KMS Eventing

23/08/2024

A little Sophie appreciation post just because 🦄💓

20/08/2024

11/08/2024

Grateful for every ride on Air Sophie 🚀
Had our first jump school since Maryland and she is feeling phenomenal (and quite spicy)!! Very thankful for the teams at both in VA and up here for taking such great care of my special mare and helping her to feel her best - it’s showing 💓 We are fully settled in at Apple Knoll and already making some amazing friends!! Looking forward to getting out to Town Hill at the end of the month to hopefully have a good show and also to see & support a bunch of friends, both old and new 🦄🫶

08/08/2024

A series of Sophie’s cute ‘dark side’ 💟 throwback to running around Carolina Horse Park in April. Feeling so lucky that this mare and I have had the privilege of competing at so many beautiful venues!!
Photos by
Thank you to those who support us, especially KMA Equestrian (code Kailyn15) and Bridles and Reins (code KMS25) ❣️

31/07/2024

26/07/2024

So much excitement happening all weekend both locally at Millbrook and internationally at the Olympics!!! Sophie and I are taking it easy on our summer break currently, but it’s so fun to cheer on our friends in Area 1 and also cheer on Team USA!! 👏 Good luck to all!!! 🙌
Beautiful photo of my Sophie captured by the one and only ✨
Use code Kailyn15 at KMA Equestrian💌
Use code KMS25 at Bridles and Reins💌

22/07/2024

I can’t believe it’s been a whole year since the best day!! Happy anniversary to you, Drew ♥️ thanks for being the biggest supporter of team Sophie out there!!

16/07/2024

What it’s all about 💚
Photo by the best, ✨
Sophie is on a little vacation after a busy spring of competing and then moving again, and she is settling in quite well at 🍏 currently enjoying looking at the amazing pics from an incredible time a few weekends ago at 💓 For those interested, I have just posted the recap blog for that event! Head over to my website to read - link in bio

15/07/2024

So much fun at Loch Moy last weekend 🥰 already missing Chapel View Farm!!!!!

11/07/2024

At some point I will reflect on our entire amazing and important year in Virginia, but I wanted to separately thank Jacqui for everything she did for Sophie and I in the last six months. I gained both an incredible coach and also a friend. Her support and encouragement played the biggest role in getting Sophie and I to our first (now 2!!) FEI events. Thanks to Jacqui, I am so confident in the ride on Sophie going into this next chapter, and I also feel more confident as the owner of a competition horse and how to continue to do right by her.
Sophie and I arrived at our new home last night, coming full circle in my life back to the beautiful Apple Knoll Farm. Can’t wait for what’s next 💚
Photo by .eq.media .equestrian_

07/07/2024

An unreal last two days competing at the Maryland International in the 1*S!! Sophie showed up INCREDIBLY for all three phases, blasting us from last all the way up to 4th to finish!! Our dressage was the most rideable she’s ever felt, show jumping was much more organized and flowing than our last outing with one rail on me, and she was an absolute machine out on cross country. It was a technical, proper course and Sophie rocketed around with one of the fastest times in our division. I had every intention of pulling up if she gave me any indication of tiredness, but she still had gas in the tank even as we crossed the finish- so much so that she was still full of beans all the way through walking back to the trailer and getting iced 🤣 I’ll post more details in my blog soon, but I have to thank Jacqui for her unwavering guidance especially in the last month. And for helping me on the ground so much both days!! Sophie and I have made massive improvements thanks to her and I cannot wait for what’s to come. And big thanks to Drew for being the best helping hand, including being very brave and taking off Sophie’s boots 💚 What a way to end our time living in VA!!

04/07/2024

Happy 4th of July!! ♥️🤍💙

We’re celebrating with a dynamite sale on your favorite breeches! Use code HAPPY4TH to save 25% on any full price pair of breeches now through Sunday!

