To be in the presence of Eveready II is a privilege, and one that he must bestow upon you, according to his owner, breeder and rider Barbara Crabo. 

But don’t be fooled. Underneath the gruff exterior of this top eventer lies a softie. “His nickname in the barn for years has been ‘Punk,’ because he just kind of is,” said Crabo.

“He’s just got that attitude, ‘I’m kinda better than y’all.’ But in a way that he’s not rude about it. He’s like that with people. ‘Yeah, you can hang out with me, I’ll let you.’ But my daughter can ride him bareback on the trails,” Crabo continued.

Crabo, Scottsdale, Ariz., bred the 16-year-old Swedish Warmblood gelding (Irco Mena—Fleetswinger, Cruise On In) and has a very close relationship with him. They’ve topped countless advanced horse trials and picked up good placings at FEI events throughout their career together, including winning the Galway Downs CCI*** (Calif.) in 2014. Most recently they placed fourth in the advanced division at the Nutrena/U.S. Eventing Association American Eventing Championships (Texas).

Barbara Crabo and Eveready II

We caught up with Crabo, 46, and her longtime student and groom of two years, Caitlin Fulton, at the AEC to learn more about “Ready”: 

• He keeps everyone in line. “He kind of thinks he’s the boss of everyone—and he is,” said Crabo. “With other horses, he’s very alpha, but you can put him with anyone because he’s alpha, but he’s not mean. He’s not a bully. We turn all of our horses at small groups. If I have a horse that’s picking on other horses, he gets turned out with Ready and that tones them right down.”

Ready (right) has a conversation with Over Easy.

• He’s a professional. “He knows his job, from the second you put him in the trailer,” said Fulton. “He gets so fired up, especially on cross-country. They start counting down and he’s hopping and ready to go. Watching him on cross-country, my heart’s pounding so hard from the stands. It’s such a great thing to watch and even better to be a part of. When she’s out there, I’m like, ‘I helped!’ I get all proud.”
• He exudes confidence and will let you know when he’s done with you. “He’s extremely confident in everything he does. He never questions himself, even if he’s totally wrong,” said Crabo. “He’s kind of his own horse. He’s not super affectionate. He’s not unaffectionate—if he wants attention, he asks for it, and when he’s had enough, he’s had enough, and usually that’s like two minutes of loving.”
• Ready doesn’t appreciate a stiff brush or cold water. “He shivers if the water’s too cold. One of the things he does for fitness is swimming, and in the winter he just shivers so wildly when he gets out of the pool,” said Crabo. “I’m putting two coolers and heavy winter blanket on him trying to get him warm.”
• He’s a bit of a wimp about the weather. “He’s funny because he’s always cold,” said Crabo. “We live in Arizona and I’m always cold. We love the heat. We joke that he’s the mama’s boy because he’s just like me. He’s always cold. He’s the only one in the barn that wears a really heavy winter blanket. Everyone else would die in it, and he’s like, ‘Bring it on.’ ”

Ready with his two favorite people, Caitlin Fulton (left) and Barbara Crabo.

• He’s deceptively small, at 15.2 hands. “His mom is about 15.2, she’s a little, tiny Thoroughbred, and his dad is really big, like 16.3. He’s known for passing on his size, and we’re like, ‘Uh, you missed!’ But that’s OK, I like him being little. He’s like a sportscar,” said Crabo.

  Fulton has jumped him a few times. “I think he’s so cool,” she said. “She’s let me jump him on a couple of occasions, and it’s like nothing you’ve ever jumped before. You get on this little thing and you come up to the jump like, ‘That’s kind of big.’ And then you’re over it, and you’re hovering there, like, ‘That looks small from up here.’ He’s just such a fun guy.”

• He’s a selective cribber. “He’s not as hardcore a cribber as some horses,” said Barbara. “It’s taken him years to develop the habit, and he mostly likes to crib after he’s eaten grain or a treat.”

  Being mouthy got Ready into trouble when he was 2 and broke his jaw. “He’s always been very mouthy. He always plays with the bars on the stall,” said Barbara. “When he was two, he snapped his jaw in half, and we think it’s because he was holding on to something and spooked and forgot to let go. I came out one day, and his jaw was just hanging—it was disgusting. My husband, Martin, is a vet, and he came out and said it was pretty common. We just wired his teeth together, pulled his jaw up, put a couple of wires to hold it in place, and he was fine.

  “One of his permanent teeth grew in from the middle of his jaw, like under his tongue. I was freaking out. Martin said it would migrate and it did. You would never know,” she added.

• Ready loves his turnout. He gets to go out all night. Crabo’s daughter Jordan, who also rides, puts her pony, Wildwych Eclipse, out with Ready, who keeps him in line.