Spectators at the Wachovia Jumper Classic At Beacon Hill might have experienced déjà vu during the featured classes on Sunday. One man kept returning to the ring over and over to pose for photographs and accept accolades.

So at the day’s end, most everyone in attendance knew that Juan Carlos Gudino had the Midas touch, as everything he did turned out golden on June 24 in Colts Neck, N.J.

Gudino’s day began in typical fashion, however, as he rose before dawn to arrive at the horse show before the crowds. As a professional groom and manager for Joe Fargis’ Sandron, Gudino oversees the staff (including two of his brothers) and also cares for Edgar, the stable’s top grand prix star. On this day, there were two featured classes for which he prepared his horses, the $15,000 Junior/ Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic and the afternoon’s $50,000 Budweiser Beacon Hill Grand Prix.

Gudino, 34, Middleburg, Va., like many of his colleagues and friends at the shows, enjoys putting a little money on the horses he grooms, and this show was no exception. On Friday he took it one step further, however, and instead of gambling on one “horse” power, he upped the ante and went for the 300-plus version.

“I decided to buy a ticket for the raffle for the Mercedes,” he said smiling. “It was $100—a lot of money. But I had a good feeling.

“On Saturday night I said to my brothers, ‘I’m going to drive off in that car.’ I just felt it,” he said, adding that his plan all along was to sell the car. “My parents needed money in Mexico.”

What did his brothers think?

“They smiled and said, ‘We hope you win!’ ” Gudino said laughing.

The Power Of The Horse
Sunday morning’s junior/ amateur-owner jumper class hinted at the day’s fortunes when Gudino accompanied Tracey Weinberg’s Larone to the ring. Larone’s fourth-placed finish secured the show championship, while Weinberg’s victory in the class aboard Cromwell added yet another blue ribbon to Sandron’s collection.

Gudino took his first stroll of the day to the center of the expansive Grand Prix Field at Frank and Stacia Madden’s Beacon Hill for the presentation with Weinberg.

“Tracey and I work well together,” said Gudino. “That morning I knew Larone was on. I’ve been caring for him for two or three years, and I know him well. On Saturday, in the qualifier, I told Tracey to go for it. The horse is ready, and she did it.”

Weinberg, an amateur who balances a marketing and public relations career with competing at the grand prix level, said she relies on Gudino’s knowledge from the barn to the ring.

“He knows Larone inside and out, and a lot of people ask me if having a stallion is more difficult,” she said. “There are aspects that are more difficult, but this particular horse can wear himself out if he gets himself too excited for reasons outside the ring. And Juan knows this.”

In the qualifier, Weinberg had difficulty at the water jump with her first mount, Naomi. As she gathered herself together to get on Larone, Gudino was there for her.

“It’s hard when you have a problem to get on the next horse and wipe it away,” she said. “Juan said, ‘Forget about it. He’s ready. Go do it.’ I rely on him, and psychologically I rely on him as well.”

At Beacon Hill, Weinberg also tackled her second major grand prix, aboard Linda Z, jumping clear in the first round to join her trainer Fargis and his veteran Edgar, 18, in the nine-horse jump-off.

And that’s when Gudino’s magic started firing on all cylinders.

While course designer Richard Jeffery reset for the jump-off, the winning raffle ticket was selected for the sleek, shiny Mercedes.

As the winner’s name was relayed to announcer Peter Doubleday, Gudino was in the schooling area setting fences for Fargis and Edgar, first to tackle the jump-off.

Meanwhile, Weinberg was sitting on Linda Z, stationed near the in-gate, so she could watch Fargis go. “As Peter did the announcement, I was listening,” said Weinberg. “And he said, ‘The winner today is Juan, and then he paused, Carlos Gudino.’ I screamed. I was jumping up and down on my horse. Frank Madden was standing there next to me, and we gave each other high fives.”

