For junior riders, ‘catch riding’ is a huge thing in the hunter/equitation world, and to some degree in the jumper world. As a freelancing professional, it’s a little tougher; most...
When we see equines in the Gaza Strip today, it is via images of donkeys pulling large barrels of water and horses serving as life-saving ambulances. But hidden in the...
I am probably more old-school than most, so I see our industry as being very different than it used to be. I’m not sure if it’s for the good or...
As a trainer, teaching a 7-year-old, I would immediately put him or her on a pony. To start, the size is the best fit, safety-wise. I have always felt that...
This is very hard because you must understand that, truthfully, the equitation division is like figure skating: the look does matter. As a trainer, I personally don’t think the best...
I have such mixed emotions about this one! I began training in the day that thoroughbreds were being used less and less, and warmbloods started being used far more often...
Del Mar Fairgrounds is a hallowed ground in Thoroughbred horse racing. Founded in 1937 and put on the map by crooner Bing Crosby, Del Mar was Hollywood’s summer playground in...
For the uninitiated, “the jog,” as it’s often referred to, was a required part of certain recognized hunter divisions at USEF-rated competitions. Riders who’d placed in a class were called...
The path to a high-level, professional riding career in the hunter/jumper industry has changed SO much in the last 20 years. Today, the cost of horses, shows, and full-training/care has...
Like everything else in life, the more you trust someone, the more vulnerable you are to getting hurt. Horse sales are no different. In a perfect world, every trainer...
This is a question that oh-so many parents don’t fully understand. Riding in college is a very different game from other sports. First and foremost is the pipeline aspect. Many...
Question courtesy of Curtis Pool. This is a very complicated question as there are so many different points of view when it comes to teaching people to ride. As a...
This is very straightforward to me. As a trainer, I think too many of us are scared of their owners/clients. Horses don’t have to do all that they do for...
This is a tough subject. As a trainer, I have a really hard time with social media and the time it takes our kids away from “real time” with their...
Dana Hart Callanan is a successful hunter, jumper and equitation coach, an ‘R’ judge, and a sales broker. Here she answers common questions about A level sport. A: As a...
Do you think horse prices should be published/public knowledge? It's no secret that equestrian sport, like many elite sports, has a lot of money involved. One thing that we have...
“Well, at least the robots won’t train horses,” I joked to a fellow English teacher as we chatted about the rise of Artificial Intelligence-generated college essays and programs like Moonbeam...
For most of us in the equestrian world, horses are our entire lives. The barn is where we spend most of our time and, let's be honest, all of our...
Sexual misconduct and abuse have long been an issue in equestrian sport, and is often ignored, minimized, or wrongly blamed on the victim. The equestrian community is no longer sitting...
It's International Women's Day! To celebrate, Hannah Selleck, Georgina Bloomberg, Laura Kraut, Mavis Spencer and Karen Polle are inviting you to hang out. Virtually. And listen as they share their...
