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Inside the Santa Ynez Valley Magazine Spring 2003 Edition
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Olympic dreams Three Days In History
by Brooke Comer
One day, 24-year-old Jennifer Wooten may be an Olympic medallist in three-day evening. And it all started in Santa Ynez. Wooten moved to the Valley when she was two years old. Her mother, trainer and animal health technician Nancy Wooten Robinson took her 18 month old daughter along when she worked the night foaling shift at Westerly Stud Farm.
Jennifer was raised with horses. She always got along with them, and she was never afraid. When we lived at Westerly Stud, our house was out in the pasture. When Jennifer was about three, I found her outside; two weaklings were playing tug of war with her rag doll. I was afraid she'd get hurt, but she thought it was the funniest thing.
Her mother knew she was a natural; Wooten rode double with her before she learned to walk and got her first pony, Cookie, at age four. She saw the movie international Velvet when she was seven. That's when she started saying that she was going to ride in the Olympics.
Wooten's natural talent became evident at seven, when she joined the Santa Ynez Valley Pony Club. Bunny Shepherd became the young rider's new mentor, who introduced her to three day evening, and taught her until she was 17. During her high school years, Wooten enrolled in Laurel Springs, a correspondence school that gave her freedom to compete in shows around the country.
By the time she was 18, Wooten had graduated from Pony Club, and joined Young Riders, a group affiliated with three-day evening, like a junior Olympics, Wooten explains. Pony Club taught me about responsibility and dedication, but in Young Riders, I knew I would have to step up to the plate in terms of pursuing my dreams and goals.
The Olympics are Wooten's ultimate goal. When she met Mark Phillips the British coach of the US Olympic team, and former husband of Princess Anne, and his American wife Sandy at a clinic, they recognized her talent and invited her to train with them in England
Three day evening in England, she learned, is far more prestigious and competitive than it is in America. An elite sport that originated as part of Calvary training, she found that both competitors and courses met higher standards. There's a huge following. Here, evening is still just catching on.
England was a challenge for Wooten in more ways than one; she was able to raise enough money to send herself and two young horses there for a year, but her horses were too green to compete in international events. I'd hoped to make the selection trial, leading up to the Sydney games, but my horses weren't ready. Still, the education I got there was worth the trip.
When Wooten returned home in 1999, she was at a crossroads. Should she go on to college, or continue to pursue her Olympic goal? She chose to pursue her goal, and set up shop at her parents Shadow Land ranch in Buellton. I decided that I could be successful if I tried. She took clinics, practiced self-teaching exercises and began to compete on Tuco Territory, her eight-year-old Thoroughbred.
Wooten began to attract attention, placing in the top three at events. I was coming up in the rankings, and I felt I was doing a good job going by the seat of my pants. But I needed a coach who could take me to the next level, to polish me up so I could become an international competitor.
Enter Ginnie Bryant, former Olympic level competitor in three-day evening. Bryant's training business, Equites, is so renowned that prospective students are wait listed. Wooten spotted Bryant at an event, and got up the nerve to ask the San Juan Capistrano-based trainer if she was taking new students. She was not. But Wooten's name and talent rang a bell, and Bryant told her to keep in touch. I'd seen her compete, and I knew she was talented. She's one of the more talented riders that I've taught over the past 25 years. She has what it takes to compete; the athletic ability, bravery, and intelligence. I'd like to see her go all the way.
Wooten and Bryant hit it off. After a year of commuting for lessons, Wooten moved to San Juan Capistrano to work with her trainer full time. Under her tutelage, she developed a better understanding of the mechanics of riding over fences, says Bryant.
Through Bryant, Wooten met show jumper Molly Warmington, her own age, who was short-listed for the World Cup. We've become teammates; we go to the same shows but we're competing in different areas. It's really good to have a friend with the same goals.
After a year in San Juan Capistrano, Wooten is back in the Valley. When I was in eighth grade, my friends had older siblings who'd move back here from college, and we'd be like, why are you coming back here? It's so boring! But now I understand. Having lived abroad, and in Southern California, there's nothing like Santa Ynez Valley. I feel I learned a lot while I was away, and I came back to find the right partner. She needs a four point, Olympic level horse.
That's what's holding her back, says her mother. She's trained every horse she acquired, but that's expensive. She needs to find a horse with half the points and finish up with it. That kind of horse costs $80,000 but it's cheaper than traveling around the world trying to earn all those extra points. We tried that route. It was a money drain. Wooten adds that it's not just finding a horse, it's finding the right horse. You need an extreme athlete, and an extreme partner as well.
Meanwhile, Wooten started her own business, Trinity Farm, on her family ranch, teaching riding lessons and training and re-selling horses. I look at my education as an opportunity to pass on what I've learned to others.
She's also working on getting corporate sponsorships; current sponsors include the feed company Source One, the liquid immune booster ATF, Equine Athletics and Romsh, who make riding apparel, and Fleece Works performance pads. When I'm not on horseback, I'm usually at my computer researching companies for prospective sponsorships and writing up proposals, going through the game plan and setting goals for myself.
Nancy Wooten Robinson has no doubt that her only child will make it to the Olympics. It's just a matter of when. She'll get there. Wooten, meanwhile, is concentrating on her search for the right horse. I feel very focused and relaxed, she says. Part of that has to do with being here. I've lived in other parts of the world, and I'm very proud and happy to call the Santa Ynez Valley home. |
