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At the 2003 NCHA World Championship Futurity, Al Dunning received the third annual Zane Schulte Trainer of the Year Award.
In the interview that follows, Al shares his perspective about serving in the horse industry, his love of horses, the importance of riding with emotion and passion, and some great advice for riders of all events.
Al has been riding horses for nearly 40 years and has competed in a broad spectrum. Since turning professional in 1970, he has trained or shown 21 World Champions in the AQHA, NRHA, NRCHA, and NCHA. He was named AQHA Professional Horseman of the Year in 1996. He is a successful author and clinician. And now, he has been recognized for his service as a leader for the local and national horse industry.
Al, you were awarded the "Trainer of the Year" award—recognizing your leadership and service outside of the arena. Having served the horse industry for over 30 years, you've been involved in many different areas of service. I noticed that you were one of the founding members of the Arizona Quarter Horse Youth Association and Charter President and were a youth advisor for 10 years. Tell us a little more about your work outside the arena and what this award means to you personally.
I have tried to be a good person and help as many people as I can—both in the horse business and outside the horse business. The youth have always been important to me. I was the founding President of the Arizona Youth Quarter Horse Association. That kind of got me started serving in some of the organizations, and I've been on committees for every major association you can imagine—the four groups where I've shown plus the American Horse Show Association. For me, I served because it was an industry I love and I like the people and want to do as much as I can for them…to give something back.
When I was interviewed recently for a book written by a psychologist, I was asked "Have you ever felt like you made the wrong decision in your career?" I told him, "Never. I can't think of a time when I felt like I'd made a wrong decision." You know, there have been some hard days. Sometimes you win and sometime you lose. Sometimes you get bucked off and break your leg. I had a terrible wreck and had back surgery. It took me out for a while. But I've always found something to do in this industry because I feel like it is my calling.
I've been fortunate to have a good education and that's enabled me to be a writer, do seminars, represent various companies—I just feel real fortunate about that. A lot of it is luck. Along the way, you can determine your path, but there are always obstacles. My path has always been fairly smooth: picking my event, getting involved, seeing flaws in the event and trying to help so everyone benefits in the long term. There are some horsemen that are so involved in the winning and losing that they get discouraged and upset. They don't try to make positive changes. There are "right" ways to make changes or to make a difference; one of them is to step out there and take a stand for what is right. Basically, make a place for yourself by saying, "If I complain, I'll also give you some ideas about how to fix the problem." When I became President of the Arizona Quarter Horse Association, it was in turmoil. I asked everyone to write down their complaints about the organization and the shows but also give a suggestion about how the problem could be fixed. Then I told them, "When you do that, I want you to be willing to step in and be part of the solution." But, asking them to be part of the solution quieted the "nay sayers." They didn't want to take the time, or didn't have the true love for the event and the Association. Consequently, we were able to eliminate a lot of the complaining and the people who weren't willing to be active…who were just sitting on the fence and criticizing. That made a huge change and the Association has flourished since then.
One more thought. A lot of sportsmen don't feel they are or need to be role models. But I think that being a role model for younger people that are getting into this sport—the youth and amateurs—is very important. I believe that if you are going to establish yourself as a leader, you have to consider that your actions are very important. I determined a long time ago, that I would go to the shows as prepared as I can be and concentrate on winning, because you have to do that to make a living. But my second goal was to make time to be a friend to people. Being a friend is really important in our lives because if you don't search out friends, you can't expect friends to come to you. So, what you are left with is people who appreciate you in the good times, but leave you in the bad times. My third goal is to help somebody new at every show: to meet someone new and talk to them, to see somebody having problems—see it in their eyes or in their demeanor—and talk to them, to try to lift their spirits, to help them see how lucky they are to be riding horses and having fun. A lot of people don't take time to "stop and smell the roses" every now and then. Realizing how lucky you are is part of being able to enjoy what you are doing.
