36 SIDELINES JULY 2012
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
By Lauren R. Giannini
Everyone bitten by the bug has the dream at some point,
but it’s a tough course to follow. With the London 2012
Olympics on the horizon, July 27-August 12, speculation
is rife about who will make the US 3-day team. One rider
in particular, Allison Springer, 37, has believed in the
dream and in her Irish Sport Horse, Arthur, for years. She
didn’t lose faith in his athleticism and talent and not once
did she give up, no matter how harsh the disappointments.
“Allison never got mad at Arthur,” said her mother
Carolyn Springer. “She just kept working with him. She’s
tenacious. She loves that horse and she knew he had all
the talent in the world and had to harness that spookiness.”
Allison received the best reward possible at Kentucky
Rolex this spring when they fnished in second-place and,
as the highest-placed US rider, earned the USEF National
Four-Star Championship, the USET Foundation Pinnacle
Club and Arthur earned Best Conditioned Horse. You
know that great scene in Rocky when he jogs up the steps
of the Museum in Philadelphia, looking and feeling like a
winner, with that glorious soundtrack… that pretty much
describes Allison with her beloved Arthur in their ffth
Rolex at Kentucky Horse Park doing their victory gallop.
No soundtrack, but lots of cheering from fans packed into
the sold-out Rolex Stadium…
“Arthur’s come a long way,” admitted Springer. “This
horse is a freak of nature. He’s a superb athlete. I know
he loves his job. I’ve had to make him more confdent.
Now I think he understands that the people are there for
him. He loves the cheering – he seems to understand it all
now. I’m sure Arthur’s going to improve his dressage by
three or four points. We’re working on our show jumping.
To be in the top three, you have to do all three phases
really well. This is exciting for the US – we have a number
of horses that can medal individually and as a team.”
The Dream Takes Hold
Allison had a bad habit as a toddler that she traded for
a lifelong vocation. Her father Bill Springer offered her
anything she wanted if she would stop sucking her thumb
forever. The fve-year-old, who had just met the neighbor’s
pony, piped up that she would quit the thumb sucking if
she could have a pony of her own. The Springers were
fabbergasted: horses don’t really run in the family genes,
but a deal’s a deal.
That same year, Allison started in pony club. A few years
later in 1984, she decided, while watching the televised
three-day coverage in Los Angeles, that she wanted to
event and represent her country in the Olympics. She started
riding to hounds with Fox River Valley and was awarded her colors
at an early age. She earned her USPC “A” rating when she was
16. Nothing deterred her dream. She did AP high school courses
(Physics, Calculus, English, Spanish) and made the Dean’s List
at Bowdoin College. After graduation, Allison consulted with her
parents: she wanted to take off a year and try horses full-time.
The rest is history. What Allison has accomplished with her
riding and with Arthur traces its roots directly back to the fateful
day of the bribe, when she traded one habit for a bigger, more
beautiful one.
“That pony cost only $15 – then we had to build a barn, then
put in water and electricity,” recalls her father. “The Olympics
have been her dream ever since she watched the 1984 Olympics
on television. Allison’s tenacious. She’s been this way for years.
This sport is incredibly character-building. We’re prepared for any
outcome. I’m so proud of her.”
Whatever happens, Arthur looks like a million dollars and Allison
has a game plan. If not London, then 2016 in Rio. Half the fun is
living the dream.
Photo by Lauren R. Giannini
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