Elevation Dressage & Eventing

08/31/2024

Cody is seeking a part-time partner! Suitable for children or smaller adults. Cody has lots of things to teach. He has been part of our program for many years!

06/15/2024

I have lots to be proud of with my group of students on the regular.

This particular thing has been a long time coming! Lori Brown and her horse You Don't Know Jack, went out on their own to ride First Level Test 1 at the Fads at By Chance while I was off judging. They scored 70% twice! This is a huge accomplishment!
Way to go you two!

05/25/2024

Team Elevation is at ESDCTA Memorial Day show at The Horse Park of NJ.
Brought some babies and some old soldiers. Showing starts tomorrow!

04/12/2024

7 years ago, Dave and I took a leap into leasing a farm. Over those years it has built an amazing barn community, full of love, support, acceptance, courage, determination, struggles and triumph!
Life is always changing and now is no different. The farm we and many others have called home is hopefully going to bring many wonderful days to someone new, which means it's time for us to go.

We are not going far, luckily there are some wonderful folks allowing us to join their barn communities just around the corner.

To all of our clients that have called this farm home, THANK YOU!

03/06/2024

Bates Saddles have done it again! They smartly came out with some beautiful new accessories. Highlighting the bold colors of the Bates Victrix in a soft supple belt, styled after their stirrup leathers!
For more exciting gift options follow the link to see what's new!
https://batessaddles.com/collections/gifts-and-accessories

03/03/2024

Sallie and I are back!!!! We came back out at Training after a 2 year hiatus, and it felt amazing. looking forward to our next run in a few weeks time. Thanks to our amazing supporters and sponsors for sticking with us while we took the time to allow Sallie to feel 100% so she could fly again. Bates Saddles Elevation Dressage & Eventing RidingRight.com VTO Saddlery M&K Custom Equine Creations Cavalor North America

02/02/2024

It's been a while since we posted! Nicki and Dave migrated to Majestic Oaks in Ocala Florida for the winter on Jan 1 and will be in town through the end of March.

It's amazing having this facility at our fingertips. Nothing better than an evening schooling and no trailering required!
See Nicki and Frankie jumping through the training coffin below.

12/23/2023

Merry Christmas! 🥰😊
Thank you to all of our clients and friends for being part of Team Elevation! Another fun holiday get together, minus a few members. Pics of White Elephant gift exchange!

11/04/2023

The Elevation Dressage & Eventing Team enjoying dinner before a full Saturday of showing! Nicki leads us off with Dressage at 11:40, then Remy and Dave will follow with everyone having completed Dressage and Stadium today! Good luck team!

11/03/2023

A driving we will go to the Virginia Horse Center Foundation for the fall event!

🥇Dave is riding Ace in his first recognized
⭐Remy is riding her own Clay at his first big overnight show
🏇Nicki is competing to get an eventing fix! It's been too long.

Looking forward to beautiful weather and fun rides!

11/02/2023

This is beyond exciting news. Our saddle brand of choice Bates Saddles has teamed up with the FEI. Now Bates Saddles is the saddles of choice for the USEA and now the FEI!

After years of positive work together with the Fédération Equestre Internationale on proactive, horse-first educational content, Bates Saddles is immensely proud to cement our relationship as the Official FEI Saddle Partner.

Read the full story: https://batessaddles.com/blogs/news/official-fei-saddle-partner

09/03/2023

The chestnut crew rocked at Waredaca this weekend!

Hayden and Frankie qualified for GAIGS in one weekend 🤩 Coming home with some blue ribbons to match those blue frankie eyes 😉 and some great scores that just kept getting better! 64%,66%,68%!!

Hanna and Lizzie brushed up on their freestyle with a 71% 😍 2nd place

And Alexis and Indy attended their FIRST RECOGNIZED today and rocked it with a 67% and 69% T2 and 3🎉🎉

Very proud of everyone and it's exciting to watch horses that my mom bred and I trained, carrying students to these opportunities.

05/23/2023

Congratulations Hanna and Elin on graduating from Linganore HS! Some of our first "barn children" are all grown up! We love you guys!

05/21/2023

Judging at Fair Hill Recognized this weekend!

