Behind the Barn 2025: Boyd Martin

Hi, my name is Leslie Law and we are a proud supporter of Jump4Joy. We've been using their portable cross country jumps now for about 10 to 15 years. We love these jumps because as you can see, they're very easy to move. It would only take another person on the other side and I could place this fence wherever I wanted to very easily.

Hi everyone, I'm Frank Territz to joined by Lynn Szymanski to interview Boyd Martin who sits down with us on this episode of behind the Barn in hopes of a few laughs, maybe a little bit of serious talk. Probably not though. And of course to answer those questions submitted by you our viewers. But before we get underway, let me give Boyd a proper introduction by highlighting some of his plethora of career achievements because there are after moving from Australia to the US in 2007, Boyd represented the US in four consecutive Olympic Games from 2012 to 2024. Notably in 2024 he rode Fetterman B to a 10th place individual finish at the Paris Olympics just last year and in 2021 made history by winning the inaugural Maryland Five Star with on Cue becoming the first American to secure a five star victory since 2008 on US soil. His partnership with Tesserleg TSF led to team gold and individual gold at the 2019 Pan American Games and a team silver at the 2022 FEI Eventing World Championship in Bertone, Italy. And Boyd has of course won the American Eventing Championships at the sport's top level several times, been the USDA Rider of the Year a lot of times, and been the top placing American more than once at the Kentucky three day event in addition to winning countless other events titles and more trophies than we can possibly talk about in this episode. But before we dive in with Boyd, we of course want to quickly thank jump4joy USA for sponsoring this episode. Jump4joy USA creates jumps that are low maintenance and high on performance with innovative safety features and a practical, easy to use system. Great for competition or your private farm and also FEI approved. So now without further ado, he is certainly a fan and crowd favorite and we are very lucky to have him on our show today. Boyd Martin, welcome to behind the Barn 2025.

How are you girls? Thanks for having me on.

Yeah, thanks for making time. We know you're slammed and getting ready and have so many horses and kids and things running around so we appreciate it. And because you know Lynn of course being a former teammate of yours and having represented the Red, White and Blue together, I'm going to let her Go ahead and strike first on me with our questions today.

So, Boyd, you give back a lot to the sport, but especially in your availability on social media platforms. And that's really taken off in the last few years and it's awesome to be that available to your fans all the time. And so what do you find has changed in the last few years for you just in terms of, you know, maybe misconceptions that people would have about you and you're, you know, your stage performer versus you. Do you feel like that's kind of the same? Do you enjoy doing it? Do you feel like maybe it's not to have a little bit of private time sometimes?

No, I mean, we have a lot of fun with it. We linked up with an awesome group of girls that sort of do it all. They're constantly terrified that I'm going to get myself canceled by saying something wrong. But to be honest, it's real. What you see is what you get. It's a part of our business. We enjoy doing it. And I think it's a different era we're living in where people that follow along with our sport can get a bit of an inside look into our daily lives and whatnot.

Well, you, I mean, talk about your daily lives. You have so much to balance. You're, you know, a top level world class athlete, business owner, a husband, a dad to three wild boys, which I can relate to and beyond. So how do you maintain that balance and do it all or, you know, what would you say are the keys to making all this possible?

Well, I'm a, I'm a fantastic husband. I think that's the number one thing. If Silver was here, she'd say that in the list of priorities. Fantastic lover, romantic. I do most of the work with the kids as well. People don't realize this, that, you know, I'm juggling a lot of balls getting these kids off to school, talking to their teachers at school, you know, making sure everything's in good order and you know, it's chaos, mate, absolute chaos. But I love chaos. And we're, you know, right in the middle of exciting stage in our career where we've got horses and kids growing up and you know, five star competitions to ride at too. But I don't know, I think I'd be miserable if my life was quiet and didn't have anything going on. So I quite like it.

Well, definitely not quiet in your household or your day to day life, that's for sure. And for you for just to follow up on that kind of you know, with the boys and. And them being in school and stuff. What do you tell people who don't know about equestrian sports that you do for your job, or how do they describe it?

