Nice work if you can get it

A career focused on horses is not for the faint of heart but the rewards are many and can last a lifetime.

Dale Leatherman

Shortly after graduating from college, I went rogue. Instead of accepting a “normal” job, I turned to the horse business. My parents were not thrilled, but accepted the inevitable. I had grown up in a “non-horsey” family, resolutely collecting horse figurines, reading equestrian books and asking for a pony. The pony never came. My parents hoped I would outgrow the notion. I didn’t.

At college, I would sneak away to ride at a local stable. Summers were spent giving riding lessons at summer camps. When I had my degree I headed to New York, where I began learning from the best instructors in the business. Before long I was coaching young riders, showing hunters and jumpers, and buying, training and selling horses off the track.