“With horses and training, there really isn’t a formula to make them the best they can be. It takes years working with these living, breathing creatures to learn to read each horse and how to best respond to their unique needs to optimize the partnership between rider and horse. Patience, perseverance, and dedication are essential!”
That’s Taylor Wood, the Manotick-raised fifteen-year-old, quoting mentor and coach Amy Millar. Millar and her equally famous father Ian, both Olympic veterans, are stakeholders in their own showjumping facility, Millar Brooke Farm in Perth, Ontario and spend their winters in Wellington, Florida. Says the gracious Wood, “It’s an honor to be able to learn from Amy, Ian, and the whole community at Millar Brooke. There’s such a wide range of knowledge and the attention to detail is truly admirable. The atmosphere really encourages students to go above and beyond.”
Wood is also a member of the GRIT (Great Rider Intensive Training) Program, an Ontario-based initiative that brings together high-performance riders with competitive experience from all three Olympic disciplines: showjumping, eventing, and dressage. It’s a complete equestrian education, from strength and conditioning to the mental game, taught by top talent.
Taylor’s horses are nicknamed Leo and Sunni. Leo (officially known as JoyRide) is fourteen and, says Taylor, “all heart, constantly aiming to please.” Their most memorable milestones together include their 2022 team gold medal performance for Canada’s Children’s team at NAYC (North American Youth Championships) and the 1.30m Canadian Champion at The Royal Winter Fair in 2023. Sunni (officially SunJoy Z), nine, is a horse with whom she’s less familiar. “He’s still learning and developing,” she says,” but he truly is something special. I really enjoy figuring things out with him.” They recently figured out their first milestone wins together at NAYC in August winning a team gold medal with Canada’s pre-junior team and an individual bronze medal overall at this key international competition.
Image from Nicolai Gregory
The enthusiastic and dedicated Taylor’s long-term goal is to represent Canada at the World Equestrian Games and the Olympics.
She plans to keep training and competing till she’s ready. “In preparation, what I focus on is being consistent and preparing for every scenario,” the studious teenager explains. “We work on target areas but also on perfecting fundamentals. Training is mostly ‘flatwork,’ which is footwork and transition exercises, and working with our horses to develop rideability, control, and connection. We mix in some jump training exercises to build strength and form in the horse and rider and sprinkle in some jump courses to simulate competition scenarios. It’s a delicate balance to train and prepare while keeping it fun and not overstressing the horse and rider.”
That said, she does have a few stress busters: her faith, her family, her friends, and her furry friend Oakley, the dog who travels with her wherever she goes. “I couldn’t do this without their love, help, and support.”
