Gladstone, NJ - July 12th, 2006 - The passion for perfection that drives the dreams of Olympic and world-class athletes is nowhere more evident than in the High Performance U.S. equestrian athletes – both horses and riders – who dedicate countless days, months and years perfecting their sport in anticipation of representing their country. For these athletes, every detail, right down to the footing of the arenas where they compete, contributes to the caliber of their performance. It is this meticulous attention to detail that captured the imagination – and the heart – of a local businessman whose hands-on contribution to the USET (United States Equestrian Team) Foundation has made an invaluable difference in the success of these U.S. competitors.
The costly dilemma
When the United States Equestrian Team Foundation was approached to host the Dressage Selection Trials for the 2006 World Equestrian Games last year, the Foundation first needed to upgrade its facilities. While the lavish stables built by financier “Diamond Jim” James Cox Brady are as grand today as they were in 1916, the main arena required substantial and very costly renovation. Furthermore, there were no outdoor arenas for warm-up prior to competition.
Initial estimates for the work ran into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Faced with having to raise approximately $1,300,000 in donations to prepare U.S. equestrian teams in seven disciplines for the World Equestrian Games in Germany this year, the Foundation lacked sufficient funding for the renovation project. Lifelong area resident Michael Morris, of Michael Morris Associates, stepped in with extraordinary generosity, donating his time and work and making it possible for the USET Foundation to host the Selection Trials.
Inspired by a vision
With family roots in the Morris County area that go back more than seven generations, Morris has a profound appreciation for the history and legacy of Hamilton Farms, home of the USET Foundation. Although his company’s specialty is golf course renovation and reconstruction, Morris also has extensive experience in estate and equestrian construction. The prospect of being instrumental in allowing world-class competitors to compete at the USET was irresistible to Morris. “The age and history of Hamilton Farms and my company’s ability to meet the needs of the USET by improving the facilities there inspired me,” Morris says. “I had a vision of how we could transform it by donating our time and effort – and the thrill of creating something enduring was exciting to me.”
The instinct to enhance the natural landscape goes back to Morris’s childhood in New Vernon on his family’s farm. While still a child, he devised a leveling apparatus to fill in soggy ruts that made baling hay difficult. Years later, his company, Morris Golf, has been entrusted with the renovation of several of the most prestigious holes on a number of the most famous golf courses in the U.S. The facilities at Hamilton Farms presented Morris with a challenge he could not resist. Not only did the main arena need improvement, but the USET also needed to add two warm-up arenas in a separate field, as well as bridle paths that would connect all the areas and provide safe access for horses and riders.
Engineer, architect and builder
Morris launched into the project by constructing two warm-up areas from the base up. Acting as engineer, architect and builder, Morris conceptualized the warm-up rings and set to work, based on his vision of the project. The painstaking process of building and firming every base layer is essential to creating a perfect bottom in the ring. The layers must be compacted until they reject water – a process that can take weeks. Due to the heavy use that the rings would see, Morris doubled the base – which, in turn, doubled the time to install. He added a custom drainage system and selected a sand mixture with the correct properties he was looking for, then laser-graded the surface to perfection. During the process of construction, Morris consulted with Wayne Gregory, of Footings Unlimited, who donated the flat rubber additive for the top layer. The process was guided in part by one of the competitors who rode in the ring and gave Morris the feedback he needed to doctor the mixture according to what would provide the right “feel” during warm-ups. It was critical to ensure that the footing delivered just the right cushion, “bite,” support and drainage. Local Bedminster resident Cathy Morelli, one of the competitors, tested the arena’s footing on “BeSe” – a Dutch Warmblood Gelding and contender in the competition – and declared it “perfect” on the first try.
A visionary in the dell
After completing the warm-up areas to his exacting standards, Morris turned his attention to a deep hollow between the warm-up rings and the main arena. As much as his work on the warm-up rings was a challenge, creating bridle paths for the horses and riders in the dell was a labor of love. Truly in his element, Morris set to work uncovering the natural grade and contour of the land, and discovered a beautiful stream that had long been completely hidden by overgrowth.
