From left to right are IHSA Founder and Executive Director Bob Cacchione, 1997 Skidmore College graduate Courtney Phibbs (holding saddle), 2002 Skidmore graduate Lindsey Phibbs (on horse), class sponser and Rutgers University head coach Kelly Lamont-Francfort and Skidmore head coach Cindy Ford. Lindsey Phibbs won individual open over fences at IHSA Nationals held in Cazenovia, New York on April 23rd, 1999. Two days later Lindsey Phibbs would be awarded the Cacchione Cup and Skidmore the National Championship (photo courtesy Bob Cacchione).

REMEMBERING LINDSEY PHIBBS

The IHSA family lost one of the nicest people ever to ride in the organization when 2002 Skidmore College graduate Lindsey Phibbs past away on December 24th after a long illness. Phibbs is one of nine riders ever to win the Cacchione Cup and do so while her team concurantly won the National Championship the same season. This was in 1999, when Skidmore won their fifth National Championship of the decade while Phibbs completed her freshman year in Saratoga Springs by taking home the Cacchione Cup.

She later became Dr. Lindsey Phibbs and practiced medicine in Ohio for some time as the following obituary prepared by the Phibbs family details. Following the obituary I have a few recollections of my own about Phibbs' time in the IHSA that I would like to share with everyone.

The official obituary:

Lindsey Blayne Phibbs, age 36, Doctor and lifelong Equestrian, of Perrysburg, Ohio, died December 24, 2015 at the Toledo Hospital after her long battle with cancer.

She was born in Windsor, Ontario and moved to Ottawa Hills, Ohio where she attended elementary and high school. Lindsey graduated from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY before returning to Ohio where she earned her medical degree from the University of Toledo.

She completed her Ob/Gyn residency at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, MI before joining the Sunforest Ob/Gyn Group in Toledo, Ohio. In addition to her own busy practice she enjoyed working alongside her father in surgery.

Lindsey was an incredibly accomplished equestrian. As a junior rider, she was elected National Junior Equestrian of the Year by the United States Equestrian Federation. Additionally, Lindsey was the National Junior Jumper Champion, and winner of the Washington International Horse Show Equitation Finals. While attending Skidmore College, Lindsey rode on their Equestrian Team and led them to a Team National Championship. That same year, as an individual rider, Lindsey won the coveted Cacchione Cup, the equestrian Heisman.

Lindsey cherished the time she spent with her family. She was the Godmother and namesake of her beloved niece, Ashbrook Lindsey Boyd. With her family, Lindsey enjoyed skiing, attending Detroit Red Wings hockey games and spending time with her dogs Pippa and Harry.

Lindsey was a member of the Toledo Golf and Country Club and Palm Beach Polo Club in Wellington, FL.

Lindsey is survived by her father, Garth David Phibbs; mother, Barbara Ann Phibbs; her sister Courtney Phibbs Boyd; her brother Garth Fraser Phibbs; her brother-in-law, Robert Ralston Boyd; her sister-in-law Maribeth Nitschke Phibbs; and her niece Ashbrook Lindsey Boyd.

Memorials are suggested to the Foundation for Women’s Cancer (foundationforwomenscancer.org), the Toledo Animal Shelter (toledoanimalshelter.com), Nature’s Nursery (natures-nursery.org) or to Dog Works (dogworksohio.com).

A memorial service was held December 27th at the Walker Funeral Home while funeral services were held a day later at Epworth United Methodist Church in Toledo. Phibbs was laid to rest at Ft. Meigs Cemetery in Perrysburg.

An undated photo of Lindsey Phibbs during a regular season Zone 2 show.

When I think of Lindsey Phibbs I think of someone who 'lit up a room' when she walked in. In fact she 'lit up an arena' when she rode in! I met her older sister Courtney at 1997 IHSA Nationals when the elder sister was about to graduate from Skidmore. Seeing as this was her last IHSA show I asked Courtney about the future of the team. Courtney explained that her younger sister Lindsey would be enrolling at Skidmore in the fall (this would actually be delayed until the fall of 1998) and like herself Lindsey also won the Junior Jumpers National Championship and was inducted into the Oaks Amatuer owners Hall of Fame. In other words Skidmore would be just as good.

I know I met Lindsey during the 1998-99 regular season but I will never forget the day she competed at Regionals. It was the final IHSA show ever held at Sigety Horse Center before Cazenovia College moved operations to their new Equine Education Center (and where 1999 Nationals would take place a few weeks later). I cannot remember if it was before the show or during a lunch break but at one point most of the Skidmore team went to one of the rider's cars which had a hatchback. They proceeded to open the hatch, enjoy some food and play some compact discs through the car's audio system (music could not be downloaded legally for another three years). The music caused several riders, including senior Robin Casey, to start dancing. I remember Lindsey taking it all in, even bopping her head to a few seconds of Run-D.M.C.'s 1998 remix of "It's Like That." They seemed like such a happy bunch, so relaxed about everything (Phibbs made the top two in both individual open classes that day; I think she may have even won both). It did not surprise me in the least when six weeks later the Thoroughbreds (the school nickname, honest) won the National Championship while Phibbs won the Cacchione to become the first rider in program history to do so. Phibbs also won the individual open over fences on the first day of the '99 National show.

