Since taking over Glenview Stables in 1968, Ralph Caristo has made a big name for himself as a top trainer and sought-after judge. While he’s trained six American Horse Shows Association and U.S. Equestrian Federation Horse Of The Year honorees and presided at every major show in the country, his biggest contribution to the sport came through his work with young riders.

Oliver Townend could be described as Great Britain’s eventing phenom or the bad boy of the sport. He’s fought hard to break into the elite ranks of the British eventers but often found himself selling his best horses to pay the bills. He rode as an individual at the European Championships at Blenheim (England) in 2005 and again as an individual at the 2006 World Equestrian Games in Aachen (Germany). He made his first team appearance a winning one with team gold at the 2007 European Championships in Pratoni (Italy). He’s never hesitated to state his opinion along the way.

Our interview with Sean Crocker, farrier to the three-day eventing stars, continues! Keep reading for a key job often overlooked by horse owners, the most challenging foot to shoe, and why he’s still a fan of the three-day.  

Q. What don’t people think about when they think of your work? What would surprise people?

Peter Doubleday usually has the best seat in the house at a horse show, whether it’s high in the announcer’s stand or by the in-gate. Doubleday has been the voice of American show jumping for decades, and he’s also at the helm, as manager, of three of the most prestigious shows in North America—the Pennsylvania National, the Royal Winter Fair (Ont.) and Devon (Pa.), where he co-manages with David Distler.

I had the luck to sit down with Sean Crocker (as some have said, Farrier to the Equestrian Stars) in the kitchen of his and his wife’s “Just Enough” Farm in Middleburg, Va., right after he’d flown back from Wellington, Fla.