Grooming Secrets of the Pros: Dealing with the Unexpected, Presented by Wahl
Krista Moyer is a professional groom working in Ontario, Canada and Wellington, Florida. As Canadian Dressage rider Lee Tubman’s head groom for several years before he became a full-time judge, she managed 1-7 horses at competitions from first level to FEI Grand Prix.
What was your most memorable moment as a groom?
A few years ago, I was grooming a horse in a very large Prix St. Georges class in Wellington. I think there were 45+ entries. Throughout the morning, our score was in the top few but halfway through the day we stopped checking results. We ended up packing the trailer up, taking all of our equipment home and I went back to the show to pick the horse up. Driving in, we stopped at the office and saw that we were 6th, which meant we were getting a ribbon. In 10 minutes, I managed to borrow a saddle – of the same brand, in the same size! – a saddle pad, and someone’s girth. I re-rolled dirty polos, but if you roll them up and flip them the opposite way they were previously rolled on the horse and put them on the horse’s leg, it covers up the dirt – so I ultimately had clean polos. I had someone braid the horse very quickly. The bridle was still in my car, so I managed to use that.
I had the horse ready to go in less than 15 minutes! We were the first ones to the ring for presentations. But as I’m walking towards the ring, the last horse just finished…and finished 6th, which bumped us to 7th! All that stress for nothing! I was ticked that I was able to do all this, and then we didn’t even get a ribbon.
