Cross-Cultural Camaraderie

When four cow horse trainers committed to joining veterans jumping into Normandy, France to commemorate D-Day’s 80th anniversary, it became much more than simply jumping out of a plane.

Accomplishing hard tasks is nothing new for trainers focused on cow horse competition; their main nemesis is an unpredictable cow. When Chris and Sarah Dawson, Taylor Gillespie and Kyle Noyce had the opportunity to take that same fierce focus and turn it from the show arena to skydiving out of a plane and into a former battlefield, they didn’t hesitate.

Working with military veterans affiliated with the Kansas-based non-profit War Horses for Veterans, all four trainers formed bonds with former military members. When one of those veterans, Mark Nutsch, was working with Chris and Sarah at their Perrin, Texas, facility, Chris asked him what Mark could teach him and Sarah that would be on par with what they were teaching him about working cow horse.

The answer was parachuting out of an airplane.

“Mark told us he was going to jump into Normandy, [France], on the 80th anniversary of D-Day, and that is how this all got started,” Sarah recalls.

Soon, the four cow horse trainers were trading in saddles for parachutes and time in the arena to training time in the air. The culminating event would be a jump out of a C-47 plane and into a former battlefield in Batterie d’Azeville, in Azeville, Normandy, France.

Up in the Air

Through “War Horses for Veterans,” connections between the cow horse community and military veterans grew strong. Chris, Sarah, Taylor and Kyle all aided in the National Stock Horse Association’s special event for the War Horses for Veterans riders to go down the fence at their annual show in August in Las Vegas, Nevada. Through that event, Mark became close with the trainers.

Mark, a former Green Beret and U.S. Army Special Forces officer, is the subject of the film “12 Strong.” When he offered to help Chris and Sarah join the Round Canopy Parachuting Team-USA jump school in Palatka, Florida, for the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day commemorative jump, Chris agreed but didn’t truly believe it would happen.

“I really had no idea what I was getting into, but I knew he was talking about jumping out of airplanes, which is a big act,” Chris recalls. “I thought it would be great, but there was no way anyone would let a horse trainer jump out of an airplane in Normandy, France, to honor veterans. No way. I thought it was an over-promised deal. He said that I needed to go to jump school, but I thought there was no way my schedule would allow me to go. Lo and behold, the school was the week after Snaffle Bit Futurity!”

Thus began Chris and Sarah’s journey to becoming certified to solo parachute. Soon, their friends Taylor, of Gainesville, Texas, and Kyle, of Blanchard, Oklahoma, joined in the certification process to be part of the event, held June 6, 2024.

To certify to jump, Chris and Sarah made several trips to Florida to the Round Canopy Parachuting Team-USA headquarters. Courtesy of Chris and Sarah Dawson To certify to jump, Chris and Sarah made several trips to Florida to the Round Canopy Parachuting Team-USA headquarters. Courtesy of Chris and Sarah Dawson

Taylor, a former Army serviceman, had parachuted before, so he was re-certifying. For Kyle, it was a new experience, and he relished the mental challenge.

“I had never jumped out of an airplane before, and once I realized there was a shot at being part of this event, I was ready,” Kyle says. “I wanted to honor the guys that came before us, that generation that changed the world, and for me, personally, I wanted to see if mentally I could do it. You force yourself to be uncomfortable and deal with the challenge. It is the scariest thing I have ever done. The first jump out of an airplane is unnatural.”

Though none of the trainers were fully prepared for the immersive experience of certifying to jump, aside from Taylor, the journey was deeply fulfilling.

“Observing veterans in their culture, I am quieter, if you can imagine that,” Chris says with a laugh. “The Round Canopy Parachute Team provides a community and a culture safe spot for veterans to get around likeminded people and just be themselves. You’re not dealing with people who don’t have any understanding of their experiences.”

Each trainer had to jump at least five times to certify. Aside from the physical demands of jumping out of the plane, the D-Day commemoration falls on top of one of the major events for cow horse trainers, the National Reined Cow Horse Association Kimes Ranch Western Derby, held in Scottsdale, Arizona.

“The Western Derby is typically a pretty good show for us, and a chunk of our yearly income comes from that show, but the relationships we built with people we met through War Horses for Veterans made choosing the jump a no-brainer,” Chris says.

Boots on the Ground

A C-47 painted Army green roared across the blue sky above the beaches of Normandy, France, on June 6, yet this place wasn’t bringing soldiers to liberate the French people. Instead, it held those jumping to commemorate the sacrifice made more than 80 years ago during World War II. And among those are the Dawsons, Taylor and Kyle.

The gravity of landing near where the largest seaborne invasion in history was launched, and more than 150,000 Allied troops flooded onto French beaches to combat Axis forces was not lost on any of the jumpers. They all wore uniforms replicating what soldiers in the 82nd or 101st Airborne divisions wore in 1944, and each carried something special.

Kyle wore WWII Silver Star awardee Zealy Holmes’ boots during the jump. Courtesy of Kyle Noyce

“I jumped in boots that belonged to a good family friend who received a silver star in WWII, Zealy Holmes, from Illinois. The last time those boots were on French soil, they were fighting in WWII, so it was pretty moving to be able to do that,” Kyle says. “Chris jumped with his grandfather’s dog tags. Anyone that had a connection to someone in WWII, we tried to jump with something of theirs.”

Kyle is a self-proclaimed WWII buff, but the jump and the experience in France elevated his desire to better understand that time period.

“When you’re standing on a pretty, white sand beach and you realize 80 years ago, on this day, there were more than 4,000 men killed on that same beach in a matter of hours, it makes you appreciate their sacrifice even more,” Kyle says.

The group made two jumps in Normandy. Parachuting brought them to France, but the welcome from the French people and the camaraderie felt with other jumpers will be the reason they all return one day.

“It’s hard to put into words the emotions you run through doing something like this because you have nerves and anxiety of taking off in an 80-year-old plane, and knowing you’re going to jump out of it, then when you stand up, hook up your static line and jump out, there’s excitement and accomplishment,” Taylor explains. “Then, on top of the fact we are jumping to commemorate the soldiers from WWII, it makes it even harder to verbalize the feelings. When we jumped into the drop zone, we were swarmed by French locals to get our pictures and hug and thank us, but we weren’t the ones jumping into a hostile environment. It was surreal. Being there, where we knew men gave their lives to defeat fascism and save the world, it almost felt like you were not deserving to even commemorate what they had done.”

Now, each trainer is looking forward to parachuting again and finding ways to continue honoring veterans. They are not only linked by horses but also by experience.

“One of the most amazing parts was the camaraderie you establish with the people you are jumping with,” Sarah says. “There is a team element. You’re all rooting for each other to get out of the plane and down safely. To be doing it with friends of ours from the horse world was awesome.”

For Taylor, he once again felt the kinship he had when he was active-duty military.

“There is a common thread between cowboys and soldiers,” Taylor says. “The only place I’ve found a remote resemblance to the camaraderie I found with my soldiers in the Army has been in the cow horse. People in the Western industry have a true appreciation for the military and our history.”

The parachuters landing in Normandy, France. Courtesy of Taylor Gillespie.

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