04/16/2023

After a busy horseshow filled weekend, Nicki has found time to unwind. 6 students at By Chance farm FADS Dressage yesterday, and 2 Students today at Maryland Horse Trials as well as a busy weekend last weekend with Students competing at VADA NOVA Spring Morven Park on Saturday and CDCTA Spring HT on Sunday, this drink is well deserved. Congratulations to all our students on a busy and successful two weeks and good job Nicki for enduring!

04/10/2023

Show season is off and running for Team Elevation! Here's a recap of last week's adventures.

Wednesday 4/5 Loch Moy Twilight:

Hayden and Frankie - 1st BN Division C
Annalissa and Addie - 1st Elementary Division B
Elin and Cody - 1st Elementary Division C
Jamie and Rolls - 2nd Elementary Division C

Saturday 4/8 VadaNova Spring Dressage at Morven:

Hanna and Silvie - 2nd Training Test 3
6th First Level Test 2

Lori and Jack - 2nd Training Test 3
1st First Level Test 1

Sunday 4/9 CDCTA Spring HT:

Hayden and Frankie - 2nd Beginner Novice Rider

Reace and Sketti - 11th Open Training

03/31/2023

Coach and Nicki are settled in for March Magic Dressage at the Carolina Horse Park!

03/13/2023

This is a tribute to one of the BEST horses we have ever had in our lives. Santiago or Santa as most know him, is 23 this year. It's finally time for him to step down and enjoy some quiet riding time. His amazing work ethic and schoolmaster abilities are hard to match. These kinds of horses don't come along every day.
He first came to us as a sales horse who showed Dave and I how fun it was to jump the big sticks again. Until he found an amazing family, The Dinges' and their daughter Grace.
Unfortunately college came calling and they reached out to us, knowing how much we enjoyed our time with Santa and offered for him to come back to us. Of course we said yes!
He then got to resume his eventing career and moved up to Prelim with Dave. He taught Aleena how to jump big again and then Mitch got the ride on Santa. And man did they have some fun! Santa and Mitch worked together through Prelim and even some more difficult fancy prancing dressage moves.
Santa then got a step down to jumping the smaller things and showing Lindsey the ropes of recognized dressage competition. He took her last year at the age of 22, down centerline at the GAIG finals at not just training, but first level too! As well as being an amazing partner for Paddy who got back into riding dressage after years away.
He has taught numerous students, young and old, how wonderful riding and showing is. Always a reliable partner with sometimes just a little bit of s***k!
NOW it's time to "retire" as they say. Santa will be heading off to VA to enjoy some quiet riding time with our dear friend Judy. She will love him to pieces and give him a great place to continue his slowing down years.
Thank you Santa for giving us so much JOY! You deserve this more than you could ever know.

02/08/2023

Getting packed for our Aiken trip! Gotta have all the essentials including our favorite feed
Zoe is busy telling Rae that this is one of our favorite trips during the year!
Headed to Stableviews I Love Dressage this weekend!

01/20/2023

Week 2 Trailer training for River

He was curious, but not as interested in coming up to see me. So, with low pressure I asked him to move his feet till he gave me something I wanted. Eventually he decided that he could come up and visit! Even snacked on some hay before deciding he'd had enough for the day.

01/20/2023

Thank you &kcustomequinecreations for a refreshed sign!

01/18/2023

David is going to be one of three panelists for this years USEA Area II Annual Awards Banquet and Safety Master Class. If you are an Area II eventer, you will not want to miss out!!


Area 2 Annual Awards Banquet and Safety Master Class - PLEASE SHARE!
Register here! https://usea2.net/33-news/news/809-2022-banquet-date-announced

Safety master class featuring a panel of experts discussing:

· MIPS helmet technology and research

· Assessing the correct fit of helmets and cross country vests

· Risk reduction best practices when designing a cross country course

Sunday, January 29th, at Rockfield Manor in Bel Air, MD

· 10am Registration

· 10:30am – 12:00pm Safety Master Class

· 12:00 – 1:30pm Awards Banquet

· 1:30 – 3:00 Helmet and Vest Fittings

Details:

