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Interview: Dom Schramm at Burghley Horse Trials

     Dom Schramm and Bolytair B at Burghley

 

Dom Schramm was the only Australian rider to complete at this year’s Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials, finishing in 28th place on his 13-year-old gelding Bolytair B

The pair started in 53rd place after the dressage on a score of 38.7 and added 11 penalties on cross country for dislodging a MIM clip at the Trout Hatchery. However, just to complete the cross country in a year when approximately half of the field were eliminated or retired on course was a huge achievement and Dom showed his joy and relief as he crossed the finishing line ………

 

 

Born in the small outback town of Charleville, Australia, Dom was a member of the 2006 Australian Young Rider Eventing Squad and worked for fellow Queenslander Chris Burton for two years before making the move to the USA in 2010 where he met and married his wife Jimmie.

Now based in Chester County, Pennsylvania Dom is now a well-established competitor, having competed at his first two CCI5* starts with Bolytair B this year at Land Rover Kentucky and Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials and is also a popular coach in the USA but, unlike his friends and ex-pat Aussies Boyd Martin and Phillip Dutton who have taken US citizenship, Dom has maintained his Australian citizenship and rides under the Australian flag. However, that may not last for the ‘man on Mars!’

We caught up with Dom on the last day at Burghley to find out about the motivation for competing at Burghley, the ‘warrior horse’ needed for 5* events, and how his past experience has enabled him to ride at one of the toughest events in the world

“I’ve been trying to get here for a long time and I’ve ridden a lot of different horses. I got my start riding more difficult horses and it kind of felt as if this was out of reach for a long time, thinking ‘How am I ever going to get there, mucking around riding these ‘yangers’’. But now I realise all of that experience is what helped me unlock Boly (Bolytair B) as part of the reason I got him was because he was a tough horse to ride. So, in the big scheme of things, maybe it was the right way for me”