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Karen Healey had not just one but six clients earn top spots in tough competition this past Sunday. In the 2012 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals West, at the Los Angeles International Jumping Festival on September 19-23, first, second, third, and fifth places went to Karen Healey students Samantha Harrison, Olivia Champ, Kilian McGrath, and Savannah Jenkins. And Hannah Von Heidegger took the USEF Zones 8,9,10 Hunter Seat Medal Regional Finals win.

After three challenging phases, flat, gymnastics, and jumping, over three days, the clincher in the USEF Talent Search is the work-off. Similar to the final at the World Equestrian Games Final Four, the top four scoring riders all switch and ride each other’s horses, and all start with a clean slate zero score.

Samantha Harrison (20, La Canada, CA) and Santika, who also won the Best Horse Award, had a high score of 94 and were sitting on top going into the work-off. Harrison showed poise and confidence on all four horses. Her consistency and scores in the eighties as well as the nineties paid off with a victory. She finished with a final total score of 350.

Healey described, “She rode beautifully all the way through it. Her gymnastics ride was very good. Horses love her; she’s very unassuming. In her own way, she’s confident and gets it done when she wants. Every time she’s ridden other horses, they get around beautifully. They’re relaxed and soft. I was very proud of her.”

Harrison is no stranger to the winner’s circle. She and Santika have moved up from the six-year-old Young Jumpers to win individual silver and team gold medals at the FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships, and currently compete in the grand prix ring.

“The mare is a tough old bird,” Healey laughed. “I thought she’d be the hardest of them all to ride, but she actually went beautifully for the other riders. Sam just adores the horse and the horse adores her. She took the time to build a relationship with her. We had ups and downs along the way, but they never gave up on each other. And it’s paid off.”

Harrison commented on her relationship with Santika, “In the past couple years, we’ve really grown to have a great connection. I know how she’s going to act. We have this great bond and truly love each other. I know if I’m in the ring and I ask for a long distance, she’s not going to be naughty. I feel like she’s going to be there to help me.”

While Harrison has shown in the Talent Search Finals for five years, this was her first ribbon in the class. “I am thrilled about winning,” she said. “I’m really proud of my horse because she was so good for all of the phases. It was such a great experience, especially getting on the three different horses in the work-off. I’m so grateful that I got to experience that.”

Harrison feels that the tutelage of Karen Healey has helped her reach this point in her riding career. In addition to her success on the “A” circuit, she is also a varsity NCAA rider for Oklahoma State University.

“I’ve been with Karen a long time,” she related. “We always do a lot of flatwork and work on the basics. She’s so supportive every time I have a lesson or am at the in-gate. She knows that I can do better and she’ll push me. I have had a lot of hard lessons with her and when I tough it out, it all comes together in the show ring.”

Harrison also took the time to thank Karen and her staff and her family and friends for all of their support through the years.

Although Karen Healey has had many successful Talent Search Finals, a one-two-three finish is a first for her.

Olivia Champ of La Canada, CA, on Parrandero, owned by Katie Harris, placed second. She has been at Karen Healey Stables just over a year, and after her horse had colic surgery, they found Parrandero, who won last year with Demi Stiegler, for her to ride at these Finals. “Olivia suits him really well,” Healey said. “He’s a gem.”

Champ adds this to her resume of wins at the PCHA Finals and CPHA Foundation Medal 14 & Under Finals.

Kilian McGrath of Thousand Oaks, CA, rode Salerno, owned by Rolling Oaks Ranch Inc. to third and Healey said she “rode pretty solid” throughout the competition. Savannah Jenkins of Virginia Beach, VA on Capilan 2, owned by George Maskrey-Segesman, finished fifth. “Savannah just missed the top four. It was really close. I’m really thrilled with all of them,” Healey commented.

In addition to the great Finals, Karen Healey student Hannah Von Heidegger, whom she co-trains with Simpson Show Jumping, won the USEF Zones 8, 9, 10 Hunter Seat Medal Regional Finals.

What’s next is a trip to East Coast where Karen Healey Stables riders will compete for more victories at the Capital Challenge Horse Show, Pennsylvania National Horse Show, Washington International Horse Show, and Alltech National Horse Show.

“All the girls were great. A solid preparation for what’s to come. We have our eyes on the indoor finals now,” Healey said.

Reprinted with permission from Jennifer Wood Media. 