In the process of carefully clearing the area, Morris found elements that he incorporated into the landscape to enhance its natural beauty, such as large boulders and old hunt jumps from years gone by. His crew planted native plants and grasses, including a bank of wildflowers that would bloom each year at the time of the competitions. They constructed a natural boulder bridge and retaining wall to cover a drainage pipe through which the stream flowed, and fixed the drainage problem with creative grading. With meticulous attention to detail, Morris studied the direction of sunlight through the trees and planted accordingly, ensuring that flowering trees had maximum sun, and he removed limbs that might obstruct the bridle path. The paths were then graded, covered with stone dust and then rolled to an even finish.
A flawless finish
With just two weeks before the competitions were to begin, Morris next turned his attention to the main arena. Ripples in the footing and especially wet areas necessitated shifting the arena five yards from its existing location. Since champion dressage horses and riders would be vying for national titles in the ring, the footing had to be flawless. Dressage competitions are based upon smooth transitions in movement that must appear effortless and graceful. The horse’s body must move willingly and with suppleness, in perfect coordination with the rider. The footing of the competition arena can have an important impact on the performance of horse and rider.
To address the inconsistencies in the main arena, Morris repositioned the arena itself, and then applied the same principle he had used in the warm-up arenas – layering the appropriate mixture of sand and flat rubber material to create the ideal footing. The result was nothing less than spectacular. According to Armand Leone, Jr., president of the USET Foundation, Morris not only helped to restore the competition and warm-up facilities at Gladstone, but actually “put smiles on the faces of our top dressage riders because the newly prepared footing was so good.” Armand was delighted to see the country’s top dressage horses and riders perform in the main arena before an enthusiastic crowd, and even more excited to hear the riders express the desire to come back to Gladstone for future competitions. The riders themselves were equally enthusiastic – and appreciative of the job Morris contributed to the USET Foundation.
Praise from the Olympians
“The top competitive horses in the world need the best possible footing,” says Olympic champion Steffen Peters, who is the top U.S. contender for the World Equestrian Games scheduled to begin in late August in Aachen, Germany. Peters, who achieved the highest scores during the Selection Trials for the World Equestrian Games at the USET this June, has not only the highest praise for the footing at the USET, but also applauds the fact that Morris donated his time and effort. Speaking for all of the top athletes who compete for the U.S., Peters added, “This is the kind of support that we appreciate so much.” Fellow Olympic rider Guenter Seidel agrees with Peters, adding, “Michael Morris made a tremendous difference to the whole competition. The horses were very comfortable with the footing, which is enormously helpful. His generosity was incredible.”
The success factor
Equally enthusiastic about the contribution Morris made to these top U.S. athletes and to the USET Foundation is its executive director, Bonnie Jenkins. “When we were asked to host the national championships, we needed a first-class facility and arenas, but we didn’t have the funding,” Jenkins notes. “The main arena needed significant improvements, and we needed to install warm-up areas.” The Foundation was delighted with the work Morris donated. “He provided us with top-notch professional work, which contributed to the success of the championship,” Jenkins says. “His company really improved the arenas for the safety of the horses and riders, and then made aesthetic improvements, giving horses and riders beautiful views in all directions.”
A critical difference
In order to ensure that Gladstone would be the appropriate venue for the USET Foundation Dressage Festival of Champions, the issue of the footings in the arenas was a critical factor, according to the High Performance Director of Dressage for the USEF (United States Equestrian Federation), Marilyn Adams. The right footing is especially important in all equestrian competition. When competitors are riding horses valued at up to a million dollars, they require the optimum footing for both safety and performance. “The work by Mike’s company at the USET enabled us to bring the various levels of national dressage competition in one championship event. This gives young national competitors the opportunity to witness the best of the sport, and see Olympic champions firsthand. It also gives the U.S. Olympic dressage team coach the opportunity to identify future stars among our younger riders.”
A glorious past, a promising future
The contribution Michael Morris has made to the USET has great significance for all levels of equestrian champions, according to Adams. She adds, “Gladstone has been known for national equestrian competitions for many years. It really meant a lot for riders to qualify for a championship and be able to stable their horse in one of those famous stalls during the event. With the contribution by Mike and his company, a new generation of competitors will be able to enjoy the grand old stables and compete in national championships – some will even go on to represent the United States in World Equestrian Games, and in future Olympic games.”
One can only imagine that “Diamond Jim” Brady, the man who built the magnificent stable for the horses he loved and who brought his vision of grandeur for the facilities in Gladstone to life nearly a century ago, would be especially proud to see the USET today.
To learn more about the USET Foundation and upcoming events at the Gladstone, N.J., location, visit www.uset.org.
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