By: Ritchie Rozzelle
Photography by: Pat Coyne

Aristotle. Socrates. Plato. History's great philosophers are few and far between, but there is one living today on Hylton Quarter Horse Farms in Gainesville, Virginia. Her wisdom encompasses both human and equine happiness, and she dispenses sage insights on these subjects like … well … a sage. Her name is Cecilia Hylton, and she has life in the Quarter Horse world figured out.

Cecilia is one of those refreshing souls who opens up, speaks her mind and good things come out. Experience has taught her a few core principles for achieving success and happiness in the highly competitive Quarter Horse industry. After a year in which her farm produced two AQHA World Champions (Invitation to Flash, Performance Halter Stallions and Slip Slydun Away, Senior Reining) and one Top 10 ( Invite Moonlight, Senior Western Pleasure), Cecilia's philosophy is worth studying and emulating. In essence, it is "good people and good actions breed good horses."

Good People
Growing up, Cecilia was always surrounded by a caring family, fine people and good horses. "I was horse crazy like a lot of young girls," says Cecilia. "I just never got over it." She was encouraged in her love of horses by her father Cecil, who was logical in business, kind to those close to him and thorough in instructing Cecilia in both of these values. "When my dad died I needed something." She was drawn to a passion they both had shared. "I turned to horses."

Over time Cecilia has gone from a horse crazy girl to a mogul in the horse world, owning a very successful farm and running several businesses, but it was not the result of a master plan. "It just sort of happened. My first coach was Connie Christopher. She really encouraged me. Today when I see her I don't know whether to hug her or slap her!"

In order to be so successful, Cecilia depends on one of the central philosophies passed down from her father: surround yourself with good people. These days that includes a farm staff that she treats like family, made up of her actual family with son George Markley and daughter Kelly Thornton helping run the business and show horses, and trainers Steve and Becky Meadows whom she trusts implicitly.

Steve and his wife have been working for Hylton Quarter Horses for four years, and as Steve puts it, "It's the best job in the industry. We are the envy of every Quarter Horse trainer."

"We have fun," Cecilia says with a laugh, as if she's remembering something funny that happened around her barns earlier in the day. "I can't stand intense people, and everyone I work with is very laid back. Steve and I always see eye to eye, and when we're of the same mind, it's easy."

Steve agrees that fun and mutual respect are central to the Hylton philosophy. "We share a lot of the same ideals on how the horse business should go in general. There's absolutely no pressure on us to win, just to do what's right, and we still have amazing success doing it that way. It's really cool."

"When you show horses on our level, it gets pretty expensive," admits Steve. "When money's involved people tend to get up tight and have high expectations. There's none of that here. The day I met Cecilia, she told me, ‘If you're ever walking to the arena ready to show and something doesn't feel right and you want to pull the plug, you have that option. The horse always comes first, I don't care what I've spent on advertising and entry fees.'"

Putting people and horses first is working for Cecilia. She offers up her recent wins as a prime example. "We didn't set out last year to intensively go for World Champ titles," she says. "It just happened because we're passionate and we go about things in a calm and thoughtful way."

Cecilia is the first to give her people credit for the farm's success. "I'm within an hour of some of the best veterinarians, blacksmiths and experts in the country. I have good people watching out for my interests in Virginia, North Carolina and Texas. A lot of people don't like people around them who are smarter than they are. They have an ego thing going on. Well, not me! I want great people around me, because great people around me make me look good."

Good Acts
Through her farm and businesses Cecilia works closely with the American Quarter Horse Association Foundation toward charitable initiatives. On the day EquuSSource visited she was donating one of her mares to a young rider from Texas who had recently lost her show horse. That selfless act is common around Hylton farms, where benevolence is another pillar of the Cecilia philosophy.

"To watch what she does on a generosity level is just incredible," says Steve. I could stand here and list organizations she gives to for the rest of the day and not name them all." But Cecilia's philanthropy doesn't end at the institutional level. She lets her trainers keep all of their monetary winnings as well as any prizes they have won.