During her sophomore season Lindsey was a SPORTSCAMPUS.COM "Rider of the Week" (this was the college sports website I worked for prior to starting Campus Equestrian). I remember interviewing her in February or March of 2000 in order to write the piece. I incorrectly wrote at the time that Julie Canter of Cornell had essentially locked up the Zone 2, Region 2 Cacchione entry for Nationals when in fact Allison Karkut of St. Lawrence University would rally to have that honor. Phibbs was the rider of the week because she won a ride-off at the Cornell show versus Canter (who won four out of four open classes that weekend) and I did note at the time that the previous two Cacchione Cup winners came from Region 2 including Phibbs last season. Also Skidmore scored a perfect 49 points at Cornell that day and solidified their lead during the last season they were a member of Region 2 (Phibbs did not compete in two of the fall 1999 Region 2 shows which perhaps is why Canter or Karkut was in the driver's seat to begin with). Some of the article was done Q&A style and that part of the story is presented here...

SC: Why did you choose Skidmore?

LP: "My Sister Went there. I always liked it there when visiting. Cindy Ford's a great Coach. It was near my trainers. All of those reasons."

SC: What is your greatest achievement within the IHSA?

LP: The Cacchione!

SC: How about your greatest achievement outside the IHSA?

LP: "In '97 I was the AHSA Briar Jr. Rider of the Year. I won the Washington International Horse Show Equitation Final also in '97."

SC: Do you ever worry?

LP: "I worry all the time. I was really worried at Nationals. I thought the rider who came in second (Hillary Schreiber of Hollins) was going to win (the Cacchione Cup). She was really good."

SC: When not riding, what else does Lindsey Phibbs do?

LP: "I snowboard a little bit."

SC: What do you hope to do when you get out of college?

LP: "I would like to ride Professional Jumpers. Go to the Olympics someday."

Phibbs went on to say, "I am interested in young horses. I like buying them and bringing them along."

Though I saw Lindsey at several IHSA shows over the next two seasons the one that stands out the most was a Zone 2, Region 3 show at Cornell her senior year. I know Lindsey said something that made me laugh quite a bit but I have no idea what it was. She was always very humorous and because of this you could not help but seek her out to ask what was new. It was on this day that I learned that she spent part of her youth growing up in Ontario and that she had only been a US citizen for about two years (this makes Lindsey the only Canadian citizen I know of to win the Cacchione Cup). Since I probably would not see her again until Nationals a few months later (again held at Cazenovia) and at Nationals she would be far busier than at the moment, I asked if she had any plans for the horse world seeing as she was going to graduate soon. Lindsey surprised me by saying she was going to curtail some of the riding in order to start the process of becoming a doctor! For the life of me I would sware Lindsey said she was considering getting into Pediatrics (it appears she went in a different direction when practicing medicine). I know she said she would be going back to Ohio where the Phibbs family lives.

I saw her again at Nationals where I took a few photos and may have even called her "Dr. Phibbs" on one occasion. Lindsey closed out her four years with a fourth in individual open flat to go with a fifth in team open over fences and a fifth in the Cacchione Cup at '02 Nationals. In that time Skidmore won four region titles, sent a full team to IHSA National shows three times while Phibbs showed in some capacity at all four National shows including three Cacchione Cup appearances.

I can't remember if I saw her sister Courtney at some event within the next few years but if it was not her then someone told me that Lindsey continued her pursuit of a doctorate. By the end of the decade I knew she was Dr. Phibbs in Ohio but that was about it until I learned of her passing last week. I could use statistics to talk about how well she did in the ring and how good Skidmore was at the time but throw it all out! Lindsey Phibbs was more than that. She was as important to her team and the IHSA in general out of the ring as much as in it. This is someone that many are compared to - be that right or wrong - because of such a high standard there was in everything she accomplished. You could be at a show with 200 riders in the building and she is the one who would somehow have your attention.

Unless the schedule has changed Skidmore will host the first Zone 2, Region 3 hunter seat show of calendar year 2016, taking place on Saturday, February 20th. I suspect that Phibbs will be recognized in some way at that show. Though I am very small in the grand scheme of things I hope that the IHSA will consider naming awards and/or giving scholarships in Lindsey's name in the future. Maybe if Skidmore ever makes an addition to their Van Lennep Riding Center they could name it for her. With that said I recognize that there have been many truly great riders who have shown for Skidmore (not to mention a legendary head coach for a quarter century and counting). Still I can't say enough about Lindsey Phibbs; She was that important.

I could go on and on. Rest in Peace Lindsey.

--Steve Maxwell