PrintIn this occasional series on equine careers, the president and founder of Cross Country International
built her business—and an industry—by refusing to settle for anything but the best.
Karen Lancaster might have every worldly equestrian’s dream job. As the founder and president of Cross Country International, she spends her days traveling around the world evaluating riding facilities and designing equestrian vacations.
“Sometimes I wonder how I got here,” said Lancaster smiling. “I went from being an ad rep in New York to my ideal career.”
Back in the mid-1980s, Lancaster’s professional career as a sales representative for CBS was soaring, but her riding career had reached a plateau. Her job provided her with the means to foxhunt and event but a schedule that relegated her riding to the weekends. She felt her progress stagnating, so when the time came for her to take a week off, Lancaster knew she wanted to spend it in the saddle.
She’d heard that British eventer Christopher Bartle, who won the Badminton CCI**** [England] in 1998, accepted amateur students, so she tracked him down and arranged to spend a week training at his Yorkshire Riding Center.
“I improved so much in my time there; it was really amazing,” recalled Lancaster. “Chris put me on great horses—but horses you really had to ride—and he’s an outstanding instructor. All my friends were impressed at the improvement in my riding when I got home.”
Her friends and acquaintances then began trickling across the pond to train with Bartle, and before long his calendar was booked with Lancaster’s recruits. “The third year I sent over 30 or so friends and acquaintances, and Chris called me and asked me to represent him,” she said. “I was in a point in my career when I was ready for a change, so I figured, ‘Why not?’ ”
Tending To Details
Now, 18 years later, Lancaster’s pet project has blossomed into an entire industry. Lancaster envisioned a string of extraordinary rides worth a trip around the world, and today Cross Country International offers a variety of one-of-a-kind excursions that cater to accomplished competitors, weekend trail riders and everyone in between.
They offer weeklong training programs with the likes of Capt. Mark Phillips, the U.S. team coach for eventing, Olympic show jumper Jessica Kürten of Ireland and U.S. dressage Olympian Debbie McDonald. In addition, there are rides through Peru to Machu Picchu; a mounted safari in Kenya; luxurious inn-to-inn treks across the most beautiful areas of Europe; and exclusive rights to ride at Seabiscuit’s Ridgeway Ranch in California.
When Lancaster began the company she didn’t have a good plan for how to evaluate the facilities.
“I started in England, and at the beginning it was hard to tell who was good and who was great,” said Lancaster. “As I started visiting more and more stables, I fell in love with the BHS [British Horse Society] system. Getting certified by the BHS is a very rigorous process, so you know that approved instructors know what they’re talking about and approved centers have great standards of care.”
built her business—and an industry—by refusing to settle for anything but the best.
Karen Lancaster might have every worldly equestrian’s dream job. As the founder and president of Cross Country International, she spends her days traveling around the world evaluating riding facilities and designing equestrian vacations.
“Sometimes I wonder how I got here,” said Lancaster smiling. “I went from being an ad rep in New York to my ideal career.”
Back in the mid-1980s, Lancaster’s professional career as a sales representative for CBS was soaring, but her riding career had reached a plateau. Her job provided her with the means to foxhunt and event but a schedule that relegated her riding to the weekends. She felt her progress stagnating, so when the time came for her to take a week off, Lancaster knew she wanted to spend it in the saddle.
She’d heard that British eventer Christopher Bartle, who won the Badminton CCI**** [England] in 1998, accepted amateur students, so she tracked him down and arranged to spend a week training at his Yorkshire Riding Center.“I improved so much in my time there; it was really amazing,” recalled Lancaster. “Chris put me on great horses—but horses you really had to ride—and he’s an outstanding instructor. All my friends were impressed at the improvement in my riding when I got home.”
Her friends and acquaintances then began trickling across the pond to train with Bartle, and before long his calendar was booked with Lancaster’s recruits. “The third year I sent over 30 or so friends and acquaintances, and Chris called me and asked me to represent him,” she said. “I was in a point in my career when I was ready for a change, so I figured, ‘Why not?’ ”
Tending To Details
Now, 18 years later, Lancaster’s pet project has blossomed into an entire industry. Lancaster envisioned a string of extraordinary rides worth a trip around the world, and today Cross Country International offers a variety of one-of-a-kind excursions that cater to accomplished competitors, weekend trail riders and everyone in between.
They offer weeklong training programs with the likes of Capt. Mark Phillips, the U.S. team coach for eventing, Olympic show jumper Jessica Kürten of Ireland and U.S. dressage Olympian Debbie McDonald. In addition, there are rides through Peru to Machu Picchu; a mounted safari in Kenya; luxurious inn-to-inn treks across the most beautiful areas of Europe; and exclusive rights to ride at Seabiscuit’s Ridgeway Ranch in California.
When Lancaster began the company she didn’t have a good plan for how to evaluate the facilities.
“I started in England, and at the beginning it was hard to tell who was good and who was great,” said Lancaster. “As I started visiting more and more stables, I fell in love with the BHS [British Horse Society] system. Getting certified by the BHS is a very rigorous process, so you know that approved instructors know what they’re talking about and approved centers have great standards of care.”
