United States Eventing Association

When 17-year-old James Power headed to the Virginia Horse Center in Lexington last month, he wasn’t chasing a blue ribbon. He just wanted a clean go—something steady to help him qualify for this year’s USEF Eventing Young Rider Championships (Adamstown, Maryland). But by weekend’s end, he and his 9-year-old Connemara Sport Horse gelding, Brambleridge Ponder The Truth—better known as Patrick—were leading the victory gallop in the CCI1*-L.

For most riders, a win at a competition of that caliber would be thrilling. For Power and Patrick, it was something else entirely: a triumph over odds most never face.

Patrick came into Power’s life as a 5-year-old—a green, quirky, and opinionated young horse with talent buried beneath some very real challenges. “He was pretty difficult in the beginning,” recalled Power’s longtime trainer, Lauren Sumner. “He was buddy-sour, and he wouldn’t leave the barn. He had his opinions, and he made them known.”

Bred by Megan Buchanan Lichty, Patrick’s pedigree blends grit and scope. Lichty events and foxhunts Patrick’s sire, TBS* Declan Pondi, while the dam line carries the blood of Salute the Truth, a Thoroughbred stallion renowned for producing bold event horses and who competed at the Advanced level himself. The result was a cross that brought both talent and tenacity—qualities Patrick would eventually reveal in full.

“He was smart, aloof, and very much a one-person horse, even as a foal,” Lichty said. “I knew he wouldn’t be easy, but I also knew—if the right person came along—he’d have the potential to go all the way. I actually turned people away from buying him because I didn’t think they were the right fit for him long-term.”

Lichty, who bred Patrick as part of her Connemara Sport Horse breeding program, described the cross as a thoughtful pairing of traditional Irish pony blood with Thoroughbred gallop and athleticism. Patrick was the first foal from his dam, Brambleridge Truth Or Dare (“Trudy”), who herself descended from Lichty’s beloved foundation mare, Sparrow’s Tiptoes. “She was the best dollar I ever spent,” Lichty said, referring to “Tiptoes”, who came to her after years in a field and went on to produce nine foals—one of which became Patrick’s dam. “I bred 3-year-old Trudy to my 3-year-old stallion Declan, and Patrick was the first result,” she said. “It was a bit of an experiment at the time, but I think it worked.”

Lichty followed from afar as Patrick transitioned through his early years. Though she wasn’t involved in his training during that time, she remained connected enough to know where he’d landed—and was relieved when she learned he had found a new home with the Power family and their trainer, Sumner. “I didn’t know all the ins and outs of his life from the time he left my farm to when James’s family bought him,” she said, “but I knew his bloodlines—and his personality—very well.”

Early on, Lichty stayed in touch with the team, offering insight as they worked through some of Patrick’s behavioral quirks. “We had a few phone calls, emails, Facebook messages,” she said. “I had ridden and trained 10 to 15 horses from this line. I knew what was in there—and I knew he just needed someone who would give him time and earn his trust.”

The Power family chose to take the long road, buying a young horse to bring along instead of opting for an experienced campaigner. “We knew producing our own horse would take longer,” said Power’s mother, Lauren Parr. “But we believed in the long arc—and in Lauren as a trainer to guide them.”

Power, who is based in Mount Airy, Maryland, first got in the saddle as a shy kindergartner, when a teacher suggested that riding might help build his confidence. He began with weekly lessons at a nearby Talbot Run Farm and quickly got hooked, eventually joining the local Pony Club and attending summer camps. By the time he was 7 or 8, he had decided that horses weren’t just a hobby—they were what he wanted to do.

His first mount was a pinto pony named Joe, a plucky partner who taught him resilience the hard way. “Joe tossed him over just about everything,” said Sumner. “But James kept showing up. He was brave, even when he was scared.”

After gaining mileage with Joe and learning to stick with a tricky ride, Power was ready for a new challenge. That came in the form of the handsome bay roan gelding.

“It took two and a half years to really click with Patrick,” said Power. “He was so different from anything I’d ridden. But once we figured each other out, it felt like we could really do something together.”

By 2023, they had found their rhythm. Patrick and Power were consistently placing at Training and Modified levels, and their progress earned them a spot on the Area II Young Rider team the following season. The next summer, they competed at the Young Rider Championships for the first time—an experience that marked a milestone in their partnership. “That was the moment it all started to feel real,” Power said. “It felt like we belonged.”

Just weeks after competing at Young Riders, Power took Patrick for a casual hack on a neighboring property. During the ride, Patrick stepped on a buried, rusty metal T-post that shot upward and punctured his chest—a freak accident that would soon become life-threatening. “I remembered bringing him down the driveway,” Power said. “He was bleeding badly, the wound was under his chest, the skin was flapping, and he could barely move.”