Hurry! This is your last chance to save big on KMAs this summer! 🇺🇸☀️

04/07/2024

This is a hard post to write. I thought about sharing this news in a purely positive way. But I think I’d rather be 100% honest. And I’m happy if this leads to a discussion on how our industry can change for the better?

I’ve decided to stop leasing the gorgeous farm where I’ve been for the past few years. I’m no longer going to have horses in full training (which for those who know me, you know that is my absolute love) and just be a freelance instructor teaching a couple days a week in the area.

I sat down and did the math on what my finances would be like if I just taught two days a week and had no expenses outside insurance, my car, memberships, etc. I would make MORE working that little than I do right now. And I run a pretty great program - my barn is always full with a wait list, about half super nice young horses and half FEI horses. My students and I compete a lot, very successfully. But the cost of running a program like this is so high, that even though I am “successful”, I barely make a living wage. I pay my wonderful assistant trainers more than I make (because they 100% deserve that salary and more!) And of course I could raise prices even more, but I think I charge an awful lot, and at the end of the day, I just feel awful about expecting people to pay SO much for a luxurious hobby.

Of course, people don’t go into this business with a dream of making a big profit each year. And that is a legitimate argument - you do this for the love of horses and riding. But when the costs and the stress of running a big barn start piling up, that argument gets pretty tired pretty quickly.

By far the biggest struggle I’ve had over the last few years is keeping good employees. And I know all my fellow barn owners and trainers are struggling as much as I am. I have a few AMAZING employees (endless thanks to Kate Tackett & Nicole Wilbur) and right now my best workers are 15, 16, and 22. So the argument that “kids these days are awful” is not true. But the instances of employees quitting with no notice, being offended at having to physically work hard, having incredibly low standards for the work they do, and outright lying have been more and more and more lately. It’s exhausting, and the fact that I’m paying $20/hour, run a great program, and am STILL getting these kind of workers makes me feel no optimism for the future. 😞

In the past I didn’t pay hardly anyone. I just had working students who worked off their housing, board and training. And that worked much better. But that seems to be a thing of the past? People now expect all that AND $600+ a week. And if my business made so much money that I could do that, I would love to. But the math just flat out doesn’t work.

My social media feeds are FILLED with barns begging for good help. I don’t know what the answer is. But I know I’m at the point where I would like to have the time to look at what else life has to offer. I’ve done this professionally for 20 years (and for fun since I could walk.) It’s a huge deal for me to imagine that I won’t be riding every day here on out. But it’s also incredibly exciting to imagine my life without these stresses. What if I didn’t have to get up at 5:30 and feed and muck because the weekend worker quit at 10pm the night before? Maybe I’ll start a hobby. 🤪 Or maybe I’ll just hang out with my wonderful husband and beautiful kids and have a coffee at the table instead of racing down the road in my car…

02/07/2024

This is an amazing opportunity for an important venue in Area 1!!

01/07/2024

Such a fun weekend spent down at Bouckaert (formerly known as Chatt) with Bella, Medici, and her amazing crew of barn mates at 💕 so happy this surprise was able to be pulled off thanks to this team!! The venue was ridiculously beautiful and Bella and Medici mans had a fantastic start to their summer season, can’t wait to see what’s next 💪 Congrats to all the riders with Anchor Equestrian on great rides all around this weekend!!

21/06/2024

Sophie not-so-politely telling me to F off after I told her to get going following a deeper distance than I’d like to the fence right before this 😂 at least I can say I think we both do have fun running around out there!! And thankful for my super grippy KMA’s to help keep me in the tack during moments like this 🤣
Been spending this week riding Sophie early before the real serious heat kicks in, and also helping out and riding a bunch of the horses at the barn. It’s been SO helpful for my feel to ride these horses that have been so thoughtfully trained by Jacqui and don’t tolerate me fussing so much with my hands and my seat. Will soon have a blog post up about this 💗
Photo by the ever amazing 💕