While living in Chicago as a child, you were diagnosed with rheumatic fever and your family decided to move to a dryer climate to improve your health. Eventually your family settled in Arizona. That move put into motion a chain of events that led you to horses and a wonderful path for your life. How do you feel about that? Do you feel it was your destiny?
When I was a little kid and living in Chicago, I was scared of horses. My sisters loved them, but I would just go play on the haystack. They made me take riding lessons: English and jumping. I did it just because they wanted me to do it, not because I enjoyed it. When I was 12, my sisters were starting to be distracted by school and boys, so my mother gave me an ultimatum: I'll support you but if you aren't prepared to get active and really start taking care of our horses, then I'm going to sell them. One day, I rode our toughest horse—what I'd say was the scariest one for me—and I got along really well with him. From that day, I decided I'd start taking lessons and try to learn something. I started enjoying it, being with the guys, learning how to rope, how to ride steers. I got around some cowboys who influenced me—my father wasn't living with us—and it really helped shape my life. When I was growing up, cowboys were on television—you know, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Flicka, Fury, and all that stuff. That's what we watched, and I could envision myself being that kind of guy. So, yes, I do think it ended up being my destiny.
What do you feel is your greatest responsibility as a professional trainer (in general as a career) in terms of service?
First, I think of my responsibility to my customers: to be honest, work hard for them, treat everyone fairly, run my business as a business, give everyone their money's worth. So, my greatest responsibility is to be a true professional to stay true to those ideals.
Secondly, I think of my responsibility to others. When you are young, it's all about you. You get married, start a family, try to get established in your career, and you are pretty self-consumed. Once you are a "success"—and being a "success" is in your own mind, not in the mind of the public—you get to the point where you can begin to give back. That's when you really flourish: when you give back and start thinking about others instead of yourself. That includes your family, friends, and faith—everything else involved. And that's when you really become a man.
You've been extremely successful in both cutting and reining—a somewhat unusual accomplishment. To what do you attribute your success in two very different disciplines?
I don't think of myself as just being success in two events—I'm a successful horseman. Number one, I love horses. I don't look at them as a tool to carry me to glory. I look at the Lord to carry me to glory. I look at horses as my partner, and I should treat them with respect. I think when you look at horses that way, then you attempt to develop a horse…not make it into what you want. Some people only do one event, so they try to fit a square peg into a round hole. I always wanted to train a horse in whatever he wanted to do, whatever he was best at doing. I didn't think I could be a great horseman—like some of the great horsemen I had learned from—without having a real feel for the horse and all the events. I've shown horses in Western Riding, Hunt Seat, Reining, Cutting, Pleasure, Trail…you name it, we've trained them. I think that has kept up my interest, too. I never get bored. I look forward to riding every day and have done so for over 40 years. I'm excited every day to see what the horses want to do, what they are best at.
I got into cutting because I had a great reining horse named Expensive Hobby. He just passed away this year at 32 years old. I had won every major reining there was to win, on both the east and west coasts. I decided to do Working Cow Horse with him. So, I started working him on cows a little and had a general idea about it, but I didn't feel comfortable with my knowledge about the event. That's when I started getting a little help from a neighbor of mine, Don Dodge. He helped with both the Working Cow Horse and Cutting, but when I showed, I didn't do well in the cutting part.
When I went back to Don and asked him to specifically help me with the cutting, he agreed, if I would dedicate myself to it. I built a cutting pen and began riding with Don every morning. I listened to him and did exactly what he said. I trained my first cutting horse exactly like he wanted him trained, and I learned a lot. Then, I trained another horse, and in only a few years, I trained a World Champion. I had done so many events, but I really loved the cutting and it has become my mainstay. In Arizona, it's not like in Texas. Sometimes you just have to train the horses I get. When you're hungry and someone asks you to train a roping horse, you just say, "yes." So, being diversified has allowed me to train horses in whatever event is popular at the time. Additionally, I've been fortunate enough to conduct clinics—in almost any area, whether it's horse psychology, horsemanship, reining, cutting, or working cow horse.
