obvious in his courses,” added Ridland. “Ultimately, you can put as much as you want on paper or in the computer, and go by the numbers. But when it’s all set up, you want to be able to stand at the in-gate and put yourself in your boots and breeches and walk the course in your mind, and try to see if it feels right. I think it’s very valuable to be able to imagine that, and he seems to do that very well.”

Growing up near Sao Paulo, Brazil, Jorge rode and showed as a junior, although his family wasn’t involved in horses. He started riding at the Sociedade Hipica de Campinas as a child, and progressed to the 1.30-meter and 1.40-meter jumper classes. “I rode only up to the junior level, so I didn’t jump at the level I’m building, but I really try to see what the riders are thinking about the courses I’m building,” Jorge said.

It was during his teenage years that Jorge started dabbling in course design at smaller shows. Eventually, the Brazilian federation asked him to work for them, and he kept progressing. In the meantime, Jorge attended university and veterinary school, graduating in 1990. He practiced in an equine clinic for seven years, but he decided to switch to course designing full-time in 1997. He’d been designing and conducting course-design clinics on his own time for five years before he made the transition.

“Designing gives me more of an opportunity to be a part of the sport. As a course designer, you’re an important part of the sport. And I think I just like it more than being a vet,” he said simply.

The Brazilian Equestrian Federation also figured largely in Jorge’s development as a course designer and his progression to international venues. “I always tried to make the federation see that we as course designers are very important for the development of the sport, so they need to help us prepare ourselves. When I went to the Olympics to help Linda, I went to my federation and asked them to sponsor my ticket. And then when I came back, I gave a seminar. I always like to trade a little bit with them. They did support me on many occasions with travel expenses,” he said.

Jorge is now on the road 30 weeks out of the year. He has designed at the Oaks Blenheim (Calif.), Wellington (Fla.), Spruce Meadows (Alta.), Monterrey (Mexico), Bro-mont (Canada), Kentucky, the Pennsylvania National, the Royal Winter Fair (Ont.), and many others.

“Traveling is hard, but I love the sport, and I am getting the best jobs anyone can dream of. I definitely still enjoy it. And I’ve been to some places so often, I know a lot of people, and there are many places where I feel at home,” said Jorge.