Hi!

Welcome to my website. I'm a seventeen year-old Midwestern girl, who loves to ride horses, and I also love competing in a variety of equestrian sports.

I began taking my first riding lessons as a birthday present when I turned eight. At age nine, I started competing, at first doing hunter shows. For my tenth birthday, I got my first horse, Caddo Chief. My parents weren't really planning on buying a horse, yet, but we had been leasing Caddo for a few months, and in that time they saw what an incredibly special bond the two of us had. At that point in time, my coach was training a couple of my good friends in Eventing, so I decided I wanted to try it, too. Only three months after I got Caddo, he and I competed in--and won--our first horse trial at the Beginner Novice level. I rode Caddo through the Training level, and together, he and I won the USEA Area IV Beginner Novice Championships and Training Level Championships (we missed the Area IV Novice Championships, going to the inaugural American Eventing Championships). In what has been by far the saddest part of my equestrian life, Caddo got hurt on the cross-country phase of our first attempt together at the Preliminary level. That injury ultimately proved to be a mortal one, and at the end of February 2006, I lost my best friend, Caddo Chief.

When I was twelve, we got Kilkenny Castle (Kel), and he and I started competing together at the Training level. Rising from the grief of Caddo's death, we had what turned out to be an unbelievable year in 2006, competing at the Preliminary level and in several One Star (international) competitions. That year, we won the team gold medal at the North American Young Riders Championships, the Junior/Young Rider division of the American Eventing Championships at the Preliminary Level, and I finished off the year as the USEA Junior Preliminary Rider of the Year.

2008 was another extremely exciting year. It started off rather slowly, as my new mare, Irish Odyssey, and I got to know each other, developing mutual trust and confidence. Once we clicked, great things began to happen. We won CIC* competitions at Otter Creek and Maui Jim, and in the biggest win of my equestrian life, so far, we won the team and individual gold medals in the CCI* division of the North American Junior/Young Riders Championships. In addition to riding Irish Odyssey, I also started riding Call on Me, and the two of us began competing in my first Intermediate level competitons. We won at Richland Horse Trials, and completed my first CCI** at Fairhill International in the fall. Topping off the year, I was once again honored to be the USEA Junior Preliminary Rider of the Year.

2010 is going to be a big year for the horses and me. I am hoping to be able to finally make it to, and successfully compete at the Advanced Level with Call on Me. Also, I will be competing in the Young Event Horse Series for the first time with the two junior most members of the team, Bada Bing M2S and Beltway Bandit M2S. I am also looking foraward to Bayama having a breakout year, Irish Odyssey continuing to show her prowess at the 1 Star level, and finally bringing newcomer, Voodoo Warrior, on board later in the season.

I have been more than blessed with much success as a rider so far, and I hope to continue to do well to the very top of the sport of Eventing. As I continue competing in the upper levels of this sport, I am hoping to be able to continue to attract more sponsorship to help with my continued success in this very expensive endeavor, and maybe if I am very lucky, I will be able to continue riding for owners who will go with me to the very top.

I hope you enjoy my website. Check out my schedule, and come watch me ride sometime! If you can't make it to a horse trials, follow my season with me on twitter (CJEventing). If you love horses, once you have seen the sport of Eventing, you'll be hooked!