After three days and numerous tests, Samantha Harrison (La Canada, CA) found herself leading the victory gallop of the 2012 Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals West. The win was made even more sweet for the Oklahoma State University junior and member of the NCAA Equestrian team. “Winning means so much to me because every single year I’ve gone in on Santika, something has gone wrong. It was a really big accomplishment to go out there and be consistent in all three phases.”

Samantha (Karen Healey, trainer) was particularly happy to win on Santika, who also won the Best Horse Award, as the pair has been together for many years. “I’ve had her a really long time. We’ve had a connection ever since I got her, and we’ve only gotten to know each other even better. We’ve really learned to figure each other out over the years,” Samantha explained. From the Six-Year-Old Jumpers to Junior Jumper Show Jumping Hall of Fame Western League Champion to riding on the Gold medal Zone 10 team at the Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North to winning ribbons in her first grand prix events, Samantha and Santika have a long, rich history together. The Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals West is another exemplary accomplishment for Samantha and her bay mare.

Given her riding resume, Samantha was well prepared going into the Talent Search Finals. Because of her NCAA experience, Samantha is no stranger to riding unknown horses, which gave her an edge in the work-off and contributed to her consistency. Karen Healey, Samantha’s trainer, commented, “Samantha has been with me for seven years and even though she is super sweet, she can be a tough rider and get it done.” Samantha was focused on getting it done and throughout the entirety of the Talent Search she adopted an all or nothing attitude.”

Samantha concurred. “I just thought to myself that I had to ride every step and take nothing for granted. I knew if I went out there and gave it my all and just rode, everything would fall into place,” she said.

Everything did fall into place, and Samantha exemplified the effectiveness the judges were looking for. “She rode really well on all four horses and was very, very solid on every horse she rode. She was solid enough that the little mistakes some of the others made caught up with them,” Chrystine Tauber said. Bernie Traurig added, “The cream rose to the top. There was just over a handful of riders that were quite talented and impressive. It was the changing horses that separated the class and made it easy to judge.”

The final day of competition started on Saturday afternoon on the grass Cricket Field at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center during the Los Angeles International Jumping Festival (Sept. 19-23). For Phase 3, competitors jumped over a difficult Grand Prix style course on the grass field. The course, designed by judges Chrystine Tauber and Bernie Traurig, challenged riders with a very technical course with several natural obstacles, including a bank and a wide open water jump.

Bernie commented, “This course asked all the questions you would find in a grand prix. In some cases, it was even a little more demanding because we were looking for riders who had control and rideability. We put a lot of emphasis on their ability to negotiate technical lines and approaches. In addition, we added the natural jumps like the bank, which you wouldn’t usually see in a class.” Though it was unusual, no rider or horse struggled to jump down the bank. “It surprised me because that’s not an easy bank,” Bernie said. Chrystine agreed and added, “Everyone jumped the bank very well all day long.”

However, the open water after the bank did cause problems for many of the riders and horses. Bernie and Chrystine purposefully incorporated the difficult water jump in order to truly test the riders. “Water is a big issue, and it’s certainly not something they would encounter in any other equitation class,” Bernie noted. The water jump was eleven feet wide without a pole and had a low flower box set at the takeoff. “If we had had a bigger brush in front, then the horses would have backed up and jumped up higher. But the lower takeoff didn’t help you at all and you really had to ride to the water,” commented Chrystine.

In addition, Bernie and Chrystine changed the course to make the line even more challenging. Riders had to jump down the bank, ride a long distance to the water, and then immediately turn left and jump a triple combination. “Jumping down off of a bank puts the horse’s balance down low for the first couple of steps. Then many riders sat up and started trying to find a balance, but then they lost the pace. That in itself ended up creating a wonderful test of being able to land and rebalance as you ride forward. So many of them got trapped into pulling back to get the horse in balance, but then they were dead at the water,” Chrystine explained. “Then after the water, you had to immediately look for the turn and then start building to get back uphill to the triple combination. You had to jump the water, bring the horse back, look around the corner, and then keep the impulsion up the hill. It was a very technical line.”

All of the Talent Search finalists had the opportunity to ride the challenging course, but all eyes were focused on the top riders coming into Phase 3. The top six returned in reverse order: Kilian McGrath (Karen Healey, trainer), Savannah Jenkins (Karen Healey, trainer), Morgan Geller (Kay Altheuser, trainer), Samantha Harrison (Karen Healey, trainer), Olivia Champ (Karen Healey, trainer), and Lauren Myers (Cara Anthony, trainer).