Join us on Sunday, January 29th at the gorgeous Rockfield Manor historic mansion in Bel Air, MD for our annual awards banquet and safety master class! We’ll be featuring three experts who will bring their unique experiences and perspectives on rider safety. Emily Daignault-Salvaggio is our local MIPS helmet guru and passionate about spreading the word about this innovative technology. She’ll kick off our session by discussing why she started this crusade to educate folks on the benefits of MIPS technology, current and ongoing research, and exciting developments that are looming on the horizon. Next, Kim Chick, co-owner of Fair Hill Saddlery and tack fitter extraordinaire will speak about the importance of helmet and cross country vest fit, ways to assess correct fit, and considerations when purchasing these items. She’ll also be available throughout the event to offer on-site fittings for a range of MIPS helmets and cross country vests. Last but certainly not least, David Taylor, co-owner of Elevation Dressage & Eventing and USEF ‘R” eventing cross country course designer will share with us his approach to reducing the risk as much as possible on the courses he designs, as well as factors he takes into account when he’s considering jump design, terrain, combinations, etc. We’re looking forward to three very interactive sessions that will allow ample time for Q&A and discussion!

Following our panel of safety experts, we’ll have our annual awards banquet featuring ribbons, prizes, celebrations, and of course- a delicious lunch!

Registration is open to anyone, regardless of whether you’re a USEA member, and costs $10. Please register by January 25th using the link below. See you there!

https://usea2.net/33-news/news/809-2022-banquet-date-announced

Eventing in USEA Area 2

01/14/2023

Such a simple and seemingly uninteresting photo, but such great steps towards confidence for Mr. River and trailer loading. Patience and clear boundaries encouraged River to be curious rather than worried or forced. He has never been a good trailer loader and we are working on making that better. He did eventually put both front feet across the threshold and stand with his head, neck and shoulders just inside the trailer. There was no force involved with these moments and it was very rewarding to see these results.

01/10/2023

Team Elevation has two training/show team stalls opening Feb 1. Come join us for the 2023 season!

👉 Owned and operated by professional riders and USEF licensed officials
Nicki Carson: USEF "r" Eventing Judge, FEI Rider and
David Taylor: USEF "R" Course Designer and Upper Level Rider.

⭐We offer a supportive, positive, competitive atmosphere to Adult and Junior riders. Regular outings to Region 1 dressage shows and Area 2 events.

🐴Indoor ring, outdoor ring, climate controlled lounge and tack room. Barn manager lives on site. Various turnout situations to suit your horse.
For more information or to schedule a visit please contact Nicki at 240-405-0193 or [email protected]

⭐We also offer short term training packages for tune ups, young horse training, etc.⭐

01/09/2023

Better late than never right?! We had our Christmas barn party in Dec and captured this awesome picture of everyone that's part of our team! We love and appreciate all of you!
Once again, the potluck food was amazing, the white elephant gift exchange the largest ever for us and entertaining as usual 😉 !

11/27/2022

Team Elevation made a quick trip to Swan Lake today for the jumper show. Congrats to the newer team members Molly and Trip (left) Anna and Addie (right) on a successful day! Pictured in the back, Midget team members Nicki and , Reace, Dave and 😆

11/18/2022

Just some lovely bay mares with some lovely teenage girls!

11/06/2022

We want to congratulate the Hersh Family on the purchase of Lock At Midnight "Olaf". He was a pleasure to have in the barn, and we all know Dave is certainly going to miss his bigger than life buddy... keep an eye out for Olaf in Area II

10/17/2022

We're not just about horses... sometimes we are all about Corg's at the biggest event on the east coast. Elevation Zoe reigns Supreme at the Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill in the Maryland Corgi Cup presented by Major League Eventing sponsored by Mars, Incorporated Fair Hill Saddlery Mane 'n Tail Equine FAIRFAX & FAVOR and Springtime Supplements

The Maryland Corgi Cup is a new event at the Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill in Elkton, a four-day showcase for competition in Dressage, Cross-Country and Show Jumping that concluded on Sunday.

10/10/2022

So many more photos to come! Thank you so much! Lori for being our photographer this weekend on top of your riding duties. It was a very big championship show for region 1 this year. Everyone rode, made it through their tests and we all had fun together! Maybe not the exact results we were all looking for, but a great learning experience nonetheless. Very proud to have brought six students and horses along with my own horse this weekend. Thank you ladies for trusting me to help you reach these goals.