To be honest, I quite enjoy being anonymous, going and taking the kids up to hockey and just hanging out with the other dads. And let's say Leo does wrestling and jiu jitsu. And I quite enjoy actually getting away from the tiny little bubble that we live in where everyone's fascinated with riding horses. And, you know, once you're amongst the other parents, you know, they don't really care that you ride horses. And it's. It's cool to actually get away from it all and just enjoy the moments with your kids growing up and, you know, it's a. It's a good lifestyle change for me. You know, like, I used to, you know, run wild at night and go to bars and everything, and now I'm an Uber driver driving kids to sports, and my life's quite boring. It. It might seem fascinating, but my life's. I wake up early, I do some fitness work, and then I ride horses right until the second that I take over for many kids get home, and then I'm most evenings driving, driving the kids to their sports. And, yeah, my life's not. Not that exciting. It's. And then you so go to sleep and do it all again the next day, so.

Well, Boyd, I have a question here for you, which I don't think I can really fully ask you, because I think a lot of our listeners may know a lot of the answers to this, but more interested, in recent times, you've had a lot of challenges in your career and throughout your career and just in life and some disappointments and with the barn fire and losing some horses. But what would be something that really sticks out to you in recent time of something that's been really hard to overcome after you feel like you've just gotten into, like, the real swing and prime of your career and you've had a big blow in the recent time?

Good question. I mean, it's a long time ago, but going through that barn fire was a traumatic event in my life. And I remember getting through it, and I remember saying to myself, whatever I'm faced with from here on out is going to be nowhere near as hard as that. And we were so lucky in America. Here we had so much friends and support and people helping us out and helping us get back on our feet. And, you know, it was just a. It was a devastating sort of moment. In our career where we're just starting to get our business going and we got supporters and owners, and then this freaking fire, you know, basically destroyed everything in one night. And I got through it. We got through it, Silver and I got through it and fought through and lived to tell the tale. And basically any challenge that I'm faced with now is nothing compared to that. So it could be pouring rain, and my horse can lose two shoes, and, you know, I just shrugged my shoulders, and it's easy peasy compared to sort of going through that moment in our life.

If you could trade places with any other athlete in the world for a day because you're a big sports guy, who would you pick and why?

Oh, I would love to be Devonte Smith from the Philadelphia Eagles. The wide receiver. He's. He's awesome. He's one of my favorite athletes. He's a little guy. He's 170 pounds. He was never meant to be a football player, and he's a. He's unbelievable. I just love listening to what he's got to say. I love watching him compete. And, yeah, I want to be Devontae Smith. And he makes, like, 72 million bucks a year, too, so that'd be nice.

Doesn't hurt. It's a bonus.

Well, Boyd, talk to us a little more about your strategy on cross country. I mean, it's something that you probably don't even think about that much anymore, but has that evolved over the years and especially your strategy leading into, you know, one of our biggest five stars in the world, but something that's been a staple for. For decades now for you here, Tell us. Tell us what your final lead up is in preparing the horses and then what you do specifically on cross country day with them.

Well, you know, I've been in this racket a long time now. I rode around my first five star when I was 19 years old. So it's been horse after horse year after year, and every horse is an individual. You know, the hot, crazy ones I'll probably give a pre ride in the morning. The. The more laid back ones who just go for a. Just a hack, you know, and get out of the stable. I've been lucky enough to surround myself with wonderful mentors and I think, you know, here in America, Philip Dutton and Eric Devander and, you know, champion. Champion cross country wizards, you know, eventing Jesus. That are sort of in my ear and also giving me advice. But the hardest thing on cross country day is it's easy to talk a big game now, you know, like, yeah, what are we, a couple weeks out? Yeah. So I'm gonna go for it and I'm gonna make the time and, yeah, yada, yada, yada. And then as, as the time gets closer, it's, it's very easy to start doing the, the backward dance. You get to cross country day and it's pouring with rain and the course is riding hard and, you know, and then you, you know, down to 10 minutes to go. It's very easy just to say to yourself, oh, wouldn't it be good if what's his name, Buck Davidson, took the option there? I better take the option as well. And, you know, it's. The closer you get, the easier it is to sort of talk yourself out of really going for it. And you know, you want, if you want to be a champion and you want to win, something like this is, you can't hold back. You know, you've, you've got to throw caution to the wind. You've got to roll your sleeves up and as soon as the starter says go, you've just got to go for it. And now they're saying that some of the horses are a little bit greener and a little bit more inexperienced and sometimes you're on survival mode. But, you know, this year I've got a couple of seasoned campaigners, so I've just got to stick to my deal that we're going to have a good crack as soon as, as soon as we get going.