Kilian (Thousand Oaks, CA) made the difficult course look effortless on Salerno (Rolling Oaks Ranch Inc., owner) and scored a 92, setting the bar high for the riders who came after her. Savannah (Virginia Beach, VA) rode a clean course on Capilan 2 (George Maskrey-Segesman, owner) and scored an 85 for her efforts. Unfortunately for Morgan Geller (Manhattan Beach, CA), Sicerto B (Q of E Farms LLC, owner) caught the edge of the open water jump and she fell off as he stumbled. Thankfully, the pair suffered no major injuries and both walked out of the ring.

Next came Samantha on Santika (LLC Harrison Farms, owner) and her extraordinary round won the audience and the judge’s approval. The pair scored the highest score of the phase with a 94. Returning in second place, Olivia (La Canada Flintridge, CA) turned in a slow and consistent round aboard Parrandero (Katie Harris, owner), earning her an 87. At the top of the leader board after the first two phases, Lauren (Seattle, WA) rode a good course on Dinero (Francesca Giammalva, owner) and scored an 84.

Though scores were released after the completion of the Talent Search, at the time, riders had no idea where they stood after their jumping rounds. The top four were announced in no particular order and Kilian, Samantha, Olivia, and Lauren were all excited to enter the ride-off.

For the ride-off, each rider had to ride a shortened course on her own horse and then ride the course on each of the other horses. Modeled after the Show Jumping World Championships, the top four each started with a score of 0 going into Phase 4, with the start order determined by the cumulative score of Phases 1 to 3.

Going into the ride-off, judges were focused on the effectiveness of the riders. “The riders who were just sitting there and not effectively influencing the outcome of each jump got into trouble on the course,” Chrystine noted. Bernie added, “It’s a great class because it allows the flexibility of judging and some flexibility of riding because it’s with a jumper theme. It’s not a pose contest.”

Hoping to impress the judges with her riding ability, Kilian rode first in the ride-off on Salerno. Her ride was flawless and the pair received the highest score of the day with a 95. Lauren and Dinero unfortunately earned their lowest score of the competition with a 76. The competition remained fierce as Olivia scored a 90 aboard Parrandero and Samantha, riding last, scored a 91 on Santika.

Then the excitement ramped up as Lauren’s saddle was put on Salerno. Once mounted, riders had exactly two minutes to warm up on the new horse before entering into the arena. Lauren commented, “I always like riding different horses. It’s a good experience because you have to adjust to a new horse in two minutes. I did a few bending left and right to make sure they were listening.” All four horses and riders held up amazingly well under the pressure, heat, and hard work as the long competition continued. Though all of the girls rode best on their own horses, they showed off their impressive riding abilities on the other horses as well.

Lauren scored in the 70s on all four horses, which gave her a cumulative score of 296 for Phase 4 and earned her the fourth place ribbon. Lauren was pleased with her results and explained, “This is my third time in the finals, and my first time in the final four, so I was definitely super excited. My goal for next year is hopefully to win!”

After a great round on her own horse, Kilian struggled a little with Parrandero and Santika and placed third with a score of 316. Youngest of the top four, Olivia turned in three high scores and placed second with a score of 341. But it was Samantha who turned in four extremely consistent rounds, all in the 80’s and 90’s. She finished with a score of 350 and the judges were impressed with her riding skills.

In addition to her long time equestrian partner, Samantha also had two of her barn mates in the top four as well as several other barn mates and her sister competing in the Talent Search. “It was helpful having Kilian and Olivia in the top four for support, but really all four of us supported each other and gave each other advice on our horses,” Samantha enumerated. Lauren agreed and said, “Everybody helped each other out in the warm up arena. For example, they would say whether you should or shouldn’t wear spurs, and everyone was really nice about it.”

Though Santika won the Best Horse Award this year, last year’s winning horse, Parrandero, carried Olivia to second place in Olivia’s first Talent Search Final. “I wanted to go in there riding forward and confident. At home since I train with dressage trainer Claudia Roberts, I do mostly flatwork and dressage work,” Olivia stated. “Having a strong foundation in dressage is especially helpful when riding other horses because you know how to lengthen and shorten their stride.”