Her charity also works toward the long-term of doing good in the horse world. "I support research. That's a big thing for me. I'm supporting reproductive research and scholarships for young people who go into that line of work. I breed and raise horses so I understand that the future of healthy horse programs depends on quality education and research."

With some prodding, Cecilia will tell you some of the organizations that benefit from her generosity. "Through our charitable foundation my family is involved with Potomac Hospital, Prince William Hospital and grants to Colorado State University. I've personally donated horses to universities such as Findlay, North Carolina State University, Martin Community College, the University of Georgia, Murray State University and more.

"I feel strongly that young people should have access to horses and the lifestyle so that they can continue on to be part of the American Quarter Horse Association and benefit from the horse industry."

Good Horses
At the intersection of Cecilia's belief in good people and good works within the equine community, what else could you expect to find other than good horses. Cecilia traces her history with winning Quarter Horses back to one name-Dr. J Flash. When you talk to Cecilia about Dr. J, she can't help but laugh. "Dr. J Flash was my novice amateur horse-the horse that I really started winning with. He was competitive, fun and had a personality all his own. He was a chowhound, but he was always the same in the show pin pen? - easy to deal with and to take around. In that respect I guess I loved him more than any man."

She shared a bond with Dr. J Flash that she still carries with her, both through her memories of those early wins and through the horse's lineage which produces wins to this day. "Dr. J sired Flashy Zipper, a World Champion who has sired more World Champions, and I'm still producing babies from his stock. I eventually established the Flashy Zipper Challenge, which is a charitable endowment to help the American Quarter Horse Foundation meet their needs."

Another of Cecilia's causes that helps promote good horses and good horsemanship grew out of the philosophy she and Steve share about raising their animals at a natural pace. Cecilia doesn't like rushing hoses into the competitive arena. "I have created the Hylton Maiden Class at the Reichert Celebration for western pleasure horses that are three years old or older, because I don't believe in pushing young horses. People now are catching on to this. And with a purse of $100,000, people are training horses specifically for that class." The Reichert Celebration's Hylton Maiden 3-Year Old and Over Western Pleasure Class will take place on Wednesday, August 12 at the Ford Livestock Arena in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

When Cecilia takes her own horses to show she competes across the breadth of the quarter horse's wide capabilities. She says that's what drew her to these beautiful horses to begin with. "They have a wonderful disposition and they can do most anything. I have over-fences horses, reining horses, pleasure horses and halter horses. We have a string of 12 to 14 horses that we take to the shows."

Picking this string and the breeding lines that lead to show-worthy horses is possibly the one area of Cecilia's program that isn't based on a philosophy or a calculation. For her that's more of a gift. "I don't have any secrets. I can look at a horse, and I can see the potential in a young horse. Sometimes I amaze myself. All of the horses I breed are good horses, but some are exceptional. From there I just breed the best of the best, and I hope for the best. I have some two-year-olds right now that … well, just watch out!"

With things going so well for Hylton Quarter Horse Farms, others would be wise to follow in the ways of the great philosopher of Gainesville. It starts with people, as Steve Meadows states so simply. "We operate like a family. Everybody has a positive attitude every day. We have freedom to do our job and we accomplish great things."

Big wins lead to generous reinvestment back into the organizations and educational institutions that make the Quarter Horse industry possible. And everything comes together to provide more winning horses for the future. Cecilia Hylton has hit upon a horse philosophy that lends itself to a happy life. "I have a program that's produced some of the best horses in the industry. I'm proud of what we've accomplished."

Cecilia On Southern States:
I've been a customer of Southern States in Calverton, Virginia for a long time. Their service and their feeds are phenomenal. My horses look fantastic - their coats look like glass. I like my horses fat and slick. People come up to us at shows to ask what we do to have such healthy, gleaming horses. I owe it all to Steve and Becky and Southern States feed - Triple CrownÒ Equine and Growth. Nobody in the world could convince me to change feeds.