In the schooling ring, Gudino was concentrating on setting the jumps when he heard the raffle take place. “After Edgar jumped clean in the first round, I took him back to the barn and gave him a bath,” said Gudino. “I was so excited he went clean. I wasn’t at all thinking about the car.

“So, as I was setting jumps with [Sandron business manager] Zoellen [Speelman], I remembered the raffle and heard the announcer talking about the car. I said to Zoellen, ‘I’m going to win the car.’ She said, ‘You bought a ticket? You’re kidding me.’ Then I heard my name announced, and I said, ‘See, I won the car!’ ”

Gudino was overjoyed at the news but torn between his responsibilities in preparing Edgar for the ring and receiving the car.

“I trotted over to the schooling area shouting to them,” recalled Weinberg. “I said, ‘They need you in the ring! Go drive your new Mercedes!”

So, with a nod from Fargis, Gudino ran onto the field waving his arms in sheer joy. He threw his baseball cap into the air as thousands of fans cheered for him as he climbed into the car and drove around the field. “I forgot about my horse for just a minute,” he said smiling. “I wanted to drive that car once because I knew I wasn’t going to keep it.”

The Perfect Day
After exiting the car, Gudino went to watch his horse in the jump-off. “I was thinking, ‘If my horse could win the grand prix… but he went first and there were nine.’ But Edgar went in and made nice turns and had a fast time.”

As competitor after competitor failed to catch Edgar’s time, Gudino began to hope. (Weinberg and Linda Z had two rails.) So when the last horse went into the ring and faulted, Gudino’s fairytale day was complete.

“I was thinking a lot of things at that time—most of all of how happy I am,” said Gudino, who again walked into the ring for the presentation. “This means so much to me. My life has changed so much. When I came to the United States I had nothing. I came to help my parents, so they could have a better life in  Mexico. And with this money from the car, I’ll be able to help my parents and my family even more.”

Gudino was thankful to the Maddens for arranging such a raffle to take place at their show. “I never could have afforded this car in my life,” he said. “Frank said to me afterward, ‘Juan, you are so lucky. It was your day today.’ And he shook my hand.

“It was my horse show,” Gudino added with a grin. “And I’ll never forget it.”

Back at home a few days later, after the trophies and ribbons were unpacked and sitting out on display in the elegant office in Middleburg, Gudino reflected on his weekend.

“I’m so lucky to be here, with all of these great people,” said Gudino. “Everybody is so good to us. I started here as the low guy, and now I have such nice horses. Joe is so professional, and he takes care of us the way it’s supposed to be.”
 
So the entire staff could celebrate together, Mary B. Schwab threw a victory party a few weeks later at Stoneleigh Farm, Middleburg, Va., Sandron’s base of operations.

“Mary B. opened a huge bottle of champagne that Edgar had won in the grand prix at the Hampton Classic [N.Y.] a few years ago,” said Weinberg. “She said she was waiting for the time to be right, and she said she’d know when that time was right. And she opened it at the party.”

Home In Virginia
Although Juan Carlos Gudino traveled to the United States 15 years ago without experience with horses, he’s worked diligently to develop his horsemanship skills and is grateful to the many horsemen who have helped him along this path, including Jerry Robertson, Bernardo Mendoza and Peter Wylde.

For the past seven years he’s stepped up his responsibilities, though, working for Olympic gold medalist Joe Fargis, based out of Mary B. Schwab’s Stoneleigh Farm in Middleburg, Va.

“I’m still learning, every day,” he stated. “That’s what makes this [sport] so amazing.”

The Piedmont of Virginia is a world away from Gudino’s roots in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, but he remains
closely tied with his seven siblings—most of whom remain in Mexico—and his parents, but his heart is now in the United States, now his legal home.

“I have a wife, Jennifer, and a beautiful, 7-year-old daughter, Erica,” he said smiling. “I love it here. We have a nice group of people, really amazing to work with. I work hard, but I love it.”