Karen praised Olivia’s work ethic and said, “Olivia is a quick learner and is always very focused. She also has a great feel.” Karen continued, “Now Kilian is a little more aggressive than Olivia. Her only issue is her nerves and she has to remember to calm down and breathe.” Kilian herself admitted, “I psyched myself out a little bit during the work-off since we had to ride our competitors’ horses. I was worried something would happen to Salerno.”

But Kilian schooled her nerves and her third place finish had the additional benefit of qualifying her for the Maclay Final. “I accomplished my goal of being in the top four,” Kilian stated. “It’s just such a great experience because it shows who has the most ability to become a professional, and I’m just so happy.”

As the trainer of three of the top four girls in the Talent Search, Karen explained how she prepared the girls for the Talent Search Finals. “All of my kids are very strong on the flat because my training program is very flatwork oriented. I also made sure they all schooled on the grass field to prepare for the jumping phase,” Karen said. “In addition, I will be judging the Talent Search Finals East this year for the third time, so I know what is expected to win. The Talent Search is one of the best finals because it truly shows the depth of a rider.”

In addition, Chrystine hopes the experience was beneficial for all of the riders who participated. “You had three different phases that could have exposed some of your weaknesses. What did you learn from that? I hope everyone comes away from this experience having recognized what they need to work on and that it will help improve their riding in the future.”

Reprinted with permission from USEF Network.

Lexington, KY – July 30, 2012 – Californians came home from the 2012 Adequan/FEI North American Junior Young Rider Championships (NAJYRC) with an individual gold medal and team bronze. As Chef d’Equipe, Karen Healey coached Kilian McGrath of Westlake Village, CA, and her mount Salerno to the individual gold medal in the show jumping Young Rider division. In addition, Healey helped Zone 10 win the team bronze medal. It was a great start to a busy finals season that continues through November.

After completing three of five rounds over two days, 18-year-old McGrath and Salerno, 13-year-old KWPN gelding by Indorado x Larena, were in fifth place going into the third and final day. The pair quickly rose in the ranks after round one, earning the best score of just one time fault, and only six faults in the second round. The solid final performances over difficult courses helped secure the gold medal.

Healey said, “Kilian really worked hard to overcome her nerves. was very exciting to have her win the gold.”

“I was hoping I’d make top three at the most,” McGrath revealed. “I honestly was shocked when they said that I won. I asked Karen if this was real. I’ve only dreamed of getting a gold medal. I never thought it would happen this quickly. I just tried to be as consistent as possible and it worked out.”

The Fine Points

When McGrath came to train with Karen Healey, she was already an accomplished rider.  As can happen with a new set of experienced eyes, Healey worked on the fine points. McGrath explained, “Karen really helped me fix little parts of my riding.  She helped adjust my position and with execution of the course.  For example, I used to lock my shoulders. By having her tell me to unlock my shoulders, it changed how I rode completely and made it a lot easier. I found that really helpful, especially for the bigger jumps. It improved my execution and made my horse jump better.”

McGrath worked with another master this past winter. “When I first got Salerno, he wasn’t the most rideable on the flat. George Morris came out to Thermal, and through Karen, he ended up riding my horse for a week. Having George’s insight really helped,” McGrath related. “I was in awe that he would take the time to come to the ring and watch me show and give me insight. I couldn’t ask for anything better. Between George’s flat work and instruction, and Karen’s training, things came together and it really helped.”

Healey found Salerno through Olympian Laura Kraut. “He’s phenomenal,” she described. “He’s so scopey and so careful, but at same time if you make a mistake, he’s not going to hold it against you. He’s let Kilian make a jump into bigger classes.”

“He’s one of the most amazing horses I’ve ever ridden,” McGrath said of Salerno, “He’s really smart, really forgiving and really athletic. He’s the best horse I could have ever asked for. ”

Working As A Team

In the Young Rider team competition, the team of Kilian McGrath, Sage Flynn, Stevie Sorenson, and Charlotte Gadbois brought home the bronze medal.

“We were just time faults away from winning the silver,” Healey said. “The kids were all great, and everybody was focused on working as a team.”

 

Before the Zone 10 team left California, Healey invited the junior and young riders to her house to have them speak with sports psychologist Ken Ravizza. Healey noted, “Competing as a team is much different than what most of these riders have done as individuals. I really wanted them understand what they could do. I wanted them to know that no matter how bad it is, you don’t give up and you fight to the finish. I think it was very helpful for all of them. For Kilian, it definitely helped with her nerves. At the in-gate at Young Riders, she repeated her mantra to herself. She rode so cool and so composed all the way through it.”

