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Floridian Laura Graves currently stands as the number one dres- sage rider in the world, according to the FEI. She and equine part- ner Verdades have risen to the top of the sport in the last five years, impressing spectators and judges alike with their graceful— and seemingly effortless—Grand Prix rides. At the recent World Equestrian Games held in North Carolina, the pair continued to wow audiences as they earned the individual silver and the U.S. team silver medals.
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his past August, nine jumper and hunter riders— amateurs, young riders and a professional—were fortunate to have one special day with Laura for a
“Dressage for Jumping” clinic. It was held in Aldie, Virginia at Ohana Equestrian Preserve for “Team Kama.” Auditors were welcomed to attend free of charge courtesy of Team Kama. How is it these jumpers had the opportunity to learn one-on-one from such a successful Olympian? This kind of event with a celebrity clinician is rare.
VIDEO CONTEST Thanks to the Washington International Horse Show’s (WIHS) Barn Night in 2017, trainer Kama Godek and Team Kama
ABOVE: Olympian and WEG silver-medalist Laura Graves during the August clinic with Team Kama. RIGHT: Laura and the nine participants at the clinic. Back row (L to R): Abby Grabowski, Laura Graves, Kama Godek, Erin Gilmore, Maya Aryal, Stefan Parker. Front row (L to R): Nicole Butchko, Stepha- nie Oberhausen, Casey Osborne, Piper Tyrrell.
All photos by Jump Media Warmbloods Today 35 li By Liz Cornell
received the clinic as the grand prize for winning the 2017 WIHS Barn Night Group Video Contest, sponsored by Barn- Manager. Team Kama produced, directed and starred in their amusing, action-packed video targeting the Barn Night theme of “Equestrians Around the World.” (The video is view- able at
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUhOtEo7my4&t=8s.) Kama knew the prize was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
for her and her students. “I lived in Europe and rode jump- ers there for more than a decade before returning to the U.S. in 2012. In Holland I was stabled with Dressage Olympian John Swaab who was a member of the ‘72 Munich Team for the Netherlands and in Germany I rented a stable for four years on the property of the family Stuhldreier who owned the Verden reserve world champion Revolverheld (by Rock- well). I witnessed firsthand the value of the German train- ing scale and importance of dressage for jumpers and young horses in Europe,” Kama said.
CLINIC HIGHLIGHTS There were nine participants in the clinic, which began with one lunging session followed by four groups of two riders. Rather than two riding at once, Laura chose to focus on each rider and conduct shorter one-on-one sessions. The first rider was Piper Tyrrell lunged by Laurie Pitts on the horse Air Force One (BWP by President). Then came Erin Gilmore riding Sirocco (KWPN by Iroko), Nicole Butchko on
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