And if you filled your water jump extra high to practice for what it looks like at Kentucky right now.

I heard it. I heard it. So I would watch the news this morning, as, you know, people going around the streets of Lexington in a dinghy. Yeah, it's crazy. Anyway, it'll dry up. We got a couple weeks.

Perfect.

Yep. You never know what you're going to get there. We've had everything from snow to rain to all the, all the things in between. But for you, what's your guilty pleasure snack after a long day at the barn? Do you have a favorite treat? I know you're a pretty fit guy, but favorite snacks?

I weaken. I weaken. I've got. I got rid of most vices in my life except candy. Right. Just before I go to bed. I've had a healthy, healthy day. And then there's my wife, Silver, like, gobbling chocolate and candy and. Yeah, I'm like a drug addict, mate, where I just give me one, just give me one. Then you get a ton of help

with the Halloween and it just stays around.

Yeah, I Stay strong and healthy right until just before bed and then I crack.

And how about after you're going. If you're driving home from a, well, a big three day or it's end of the season, what would be your guilty pleasure?

To be honest, I'm health conscious. But as soon as that last event's over of the year, I'm straight to McDonald's Big Mac, Big Mac large meal and barbecue sauce. And that would all of November and December, that would. I'd just go hard at McDonald's and then try and get my riding boots on at the first competition in January and realize that leather shrinks in the winter. And then this freaking body protector. You're like, I'm trying to zip it up. And then unfortunately everyone that works for me just makes fun of me, which is sort of. I'd like to be like a reverse safe sport situation where the younger people that work at my barn actually bully me. And I still do. Yet find a safe sport line. As the head trainer that gets bullied by the young people that work for me because it's a real thing.

I can't document that enough.

It's an issue. It's a real thing. And you're going to have to start

documenting that fat shaming.

Yeah.

All right, well, we're gonna have a little bit more fun. We have a quick mini game we want to play with you called Two Truths and a Lie. So this time you turn it on us. You get to tell us two truths about yourself and one lie. And Lynn and I are going to try to guess which is the lie.

Two truths. I'll tell you two truths and one lie.

Yeah, you can mix them up. You don't have to tell them in order and give it away to us. No freebies. You're trying to win.

All right. When I was competing at a four star short in Australia, I had two rotational falls, got back on both times and finished the course. My next possible truth or lie is that at the Sydney Olympics I made the national nine years by climbing a flagpole at the closing ceremony. And then my other potential truth or lie was I once got a yellow card at a three day event for riding a horse backwards in the arena. Familiarization.

Lynn, do you have any follow up questions?

Same horse, two rotationals.

Same horse, same course.

This is a hard one, honestly.

Well, I gotta, I gotta admit, they're all true.

We should have known better.

I couldn't think, I couldn't think of a lie.

So. So what, what year approximately was this? Two. Two falls

and, well, it was back in those days it was called a three star instead of four star. Yeah, it was a horse called Rubicon. And I tipped him over at the water jump. They caught him and then I got back on and then later in the course.

So you were also wet?

Yeah. And then it tipped over again at this big corner and I was like, I've had enough. And the jump judge was Irish and he goes, come on there. Get back on, get back on. Threw me on. And the next jump was the biggest ditch brush you've ever seen. And I'm like. And I galloped down and he made it over it. Wow.

And you completed?

Completed, yeah.

Wow.

Got it done.

Show jump. The next day I was, I racked up a bit of time penalties for catching the horse and 60 per fall.

Okay, well, we involved the fans. We know you like to do that. We involve the fans this year and we have, we think they have the best questions. So we have a few for you from the audience. The first one is from Colette, who wrote us to ask, what is your best advice for someone who's lost their confidence due to a tricky horse?

Oh, Colette, it's the golden question, mate. There's no other way to get your confidence back, but just get out there and keep going and try. And when I say get out there and keep going, try and get going again doing something that you're likely to be successful on. But the only way to get your confidence back is to get back on the horse.

Good adage. Okay, so Jen Cross asked via the Kentucky 3 Day Social Page advice on coming back from a big injury. How do you build your confidence back up after something does not go according to plan?

