The Trainer of the Year Award was developed to recognize the hard work by those who prepare and maintain
our most valuable team members - our horses.
Ingrid Hamar, Visalia, California
Cows were the family business but horses were Ingrid's passion and, in 1984, she began training horses full time alongside master dressage trainer, Willie Arts at her parent's celebrated stable, DG Bar Ranch. Ingrid gives much of the credit to the horses themselves, "They have to have it in them. From there, the rest is pretty standard."
Patti Skipton, Warm Beach, Washington
Patti ran a large club in Watsonville California for many years. After a short vacation from vaulting (we all knew she could not stay away),
she quickly developed the largest club in Region III. Of course her vaulters' successes are built on her steady -
and growing - stable of reliable Belgian vaulting horses.
Julie Divita, Woodside, California
Julie is the owner and trainer of (among others) Giovanni and Lorino who have won the last three "AVA Horse of the Year" Awards. Her calm dedication to her horses and her club has resulted in top level horses for her vaulters.
Krista Poppenberg, Woodside, California
Krista has been a mainstay of the Woodside Vaulting Club for many years. Her consistant, high-level horse training
has helped bring the club to it's present
world class status.
Carolyn Bland, Moorpark, California
For the first time an AVA trainer was honored with the new AVA Trainer of the Year Award. It was presented to Carolyn Bland of Moorpark, California.
Carolyn has trained top level dressage and vaulting horses, riders and vaulters. She is a longeur par excellence. Congratulations.
"Carolynís contribution to the success at the WEG2006 was great, but her contribution to the AVAís efforts to improve horsemanship within our own ranks is
even more important and more positively far-reaching for the future." J. Ashton Moore (FEI O)