Lexington, Ky.—April 24

When Gabby Dickerson was 10 years old, she’d obsessively watch videos of Kim Severson and Winsome Adante’s winning cross-country rounds from the Rolex Kentucky CCI5*-L. Little did she know that two years later, in 2008, she’d be heading back to the Kentucky Horse Park to help Severson, grooming Tipperary Liadhnan and preparing Winsome Adante for his formal retirement at the competition. And this year, Dickerson is making her debut at the “Best Weekend All Year” as she rides Traditionally Fernhill in the Cosequin Lexington CCI4*-S.

“I was just so starstruck,” Dickerson recalled of helping Severson with Winsome Adante. “They were both idols. ‘Dan’ was like the best horse in the country at the time, so it was pretty cool to be there when he when he retired and get to know him a little bit. I think I got to carry his saddle back when they took it off for the last time. And I was so proud, as a little kid, carrying Dan’s tack. I felt endlessly humbled and privileged to get to be a part of it.”

Dickerson, who grew up in the Outer Banks of North Carolina and now lives in Gordonsville, Virginia, met Severson after buying a horse from her bookkeeper, Jodi Hemry. Hemry encouraged Dickerson to clinic with Severson. Once she did, Dickerson’s life changed.

“I was immediately addicted to the high performance side of eventing,” said Dickerson, 29. “I just got to see it from such a young age and was just absolutely hooked. Like, this was all I was ever going to do from age 12, as soon as I met Kim, who just was so great to me and really took me in and let me have those experiences when I was a kid. I ended up kind of starting to work for her when I was around that age as well as a working student.”

When Dickerson mentioned to Severson that she was planning to go to Kentucky to spectate in 2008, Severson arranged for her to get a barn pass to she could lend a hand. In Kentucky she shadowed Severson’s groom, April Barrachina, helping sweat scrape in the finish box and generally serve as an extra set of hands. Tipperary Liadhnan finished fifth that year.

Dickerson said her most memorable moment from 2008 was hearing the roar of the crowd in the electric arena at show jumping for the top few riders. Dickerson would go on to work for Severson for six years, returning to Kentucky to help again and forming a special bond with Tipperary Liadhnan.

“Kim always said, ‘Oh, he loves you,’ because he was, like, this big kind of grouchy Irish horse, and I was this little kid who wasn’t scared of him but probably should have been,” Dickerson recalled. “He always was really sweet with me. … Actually, once I started working for her, I would do a lot of his fitness work and do a lot of his bathing with purple shampoo for all of her team trainings and stuff. And so he and I kind of became a little team.”

Dickerson has come back to Kentucky over the years to watch the five-star and ride at the USEA American Eventing Championships and other competitions, but Thursday was her first time riding down centerline during the Defender Kentucky week.

Dickerson rode Traditionally Fernhill, an 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse (Killinick Bouncer—Church Lady, Snurge), this morning in the first session of four-star dressage. Dickerson paired up with “Ken,” owned by Roland Millican, a little more than a year ago. Alex Green Kerby produced the horse to the CCI4*-S level, then switched sports to pure show jumping before Dickerson got the ride.

“[Millican] was willing to help me get ahold of an advanced horse, because I’d had maybe a dozen horses make it to three-star and not quite make it to advanced, four-star horses. I felt like I needed a little help to get over the hump. He’s been a great horse. He’s a really good jumping horse and cross-country horse. He’s so honest. He doesn’t make anything seem too big. The dressage is still a work in progress, but we knew that buying him.”

Dickerson produced a personal best dressage score of 40.3 penalties with Ken today, despite a few costly mistakes. She was pleased the gelding kept his cool in the imposing Rolex Arena—and she did too.

“I tried to just look at his neck and not look up, and you kind of want to take it in, but at the same time, you’ve got to stay focused,” she said. “I actually was happy—and a little proud of myself—that it didn’t. Actually, I tried not to let it feel any different than any other arena.”

Severson and Dickerson still work together as they just live 20 minutes away from each other. While Severson didn’t make it to Kentucky this year, she’s very much on Dickerson’s mind. Dickerson calls that initial trip to Kentucky “the first big step” in her eventing career, and she said she’s grateful to be at the event as a competitor for the first time, 17 years later.

“It’s been a long journey,” Dickerson said. “It takes a really long time when you have to just keep chipping away at it on your own to find your way. I was never going to have a financially easy way; it was always going to be tough, but I just tried to never lose sight of it. And still, going forward there are bigger goals and dreams than the four-star here this year, so I’ve just got to keep plugging away.”

The Chronicle is on-site at the Kentucky Horse Park with two reporters to bring you everything you need to know at coth.com, so you don’t have to miss a minute of the action. You can find all of our coverage from the week here. You can also follow along on Instagram and Facebook. Be sure to read our May 23 issue for more in-depth coverage and analysis of the event.