It has been said that Don Dodge was your "mentor" and that you "idolized" Matlock Rose. Tell us what it was about those two men that impressed you the most.
When I was 13, I saw a man named Jim Paul and looked at him as though he was John Wayne. This guy was a real cowboy. I rode with him for about nine years and learned how to ride a reined horse, western pleasure, western riding, everything. He was a great instructor and person, sort of my father figure.
Then when I went to college, I got hooked up with John Hoyt. I went into business with John, bought a stud, and began training reining horses. He was a consummate trainer. He showed me about what worked, about doing the right thing for horses. He had a lot of feel for horses, and I learned a lot of that from him.
I went out on my own professionally in 1970 and was with a couple of other guys along the way. But, when I ran into Don Dodge, he became the next major factor in my life. Don finally moved to my place and was there for 12 years, off and on in the winter. That's when I really started full time cutting. And, Don was such a great horseman. He knew about caring for horses, keeping his rigs clean…just a real sharp guy and we got along really great. I learned so much from him—not just about horses, because he was so well read.
Once when I went to the cutting Futurity, he hooked me up with Matlock Rose. I got to stay with him and watch him work his horse. He had so much feel and was so into making the horse everything it could be. Plus, he had shown in all the events, too—reining, halter, roping. It fit that I could respect someone like him as a real horseman, as opposed to someone who was just a "one-eventer." It was easy to idolize someone like Matlock.
Then I have a very close friend, Frank Merrill, who also rode with Matlock a lot. So, I had Don as my mentor and he had Matlock. We were always kidding about them and imitating them and it meant a lot to a couple of young guys coming up to have guys like Don and Matlock to look up to.
As a trainer, what have been your highest "highs" and lowest "lows" in your career?
The highest "high" is winning the Zane Schulte Award, and I'm being totally honest. Tom and Barb are such wonderful people and they've been through so much. Zane was such a great guy, and I know he affected their lives tremendously. So, for them to establish this award in his honor, to recognize character and integrity, to think that I was awarded this honor on that basis, is way beyond what I could ever dream. I thought when I won the AQHA Professional Horseman of the Year award that it was the height of my career. But this is a big deal. It was a real surprise to me.
I was thrilled and didn't know what to say when I went to the podium to stand beside Tom and Barbra. I know how much this award means to them and was completely humbled. That's all I could think of at the time; I was just overwhelmed and amazed that I was chosen.
The "lowest" time is my career is easy too. I was going really strong and doing really well in the late 70's. I thought of myself as the "young gun." I had a horse fall with me at the Cow Palace, running down the fence, in the Working Cow Horse event. It turned a couple of vertebrae in my back and shortly after that, I was at the NCHA Classic in Austin, and when I turned around to look at someone, I ruptured both discs in my back. It felt like someone was pouring blood down my back and it was running into my boots. I flew home and had emergency surgery, a double laminectomy the next day. That was July 12, 1985. I had been struggling with back pain since the horse fell with me in 1979 and when it finally ruptured, I had to stay in bed for a couple of months. During that time, the customers that I thought were friends left me. So, I was forced to look at who really was my friend and what was important in life. It was a revelation to me. It was about that time that I turned my life over to Christ and decided that I needed to completely change the way I was thinking and what I was doing. Although it was my lowest time, it became my highest.
What's the most important advice you can offer non-pros?
We need to remember that horses are a blessing to us and that being able to ride and make a living is a blessing. We have to do it with emotion and passion, but you can't forget about your family, friends, and faith while you are doing it because those will carry you over a lot of "bumps." If you think of showing as just an event, that's where the problem begins because it's not just an event, it's part of your life. If you make it fun, then it will be a really good part of your life and you'll be able to flourish at it for a long time. Plus, it will take on a different kind of importance to you. You'll be able to relax, show and have fun and you'll be a lot more successful doing it that way than saying, "I have to win. People are watching me." You'll stay within yourself, you'll say, "I'm doing this because I love it. I've practiced hard at it. I've got a great horse and I'm going to let the chips fall where they may. It's not all in my control."
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