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JOHN John grew up in Honeoye Falls, NY and lived just down the street from some kids that had a pony. John would go to the neighbors ostensibly to play with the kids but probably more to play with the pony. As the neighbors lived next door to where Mendon Pony Club held their mounted games practices, John and the kids couldn't help but watch. The result was that John came home one day and announced to his parents: "I want a pony." He told them he was even willing to join Pony Club in order to play games. So at 13 John got "Danny" his first pony. Danny came complete with tack but Danny wasn't quite fast enough for John. At one of the games practices, John was asked to ride a faster pony named Evil Knievel and with Evil he met his match for pony speed. When Evil came up for sale, John agreed to sell Danny in order to buy Evil but he insisted on riding in the trailer with Danny when he went to his new home. In the next few years, John and Evil helped the Mendon Pony Club win many games rallies and competitions. When John got too big for Evil, he found a bigger (13.2H) pony named Katie. Then, at 16, he bought his first horse and started eventing; ending his Pony Club years as a Graduate A. John earned his BA from the School of American Crafts at the Rochester Institute of Technology specializing in woodworking and furniture design. Little did his Professors know that he'd put his skills to work, not on furniture, but on designing and building cross-country jumps. John is now an USEF "R" licensed cross country course designer and has designed courses throughout the US including the 2005 American Eventing Championship courses (novice to advanced) in North Carolina and the new CCI** and CCI*** courses at Jersey Fresh. ELLEN Ellen grew up in the Seattle, Washington area where she pony clubbed and then moved east in the 1980's to become a working student for former Olympian Michael Plumb and to compete with her mare, Cindy, at the Preliminary level. The next 5 years were very busy. At the end of her working student year, Ellen was hired as a groom for another former Olympian, Karen Stives. She also earned a Bachelor's degree at Framingham State College in Massachusetts and worked at Dover Saddlery. Ellen most loved her job taking care of horses and developed a keen sense of their well-being. As Karen's groom, she got to travel with the horses to international competitions which led to her being hired by the United States Equestrian Team. As you may know, John and his horse - Outback Red, competed in the 1991 Pan American Games. It was there that John met his future wife, Ellen, who was the USET Stable Manager for the Pan Am Team. They were married in 1993. Because of Ellen's devotion to the horses and her and John's ability to know their horses inside and out, they make an exceptionally complimentary event team. Copyright © BP Equine Ltd., All Rights Reserved