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110 SIDELINES FEBRUARY 2011 FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE D R E S S A G E

Five Questions for Gary Lane

By Jan Westmark

For dressage rider and trainer Gary Lane, loving horses is in his blood. “I came from a family of horsemen and pretty much grew up in a barn. My father was a jockey and later trained and raced Standardbreds along with his father before him,” Gary says.

While Gary’s brother followed in their family’s footsteps, Gary chose to pursue the sport horse industry. “I rode hunters until my early twenties, but I never really cared much for jumping. I always seemed to enjoy working on improving and developing the movement of my horses. I began to realize that dressage was the direction I wanted to go.”

Gary, who lives in Boynton Beach, Florida, has been involved in the dressage industry for more than 20 years and has become an inspiring and well-respected fxture on the South Florida dressage circuit. “Living in South Florida fts my lifestyle. I have the best shows all winter long and can do some smaller ones in the summer. I love having the ability to come home to my ‘only home’ nearly every day of my life.”

Sidelines: How did you end up living in South Florida?

GL: In 1987, when I was 23, I took a position at Iron Spring Farm. From that time on I concentrated solely on a career in dressage. It was there that I met my life partner Dean Camp. At 27 years of age, we moved to Florida where we started our own business training and competing in dressage. In 1994, we moved our business to The Country Club Stables where we met farm owner Carlene Blunt. Gradually we phased out our business and I now train and compete Carlene’s horses exclusively.

Sidelines: Who do you train with?

GL: I have been riding with Jan Brons for six years. I had always admired his riding and thought he would work well with my style of training. It was a good call as he has been wonderful for me and has taught me so much. Without a doubt, he has been the biggest training infuence of my career. He has helped develop my skills and technique, and I believe he has made me the trainer I am today.

Sidelines: What do you consider the biggest accomplishment of your career?

GL: It’s hard to pick one accomplishment that stands out more clearly in my mind than others. Looking at my career, there have been wins that are more important than others and there are horses that I took further than anyone thought possible. There were also horses in which I saw something that others missed and then developed into something special. I think of my career as many small accomplishments that have brought me to the life I have today. I have a great sponsor in Carlene and she has given me a terrifc life, a wonderful home and a beautiful facility flled with lovely horses. Mostly, however, I have a partner who has selfessly supported me in all ventures for more than 20 years. It’s these relationships that I consider my truly greatest accomplishment.

Sidelines: You compete and own bothWarmbloods and Lusitanos. Which do you prefer?

GL: I absolutely adore the Lusitano breed. They are bright, willing horses and possess an incredible work ethic. I believe my future will rest with the Lusitanos. I love the two KWPN geldings that I have but feel that I will stay with the Lusitanos from here on out. I won’t say that I would never buy another Warmblood because I’ve had and still do have some incredible Warmbloods, but my heart tends to lead me to the Lusitanos. I had been interested in Iberian horses for quite some time and last year I decided to sell one of the Warmbloods that just wasn’t for me. At that time I looked into the Iberian horses more seriously, at least see if I liked riding them. I contacted my friend Heather Bender, who’s the American contact for Interagro Lusitanos. She took me to their farm in November 2009, and I’ve been hooked ever since. We now have eight in our stable, four of which are mine and four are Dean’s. I plan to show three of my four later this season.

Sidelines: Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

GL: I expect I’ll be looking around the corner at 60! That said, I’m very happy in my life right now. If all goes well, I will hopefully be doing exactly what I’m doing today.