Power pair Dominic and Jimmie Schramm are bursting with energy, eager to banish the Covid blues, build on their recent success, and ensure 2022 is the year they make their presence felt in the upper echelons of eventing.

After finishing 2021 on a high, Dom and Jimmie are more motivated than ever. “Our goal as we head into 2022 is to break out of that emerging athlete category, and to join that group of established upper-level riders,” Dom proclaims. “It’s going to require us to perform at a higher standard and take our results to a new level, and we’re looking forward to that.”

It’s almost 10 years since the pair burst into the spotlight, becoming household names on the equestrian scene via their engaging, educational and entertaining YouTube channel, Evention TV. On screen, Queenslander Dom and Texan Jimmie’s charisma, chemistry, talent and passion for all-things-horses has attracted over 14 million channel views since 2012. Off screen, their professionalism and dedication to the sport of eventing has seen this dynamic duo reach new heights in their eventing careers in recent years – with the best still to come.

As 2022 dawns, Dom and Jimmie no longer grace our screens with fresh Evention TV content each week, yet they remain the same likeable athletes their devoted fans eagerly tuned in to watch and learn from. Down to earth and humble, Dom and Jimmie are enthusiastic as they reflect on 2021 and talk about their plans for the year ahead.

“It felt like in 2021, as we all started to come out of the weird hit-and-miss Covid situation, we were starting to really hit our stride a bit more,” Dom explains. “I actually had a really disappointing 2020; with the young horses there were a couple of little niggling injuries, nothing major but frustrating nonetheless and they all seemed to happen at once. In 2021 it was nice to get them back out competing. Then with my five-star horse Bolytair B, plans were definitely interrupted over the past two years!”

Having made their CCI5*-L debut at Rolex Kentucky in 2019, Dom and “Boly” made the big trip from their base in Pennsylvania to compete at the prestigious Burghley Horse Trials in September 2019. Finishing in 28^th position and jumping clear cross country – with the exception of time penalties and 11 penalties for a frangible pin – in a year that saw less than half the field complete the competition, the pair showed the eventing world that they were a serious international combination on the rise. Dom soon set his sights on his next goal, a CCI5*-L start at the prestigious Badminton Horse Trials. It was not to be.

As 2019 drew to a close, the Schramms hatched a plan to temporarily relocate to England for much of 2020, taking six horses including Dom’s Bolytair B and Jimmie’s rising star Eclaire. They would establish a base close to New Zealanders Tim and Jonelle Price and train with them, immersing themselves in the English eventing scene and competing at some of the most prestigious and challenging events in the country – if not the world – with Badminton top of the priority list for Dom and Boly.

“I was actually at the airport, flying home to America from England after travelling over to make arrangements for our relocation, when Covid started to change everything,” Jimmie explains. “All of a sudden there were people wearing masks, and I was thinking ‘Oh, let’s see what this Covid thing does’, and asking my friends over there, ‘This Covid thing, it’s not going to be a big deal, right?’”

Jimmie and Dom can now have a laugh as they recall how their plans were turned on their head almost overnight – and are quick to point out how lucky they were to get home to America before international borders shut – yet at the time it meant a disappointing return to the drawing board. With plans and events soon suspended or cancelled, 2020 largely become a year for consolidating their horses’ schooling at home, and the results showed when 2021 saw the return of most events – with the notable exception of Badminton!

“Badminton was cancelled again in 2021, so we went back to Kentucky CCI5*-L in April,” Dom explains. A solid performance saw the pair finish in 32^nd place, after producing another cross country round clear of jumping penalties. Dom and Boly then proceeded to place second at both Bromont CCI4*-S in August, and Aiken CCI4*-S in September. Consolidating their skills in all three phases, the pair went on to finish the 2021 season on a high; placing 16^th in a quality field of 46 starters at the Maryland 5-Star at Fair Hill in October. In their fourth CCI5*-L competition, the pair had achieved a personal best at this elite level and Dom was delighted with how his top horse finished the season, claiming that the rising 16-year-old KWPN gelding “just gets better and better!”

For Jimmie, 2021 saw a return to competing at four-star level for the first time since 2015; having previously campaigned to CCI4* level (now known as five-star) with her beloved and now retired Bellamy, it’s been a long yet rewarding road back to the elite level of the sport for the dedicated equestrian. Her equine partner for the journey is Eclaire, a talented yet quirky German Sport Horse mare who has jumped clear of cross country jumping penalties in all 10 of her FEI eventing starts to date.

Jimmie spotted and purchased Eclaire in Germany when the mare was a green four-year-old. Fast forward six years, and they are rising stars of the American eventing scene, knocking on the door of five-star level after securing a commanding fifth placing in their first CCI4*-L at Tryon in November.

“It was so special to get that personal best result at Tryon. It’s been a long time since I have been at this level and I was so thrilled for my mare. She was never a horse trials warrior; my idea for her was always to be a long format horse and she really proved that is what she is,” says Jimmie.

