Sandy Ferrell and Showman

Each year, Colorado Horse Park (CHP) produces education programs with the aim of advancing equestrians of all disciplines. CHP has assembled an extraordinary group of clinicians for the 2013 season. These clinics are not to be missed! 

“We are thrilled about our clinic schedule this year,” said Kyle Fenner, from CHP and CHP Foundation. “The Foundation is committed to supporting educational programs that benefit amateur equestrian sports in all disciplines, including advancing rider and trainer skills, conditioning for both riders and horses and safety for all at every level of the sport. We hope everyone attends and takes advantage of these great opportunities to become better riders and horsemen.”

2013 CHP Educational Clinics

April 13 and 14 – Sandy Ferrell – Hunters April 20 and 21 – James Atkinson – Eventing April 20 and 21 – Mike Flarida – Reining May 4 and 5 – Brian Sabo – Eventing June 24 through 28 – USHJA Emerging Athlete Clinic with Cynthia Hankins

With Krista and Alexa Weisman’s “super-horse” Showman, Ferrell earned the Westphalian gelding First Year Green Hunter and Grand Green Hunter Championship honors at the 65th Annual Pennsylvania National Horse show in 2010. Showman was inducted into the National Show Hunter Hall of Fame and earned the title Horse of the Year for 2010. In 2011, Ferrell was Co-Grand Hunter Champion and Leading Hunter Rider at the 2011 Capital Challenge Horse Show.

Click here for the entry form for the Sandy Ferrell clinic.

On April 20 and 21, James Atkinson will hold an eventing clinic at CHP. Atkinson hails from England, where he learned his horsemanship skills from both Pony Club and his family. He immigrated to Canada at age 13 and spent his youth riding competitively.

Atkinson and his horse, The Revisionist, represented Canada at the World Equestrian Games and the Pan American Games and competed twice at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event. Atkinson has experience at the highest levels of eventing on numerous horses. Recently, Atkinson teamed with Carolyn and Robin Hoffos’ Gustav to place seventh individually and win the Team Silver Medal for the Canadian Equestrian Team at the Pan American Games in 2011.

When not riding and instructing, Atkinson works on designing and building cross-country courses throughout California and the Western United States, including a yearly trip to North Carolina.

Click here for James Atkinson’s Cross Country, Pacing and Speed Schooling Clinic.

Also on April 20 and 21, reining mega-star Mike Flarida will teach a clinic at the CHP. Flarida, who hails from Georgetown, KY, is a legendary NRHA Hall of Famer, multiple NRHA World Champion, a two-time NRHA Futurity Open Champion and a multiple All-American Quarter Horse Congress Futurity Champion. He has been competing in reining since 1982.

In 1998, reining became the sixth discipline approved by the United States Equestrian Team. In 1999, reining made its debut at the USET Festival of Champions, in Gladstone, NJ, the first time a western discipline has been included as a competitive equestrian sport. Flarida captured the first Gold Medal in Reining. Mike Flarida was inducted into the NRHA Hall of Fame in 2009.

Flarida is known as a clinician who appeals to all levels of riders. He will work with riders to improve every reining maneuver, helping both reiners and cowhorse folks improve their scores and have more fun showing their horses.

Click here  for more information about the Mike Flarida Clinic.

A Brian Sabo eventing clinic is scheduled for May 4 and 5, 2013.  Sabo is the current President of the United States Eventing Association. He first competed in the sport of eventing in 1962 and is a major figure in the eventing world. In 1984, he was named leading rider. Also that year, Sabo designed and built the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Eventing show jumping course. He has coached both the Vaulting and Eventing Young Riders programs.

Currently, Sabo is a member of the USEA Board of Governors and on the Executive Committee. He is also a highly respected trainer and a faculty member of the USEA Instructors Certification Program. Sabo works with Gina Miles and McKinlaigh, who won the individual Silver Medal in the 2008 Olympics.

On Saturday, the first day of the two-day clinic, Sabo will work with horse and rider as a team with a dressage warm-up leading into stadium jumping. Core issues will be discussed and exercises will help riders resolve challenges through observation and explanation. Sabo will lead the group through stadium jumping exercises, emphasizing the importance of flat work.

Sunday’s focus is cross-country. The goal is to leave riders with a solid understanding of how to improve their riding and their horses and to help them discover the tools they need to assess progress and move forward.

Click here for more information about the Brian Sabo clinic.

The much-anticipated USHJA Emerging Athlete Clinic is scheduled for June 24 through 28. Each year, hundreds of young riders apply to the Emerging Athletes Program (EAP) in hopes of furthering their education. The EAP was created specifically to provide opportunities for those young riders to advance their education, as they strive to become knowledgeable horsemen.

The CHP Clinic is one of ten regional clinics, each held over four days, offered throughout the country. A total of 24 riders will be selected for each of the regional clinics.

Cynthia Hankins, a junior equitation star and the 1975 winner of the American Horse Show Association Medal Finals, will lead the group. Hankins spent much of her professional career traveling between the U.S. and France, where she rides and trains at a top-breeding farm. Many of her students have gone on to become successful professionals within the hunter/jumper industry.

Hankins holds a USEF R-rated judge’s license in both Hunter and Hunter Seat Equitation. She has judged numerous shows in the U.S. and France, as well as several equitation finals including the 2011 American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Maclay Finals at the Alltech National Horse Show in Lexington, KY.

In addition to judging and training, Hankins shares her knowledge and expertise with riders as a top clinician, a guest coach at EquestrianCoach.com and a contributor to The Chronicle of the Horse and Practical Horseman.

Click here for more information about the USHJA Emerging Athlete Clinic at CHP.

To learn more about the EAP go to: http://ushja.org/programs/eap/eap_intro.aspx 

About the Colorado Horse Park

Celebrating its 20th Anniversary, the Colorado Horse Park was founded by visionary Helen Krieble who acknowledged the need for a high-volume horse show and horse boarding facility to serve Colorado. The Colorado Horse Park welcomes more than 75,000 visitors per year and hosts over 40 competitions annually. CHP features a derby arena designed by Olympic-designer Linda Allen and a cross-country course designed by Olympic Gold Medalist, David O’Connor. There are 300 permanent stalls with capacity for more than 1,000 stalls.

The picturesque property, located only minutes from the town of Parker, hosts international equestrian events in multiple disciplines. Visitors enjoy the beautiful Colorado Rocky Mountain surroundings and access to miles of trails and open space. The Colorado Horse Park iscommitted to supporting equestrian education and amateur athletics, preserving open space, fundraising for local charities and supporting the community.

Visit CHP at: http://coloradohorsepark.com/