Untacked

38 ja n ua r y/ f e b r ua r y 2 015 U n tac k e d coVEr storY "maybe he just doesn't like ditches at this level [and is never going to]," o'Connor continues. "at happens all the time, all the way up the levels. not all horses are going to want to continue up." Is there a physical limitation? Jumping small fences is pretty easy for most horses, but don't overlook the possibility that yours may not be able to perform at a higher level safely and comfortably. "riders' ability to recognize their horses' physical limi- tations is an issue," o'Connor admits. "trying to get help with that or having an assessment of that is really important." once you've assessed what went wrong, it's time to solve your problem and move on. And it's important to tackle this develop- ment stage with a sense of empowerment. "You're always in a better place if you can say, 'is is some- thing that i feel I want to do,' " he says. "And then you go to your trainer and ask them to help you with that, instead of just think- ing that you abdicate everything to the trainer." You'll go a lot farther a lot faster, and you'll become a much more independent rider, if you don't wait for someone else to point out your problems. "let's say you're having trouble with pacing on cross-country. You should go to the trainer and say, 'i'm really struggling with this; can you help me?' " o'Connor explains. "at type of change in the relationship is really important. You come to think of your trainer as someone who helps you with an issue you have already decided you want to conquer." david o'connor won individual gold at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney aboard Custom Made, and he has a host of other team medals to his credit. Based in The Plains, Va., and Ocala, Fla., O'Connor now serves as the chef d'equipe and technical advi- sor to the Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team. In 2011, following her first trip to the Land Rover Burghley CCI**** in England, (an event she would go on to finish second at the following year), Coth. com blogger Sinead Halpin shared the following—an intimidating but inspiring pep talk she received from longtime coach David O'Connor. While most of us will never enter the start box at a four- star, these tenets are universal: Respect yourself, believe in your preparation, and never be afraid to fail. David o'Connor stopped me while I was walking out of the stabling and asked if he could talk to me for a second. I quickly went through the things I could have possibly done wrong, and I assured myself after a quick mental check that, "nope, I think I'm good!" So after a prolonged second, I said yes, suspiciously. David proceeded to tell me he had overheard a conversa- tion I had with William fox-Pitt about the cross-country course. During this exchange, I had commented that I was sure his horse would be fine because he was in the irons, and I wasn't so sure Tate would be so lucky with me in the navigation seat. David raised an eyebrow, and, in a more assertive tone than I'm used to from the usual Mr. Cool, said, "Don't do that." I looked at him blankly. "you are that rider," he continued. "you're playing at the level. Stop acting like you're a guest." I felt a lump of self-doubt creep up in my throat. I thought I was cleverly hiding my "in over my head" feeling, but David saw straight through it. I honestly said, "but what if I make a mistake out there?" "Then you are still that rider, but you made a mistake, and you'll come home and fix it," he said. I nodded and walked toward the course for my final walk, contemplating whether I really was "that" rider… When I walked to the start box on Tate later that day, I was trying to stay cool. boyd Martin and Phillip Dutton came up while I walked the short walk with my groom Meg from warm-up to the start box. Phil- lip gave me some last-minute advice on a particular line on course, and boyd looked at me and said, "just one jump at a time." and when I reached the box, David seemed to appear from out of nowhere at the last minute. and just loud enough for me to hear, he said, "be that rider…" exactly 11 minutes and 32 seconds later, he gave me a proud smile and a hug and said, "I told you so." You can read all of Sinead Halpin's blogs at CoTH.com/ blogs. A Lesson In Confidence

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