Cook signs equestrian scholarship with Texas A&M

For most people who are asked if they were born in a barn, it’s a form of criticism. For Camilla Cook, it couldn’t be more flattering.

The 18-year-old from Destin has been enamored with riding horses since the first time she plunked down on a saddle at age 5. That passion has driven her to become an accomplished equestrian, so proficient in fact that she signed a scholarship with the equestrian program of eight-time national champion Texas A&M.

As the Aggies’ national championships suggest, Cook was a highly sought-after recruit. The other offers she entertained most seriously came from Oklahoma State, TCU, Auburn and Southern Methodist.

But during a September visit to Texas A&M, Cook was enchanted by the school’s equestrian facilities and athletic center, the tutoring program, the team’s satisfactory workout schedule and the Texans in general, who Cook found down-to-earth and welcoming.

“I just felt like Texas was home for me when I went out there, and it didn’t matter about the distance,” Cook said. “Living the athlete’s life there was really appealing to me.”

It’s easy to see why Cook was appealing to Texas A&M.

Some of her more distinguished accomplishments were becoming the 2008 Florida State Jumper Reserve Champion and winning multiple top placements in shows such as the Vermont Summer Festival, Skidmore College Saratoga Classic, Jacksonville Winter Series and HITS Ocala. 

Cook trains under Jodie Kelly, owner of Southern Cross Equestrian Centre in Destin, and Christina Schlusemeyer of Ocala. They’re preparing Cook for college competition that will be a lot more unpredictable than Cook is accustomed to.

For starters, when equestrian teams travel, they use the opposing team’s horses and equipment. College horses are fine animals, Cook said, but they won’t be magnificent performers with the jumping ability of personal horses.

“It’s going to be different. But it’s going to be challenging different,” she said.

To prepare, Cook trains with a variety of horses. But her best man will always be Alessandro, who she got three years ago in West Palm Beach right after he was imported from Germany.

“As soon as I saw him, I knew he was the one,” she said. “I got on him, and he was perfect.”

She got a similar feeling in regard to Texas A&M, the next stop in her already lengthy equestrian career.

“Ever since I sat on my first horse, I can’t remember a (period of) time I haven’t been on a horse,” Cook said. “My parents say I was born on a horse.”

Or, more precisely, born to ride a horse.