As a trainer, Carolyn Bland strives to put herself out of business.
“I try to teach my clients with the idea that one day they won’t need me,” says the Britain-born Carolyn, who has run a successful dressage training and sporthorse sales enterprise in Southern California since she moved to the States in 1982. Carolyn now operates her approximately 50-horse business, Cadence Sport Horses, at Castlerock Farm in the Los Angeles area’s Moorpark.
She has successfully launched many a rider’s career, but loyal customers and a steady influx of new clients make it unlikely that she’ll be training herself out of business anytime soon. Even if she did get all of her students to complete self-sufficiency, Carolyn would still be busy standing two stallions, maintaining a regular supply of sale horses and helping world champion vaulter Devon Maitozo’s vaulting club with its horses.
Although a Starbucks fix jump-starts her days, Carolyn is not a fast-track trainer. Getting horse and rider to work in harmony is a slow process that starts with the rider attaining independent balance. “I don’t ever want to see one of my students showing at Fourth Level and having to use the horse’s mouth to sit the trot,” Carolyn notes. “My methods can be a bit slower, but I think the results are better in the end.”

A Well Rounded Start
Growing up in England, Carolyn had what she describes as “the great advantage” of going through the British Horse Society’s rigorous and extensive training system. “You study conformation, ailments, stable management, even down to barn safety and fire drills,” she explains. “You become an overall horse person.”
As a student at the Fulmer School of Equitation, Carolyn was especially influenced by dressage instructor Robert Hall. “That’s when I came to understand what forward feel means,” she reflects. “Robert taught me about the biomechanics of the horse, about non-offensive riding and the core elements of classical riding.”
Professionally, Carolyn started as an eventing rider and trainer. Given the broad nature of equestrian sports in England, Carolyn ran a diverse business that entailed training a small group of students, starting and schooling young horses and competing herself and with her clients in show pony, working hunter and jumper divisions.
She moved to California intent on continuing her eventing endeavors. But the quality of events here at the time was a sad surprise when compared to what she’d been accustomed to in England. Her turn to dressage was the silver lining in that scenario. “I quickly found that I could really help people,” she says. “It didn’t matter to me what breed of horse it was.”
Carolyn’s business grew quickly and has earned sustained success in the intervening years. Currently, her clientele include mostly amateurs competing from Training Level to Prix St. Georges, and a junior working toward qualifying for the North American Young Riders Championships.
Managing a 50-horse barn effectively would not be possible without Cindy Stephenson, Carolyn’s assistant of the past four years. Like her boss, Cindy has a varied equestrian background that includes eventing, dressage, equitation and even polo. As a result, she is a well rounded rider and coach, Carolyn reports proudly. Cindy is a solid competitor, too, and has competed up to Intermediaire 1.
The Cadence Sport Horse crew typically competes at two shows per month. The itinerary ranges from FEI level competitions to local shows that give newer amateurs their chance to shine. In either case, Carolyn is careful to balance her time away with plenty of time at home so that horses and riders’ training continuity remains high. Cindy is a particularly huge help in this regard, Carolyn adds.

Sales, Stallions & Vaulting
Sales horses are another part of Cadence Sport Horses. For many years, Carolyn has worked with a European farm to ensure a steady supply of young prospects. “We select them for movement and temperament and, because of this long standing relationship with the farm, we get what we want.” Amateurs comprise the majority of Cadence’s clients and Carolyn knows that rideability is paramount. “It’s fine for a professional to get a hot horse, but an amateur needs to be able to sit on these horses. My philosophy is that, if you can’t put the client on the horse, they won’t stay interested.”
Cadence Sport Horses stands and trains two stallions. Zapelli is a 3 year old Dutch Warmblood who seems destined for dressage stardom. Antares is a 4 year old Dutch Warmblood with a lot of Holsteiner blood. The horse is currently schooling dressage and cavaletti and Carolyn predicts he’ll be a great match for dressage and jumping oriented mares.
Carolyn also trains the vaulting horses for F.A.C.E. (Free Artists Creative Equestrian), the club that launched Devon Maitozo’s run for a World Equestrian Games individual gold medal in 1998 and a WEG team silver in 2006. Careful management has enabled the team’s horses to perform well past their typical prime years, a reality that helps those pursuing a sport that hasn’t yet secured significant financial backing.

A Veteran’s Observations
Reflecting on her 25 years in the United States, Carolyn observes that the quality of horses has improved greatly. She approves of the trend toward refined Warmbloods that tend to be more suitable for women riders.
She applauds her fellow professionals, the USEF and the USDF for their ongoing efforts to educate riders and trainers and promote the sport at all levels. “The horse business is a labor of love. You’re never going to make millions at it and you just need to keep enough money in the bank in case you come across that horse you really want. You have to really enjoy what you do every day.”
For more information on Carolyn Bland and Cadence Sport Horses, please call 818-497-2947 or visit the website www.cadencesporthorses.com.