Our columnist recalls the cyclical journey that the selection process has taken over the past few decades.

Jumping, like all equestrian sports, is a fickle game. With an endless variety of variables at play, not even the very best horse-and-rider combination is infallible on any given day. This situation means that selecting a team for an event such as the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games comes to as much art as science.