Julie Watchorn and Dobble Tyme - A Last Minute Addition

Julie Watchorn, 21, said her Bronze Medal ride was the best she’d ever had. “It was amazing. We hit everything. It was so fun and I’m still on a high,” she said after her ride. Watchorn almost experienced the misfortunes that had befallen teammate Wilson in previous years.

Watchorn, who trains with Evi Strasser, arrived at the NAJYRC with her mare, Quintesse. But the mare was unable to compete. Her only option was to get her back-up horse, Dobble Tyme, and compete with him. But the 11-year-old Westphalian gelding (by Dynamo) was back in Canada.

Getting the gelding to Virginia was a team effort that began with her father putting the horse in a trailer and heading south from Canada while her mother, with the companionship of relatives of other Canadian team members, began driving north. She left at 9 p.m. the evening before the FEI jog. Watchorn’s parents met up. Her father headed back to Canada sans horse while her mother headed back to Virginia arriving 45 minutes before the jog.

“It was unreal,” Watchorn said. “It was so stressful. I didn’t even have his bridle. I was so happy to even make it into the freestyle and I’m still in shock. I’m speechless.” She was most impressed with Dobble Tyme. “He had a 15-hour trailer ride and then was thrown into the competition. I think he was a little confused at the beginning. But I gave him a pep talk and he’s built up a lot of trust in me. He was unreal.”