Patrick was placed on stall rest, but within 48 hours, his condition deteriorated. His body began to swell with air trapped under the skin—a condition known as subcutaneous emphysema. “He was inflated like the blueberry girl from ‘Willy Wonka,’ ” said Sumner. “We had never seen anything like it.”

Veterinarians soon discovered the underlying cause: a pneumothorax, where air accumulates in the space around the lungs and makes it difficult to breathe. The situation became urgent. Patrick was rushed to the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in Leesburg, Virginia. There, he received around-the-clock care: chest drainage, oxygen therapy, intensive wound cleaning, and eventually a chest tube to relieve the pressure on his lungs.

“It was day-to-day for a long time,” said Parr. “Every day we asked, is he suffering? Are we doing the right thing? But every day he showed a little progress, so we kept going.”

The accident left a deep emotional mark on Power. “He felt responsible for a long time,” Parr said. “Even though it wasn’t his fault, he kept asking, ‘What if I had taken a different path?’ That was incredibly hard.”

Patrick remained in the hospital for three weeks and then spent another month at a rehab facility in Frederick, Maryland. Power and his mother visited often, grooming and hand-grazing him. During that time, the teen also worked for Sumner, helping out around the barn and keeping up with his riding by schooling some of her horses. The opportunity gave him purpose—and saddle time—while Patrick healed. Meanwhile, Patrick made an unlikely friend: a chicken named Patricia, who followed him everywhere and tried to sleep in his stall.

Physically, Patrick recovered well. But emotionally, both horse and rider had a long road ahead. Their first trip back to competition—in Aiken, South Carolina, in the early spring—was rocky. “He was anxious, sour, and didn’t want to leave his buddies,” said Parr. “It was like we were back to square one. But when we stopped and really listened, we realized—of course he was traumatized. We couldn’t just expect him to bounce back.”

They returned to the basics: groundwork, off-property hacks, confidence-building sessions. Power and Sumner restructured Patrick’s routine, easing him back into competition at his own pace.

Sumner noted that Patrick was a horse who had to choose to participate. “You can’t force him. He had to decide to trust you and want to do the job,” she said. “But once he was on your side, he gave you everything.”

That patience paid off. As spring progressed, so did Patrick. “It was like he remembered his job again,” said Power. “He started to enjoy it. And I think he actually came back better than he was before.”

When they arrived at the Virginia Horse Center in May, the plan was simple: ride well and try to qualify for Young Riders. “I wasn’t aiming to win,” Power said. “I just wanted a solid go.”

They delivered—posting a composed dressage test, jumping clear on cross-country, and entered the final show jumping phase in first place. “I didn’t want to know my score,” Power said. “I just wanted to go in and do our job.”

He had one rail down in show jumping, but it didn’t affect the standings—he and Patrick still clinched the win.

“It was surreal,” said Parr. “We weren’t aiming to win. But to see them back in that arena, performing like that—it felt like a full-circle moment.”

They followed that performance with another win at Middleburg Horse Trials in northern Virginia, finishing on their dressage score despite Patrick throwing a shoe partway through cross-country. The back-to-back victories marked a full comeback and gave them confidence heading into the summer’s marquee event.

This year’s Young Rider Championships, held at Loch Moy Farm, are just 30 minutes from home. “It’s basically our backyard,” said Power. “Patrick knows it well. I just hope we can handle the heat.”

While Power looked forward to competing, he was also excited about the camaraderie. “Last year, I didn’t know many people going in,” he said. “But I came out with friends I still hang out with now. That’s what I’m most excited about—competing, but also making those connections.”

This year, Area II teammate Claire Allen will groom for Power at the Championship, while friend Mia Valdez will also be competing. “We’ve built a little trio,” he said. “We all supported each other through last year, and we’ll be cheering each other on again.”

With his senior year of high school approaching, Power is balancing academics and riding. He plans to attend a leadership program in New York this summer and has been preparing for the SATs. Though he hasn’t mapped out every detail beyond high school, eventing remains a core part of his life.

“I’d love to do the two-star at Plantation [Field (Pennsylvania)] this fall,” he said. “And one day, we’d love to go to the AEC.”

Sumner believed he had the mindset and maturity to go far. “He’s meticulous, thoughtful, and works incredibly hard,” she said. “He’s the kind of rider I’d bet on.”

She also credited the broader team supporting the journey. “Patrick’s success is a family effort. Everyone has put so much into this horse. And James deeply appreciates every part of it.”

That humility is something Parr saw too. “He never wanted to win because someone else had a rail. He wanted to win because he rode well and his horse went well,” she said. “That’s the kind of competitor he is.”

“There were so many times when we didn’t know if Patrick would make it,” said Power. “But now, he’s back. And I don’t take a single ride for granted.”

Lichty agreed. “James had some serious guts, patience, and persistence,” she said. “He earned that horse’s trust, and you can see now that Patrick wants to do the job—for him. It’s so hard to get a horse to this point, and I’m here cheering them on every step of the way. This is exactly what I hoped for when I bred him.”