Atkinson and Peter Gray: Rewarding Hard Work With Opportunity

Emigrating to Canada in 1990 at the age of 13, he progressed through the Young Rider ranks, winning a team silver medal at the ’95 NAYRC. He has since gone on to compete with great success internationally for over a decade. Atkinson has represented Canada twice: in 2001 at Rolex, KY, where he was awarded the Bank One Trophy for having the highest-placed owner-ridden horse, and the following year at the World Equestrian Games. Both achievements were aboard his longterm partner, the Canadian-bred Revisionist. He is also an “R” rated course designer whose skills have been in demand across North America for the last nine years.

James and his wife, Taren, operate Limerick Equestrian in southern California. Catering to riders of all levels and abilities, the duo offer a working student program that rewards those not opposed to hard work with opportunities to advance up the ranks. Atkinson is a graduate of this philosophy, which allows riders lacking financial means the possibility of success in an industry so often earmarked for the well-heeled. This desire to reward the hard work and dedication of his students is a lesson that can be attributed to a great influence in his career, Peter Gray.

The three-time Olympian and former national coach of Canada’s eventing squad, Gray imparted in Atkinson – perhaps more than any skills in the saddle – the importance of encouraging students to look beyond often insurmountable financial odds and focus instead on developing a strong work ethic and a desire to learn. “I didn’t have a lot of financial backing,” explains Atkinson, “and Peter was really fantastic, helping me out and giving me opportunities that I wouldn’t necessarily have had otherwise.” It was these opportunities that catapulted Atkinson to the upper levels of Canadian eventing, and it is a philosophy that had much bearing on the development of Limerick’s teaching philosophy. “I don’t care what level the student is at that I’m teaching,” says Atkinson. “The most important thing is that they have to just want it – aspire to be better, be willing to work, and want to improve. Peter really taught me that it pays to give opportunities to those that are willing to put in the hours. I teach plenty of lessons for free; I just want people to learn. Peter did that to me, and it’s something that I am so grateful for.”

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The two first met in 1996 at the Canadian training centre. Atkinson subsequently spent several years training with Gray, wintering in Florida and spending summers at Gray’s Stonehill Farm. “It seems the really talented riders are often the ones without the personal resources to advance through the sport,” remarks Gray. “I always try to give the really talented or young people an opportunity in our working student program, and James was certainly one of those people back then. I recognized his talent; he’s probably one of the best riders Canada has ever seen in eventing. He’s a natural horseman and so much of what we do in riding is feel. He has a very good feel for all three phases of the sport. He also really likes his horses, which is really important to me.”

A horse that Atkinson happens to really like at the moment is his Pan Am mount, Gustav, a 12-year-old Oldenburg/ Thoroughbred cross owned by Carolyn Hoffos, Atkinson’s mother in-law. The gelding is “a cool little horse with a lot of personality,” he says. “Goose” is a relatively new ride for Atkinson, who has been partnered with the horse for only a year and a half, but the pair have created a buzz in the Canadian eventing world.

Gray’s and Atkinson’s paths continue to cross occasionally, although responsibilities as the Venezuelan Pan Am coach found Gray traveling in somewhat different circles. No doubt he is proud of what his former student has accomplished, both in his professional career and with the mark he is making on the future of the sport. “I want to help dedicated riders achieve their goals, and Peter taught me how to reward students with opportunities that they may not have thought possible,” says Atkinson. “Hard work and a love of the horse should always be rewarded.”