Jim Wofford Obituary, Eventing Legend and Horse Trainer dies at the age of 78 – Death

Jim Wofford Death, Obituary – Feb 2, 2023 – 2:56 PM Printing and sharing this On February 2, 2019, Jim Wofford, a prominent figure in the sport of eventing, passed away at the age of 78. Due to the fact that he has passed away, we have made the decision to republish this article. It was first distributed in The Chronicle of the Horse’s Kentucky Preview edition in April 2022 as a part of the “Living Legend” section.

James C. Wofford maneuvered the young horse that was ambling beside him by chopping his way along the winding gravel road while keeping one hand on the reins of the horse and the other hand on the lead line. Behind him came four young men, each of whom was dragging along an additional horse or two in addition to their own.

As they traveled along the tranquil country lanes, they were only occasionally confronted by passing autos. On any other day, Wofford would have told jokes, looked around the fields for animals, and identified the birds as they flew overhead throughout the ride, but today he was focused on getting them to their destination as quickly as possible. The journey was around four and a half miles long.

He had already left and was on his way back. Wofford and his wife, Gail Wofford, had been seeking for a house in Virginia ever since the couple moved there in 1971, but they were unable to decide on a particular plot of land that they could claim as their own and make their home there.

“She would much rather live in the stables than in the house, whereas I would much rather live in the house.”The house is something that she would detest tremendously, while the stables and the facility are things that I would like “adds “Jim.” “We were helpless and had no other option but to stay there. We had just finished saying that “our only response is that we are going to have to build,” and we were on the verge of concluding our discussion.

They drew out sketches on the back of an envelope, but they were unable to proceed with the project owing to a lack of cash until 1973, when Jim’s mother Dorothea “Dot” Wofford passed away. At that time, they were able to continue through with the project.

After sharing the profits from the sale of Rimrock, the Kansas farm where Jim spent his childhood, with his four children, Jim was left with just enough money to acquire 106 acres in Upperville, Virginia, and to start building on Fox Covert.