After more than 40 years in the saddle, Hap Hansen is just three victories away from achieving the century mark for career grand prix wins. And while he won’t be first to get there–Aaron Vale cleared the 100 mark during last winter’s Florida circuit, joining Ian Millar and Margie Engle–for Hansen, reaching the 100 mark is just a milestone on a long journey.

Aiming for such a milestone might stress out the average grand prix rider, but Hansen, 52, isn’t average. He views such a possibility with his usual aplomb.

“It’d be exciting to get to 100, and I’m hoping to get there. But generally, I try not to think about it,” asserted Hansen, who’s won three events in the last year. “I just try to do the best I can for each horse and each owner. And when I win, it’s a nice occasion.”

Being so close to the 100-victory milestone is having little effect on Hansen, who’s based in Encinitas, Calif., and has long been a popular figure on the West Coast hunter/jumper circuit. It hasn’t changed either his career plans or his show strategy.

He said he has no intention of seeking out “easier” grand prix events or of packing his schedule with grand prix competitions by zipping about the country like Engle and Vale, who each have large strings of horses who need places to start.

Hansen admitted that he could improve his chances of hitting that 100 mark if, as he put it, he were “to compete in [events] that aren’t as well attended.”

But it would be uncharacteristic of him to take an easier route to victory just to gain some additional fame. Thus, rather than looking for the out-of-the-way grand prix events with lighter competition, as usual he spent his winter at the HITS Desert Circuit in Indio, Calif., where each Sunday he faced such tough competitors as Richard Spooner and leading Canadian rider Jill Henselwood.

Quiet And Calm

Hansen began his riding career at age 10, training under the legendary Jimmy Williams at California’s Flintridge Riding Club, and he’s been a major player in show jumping since the ’70s. By the 1980s, he was successfully competing internationally. In 1990, he was the American Grandprix Association Rider of the Year and the Chronicle’s Show Jumping Horseman of the Year. He won eight events that year, and he continued to rack up major grand prix wins throughout the ’90s.

Hansen seems to relish the idea of achieving the 100-wins goal, but for personal–not public–reasons. A quiet, reserved man, he’s not one to seek out attention, and he seems to be pursuing this latest goal in his usual manner–quietly and calmly.

It’s that manner that so distinguishes him in the show ring. Even from a distance, when Hansen enters a ring, you know it’s him. He’s the perfect image of quiet confidence that seems to characterize his generation of show jumpers. The spectator sees only grace over jumps, as Hansen and his equine partners appear to move quietly and confidently through each course.

Hansen said that staying relaxed is part of his strategy.

“I feel I don’t do as well if I’m nervous or tense. But I feel less stress and pressure when I’m busy, so staying busy is what helps keep me relaxed,” he said.

Hansen’s style on horseback matches his style on the ground.

“He’s really laid back,” said Summer Bruington, a 22-year-old grand prix rider who spent her winter at the Indio circuit under Hansen’s tutelage. “I’ve never been around anyone who’s so low-key.”

“When you’re around him, you have no choice but to be calm, because that’s the entire atmosphere in his barn,” said Bliss Heers, a 17-year-old rider from Encinitas, Calif., who trains under Hansen. “He’s so kind to the horses, and they’re all so relaxed around him.”

Hansen has a reputation for being a gentle man of few words, and those who witness his actions day in and day out claim that the reputation is true.

“I’ve never heard him raise his voice, use foul language, or call someone stupid,” Bruington said. “I’ve known trainers who are so harsh that, if you have a bad round, you feel like making a run for the gate at the far end of the ring. It’s never that way with Hap.”

He is also, his students say, an excellent listener who values their opinions as much as his own.

“He gives you a chance to say what you think about something, and he takes your opinion into account,” Bruington said.

She said that Hansen may be a man of few words, but “what he has to say is important. You have to pay attention, or you’ll miss it.”

Perhaps the best testimony for Hansen’s character is that his staff stays with him for years. Groom and long-time friend Lisa Baldassari has worked for him since 1988. She’s traveled the world with him, and she said she can’t imagine ever working for someone else.

“He’s the best boss in the world,” said Baldassari. “He’s not perfect, but he has respect for his employees and demands very little. As long as we show up at the ring with a bridle and saddle, he’s happy.”

Perhaps what most endears Hansen to his students, staff and fans is his complete lack of arrogance, despite his tremendous success in the show ring. Baldassari can rattle off numerous examples of Hansen’s humble character, but her favorite is of one late evening that followed a tough day of international competition, several years ago.

“I was busy trying to bed down the grand prix horses when Hap came by and asked me how it was going,” Baldassari recalled.

She was also responsible for a group of younger horses still awaiting their dinner in another barn.

“Later, when I got over to the other barn, I found that Hap had gone over there himself. Everything was done. The stalls were mucked. The horses were fed. The aisle was even swept. That’s the kind of person he is,” Baldassari said. “You don’t see that in a lot of grand prix riders.”

Maxed Out

Hansen makes it clear that he’s not allowing any milestone or honor to affect his competitive plans or his training. He’s not continuing to compete just because he wants to win three more events, but simply because he enjoys it.

“I feel like I’m in pretty good shape, and I love to ride,” Hansen said. “I don’t have any plans to stop at some particular age, like 55. Who knows, maybe I’ll stop before that–or maybe after.”

He’s certainly got the horses to keep him in the game. Hansen said he has several youngsters coming up, some owned by him, some owned by Plaid Ranch LLC of Petaluma, Calif. At Indio he rode as many as nine horses in one class, and he admitted that was pretty much his limit.

“Right now I’ve about maxed myself out. So, if somebody comes along and says, ‘Hey, I’ve got a horse. Can you show it for me?’ Unless it’s a really special horse I’d have to tell them no,” he said.

When he does finally pull out of the show jumping game, Hansen won’t exactly be left with nothing to do. He’s got a pilot’s license and owns his own plane, and he raises birds, which he intends to focus on more when he stops competing.

“Maybe I’ll retire as a bird breeder,” he said with a smile. “I’ve raised some stella lories. They’re from New Guinea, and they’re very pretty. They’re like a small parrot, but they’re nectar eaters. They have soft bills, and they actually have a brush on the end of their tongues for getting down into flowers and brushing out the nectar. I have a couple of parrots as well. And I have a toucan.”

As enthused as he is about his flying and his birds, his enthusiasm for riding hasn’t diminished. After all, he said, “Practice makes perfect, and I’m still practicing.”

If anything has changed in his riding over the years, Hansen said it’s that he may be a bit more cautious.

“Maybe I’m not as suicidal as I used to be,” he admitted. “Perhaps because of this I may not win some of the regular classes as much as somebody like Richard Spooner. But I’m always thinking about improving the horse. And I’m thinking, ‘OK, what if we take too big a chance and something goes wrong?’ I’m not worried about hurting myself as much as a setback for the horse.”

This concern for his horses has always been a Hansen hallmark. And it’s a concern for which he doesn’t apologize. He ignores the pressure of owners who want to push their horses too fast, having decided long ago that if he let owners bother him, it would only make him nervous.

What seems to matter most to Hansen is the journey toward the goal. And the journey, he believes, should be fun and enjoyable.

“I think that throughout my career I’ve always considered the horse first. I feel sorry for them when they’re in over their heads,” he said. “What I’ve always wanted is for them to be happy about their work and simply to enjoy doing it.”