Millions of people across the country enjoyed the Budweiser Clydesdale commercial during the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Widely considered one of the best Super Bowl ads this year, the commercial featured a horse who never forgot the man who trained him.
The horse was well-trained, but that was nothing compared to what that horse’s real trainer can do.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Tommie Turvey two years ago in Perry, Ga., in advance of his appearance at the 2011 Atlantic City Boardwalk Rodeo. Turvey does trick shows, and his act was the entertainment between events at that rodeo.
While I interviewed him outside his trailer on the Georgia National Fairgrounds, several people stopped by to ask him how he became a “horse whisperer.”
Turvey didn’t like being called that. But if there is such thing as a horse whisperer, it’s him.
He said he needs only about 10 days to train horses to do just about anything. It’s all about trust and repetition, he said.
Turvey’s act at the Boardwalk Rodeo included having his horse play dead, then lay on his back and move his legs on command, among other things.
The son of a Hollywood stunt man, Turvey said patience is the key with training. He starts with small tricks and builds up to the full act.
Turvey has made it big before. One of his horses was featured on “The Walking Dead” TV show. But the Super Bowl commercial might have been his biggest moment yet.
