Untacked

68 w i n t e r 2 014 U n tac k e d ProfiLE ProfiLE his yard. valegro and uthopia were both poised to break out into greatness, and hester sought out a groom to help guide them on that journey. he knew just who to call—a man with decades of experience managing top-level horses. davies, 47, has cared for horses profession- ally since he was 17, and his experience encom- passes jumpers, hunt horses and show horses as well as dressage stars. he's traveled the globe with his four-legged charges. At first, davies was only supposed to accom- pany valegro to his first international shows, at the vidauban and saumur Cdis in france. "i was supposed to stay for a couple of shows, and here i am still," says davies. "it was luck and timing that was just right. i was between jobs, and Carl wanted someone to come in, get to know these horses inside and out, and take them to competitions. he wanted to feel confi- dent in the fact that he could leave everything to me and not have to worry." And so, for the last four years, davies has supervised the day-to-day care of two olympic gold medalists and British heroes—valegro and uthopia. "ey've both always been huge personalities in their own right. ey've both distinguished themselves for sure. i didn't quite imagine, when i took on the job, quite where it would take me, to the level that it has," davies says. "We always knew valegro was great, but to now have him be World Champion, World Cup winner, olym- pic gold medalist—we never imagined that. it's been an incredible ride." blueberry's bOdyguArd But it's not been a ride free of bumps in the road. With the level of fame that valegro and utho- pia have achieved, there are some challenges that call for davies to assume the role of body- guard, as well. it's not a responsibility that many grooms have had to tackle. "ey're national heroes because they've done so much for British dressage," he says. "ey do get a lot of attention. sometimes it seems as if the general public thinks they almost His day job may be caring for some of the world's best dressage horses, but as a hobby, Alan Davies enjoys showing miniature Shetland ponies. "ThEy NEEdEd SoMEoNE To go To AMERICA, ANd I ThoughT, 'ThAT'S gREAT! I WANT To TRAvEL ANd gET PAId To do IT ANd TAkE CARE oF hoRSES.' IT WAS EvERy- ThINg I WANTEd To do." —Alan Davies

• Cover