Behind the Scenes with Ashley Davis of Infinity Jumps, LLC

When was Infinity Jumps founded and how did you break into this segment of the industry?

Infinity Jumps was founded in January of 2014. I had a riding accident in 2011 with what was my dream horse job and it was probably the best thing that ever happened to me. I took a year and a month off from riding and took up golf, managing restaurants, and event planning. I had been working so hard for years. Burning the candle at both ends with horses during the day and fine dining serving at night. When life starts forcing a shift in your life you can’t fight it you just go with the flow. I wish I had this amazing story of how it happened, but the truth is that I met a guy, after finally taking time for a real relationship, and I adored and admired him greatly. He had a side business outside of his career and it was building sponsor jumps. The business was weighing him down with stress and he had fallen out of love with it. I ran his business for eight months and at the end handed him this nice, neat three ring binder and he said to me, “I told you I don’t want to do this anymore, I want to just focus on my career”. At that point I told him I was going to start my own jump business and continue doing it. He agreed to support me and taught me so much about woodworking and building when time allowed with his busy travel schedule. As my business grew so did his career. He was course designer of the year, east coast and west coast. I was so proud of him! We were quite the power couple for a while there, pumping out two and three triple combinations a week during the 2014-2015 winter season. As the business grew we sadly grew apart, but I will forever be grateful for my time with Skip Bailey. And I will always admire his talents in course designing and his eye for detail. What I did not see, he did, and vice versa.

Which shows/events do you primarily work with? Where is your customer base located?

My customer base is mostly Wellington for the winter show season. During the summer I manage my sponsor jump client jumps for transportation. I refurbish and store them across the country as they travel the circuit. I like to be a ‘one stop shop’ for my clients. Some jumps ship up to nine times an off-season. At one point I had 28 trucks on the road and played dispatch during the summers. It gets chaotic to say the least. I have built jumps for some of the most amazing horse show venues in the country and I am so beyond grateful for those opportunities. Outside of the Winter Equestrian Festival, Tryon, Colorado, Santa Fe New Mexico, HITS Ocala, California, Washington International Horse Show, Kentucky Horse Park, Central Park, Deeridge Farms, and The World Cup Las Vegas are usually annual ship-to venues. I absolutely loved Deeridge Farms International Derbies and Nations Cup and I am so sad to see them go. I have provided jumps for Brandywine Valley Summer Series which hosted Junior Hunter Finals for several years at Devon. I provided Jumps for Monmouth At The Team held at Gladstone, NJ. And just this year I got to scratch my top bucket list horse show off my list. We were asked to build for Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show. I absolutely adore what I like to call “boutique horse shows.” To me, there is nothing better than a fun, happy, and energetic group of riders, managers, and staff. Especially those that go all out with flowers and artistic style. I encourage everyone to show at these venues. The energy and the happiness is something you just have to experience to believe.

What does a typical day look like for you?

People that know me are going to laugh at this but my day never starts without a Starbucks run with about 2-4 dogs in the truck for a ‘Pupachino’ and an iced coffee. My day in the shop starts at 9am. Usually I have a few calls coming in on my way for coffee and I’ll knock out a design in an hour or two after that. I started a 501c3 dog rescue, called The Strays Inn this year. So between the dogs, the pig, the chicken, the three horses, and the shop I have more than enough to keep me busy for a long, long time!

What is it like being a woman in a segment of the industry that is historically dominated by men?

This is one of my favorite topics! In short, it is TOUGH! I started out kind of being swept under the rug by “the boys” as “Skip’s girlfriend,” but as time went on people started to really take notice that I was the true “jump girl.” That is usually the nickname I hear a lot when people call me. I am not particularly good at asking for help, so guys who work for me know that they need to keep up or I will go load that trailer myself while they are at lunch. I do not take lunch as it disrupts my workflow. I wish I could tell you I am as organized as I was when I started the business, but I am not. I am one who ‘wings it’ and goes with my first gut instinct every time. My first price is always my best price. I hate negotiating so I do not waste people’s time. If they take my quote somewhere else, there is no hard feelings, but I do keep a list of who does that. I am honest and sincere to a fault. I want Infinity Jumps to be have integrity and loyal customers. I will be the first to admit that I have scaled back this year on my workload because I felt that it was running my life over. I put my heart and soul into my jumps. It takes a lot of my time, energy, and inner peace to provide amazing jumps so when you feel that your losing your focus on what message you want your business to put out there that’s when you need to slow down, regroup, collect, and “half halt” yourself I feel that if you called me for jumps then you already know that you want an Infinity jump. It is not just the jump that you get, it is the care, heart, honestly, loyalty and integrity that clients get as well. Clients are never a number with me. It is a family. I have always had the mentorship and friendship of the one who I call “the Godfather of the jump world,” Fuzzy Mayo. He is such a genuine and kind person and has talked me through so many business challenges and answered questions that he did not have to. I am so grateful for his friendship above all else. Another mentor who has been so supportive is Steve Stephens. These are the businesses that I want to emulate. You do not step on toes in this industry and these two gentlemen are two of the greatest blessings this sport has seen. They have decades of experience and lifetimes of guidance. They have seen and heard of it all. The best part is that they built a lot of the jumps I grew up watching on those old VHS recordings. It’s amazing how life comes full circle!