McGrath enjoyed the team aspect. “Everyone on the team was so supportive and wanted to do their best. It is truly a nice feeling when you go in the ring and have people cheering for you,” she said.

Triumph Through Adversity

McGrath’s year hasn’t always been successful and triumphant. Two of her equitation horses passed away from different illnesses, so winning at the NAJYRC was a huge boost. “We’ve had a rough year,” McGrath acknowledged. “I’m hoping that if we can afford it, I can go to the Prix de States and finish the year on a good note. I’ve been given the opportunity to help promote and sell an equitation horse. So if it works out, I’ll be using him for the finals.”

McGrath will be one of many talented Karen Healey students that are competing in the equitation finals that round out the end of the show season.  “It’ll be fun, we have a nice group of students.” Healey said with a smile.

Karen Healey Stables will start the medal finals season at the CPHA Junior and Adult Hunter Seat Medal Finals at the Blenheim Summer Classic II on August 16-18, 2012. Following the medal finals in California, the team will travel to the East Coast for the fall indoor circuit.

Dedicated to excellence at all levels, Karen Healey Stables provides an advanced program for the serious competitor. Since coming to California, her riders have won over 90 medal finals including the 1990 ASPCA Maclay National Finals and the USET Talent Search Finals in 1986, 1987, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009 and 2010. Jumper clients have earned spots on numerous teams and won medals at the NAYRC and the Prix de States, including Double Gold Medalist Hannah Selleck and Team Gold / Individual Silver Medalist Samantha Harrison. She has also trained numerous hunters and jumpers to tri-colors at indoors over the years.

Karen’s methods of teaching the steps to good riding have produced a multitude of top riders, including European champion and three-time FEI World Cup champion Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum, the only woman to be first in the world rankings. Along with Meredith, many of Karen’s former students have gone on to be top professionals.

Reprinted with permission from Jennifer Wood Media.

Karen Healey Stables is pleased to announce that they have moved their training operations. Located in Somis, CA, Karen Healey Stables is now based at Whitethorne Ranch, a mature, full-care equestrian facility in a quiet, peaceful location with outstanding facilities.

The ranch is located between Moorpark and Camarillo and features boarding facilities with a total of 76 stalls. There are three year-round, large green pastures including a hand grazing pasture, five standard pastures and five large turn-outs.

“The grand prix field is beautiful, and there are lots of places to trail ride,” Healey described. “It’s a lovely, lovely place and we’re very happy to be at Whitethorne.”

When focused on competition, clients have two grand prix-sized jumping arenas with permanent water jumps, liverpools and Newcourse Jumps™; an FEI Standard sized Dressage Court with mirrors, a riding arena, longeing arena and floodlighting. Riders can take time to enjoy a walking trail and a full quarter-mile riding track edged with orange, grapefruit and pepper trees, plus currently under construction is a three-acre grass field which will have derby obstacles in addition to grand prix jumps, banks and a grob.

Whitethorne also features a specially designed 70-foot diameter European Exerciser, and a floodlit 60-foot round pen with a seven-foot wooden enclosure and double, full-height entry doors.

Karen Healey Stables Assistant Trainer and Manager Melissa Jones said, “We’re really excited to get settled into the new place. I can’t wait to watch Karen teach on the grass grand prix field. Georgy Maskrey-Segesman, her parents, and staff have been great fixing things up for us, including our new tack room. The horses are loving it here; they are so relaxed and happy.”

Healey herself noted, “One of the main reasons that we moved to Whitethorne is because they will handle all of the boarding, and we can focus solely on training. It will suit our business much better.”

Proving this to be true, riders at Karen Healey Stables had a very successful week at the Ranch & Coast Horse Show in Del Mar. Kristi Siam and her new horse Bonaparte Z won the Amateur-Owner 3’3″ Hunter Classic, while Savannah Jenkins and Winter Rose captured the Junior Hunter Classic. Karen Healey Stables riders swept the Junior/Amateur Jumper Classics as well – Kilian McGrath and Salerno won the $10,000 High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic, and Grace Shelton rode Friponnier II to the Low Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic win.

Karen Healey Stables will compete next at the Memorial Day Classic in Burbank, CA, on May 24-28, 2012.

Karen Healey will be based at Whitethorne Ranch along with Assistant Trainer/Barn Manager Melissa Jones and Assistant Trainer/Rider Tasha Visokay. Karen is a founding member of the USHJA Trainer Certification Program (TCP). Both Melissa and Tasha have successfully completed their USHJA TCP Certification.

