by Katherine O. Rizzo (first published in the December 2024 Equiery)
Sue Jarboe Wins Groom Award at WIHS
Sue Jarboe grew up riding horses in Maryland and around the area but as an adult, horses took the back seat until two years ago when she started working as a show groom for Brett Shear-Heyman’s Penny Leigh LLC stables. Jarboe, now living in Glenelg, met Shear-Heyman through a mutual friend and filled in as a show groom a few times in 2022. “I was lucky enough to kind of fall into this position,” Jarboe explained. “Then at the end of that year, Brett sent me her 2023 schedule and asked if I could join their team.” Jarboe has been a show groom for Penny Leigh for two seasons and capped off 2024 by being receiving the Best Turned Out Horse award, sponsored by The Clothes Horse, at this year’s Washington International Horse Show.
“It’s crazy! It was that very first day of the show and to know that Bodhi [Fan Favorite] was the best of the best out of all those horses that day is really cool,” she said. Fan Favorite, called Bodhi at the barn, is a nine-year-old Hanoverian gelding ridden and owned by Kate Chan of Arlington, VA. “I love that horse, and Kate, and I’m really excited for their future together,” Jarboe said adding, “but really, all the hard work is done before the show at home with good care, good nutrition, fitness and more. When we get to the show, its more about just dusting him off so he naturally shines.”
As a show groom, Jarboe travels with the Penny Leigh clients up and down the East Coast competing at approximately eight regular season shows a year with six to eight horses per show. “Washington [International Horse Show] feels very large in terms of being so prestigious since you have to qualify to get there,” she said, adding, “but the actual show at PG [Equestrian Center] is small since they limit entries so behind the scenes, it’s actually kind of low key compared to Capital Challenge and Maryland Horse and Pony Show.”
Jarboe’s groom responsibilities are everything from mucking stalls, to walking horses, to bathing and tacking up. “It is a long hard day but I find it really rewarding,” she said. “I love getting to know the horses and what helps them be their best.” But for anyone thinking of pursuing a career as a show groom, Jarboe warned with a laugh, “just be prepared to be dirty. All the time. So, when you get called into the ring to accept an award… you’re certainly NOT the best turned out of the group!”