A NEW HOME

“We’ve had our business, Schramm Equestrian, for almost 10 years now,” says Dom. “The relationships take time to develop with owners, boarders and sponsors, and it feels like we’re now starting to reap the rewards of the work we’ve put in to developing our business. We don’t have a ton of horses in our barn but the ones that we do have are really nice, we’re in a really good place.”

Having recently purchased their own farm in Pennsylvania, Dom and Jimmie will remain based in the USA, yet the possibility of a trip to Europe – and that elusive Badminton start – is definitely not off the cards.

“We’re trying really hard to get there, to go overseas with Boly and Eclaire,” Dom explains. “Now that we have our own property, we won’t be looking to spend nine months overseas like we planned to before Covid, but if we could compete at some of the major four or five-star longs and do some events over there in the lead up, that would be ideal.”

As for a trip to Australia, that may have to wait a little longer. Born and raised in Charleville Queensland, Dom remains a proud Australian, yet he has not had the opportunity to visit his home country for years and notes that it’s unlikely they will have the opportunity to travel Down Under until at least Christmas 2022. After 11 years of marriage to an Aussie, Jimmie – who hails from Dallas, Texas – may not quite have the pronunciation of her acquired Aussie slang down pat, yet she can converse in the common vernacular with not only Dom but also their many Australian (and ex-Australian) friends and fellow eventers who are also based in Pennsylvania – plus, she eats Vegemite!

“We’re really fortunate that our new property is just down the road from Boyd Martin’s amazing facility, Windurra,” Dom explains. Securing a property of their own is an exciting milestone for Dom and Jimmie as they consolidate their standing in the eventing world. Joking that this means they’re now real grown-ups, they will chip away at developments and improvements to create the perfect home base over the coming years. In the interim, being so close to Boyd Martin’s 100-acre property Windurra means they have access to world class training facilities practically on their doorstep. The situation and set-up are about as perfect as could be for a pair of upper-level riders with both FEI and younger horses to train and campaign!

Eventing, running a business and developing their property aren’t the only commitments keeping this couple busy; Dom is a highly sought-after and well-respected eventing coach who will often spend two weekends per month away from home teaching clinics. Jimmie – in addition to managing the “behinds the scenes” aspects of Schramm Equestrian – works for Athletux, an equestrian marketing firm dedicated to equestrian sports. It’s a job she loves in an industry that has shaped her life, and one that allows her to express many of the skills and creative talents that contributed to Evention’s great success.

RAISING THE BAR

Vibrant and upbeat, Dom and Jimmie manage to exude both maturity and youthful enthusiasm; having achieved so much already yet still being in their early thirties, they are here for the long game and are passionate about the future of the sport that they love.

“For anyone involved in the sport of eventing, whether they’re a professional rider or not, I don’t think it’s possible to overstate how important it is to educate people – the wider public – on what our sport is about. Because ultimately we have this double-edged sword; the cross country phase is the most exciting part and it’s what sets our sport apart from others and attracts attention, but it’s also the most dangerous and the most risky and that leaves us vulnerable,” Dom explains. “We need to work to minimise that risk; not just through measures such as improving fence safety and qualification requirements, but also through the training and all the work behind the scenes that goes into getting a horse and rider ready for upper-level eventing.

“We need to do a better job of that because if people looking in knew how much time and energy is spent by riders making sure that they’re adequately prepared, they would have more appreciation for the fact that we’re not just going out there and sort of rolling the dice as to whether the horses we love so much are going to get injured or worse by going cross country. That’s such an important part of the future sustainability of the sport.

“When it comes to the future sustainability of the sport, another part that is going to be challenged is the financial side. We’ve got to find ways to bring people into the sport that might not be uber wealthy, and ensure they can still have a good time and be able to pay for everything. Then last but not least, I think there’s a very interesting thing happening whereby there’s almost two different sports now, with the short and the long format,” Dom continues. “You’re almost looking at two different types of horses to go to the top of each format, and where do you find those? Even though Boly is only about 25% blood and he’s a total machine, I still believe that you can’t really beat a good thoroughbred for the long format. But the rangy types we all want are getting harder and harder to find as the thoroughbred industry, particularly here in America, shifts more towards producing sprint bred horses.”

Perhaps it’s the complexity of the sport and the challenges it faces that keep this dynamic and intelligent duo so committed, engaged and inspired. Just as they can’t imagine life without eventing, it’s hard to picture either of them choosing a predictable or relaxing endeavour to mould their lives around. The satisfaction they derive from the pursuit of continual improvement in their horses and themselves is evident, and they are positive about the ever-increasing standards and professionalism in the sport and the impact this has on all involved – including the horses.

“The calibre of riding has exponentially increased in recent years. You have to be really good in all three phases, the bar is so much higher now and the way that we train the horses is starting to change a bit as a result,” Jimmie explains. “I think that’s creating ways for riders to become much better, because we all have to be much better if we want to really succeed, and that does tend to sort the wheat from the chaff. But at the end of the day, it’s also going to produce better riders and therefore better horses – better horsemen and women all the way around. That’s a great thing for the future of the sport – if you simply can’t be that good without being a great horseman.” EQ

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