Ever wonder what it’s like to be a top rider, trainer, judge, or clinician? Trafalgar Square Books (www.horseandriderbooks.com) is tracking down its top authors and asking them to pull back the curtains and let us take a quick peek into their lives. In our fifth installment in TSB’s “Horseworld by the Hour” blog series, we caught up with “WonderHorseWoman” Lynn Palm.
Lynn is not only the author of THE RIDER’S GUIDE TO REAL COLLECTION and YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE TO WESTERN DRESSAGE, she’s won 34 World and Reserve World Championships; four Superhorse titles, AQHA Female Equestrian of the Year, and many more awards and accolades throughout her career in the spotlight, which has now spanned over 40 years. She and her husband Cyril Pittion-Rossillon conduct training courses and clinics across the country. Lynn is an Advisory Director of the Western Dressage Association of America, and makes regular appearances at expos and special events, such as her popular bridleless riding demonstrations at the World Equestrian Games.
Lynn has shown horses on the flat and over fences, in Western, hunt seat, and dressage saddles. And NOW we hear she’s taking up a whole new sport, to boot!
So just how does Lynn fit it all in? Check out her typical day:
Just a Regular Ol’ Spring/Summer/Fall Day with Lynn Palm
5:00 a.m. Still sleeping, I hope!
5:30 a.m. I wake up in the spring, summer, fall at 5:30, with all my dogs. In the winter I get up around 6:30 a.m.
6:00 a.m. My morning chores: making coffee, unloading the dishwasher, doing laundry, planning meals for the day. If I have clinics, I start preparing lunch and dinner for at least 20 people and often more!
6:30 a.m. I feed my wonderful dogs: 3 labs and 2 mini longhair dachshunds.
7:00 a.m. I check my gardens and greenhouse, and then get dressed for the day while drinking my coffee. I make a protein fruit smoothie and take my vitamins!
7:30 a.m. In the summer, by now I’m getting to the barn to ride my first horse before feeding. Spring and fall I start riding at 8:30 a.m., and in the winter I may ride in the afternoon, switching my day to ride with our warm afternoon sun!
8:00 a.m. I’m riding horses and following up with necessary calls for the day.
8:30 a.m. Still riding horses, and finding time to check in with Marie Frances (my office manager) and Cyril (my husband) about what’s up for their day. Cyril also works our horses, and we discuss our saddle business and what orders or leads he may have about our hunt seat and dressage saddles we have made in France.
9:00 a.m. I’m in the barn, checking on all the horses for health or care, confirming supplies needed, and discussing with the farm manager what he is doing on the farm for the day.
9:30 a.m. On another horse, while my staff turn out some horses and plans for grooming and care of horses and the stable for the rest of the day.
10:00 a.m. I am training horses in our wonderful training field with the big Live Oak Trees.
10:30 a.m. Training horses in the Outdoor Jump Field.
11:00 a.m. Training horses on our 3-acre Natural Obstacle Training Arena.
11:30 a.m. Training horses with ground work in our training paddocks.
12:00 p.m. Training horses still—but now it’s driving to prepare for Combined Driving (a new sport for me this next year!)
12:30 p.m. Riding horses in the covered arena (if it is raining, as can be the case in the afternoons).
1:00 p.m. Lunch, swim in the pool, play with dogs!
1:30 p.m. Shower and clean up from the barn.
2:00 p.m. Office duties: email, Facebook, marketing plans, writing newsletter or editorial for magazines, following up on horse sales, planning shows and clinics, working on remodeling our property in Sarasota, Florida (Southern Reflections – An Equestrian Private Retreat).
3:00 p.m. More office duties: conference calls with sponsors, companies with product development, reviewing client requests with their horses, making contacts for clinics or expos engagements.
4:00 p.m. Office duties continue, or if we have a clinic going on, I prepare dinner for the students, guests, and staff.
4:30 p.m. Still in the office: preparing the daily horse training and lesson schedule for the next day.
5:00 p.m. Haven’t left the office but gotta feed my dogs!!
5:30 p.m. Close the office for the day.
6:30 p.m. I’m watching Nightly News on NBC if I can!
7:00 p.m. Preparing dinner for Cyril and me, and friends if we have some over (which is often).
7:30 p.m. Cocktails at the Red Fox Inn or sitting on the front porch enjoying the sunset—talking about the day or what is happening in the horse world with Cyril, Marie Frances, and/or horsey friends. My dogs have cocktails, too: marrow bones, which they love so much!
8:00 p.m. Dinner in the main dining room, in front of the TV if it is just Cyril and me (of course with the dogs) or at poolside—we have a wonderful pool area with lots of beautiful landscape.
9:00 p.m. Cleaning up dinner or maybe sitting at the bonfire in a courtyard beside the pool.
9:30 p.m. In bed watching The Voice or America’s Got Talent or sports.
10:00 p.m. Up again! Time for Night Check on all the horses.
10:30 p.m. Sleeping!
Lynn Palm’s excellent books THE RIDER’S GUIDE TO REAL COLLECTION and YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE TO WESTERN DRESSAGE are available from the TSB online bookstore, where shipping in the US is FREE.
Read the other installments in TSB’s “Horseworld by the Hour” blog series: