Let's Hear It For the Boys

Immigration is the one national issue the horse world has a strong opinion on. You see, we wouldn't be able to survive without our boys from Mexico, many of whom are illegal. Our boys groom, tack up, cool down, wrap, muck stalls, unbraid, and basically take complete care of the horses both on the road and at home. While there are girls who also do this job, a "girl" is basically an aspiring professional rider who doesn't come from money and hasn't yet been lucky enough to get a break. Boys aspire to be the best groom possible, but I've never heard of one who aspires to ride. And sometimes they don't aspire to be the best, they aspire to be the most adequate groom they can be before getting canned and moving on to the next groom job.

The term itself is horrible. Boy. It encompasses multiple derogatory levels. First, it's impersonal. Second, it's generic. Third, the connotation of "boy" rather than "guy" implies ingrained immaturity that cannot be outgrown; a flaw of the entire Mexican nation. I myself always refer to them as guys. I feel that it is ok for me to do this because I myself am classified as a girl and I take no offense. I am a girl. They are guys.

Now that I've defined the group, let's subcategory. There are several different types of guys. The lowest class don't know or care about the horses. They do the bare minimal needed without learning to be horsemen. They are rough, full of machismo, and can put the horse in danger out of ignorance. These guys are usually drifters who blow from barn to barn, accumulating cash only to spend it on tricked out cars, drugs, sound systems, cell phones, and other material goods. These are the guys I hate to work with, because of their stares, cat calls, and sleezy remarks. The next tier up are the ones who are fresh off the border. These guys don't speak English very well, and while most barn managers need to have a rudimentary grasp of Spanish, a lot gets lots in translation. While they try to do a good job, they are at the mercy of their coworkers. If the other guys know what they're doing, no real problems come up. But this is a crap shoot situation. The next tier up from that contains the majority of guys: they're good, they know their jobs, they respect the horses, and they respect a girl's personal space. They tend to be very quiet, and you're not always sure if they even speak English, but the work gets done and it gets done right.

Then, there is a special class of guy. These guys are the best of the best. They are the Olympic athletes of grooming. They know everything, and have tons of special tricks that make the work easier and faster without cutting any corners. They love their horses, and go out of their way to make sure their needs come first. They are patient, kind, respectful, like their jobs, and willingly share the work as long as you too know what you're doing. Yes, you need to earn their trust and respect, but they are at least willing to give it if warranted. Even if you happen to be a girl.

In my career, I've come across three guys that have blown me away with their knowledge, work ethic, kindness, and patience. All names have been changed to protect their identities.

The first is Roberto. I worked with him during a difficult time in my life, and our boss was not easy to work for. Roberto was older, and supported a wife and three kids, so I never felt at all uncomfortable around him. He taught me little tricks, like picking the stalls whenever I had spare time instead of saving it all for the end of the day, and even just tossing piles under the water buckets to get them out of the way and pick up later. He taught me to bank a stall only in back, so that it's easier to clean and harder for the horse to muck up. He taught me to wrap the nylon bandage inside the quilted one, so that when you wrap the leg, it already overlaps. These little tricks, and the almost father like figure he was to me during our time together, made every day worth it.

The second is Sergio. Sergio loved his ponies, Literally. He worked for one of the top pony trainers, and while many guys hate grooming ponies because to them it means they are less "manly" (btw, ponies are not baby horses, they are smaller breeds of horse, very much like there are small and big breeds of dog), Sergio wore his status with pride. He took extra special care of them, knew what they liked and didn't like, and taught me little tricks for each one. He was my age, but gay and fabulous. He had a wide array of hats that he rotated, and loved to blast Madonna or Michael Jackson over his iPod stereo at the shows. His groom stall had a mini fridge AND a microwave. He and I would dance in the aisles as we tacked up his ponies, and he never ever did anything to make his life easier in exchange for making theirs harder.

The third is Julio. Julio is the only groom on whom I've had a mild crush. His family grew up raising quarter horses in Mexico, so he is also the only groom I know who knows how to ride. Granted, he rides Western, but still, it makes a difference. He always always has a smile on his face, no matter how insanely early we had to get up or how ungodly late we had to stay. He knew how to safely lunge any horse, and even knew better than the trainer what the horse needed to prep for the day. He would take his horses on long walks if they had been indoors too long, and didn't use it as an excuse to walk around talking to his friends. He actually walked the horse. He laughed good naturedly when I mangled a sentence in Spanish, but he then taught me how to say it correctly, slowly pronouncing each word and making sure I said it correctly. He went out of his way to make sure all of his horses were happy, clean, and ready for their jobs.

Roberto, Sergio, and Julio all have special places in my heart. They are the best of the best. There are many more out their like them, and I'm sure that as the years go by I'll meet them, but if I were to open a business tomorrow, that would be my dream team. A little surge of anger wells up whenever I hear to them casually referred to as "boys". This term stems from the larger caste system in the horse world, and the deep roots of old money and racism that still run rampant. In my opinion, they are not only men, they are horsemen, and better horsemen than many of the white, drug addicted, psychologically abusive, womanizing "trainers" that have multi million dollar businesses. They deserve more than they get.

Let's hear it for the horsemen.