About Kathy

Kathy Connelly is an international rider, trainer and coach. She has won National titles at all FEI levels, including United States Grand Prix Champion and United States World Cup Champion. She has represented the United States Dressage Team at the World Cup in Gothenburg, Sweden and was a member of the Grand Prix bronze medal team at the North American Championships. Kathy has trained extensively in Europe with the late Herbert Rehbein, and also trained in Austria with Ernst Bachinger, who was 20 years at the Spanish Riding School. One of Kathy’s specialties is training piaffe and passage on the long lines.

Kathy has trained and coached horses and riders to all National and FEI level titles in the United States, and has also coached successfully abroad. Among those are the 1995 United States Young Rider Champion, the 1999 Individual Silver Medalist at the Pan American Games, and the 2003 Canadian World Cup Champion. She also coached in Australia in 2003, the Silver Medal winning United States Young Rider Team. Kathy has also acted as Chef d’equipe for the United States: Co-Chef d’equipe for the United States Team in Hickstead, England in 1999 and Chef d’equipe for the United States Silver Medal Young Rider International Team in Australia in 2003.

Kathy is a member of the High Performance Committee for the USET. She is a member of the USEF Dressage Committee and is chair of the USEF subcommittee for Test Writing. She is a member of the USEF Licensed Officials Committee. Kathy is a member of the USDF Planning Committee. She was co-chair of the USDF Evaluation of the Certified Instruction Program, and is now a member of the USDF Certified Instruction Steering Committee and is a Certification Examiner. Kathy is chairperson of the USEF International Dressage Symposium.

Kathy has had published numerous articles in all United States Dressage magazines, is co-author of the book, Dressage Insights Excerpts from the Experts, and is on the Advisory Board of "Dressage Today".

Kathy is a USEF "S" judge and a popular clinician. She trains at Apple Valley Farm in Harvard, MA and in the winter in Wellington, FL.

Kathy has partnered for 9 years with Toine Hoefs to find horses of all levels from foals through international Grand Prix horses for riders. The marketplace includes all of Europe and the United States. They co-own, along with U.S. Hyperion Farm, Uptown (Kennedy-Carina/Ubis), the winner of the 2004 KWPN Stallion Show in Holland. Uptown also won the 2004 – 70 day test and was the 2004 Dutch Pavo Cup 4 year- old champion. He is presently in training for the 2006 5 year-old World Championship and is ridden by Hans Peter Minderhoud. They have found horses for many successful national and international riders. They also own. along with Hyperion Farm, Wicked Good (Rhodium-Jetset D) selected at the 2006 Stallion Show to go to the 70 day test. Wicked Good was selected and trained by Toine.

About Toine

Toine is based in Holland – an important hub of dressage horses, with close proximity to Germany, Belgium, France, Denmark, and other top-producing countries. He attends about forty competitions each year. His personal relationships and respected reputation across Europe enable access to quality horses, often prior to their being offered for sale on the open market.

Toine grew up as a jumper rider, and also enjoyed extensive success as a farrier for twenty years. He has been a licensed KWPN breeding judge for thirteen years.

Toine and his wife Ingrid have operated their own breeding operation – "Stal Hoefs" – since 1982 at Erp, Holland. He has received international acclaim for his many successful home bred and raised horses including the German Oldenburg approved Ex Libris (the sire of Eskapado who did the Olympics with Carl Hester and now doing GP with Hans Peter Minderhoud) and Dutch bred Juventus, who was Reserve Champion in the 100-day test in Holland and Grand Champion Stallion at Devon in 2000, and Uptown (Kennedy-Carina/Ubis) who was the 2004 KWPN Dutch Stallion Champion and the champion of the 2004 Dutch 70 day test.

Toine’s extensive experience with European bloodlines is brought to bear when offering professional advice in developing foundation stock for your breeding program.

Additionally, Toine has helped a number of riders with their young horses, including Floridian Jodie Kelly, a member of the 2000 North American Young Rider Gold Medal Team on Reagan.

Toine judged the Breeding Show at Dressage at Devon 2004 and will also be judging the Devon Breeding Show 2006. Toine was the presenter at the 2005 USEF Dressage Sport Horse Seminar in California.

Toine and his wife, Ingrid, speak excellent English.