What is one thing about what you do that might come as a surprise to the reader?

I am the queen of “one offs” which means there will be imperfections from the hand tools. I hand select my materials carefully going over each board. I hand cut my cutouts. I have a CNC machine that has been sitting in my shop for almost two years now and I find it faster to hand cut my designs. Sadly, people this year are finding fault with the imperfections, so the industry is shifting to commercial cookie cutter type jumps. I have fixed that issue and I started building furniture this year so that people appreciate those “one offs.”

How much time goes into construction of a custom jump? What are the steps that are involved?

The first step is for the client to email me their logo in the highest resolution possible. I then design the jump using Adobe Illustrator. I used to offer three options, and everyone always chose my first design, so now they only get one! I always send over the design with the quote and send over the cost of annual maintenance that it will require. That way they can discuss with their teams. The jump, once design is approved, then moves into production upon receiving the check with payment in full. I hand select the cedar or pressure treated materials to build the frame. I carefully make sure that there are no knots, bowing, or imperfections that will cause problems in the long run, structurally. I only build with high quality marine grade plywood that is called Baltic Birch. Its easier on my hand tools and it cuts like butter in the panel saw. I am short so I typically cut the panels to size on that machine first as it makes lifting and maneuvering the panels much easier. The plywood is amazing to work with. I have some jumps going strong after refurbishing multiple times a year. My refurbishing process is 17 steps. Yes, there are ways to cut corners in that area, but the jump does not hold up for the long-term when steps are cut. These jumps are an investment for the client and the work performed should protect that investment!

Do you have a favorite memory that you can share with us?

There are so many, but I think the most memorable one I have was during a 5 star at WEF. It was a Rolex Grand Prix and I was sitting at the Adequan table in the International tent and one of their guests asked me which jump was mine.. I looked around the ring and I smiled and I said, ”Actually, tonight, all of them are.” That was the most accomplished feeling I have ever felt. I was so proud, and tears filled my eyes, just as writing the answers to all these questions are doing to me now. This business is the most humbling, stressful, and demanding business you could be in. It’s full of so many memories. I am so grateful for every job, every client, and every person who has trusted me to build their sponsor jump. My clients’ loyalty over the years has taught me more about myself and which direction I’d like my business to head My business is an extension of me and the fact that they trust me so much, year after year, makes all of it worth it!

How would you like to see your business grow in the upcoming years?

My business is a beast. It’s up, it’s down, it is making me cry, and it can be like a flawless ride, like when Blowing Rock called. I was on the phone for 2.5 hours with more design ideas flowing and it was EXACTLY what I needed in that moment to motivate that passion again. I feel I reached all the goals I ever wanted to with this business. It is by NO MEANS peaked, but I have always wanted Infinity Jumps to stand for something bigger and with meaning. I am not sure what that is just yet, but I know this business is supposed to do big things. I love giving back to the community. I never forget where I came from and no matter how big your business grows it still is an extension of who you are. That means you still must treat people the way you would want to be treated.

Do you offer customized jumps? If so, how do you go about the design process all the way through project completion?

Yes, I love custom jumps and that is mostly what I build. My favorite calls are the ones where they tell you they just want some really great jumps and don’t even care what it costs. That is when I go all in! I am not the most expensive in the business, but I am not the cheapest either. The jump ideas for the designs can come from anywhere. I love making my courses three dimensional, like when I started using real images of stone and brick walls printed on vinyl. Everyone was freaking out that it was a bad idea, the horses are going to spook, etc, etc. No one fell off their horse that first show over my boxes, but you know what did happen, the photographers made money on those photos the day of that derby! I guess I wasn’t wrong!

Do you have any aspirations of getting into other segments of the horse business?

I don’t really know that I do. Being on the production side, I observe the political chaos that goes on in each position. I just wish the horse industry were nicer to one another. The behind the scenes stuff that goes on is just so toxic. It just isn’t for me anymore. Outside of producing jumps for future horse shows, I can see myself getting involved in a smaller scale horse show. That may be schooling shows, maybe some hunter derbies, and helping a good group of people become successful. I am a team player and I love seeing people happy. I love watching people find their niche and their success whatever version they choose they want. I can see myself becoming a motivational speaker and a sounding board to younger people who need guidance and direction. I have experienced a lot in only 35 years and I have learned from every lesson. I am so grateful for the blessings, the opportunities I was trusted with, and the struggles I have had to face in this business. I am ready for whatever direction life sends me in next. We have this one life and you just have to give it everything you’ve got. Always being true to yourself and only build that good karma. The universe will always take care of you.