Practical Horseman Podcast

Natalie Gavi is a lifelong rider and registered dietitian nutritionist who specializes in sports nutrition for the equestrian athlete. Through her practice, Gavi Nutrition, Natalie develops individualized nutrition plans to help riders reach their goals and optimize their health and performance. In this episode, Natalie explains how nutrition plays a role in a rider’s performance, the importa...

Eighteen-year-old Brian Moggre has taken the show-jumping world by storm. In March of 2019, Brian and his Westphalian gelding MTM Vivre Le Reve, or Erkel, picked up their first international win at the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Ocala. Moggre was just 17 at the time. His World Cup qualifier success continued into the next season, where he and Erkel won yet another qualifier—this time in...

Originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, international show jumper Andrew Welles developed his passion for horses at a young age. He grew up in the sport and eventually trained under equitation and show-jumping trainer Missy Clark and finished out his Junior career with her North Run crew. Andrew took a year off before he started college to train with Olympic gold medalist Chris Kappler, who we wor...

We’re trying something new this week—reading one of our favorite training articles from the magazine. One reason we’re releasing this special edition podcast is that this is the first full week of the coronavirus pandemic taking full effect in the United States. Some of you are working from home for the first time. Others of you are still going to work but your schedule has been vastly changed. An...

Grand-prix show jumper Karl Cook believes that understanding and tending to his horses’ physical well-being is critical to effective communication between horse and rider. This concept is something he has learned, in part, from Eric Navet, the 1990 World Equestrian Games team and individual gold medalist, who moved from his native France in 2013 to become Karl’s coach. Another valuable member of K...

Elizabeth “Beezie” Madden has been riding since she was 3 years old when her parents, who owned a farm near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, gave her a small gray pony named Flicka. She rode in junior equitation and hunter divisions, riding a borrowed horse in the then American Horse Shows Association National Hunter Seat Medal Finals, where she finished eighth. Interestingly, she didn’t ride in the jumper d...

Top hunter/jumper/equitation trainer Frank Madden has been a fixture in the winner’s circle at all the major equitation finals for over four decades. Recognized as one of the most successful trainers of young talent, his students dominate the junior ranks and finals. In addition to teaching, Madden is a respected clinician, top “R” judge and the head trainer and owner of Capital Hill Show Sta...

Twenty-seven-year-old Adrienne Sternlicht’s main passion has always been riding, but the 2018 World Equestrian Games team gold medalist has taken an unorthodox path to the top of the sport. Adrienne made her Nations Cup debut in May 2017 with her beloved mare, Cristalline, where they helped the U.S. team win the silver medal in Mexico. She continued on to be a member of se...

Olympic show jumper Laura Kraut’s four-decade career includes three appearances on both the U.S. Olympic team and the World Equestrian Games team. She has also competed in numerous World Cup Finals, has ridden in countless Nations Cups and has more than 100 grands prix wins.  In 1991, Laura got the ride on her first big-time grand prix partner, Simba Run. After a year together, Laura and Simb...

Andre Dignelli has been producing national hunter, jumper and equitation champions for over 20 years. He came from a non-horsey family and along with his two brothers, convinced his parents to move to rural New York where they eventually talked their father into building a makeshift barn so they could start their own boarding business.   At age 18, Andre won the 1985 US Equestrian T...

Carleton and Traci Brooks have a lifetime of experience with horses, an extensive teaching and training background and are known for their ability to match horses and riders to produce results. They run their successful hunter/jumper/equitation business, Balmoral Farm, which they operate in two California locations—Malibu and west Los Angeles. This unique setup allows them to provide their ho...

Boyd Martin is one of the world’s leading international event riders, and has had competitive success at every five-star across the globe. He has represented the United States at two Olympic Games, three World Equestrian Games and two Pan American Games. Today Boyd and his wife Silva, a Grand Prix dressage rider, own and operate their farm Windurra USA in Cochranville, Pennsylvania.  Boy...

