Plaid.0 Episode 7- Maria Takacs, Robin Greenwood & Emily Elek

Send us Fan MailWelcome back to Plaid.0, a special from The Plaidcast, where we discuss topics going on in the heart of our sport. On today’s episode, we are discussing raising and developing junior riders in this sport. Host: Piper Klemm, publisher of The Plaid HorseGuest: Maria Takacs is a USEF large “R” Judge in Hunter and Hunter/Jumping Seat Equitation. Maria rode to many national titles as a junior and amateur rider including Devon, The Pennsylvania National, Washington International and The Capital Challenge. She has trained with many outstanding professionals including Leo Conroy, John French, Jennifer Bauersachs and David Belford. She now owns and operates Heathersfield Farm LLC, a private training and boarding stable located in Oldwick, New Jersey. Her students, which include her daughter, Samantha Takacs, have won numerous national titles including the USEF Pony Finals, Devon, Harrisburg, Washington and The Capital Challenge. Guest: Robin Greenwood is one of the country’s most venerated pony trainers. Her business now, a seven-stall barn and boutique client base at Grand Central Ponies in Southern Pines, North Carolina, was started in 1987 in North Salem, New York. After a very successful Amateur career, Robin decided to start her own business and name it after her famous Amateur Owner horse, Grand Central. Over the years, Robin has trained many top riders such as Jessica Newman, Tory Grauer Ketchum, Ashley Baker, Emma & Georgina Bloomberg and Caroline Passarelli.Guest: Emily Elek is the owner of Stonewall Farm in Ixonia, Wisconsin where she operates one of the largest pony leasing, sales, breeding and training operations. Emily takes a holistic view in developing ponies and riders for lifelong success.Subscribe To: The Plaid Horse MagazineSponsors: LAURACEA, Show Strides Book Series, With Purpose: The Balmoral Standard, and American Equestrian Schooltheplaidhorse.comThank you so much for joining us today on the Plaidcast. This podcast is a labor of love, and every single episode exists because of this incredible community of riders, trainers, barn managers, parents, and horse lovers who show up in the barn, in the ring, and right here with us.At The Plaid Horse, our commitment goes far beyond the show ring. We believe deeply in the power of literacy and education and that every rider, at every level, deserves access to knowledge, stories, and ideas that make them a better horseperson and a better human being. Reading matters. Learning matters. And the stories we tell each other in this sport matter more than we sometimes realize.Whether you are a junior rider picking up your first copy of The Plaid Horse  Magazine, a professional trainer looking for inspiration, or someone who simply loves horses and everything this world stands for then this community is for you. You belong here.We build this together. Every article, every episode, every conversation is an opportunity to learn something new, to feel less alone in the challenges of this sport, and to be reminded of why we fell in love with horses in the first place.Until next time, keep reading, keep learning, keep riding, and remember that the horse world is better when we build it together. I will see you at the ring!