2023 Ambassadors, Katie Gardner and Ready to Show
Meet New Vocations' 2023 Ambassadors, Katie Garner, and Ready to Show
“Don’t mind me while I put him on my credit card,” I typed, sharing the Instagram post via DM. It was October 2021, and I’d been an approved adopter since that May. After months of watching horses come and go from New Vocations’ social channels, my at-a-glance decision was really that simple. My family has a deep background in hunter breeding, and I was raised with conformation and movement knowledge instilled in me from my most formative years. I feasted my eyes on a stunning topline, great big shoulder, short little back, pretty face – this boy was built to jump and win the hack.
The three-year-old by More Than Ready already had a ton of likes and a bevy of comments. I emailed, feeling a little clammy. Would I get through? Would they answer? Had he been adopted already, and did I really need to do this, anyway? After all, I had a personal horse. A really, really great personal horse. And, as any busy horse professional knows, a personal horse is a luxury. So—two?!
I am, in fact, that level of crazy. But for context, the aforementioned really great personal horse, Frankly My Dear, was twenty years old, and though he was still showing and winning, having an eye out for a younger partner to start developing while still having Frank’s expertise to enjoy had crossed my mind, hence my initial adoption application. (For anyone else in this position: do it. As the end of Frank’s incredible show career looms ever closer, I am so deeply grateful that Max came along when he did, that I’ve had the chance to show them together, and that, when I retire Frank, I won’t be grasping at straws to try to fill a void. I chose "Max" for his own self, on his own merits, and I’m so, so thankful that it happened that way.)
Max arrived from Kentucky a few days later; fancy, sweet and so VERY young. A child in every sense of the word, from his mouthiness to his intense desire to destroy blankets to his fast, growing metabolism. The one place where he has never really acted his age is under saddle. Though everything came incredibly easily to him in the ring, I quickly determined that I would not do the Thoroughbred Makeover – even though he was eligible and likely would have done extremely well. It was important to me to train this baby horse without deadlines, to allow him to mature at his own pace. I know myself. I’m very competitive. He’s very capable. A good mix, but a dangerous one for a body with so much developing still to do. Call it a horsemanship decision, call it intuition, but he’s grown about an inch and a half and changed shape a good bit since I adopted him and 2022 brought us eight Championships and three Reserve Championships in eight horse shows (including two in-hand Championships and doing two performance divisions at TIP Championships) – so it’s safe to say I have no regrets about my conservative decision. I am playing “long ball” with this horse and look forward to having him sound and competitive for many years to come.
Max competed in the 2023 New Vocations All-Thoroughbred Charity Horse Show and is qualified and declared for the 2023 Thoroughbred Incentive Program Championships, in addition to showing locally for practice as we move out of his kindergarten era into the next phase of his job. He exceeds expectations every step of the way, and it’s a real joy to have such a lovely young horse to bring along!
Ambassador: Katie Gardner
New Vocations Graduate: Ready to Show
Follow them on Instagram: @kohgardner
