Instructor & Trainer
USDF Bronze, Silver, & Gold Medalist

Jackie Smith of Lyman, Maine has 25 years of experience working with riders and horses of all levels. In her early competitive years, she evented through the levels, enjoying the training challenges and opportunities along the way. Now with her focus solely on dressage, her achievements include bronze, silver, and gold medals from the United States Dressage Federation, numerous New England Dressage Association and All-Breed awards, and competing at the very highest level of the sport, Grand Prix.

Working principally out of Maine (and Florida in the winter months), Jackie instructs, offers clinics, and shows her clients' horses in national and international competitions. The horses she trains and her students have won classes from Training through FEI Levels. Jackie's dressage influences span fifteen years of work with Sue Jaccoma, and include other trainers such as Pam Goodrich, Michael Poulin, Sue Downer, and Ann Gribbons. Additionally, she borrows from the teachings of John Lyons, Ray Hunt, and Buck Branamen, using groundwork techniques to lay a foundation of respect and communication that ultimately carries over to work under saddle. In the saddle, she emphasizes the value of a correct, balanced position that enables the rider to give clear, precise aids. The most important training tool, in her opinion, is praise - rewarding our equine partners with good timing and good intent.

Jackie's strong work ethic, good instincts, and unwavering passion for bringing out the best in horses has made her the talented trainer she is today. Similarly, her zeal for learning and desire to pass on that education to others has made her the kind of instructor she is today - one who is dedicated to helping her students' reach their own goals and dreams.

"Riding should be fun, and if it isn't, one should make the necessary corrections and return to soft, enjoyable riding. Let's enjoy the journey together - instructor, student, and equine partner." - Jackie Smith