A Fargis Golden Rule: The Horse Comes First
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By Karen Becker
oe Fargis is an Olympic gold medalist and a world class riding instructor and clinician. So who better than this modest, soft-spoken Middleburg resident and president of the Upperville Horse Show to develop a detailed program that explains his philosophy toward working to become a wellrounded horseman. If properly followed, Fargis’s program could be a key to success in realizing anyone’s equestrian goals. For example, step No. 1 is paramount— “consider the horse’s well-being first.” And not far behind at No. 2 is—“It’s never the horse’s fault.”
He’s also quick to explain how to see through the eyes of the horse, reminding his students or anyone else who loves horses that as humans, it’s critical to appreciate communication from the horse’s perspective.
That philosophy has evolved over a lifelong passion for horses and riding that began as a second-grader growing up in Vienna, Virginia. One day after school, his friend, Randy Dillon, invited him to his home. Randy’s mother, Jane Marshall Dillon, ran the Junior Equitation School, and not long after, Fargis got his first introduction to horses. Serendipitously, Mrs. Dillon’s riding school was within walking distance from Fargis’s home and he remained as a student there for a dozen years. Fargis rode ponies at that stage, and he has said he began to understand they possessed a special intelligence that he appreciated and learned from. Virtually every horse Fargis has known has helped enhance his own understanding of horses from a human perspective. He’s also quick to explain how to see through the eyes of the horse, reminding his students or anyone else who loves horses that as humans, it’s critical to appreciate communication from the horse’s perspective. During Fargis’s career as a junior rider, Frances Rowe from Crozier, Virginia was another mentor. Fargis trained and showed horses, while also taking college night courses, enabling him to focus on his equestrian pursuits by day. Fargis has always said his goal was simply to spend his life with horses, to realize their full potential and recognize their importance to their riders’ own lives. As he explained, horses do not have to “like” or “love” the person riding them, but they do need to feel comfortable with the person who is guiding them and asking them to perform. He believes there’s an inherent trust that must develop between horse and rider to succeed in competition that requires a willingness to take the risk of doing what is asked by the rider while doing no harm. In 1975, he won his first Gold Medal in team jumping at the Pan American Games. Fargis was later selected to ride under U.S. Equestrian Team trainer Bert de Némathy. And then came the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles when he and his great friend and business partner Conrad Homfeld, a man with a similar equine philosophy, both made the team. In the individual jumping, the two of them were tied after the preliminary round, and Fargis, with his horse, Touch of Class, prevailed in a jump-off to take the gold, with Homfeld earning silver. His victory also marked the first time that a U.S. non-military rider had earned the gold medal both in individual and team jumping. At the ’88 games in Seoul, Korea,, Fargis won silver medal riding Mill Pearl. Over the years, many more honors have piled up. He has been inducted into the Show Jumping Hall of Fame, the Virginia Horse Show Association Hall of Fame and the Virginia Horse Center Hall of Fame. He’s received the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association’s Lifetime achievement award, been named among the 50 most influential horsemen by the Chronicle of the Horse, and in 2013, received the USEF Lifetime Achievement Award. Recently he was asked to name his favorite horses. The response was typical of the under-stated and honest Joe Fargis--he has no favorites, but liked and treated all horses equally. That sort of perspective is a key reason he’s been able
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Photo by Tiffany Dillon Keen
Olympic gold medalist Joe Fargis is the president of the Upperville Colt and Horse Show, June 6-12. to bring out the best in virtually every horse he’s ridden. It’s a philosophy he also tries to impart on every student he teaches. Since the 1970s, Fargis has owned and managed Sandron Farm based in Petersburg, Virginia, Southhampon, New York, and, since 1995, in Middleburg where he mentors junior and adult amateurs, and professional riders. He’s also conducted riding clinics in more than 25 countries. And of course, in June, coming out of the Pandemic, as president of the iconic Upperville show, he headed a team that put on a highly successful event that drew rave reviews from competitors and spectators alike. When someone congratulated him a few days later, he smiled and was humble, as always. “It wasn’t just me,” he said. “We had a great team and they should get the credit.”
MIDDLEBURG SUSTAINABLE COMMITTEE| Summer 2022