Top groom Liv Gude spent years in the saddle riding hunters, jumpers, reining and ultimately dressage before she focused on learning all she could as a professional groom. She started her grooming career with Guenter Seidel in California in 2006, caring for his Olympic team bronze-medal partner Aragon. After grooming for years, Liv saw the need to bring professional grooms and horse owners togethe...

Founded by Bob Cacchione in 1967 when he was a sophomore at Farleigh Dickinson University, the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association’s goal is to give college students the opportunity to participate in equestrian competition regardless of financial status or riding level. The organization welcomes beginners through advanced riders in hunter-seat equitation, Western horsemanship and reining....

In this special Part II bonus episode, eventing icon Jim Wofford discusses a wide range of topics from what he struggled with as a rider and what he found easy to why he thinks he wouldn’t be a successful rider in today’s short format three-day event. He shares how he made the biggest improvements in his riding after what he calls a “down cycle”—when he didn’t have any top riding prospects. And he...

Jim Wofford is an eventing icon. As a rider, he competed in three Olympics—in 1968, 1972 and 1980, winning two team silver medals and one individual silver medal. He also rode in two World Championships in 1970 and 1978, winning individual and team bronze medals. He earned a team gold medal in the 1967 Pan-American Games and captured the U.S. National Championship five times on five different hors...

Top hunter rider and trainer Sandy Ferrell began riding at the age of 4 and progressed through a stellar junior career competing in the pony, hunter/jumper and equitation divisions .  She later opened her own business, Royall Show Hunters and has coached her clients to numerous championships at A-circuit horse shows. She is a six-time regional professional winner of the World Champion Hu...

Georgina Bloomberg isn’t just an international-level show jumper, she’s also a philanthropist and a devoted animal welfare advocate. She shares how she got involved in charity work, including how others can help as well. Georgina also talks about her training philosophies, competition strategies, how she handles disappointments and what motivates her as a rider to get better every day.  Hoste...

Hunter rider and trainer and U.S. Equestrian Federation “R” judge Tom Brennan started riding school horses at a local hunt-seat barn in Massachusetts. As a freshman at Stonehill College, he joined the school’s Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association riding team. By the end of his college career, he had won two individual championships at the IHSA Nationals and captained his team to the IHSA team c...

International show jumper Kevin Babington has represented his native Ireland in numerous international competitions including the 2002 World Equestrian Games and the 2004 Olympic Games. Based in the U.S., Kevin continues to train and compete at the highest level of the sport and has a passion for teaching. Hear about his early years riding in Ireland, what it was like working for Frank and Mary Ch...

Upper-level event rider Matt Brown has been a familiar name at the top of the sport for the past decade. Hear about his unique background, training philosophies, top horses and find out how he overcomes challenges to stay focused on his goals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Top eventer Selena O'Hanlon has been a stalwart of the Canadian team, competing at the 2008 Olympics, three consecutive World Equestrian Games and the Pan American Games. In this episode, she shares insight into her early riding education, how she got over her fear of jumping big jumps, what she's learned from her mentors, the horses most influential in her life, a simple training exercise for hor...

Top hunter rider Liza Towell shares her path to success, which includes learning how to handle mistakes and manage nerves. Liza also speaks on what, as an instructor, she sees students having trouble with in their own rounds and encourages people to focus on the basics—pace, balance and track. She shares how she has maintained her health after being diagnosed with a mild form of epilepsy and...

Hunter/equitation trainer Shelley Campf is a top West Coast hunter/equitation trainer and rider, who wrote a training article for  Practical Horseman magazine, “Get ‘In the Zone’ for Better Jumping.” In the article, she describes her training philosophy and program that teaches riders to  allow their horses to jump rather than feeling the need to  make their horses jump. Listen as S...

For over a decade, Allison Springer has been one of the top event riders in the United States. It’s not just her victories in competitions that make her a fan favorite—her horsemanship and focus on safety are paramount. Listen as Allison shares insights into these topics as well as training philosophies, mental-skills strategies and memories of some of her most successful equine partners. Hosted o...