14/06/2024

What a fun surprise!! My good friend Kiera was going through old pictures she had and found these gems of me and London! OG’s remember this cool dude 🥰 he’s still living his best life as a school master up at 💕 you can tell these pics are old because I’m not wearing KMA’s and my right ring finger looks normal 🤪 I will forever have a special place in my heart for the Pundy 🦄

14/06/2024

My beautiful girl 💚

and Sophie look striking in any ring wearing impeccably designed Hannah Competition Breeches in White✨🖤


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10/06/2024

Another prelim in the books for me & my girl 💚 Sophie and I took on Middleburg Horse Trials on Saturday and had a blast. We went to war with each other in dressage a bit, which was disappointing seeing as we had done so well just a few weeks ago at VHC, but then she was a freaking rocket in the show jumping where we added one rider rail (which I was so sad about bc she absolutely deserved a clear round!! I’ll be better for her next time), and then she tore around the cross country to come home clear with just some added time from silly spooking and then some questionable rides on my part. Sophie just continues to get stronger and bolder with each ride out on xc. I pinch myself after every ride - she is truly amazing. I recommend scrolling to see cross country pics of us from even a year ago - she’s come SO far. Ugh I love you, Soph!!
Huge thank you to all the organizers and volunteers that made this weekend possible. Another well run, beautiful event and we were lucky to be there!! 💕
Now for a little vaca and then we’ll be back out for one more trial down here next month before we head home to Massachusetts 💚🦄
You already know…these amazing photos are by !! 💓

06/06/2024

some more love for Sophie because these were great pics and I couldn’t choose just one 🤭💕
Photos by

06/06/2024

Obsessed with my Steel breeches!!! Use code Kailyn15 for a discount 🥰

Cassidy Breech in Steel✨🩶

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31/05/2024

It takes a village, so I wanted to take a minute and appreciate the amazing companies and people behind us that help make team Sophie happen!! 💚 Read full caption for details and some discount codes 🤍
-Sophie and I have been working with Jacqui over at for the last several months and I have been seeing and feeling major improvement in how she has been going, and her weight has literally never been better than it is right now thanks to Jacqui’s careful feed plan!! 💌
-I don’t go anywhere without my breeches. Literally nowhere. Use code Kailyn15 for a discount 💌
-Sophie looks amazing in her figure 8 jump bridle, and it fits her so well! Use code KMS25 for a generous discount 💌
-Sophie always gets the best cryotherapy after hard runs in her ice boots! 💌
-Sophie’s skin stays clean and itch-free with the amazing products over at 💌
-Sophie’s saddles are expertly fit to her thanks to our good friend 💌
-Our farrier Alton has done amazing things to take care of Sophie’s funky feet 💌
- has been right there by our side making sure Sophie is looking and feeling her very best 💌
Pictures above are a mix of .equestrian_ .media and - all images with permission 💌
Other favorite brands are tagged in the pictures. Can’t thank everyone who supports me and this incredible horse enough!!!! 💚

29/05/2024

I am so proud to say that as of this weekend, Sophie and I are a newly minted FEI horse and rider pair 💚 We traveled to the beautiful Virginia Horse Center for the CCI1*-L and laid down our best dressage test to date, followed by a fantastic cross country run where we only added 2 seconds to our score, and Sophie jumped super in the stadium ring where I added two rails to our score. We ended the weekend in 7th, and I am just so proud of how far this little horse has come, and I’m so excited to be in this with her!! Biggest thank you’s to Kiera for all of her help all weekend, Jacqui for doing so much to prep us at home and coming to coach and make Sophie look stunning on dressage day, my wonderful parents for making the journey from the Cape with the dals to support us in person, and Drew for being the best horse husband and Wally wrangler. The organizers at VHC put on such a fantastic and well organized event, and I hope I’m able to come back in the future. We made some super new friends, had so many cool new experiences, and I have loads more pictures to share, so sorry in advance for that 🤪
If you want to hear it all, head over to my blog - new post is 🆙 Link in bio and stories 🦄

23/05/2024

Soph and I are doing some fun things this weekend 🥰 love these pics already!!