110 SIDELINES FEBRUARY 2013
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
Brentina Cup Smile: Lauren and Cleo at the Brentina Cup in
Gladstone, New Jersey.
Photo by John Sprieser
Lauren coaches the
Commonwealth Dressage
and Combined Training
Association’s representatives
to the Region 1 Youth Team
Championships.
Photo courtesy of Lauren Sprieser
when women were told they didn’t belong in corporate America.
She taught me that we can achieve our wildest dreams; but that
it takes a tremendous amount of work and a real plan, not just a
pie-in-the-sky dream and crossed fngers.
What are your goals?
Every horse-crazy little girl
says she wants to go to the
Olympics and I do, too; but
even more than that I want
to be known as someone
who consistently could go to
the Olympics, who produces
horses from scratch to a really,
really good grand prix and
always in the right way. I want every horse I touch to leaveme better
than when it came to me and I want to be known for developing
them fairly and kindly. And I’d like to be a famous enough person
that my last name is never misspelled or mispronounced! Outside
of horses, I’d like to do a triathlon next summer. I run and when I
got hurt last year and couldn’t run I started swimming and I thought
well, I’m 2/3rds of the way there, so this year I bought myself a
bike and I’m going to give it a whirl. It’s nice to do something that
has nothing to do with horses.
Do you have a life motto?
There’s a big banner at the C end of my indoor arena that says,
“Go Forward.” It’s a great riding mantra; but it’s also my own
manifesto. Learn from the past - but don’t dwell on it. Celebrate
the victories - but don’t rest on them. Keep moving forward.
If you hadn’t become a rider, what do you think you would
have done with your life?
I love teaching and I love writing. I would have done something
with those two.
If you could ride any horse, dead or alive, who would you
ride?
Having worked for Carol Lavell, I know that her horses are
some of the best trained in the world, so I’d love to ride Gifted. I’d
also love to ride Charlotte Dujardin’s Valegro, because I imagine
that he’s a lot like my Midgey to ride - compact, powerful and a
little cheeky.
What is the best advice you have ever been given?
More Carol Lavell - “talent is not enough.” The most talented
rider in the world isn’t worth the dust on her boots if she’s not
disciplined, dedicated and smart enough to fgure out how to run
the business that lets her get the horses and the training time she
needs to succeed.
What talent would you most like to have?
I’d like to be able to dance. I am, quite possibly, the world’s
worst dancer; I leave the grace to my horses!