Reprinted with permission from Jennifer Wood Media.

Riders celebrated Mother’s Day weekend at Verdugo Hills 4 (May 12-13) with the addition of a new main hunter ring as well as a brand new jumper ring. Not only were the rings improved, but the competition took on a higher level of quality. Riders tested out the new jumper ring while competing in the WCE Junior/Amateur Medal, the USEF Talent Search, and a full complement of jumper sections, from .70 to 1.30 meters. Positive changes enhanced the overall experience for riders, horses, and spectators alike.

Olivia Champ (Santiago Rickard and Karen Healey, trainers) triumphed in both the USEF Pessoa Hunt Seat Medal and the USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Medal aboard Le Prince (Orcas Stables, Inc., owner). Olivia’s goal was to qualify for the Talent Search Final, which she accomplished this weekend. Her plan was to make it around the course while still enjoying herself, and she exceeded her own expectations with her win.

Olivia credits her success to her trainers Santiago Rickard, who helps her with the jumpers, Karen Healey Stables for equitation coaching, and Le Prince. She commented, “I’ve had Le Prince for about three years, and I love spending time with him. He just loves to jump. At Verdugo Hills 4, I really enjoyed the new rings and thought the footing was great. I think the addition of a new jumper arena was a huge improvement. I also loved how everyone was so supportive and that all of the classes filled.”

Reprinted with permission from LEG Up News.

The Zone 4 USEF/USHJA members gave its riders a unique opportunity to join a clinic at the Palm Beach Equine Sports Complex in Wellington, FL on Monday, February 20, 2012. The clinician chosen for the first Riders Clinic of the year was the renowned Karen Healey. The clinic was free for all Zone 4 USEF/USHJA members of varying levels to either ride or audit at absolutely no cost, and the event proved to be nothing short of a success.

Healey’s reputation speaks for itself with numerous accolades and years of experience in the equitation, hunter and jumper rings. Not only did the Chronicle of the Horse name her the 2007 Hunter/Equitation Horseman of the Year, but also her winning system has led her clients to achieve success in the show ring time and time again. Similar to that of her mentor George H. Morris, Healey prides herself on developing horsemen in the truest sense of the word.

Healey started off the first session by explaining that she doesn’t teach equitation; however, she teaches riders to ride and horses to jump. She emphasized the importance of aids to the group of six riders: Charles Jacobs, Katie Jacobs, Olivia Woodson, Alex Cleveland, Natasha Mackoba and Sydney Casady. Healey observed the riders and their mounts to get a better feel for them before starting her demonstration, and to gain an additional amount of insight into each of the rider’s and their mount.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re jumping 2′ 6″ or 4′ 6″,” expressed Healey. “The same basics apply; when you close your leg the horse should go forward; you close your hands the horse should come back. You want to turn right and have the horse follow, you want to turn left, and the horse should follow you to the left.”

“Karen is such an amazing professional, she gives such good advice, and she’s so patient,” said Callahan. “She really took her time with each rider and horse. She gave us some great advice on how to work out issues we were having. I’m definitely going home knowing that I can improve on the softness of my hands and working on my corners and turns in my jump courses.” Callahan rides and trains out of Vero Beach, FL, with Atlantic Crossing.

The final session of the day had a more advanced group of six riders. The focus again was geared to each individual and their horse, but to advise the effect of aids and how the riders should release and follow the horse. The riders worked on being ahead of their mount and working on making the horse more aware of what was going to happen next.

The clinic was successful in getting riders out not only from Lakeland and Vero Beach, FL, but also from other states within Zone 4. “I think it was a great clinic today,” smiled Healey. “We had a lot of different issues, green horses, green riders, but that’s life and that’s how you learn varsity. If you have a great lesson then you have a great rehearsal, but if you have a problem and you solved it during the lesson then you had an even better lesson. Sometimes you have to fail in order to succeed.”

Other than teaching clinics, Healey’s dedication to the equine industry also involves the governance and guidance of the sport, through serving on the USHJA Committee as a Chairperson for the Equitation Taskforce, a member of the Hunter Taskforce and as a committee member of the Trainers Certification Program. She has also served on the Board of Directors for the American Hunter-Jumper Foundation since 1995, as well as being an active member of the Trainer’s Committee.

Reprinted with permission from Phelps Media Group.