80 SIDELINES NOVEMBER 2012
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
e
By Holly Hugo-Vidal
Archie Cox stands tall, literally and fguratively. His youthful and
ft good looks are only exceeded by his larger than life cheerful
and positive personality. His signature red baseball cap with a
rooster on the front makes Archie very recognizable at all the
major horse shows.
Archie, originally from the East Coast, competed as a junior on
a national level. In 1985, he became the frst male rider to win
the USEF team gold medal. He moved to California in 1992 and
in 2000 opened up his own business, Brookway Stables, named
after his grandfather’s farm in Maine. Brookway Stables is located
in Middle Ranch in Lakeside Terrace and typically has 30-35
horses in training. Archie has been president of the Pacifc Coast
Horse Shows Association for the past 15 years and he sits on
three boards.
His riders have been champion and reserve at every major
horse show on both coasts. His student Mathew Sereni won the
ASPCA Maclay fnals in 2003. Archie is well educated (a graduate
of Drew University) and very popular among the horse community
and his friendly personality exudes warmth. He considers himself
lucky to have good clients. I am sure the feeling is mutual. Archie
has an incredibly busy show schedule and generously gave time
for this interview.
You have been going to horse shows and training for many
years, how do you maintain your enthusiasm?
I’m very lucky, I’m excited every day to get up and go to the barn
and see the horses (whether it’s at home or at a horse show), their
different faces and bring a smile to my customer’s faces.
What are some signifcant changes about the horse world
now verses ten years ago?
I’d like to go back, maybe 15 years ago. One thing that comes
to my mind is the unfortunate part of the business, being that
people want immediate results and enough time isn’t being taken
to produce young horses and the expense that it incurs in bringing
them along. So we see so many made horses being sold and the
green horses are not brought along as often and not appreciated.
One of the greatest things about amateurs is that there are no
time constraints. They can wait a year to bring along a young
horse, where the juniors are limited to the number of years before
they go to college. They need more seasoned horses.
Another thing I see too much of is that people want horses
that are quieter and quieter. I’m a big fan of a horse with a little bit
of blood. I think there is no easier horse to ride than a hot horse
made just slightly quieter so that all you have to do is think it and
they’re willing to do it. Growing up, you never heard of a spur mark
on a horse. It was never discussed! And now they actually make
a saddle pad that will prevent spur marks! A rider or owner should
be horrifed if there’s a spur mark on their horse!
What do you do on your day off?
On my day off, I wear a tee shirt and shorts. I go to the gym and
I go out to eat! I also do a few horse related things. I do try to get
away from my business for a few hours on a day off.
The High Profile of Archie Cox
Archie and After Five, owned by Stephanie Danhakl, at Devon in
2012
Photo by The Book LLC 2012