Portraits by Melissa Fuller
Cate Chant was 15 and coming home from school on the Toronto subway in 2006 when a photographer approached her. “He asked if I had ever considered modeling. I wasn’t an especially mature or beautiful 15-year-old, so it was not something I expected at all,” she laughed.
That chance meeting led to signing with a Toronto agent and then a contract with New York Model Management. One of Cate’s first jobs was walking the runway in Milan for the Italian designer Prada. Today, Cate remembers that she had never worn high heels before. “I had to practice before I went,” she admitted.
Cate’s “discovery” on the subway was fortuitous, since she had always been obsessed with horses and knew how expensive life as a committed equestrian would be. “Honestly, I saw modeling as a way to gain my own income and stay involved in riding,” she said. “I was about 6 or 7 when I started taking lessons and after many years of begging, I finally convinced my parents to buy me a pony.”
That pony was Echo, a spirited Appaloosa-Arabian cross boarded at a cattle farm near the family’s cottage on Lake Huron. It was an unpolished introduction to horse ownership, per Cate. “No guidance from a reputable professional,” she joked. “I was a backyard rider.” But it set her on her life’s path, a path that would merge into a professional equestrian career alongside an unexpected partner just as familiar with the limelight: two-time Stanley Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist hockey player Mike Richards.
Over the next several years, Cate worked in New York, Europe, Tokyo, Los Angeles and Miami. She was booked for runway shows and major fashion publications including Italian Vogue, Elle, iD and Nylon, among others, and booked a campaign for Cover Girl. Cate juggled her glamorous career with a lot of time in the saddle. Her no-frills introduction to horses evolved alongside her talent, and eventually the competitive hunter-jumper world beckoned.
Cate began training at an Ontario show barn with Christopher Delia, a renowned Canadian Olympic equestrian and trainer. She then moved to Linden Ridge with Ainsley Vince and spent winters competing in Wellington, Florida, and summers showing throughout Canada and Kentucky. By the end of her Junior riding career, she was competing in hunters, equitation and jumpers.
Academics were always a priority, however, and Cate studied psychology and biology at Wheaton College, a small liberal arts college in Massachusetts. Modeling took a back seat during the academic years, but Cate’s Oldenberg gelding Cedric accompanied her to Wheaton. The pair showed throughout New England and she rode on the Wheaton IHSA team her senior year. Cate continued to train with Ainsley Vince at Linden Ridge in Burlington, Ontario, and also worked with Mark Jungherr at Starlite Farm in Massachusetts during this busy period. In 2008, she competed in the Canadian Equestrian Team regional medal finals as well as the Ontario Hunter Jumper finals, finishing in the top 10.
While Cate was consumed by modeling, studying and riding, another Ontario, Canada, athlete was just as busy, although they didn’t yet know each other. Mike Richards was raised in Kenora and followed the classic Canadian path into hockey almost by default, as his brothers and cousins all played. By the time he was a teenager, hockey dominated his life. At 16, he left home to play in the Ontario Hockey League and by 18, he had been drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers.
Mike was a standout player in the NHL, spending years moving through the relentless rhythm of professional hockey. Eventually, he spent six seasons in Philadelphia before moving to Los Angeles and later Washington. There were endless flights, practices, injuries and surgeries; games every other night; and many months lived out of a suitcase. There were also priceless memories—Mike competed on the Canadian Olympic team in 2010 and came home with a gold medal. He helped the Los Angeles Kings win their first Stanley Cup in 2012, and the team repeated that win in 2014.
“It was everything you could hope for when you dream about it as a kid,” Mike said.
Cate and Mike met in 2015. They had connected on Twitter and Cate noticed his profile photo featured a fish, a detail that immediately appealed to the outdoors-loving Canadian in her. Soon they were talking constantly, despite living in different cities at the time: He was playing hockey in Washington, D.C., and she was modeling in Miami. Their relationship took off when Mike retired from the NHL in 2016.
“I don’t think we’ve spent much time apart ever since,” Cate said. Eventually, the pair returned to the remote lake country of Kenora, Ontario, together and bought a 250-acre vacant property that would become their farm. Together, they built the barns, paddocks, jumps and infrastructure largely from scratch, with help from Mike’s family.
Today, True North Equestrian includes a small but active hunter-jumper training program, a rotating collection of rescue horses and boarders—14 in total—two miniature horses, rescue dogs, cats and an endless list of daily chores. Cate trains a group of five to 10 amateur clients, many of whom compete in Ocala, Florida, in the winter or in Manitoba on the Canadian show circuit. Cate is committed to teaching her clients responsible horsemanship and flawless equitation, likely due to her own scrappy beginnings as a rider.
Mike’s father, Norm, helps them keep the farm running during the winter. “Trying to fix things when it’s 30 below is tough,” Mike said. Most of their horses live outside full time during the winter despite the brutal weather. The farm’s indoor arena is unheated; their farrier drives five hours to reach the property; mud season can feel endless.
The couple’s annual sojourn to Wellington, Florida, from November through April is a welcome reprieve from the bitter Canadian winter. This year, Cate brought Poe, her Holsteiner gelding, and while in Wellington, acquired a new horse, Charlie, a 10-year-old Swedish Warmblood. Mike spends time golfing in Wellington while Cate rides and competes in the Winter Equestrian Festival. For many years she partnered with top trainer Kristy McKormack (Herrera); more recently she has been riding with Team USA rider Carly Anthony. “Having the change of pace in Florida saves us from the burnout we’d have if we were in Kenora year-round,” Cate reflected. “It gives us an appreciation for both places.”
For people who spent years under bright lights and public scrutiny, Cate and Mike do seem happiest in the quieter rhythms of farm life, with Cate caring for animals, riding and training clients and Mike building fences and repairing water lines. Even during the winter months in Wellington, Cate and Mike choose to spend their evenings hanging out at home instead of attending glitzy equestrian society parties.
They also have impressive interests beyond the farm. This year, Cate will receive an MFA in writing through Lindenwood University, completing the program remotely. Her thesis project is still evolving, but she has two manuscripts in the works, one set in the world of show jumping and the other in the fashion industry. She competes in hunter-jumper events throughout the spring and summer months in Canada and recently rode both Poe and Charlie in the Traverse City Horse Shows.
Mike is a regular contributor to the Nasty Knuckles podcast on YouTube, reflecting on his career, locker room culture and experiences across different leagues. The couple shares a passion for fishing, and both participate in competitive bass tournaments. Cate and Mike are committed to volunteer rescue work for animals in both Canada and Florida, and their rescue dogs, Scarlett and Ted, are beloved members of the family.
After the pressure-cooker atmosphere of their respective careers, Cate and Mike admit that the hard work of running a farm can sometimes feel almost leisurely. “You go from being so busy and so driven to suddenly having so much time on your hands,” Mike said. “There’s always something to do on the farm. It’s very therapeutic just being around the animals and nature. There’s always a sense of purpose.”
Follow Cate and Mike on Instagram @truenorthequine or visit truenortheq.net
Photos by Melissa Fuller, melissafullerphotography33.mypixieset.com
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