Well, it's a lot easier for me just because I've got so many horses. You know, like, you just, you fall off and you get dinged up and then you basically get back on the next horse straight away and then before you know it, you got your confidence back. But it's, it's a tricky one. Now. I've taken a couple big knocks over the last couple years and it does rattle you a bit. So, you know, I think you got to have, you know, a bit of self belief in your preparation. You've got to know that you've, you know, talk to yourself, that you belong there, that you've done the training and everything. You've, you've left no stone unturned. It's not like hope is a good plan. So that when you get back in there and get amongst it again, as You've, you've done all your, all your preparation work and say to yourself, it is what it is.

You know, when you first answered that, I thought you were going to say, it's easy for me because I've had a lot of falls and injuries.

I was kind of trying to just. Yeah, you get used to it after a while. Get used to get driven into the

ground, you know, get a lot of practice.

Nah, it sucks, man. I hate pulling them.

Okay, well, I liked this one. Susie commented via social media to ask Boyd is so charming. Does he drum up the accent more in certain situations or is it pretty consistently the same regardless of if he is doing a video for a fan, an interview, or speaking with friends and family?

Well, Susie, I get accused of sounding American now when I, When I, when I call my friends and family in Australia, they sound. They said I sound like a Yank. So, yeah, no, I don't change my accent. It's not a bad idea, though.

You gotta drop out the situation. Yeah. Come back.

G', day, mate. Put another shrimp on the barbie. Can I just tell you something, girls? I've never had a shrimp on the barbie for the first 30 years of my life in Australia, so.

Well, maybe it's time. It's not too late for you.

Yeah, never too late. I've never drank a Foster's beer either.

Yeah, geez.

Now that you're very American, you've probably had more shrimp on the barbie and Foster's beers being over here.

Yeah, exactly.

Well, Boyd, you've had so many horses at Kentucky over the years, and it's such a special place to come back to. Just for those that don't get the privilege of being able to feel what it's like to go down that ramp every time. Talk us through a little what, what you're thinking on those horses, especially ones as you're heading into a podium finish on that final day in the show jumping, walking down that ramp.

Well, it's just, you know, the, the buildup and the, you know, the preparation I really enjoy. You know, it's months and months of work and galloping and improving yourself, improving the horse and, you know, and then you get to the competition and honestly, the, the final days leading into it is. Is not that enjoyable. You know, you sort of ultra focused and you're concentrating and, and at a big event like Kentucky, you're sort of getting pulled in every different direction at the same time. And, you know, I think for me, the biggest thing is to take a deep breath and sort of look around and Say, you know what, it's, it's an absolute honor and privilege to, to be here in this sport and in this position, riding a horse around this, this, you know, people dream of, of being in this place, you know, and to remind yourself that when you're nervous and you, you know, you're terrified and you, you know, frustrated or whatever, you know, many, many, many people in the world would, would quickly change places with you. So now try and enjoy the moment. Stay focused bit by bit, toos. Not, not think too far ahead of outcomes or, you know, trying to, you know, say to yourself, okay, well, what, what can I do in the next 10 seconds to, to, to equal success, you know, and stay focused and dialed in in the little short, short moments ahead of you. And then, you know, it goes quick, too. Before you know it, you're like, holy crap, we're heading home and it's over. So it's the moment. Enjoy it.

So if you are the American to finally secure that title at our five star in the spring here, if you were given a statue like Bruce Davidson Sr. To put anywhere in the park, where would and what would it be of?

I'd kind of like a bronze statue of myself climbing up a flagpole, ripping shirt off at the top there somewhere. Just to, you know, it's one of my iconic moments.

And I think if you win this year, you should do that. And then we'll work on the.

Instead of streaking, it'll be him climbing the pole.

Instead of the Bromont streak, it'll be the Kentucky climb.

New trend, never done. The Bromont streak, I could never get my head around that.

I don't know. People have done it. I've seen it done.

I don't drink alcohol anymore, which I think sort of does help. Helps avoid those situations or climbing flagpoles, you know.

But anyways, we'll be cheering for you, Boyd, now that I'm properly blushing. And please, if you're viewing this episode, don't forget to submit your questions for our upcoming episode of behind the Barn. You can do that via email@infoathletics.com and don't forget to share this episode with Boyd Martin with your friends, your family, your grandma, anyone else you can think of. And a huge thanks one more time to Jump for Joy USA for sponsoring this episode of behind the Barn. As well, of course, to Boyd Martin for joining us. I'm Frank Terrett. Stutes. And on behalf of myself and my friend Lynn Szymanski, thanks for watching and we'll see you on another episode out soon.