Since I can remember, horses have been my passion. As I was growing up, everything revolved around horses, from my clothes to my curtains! I was born and raised in Guerneville, Calif. My mother was a rider at Oakridge Training Stables, so when I turned five, I started taking lessons at the European Pony School. At six years old, I competed in my first show and was hooked from there. I continued to ride at the Pony School until my family moved to Gunnison, Colorado, when I was eight years old. There were not a lot of English riders or trainers in the area, so I tried Western. I eventually tried barrel racing and roping. Though I enjoyed those disciplines, I still yearned to return to English riding.
When I was 12, my family moved back to Guerneville, and I was thrilled to be able to do three-day eventing again! That summer I got my first eventing horse and started to compete. During my high school years, I started and competed a lot of young horses and began competing other riders' young horses. I also worked at the European Pony School as an instructor, where I got to teach the fundamentals of riding to children every day. When I turned 19, I joined the U.S. Army. I spent four years as a combat medic and was stationed at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. After four years and a tour in Iraq, horses were still what I was thinking about!
Once I was out of the army and back in California, I started searching for the perfect trainer and barn to ride and work at, and I found Four Star Farm and Natalie Rooney Pitts. I could not be happier! Working for an eventing trainer of Natalie's caliber is feeding my passion, and I can't imagine doing anything else for the rest of my life.