Whitney Weston
Birthdate: September 28, 1984
Birthplace: Philadelphia, PA
Training Location: Southern Pines, NC
Like most young girls, Whitney had a love for horses at a young age. At 4 years old, her parents gave in and gave her a riding lessons for her birthday. The rest is history! Whitney and her family moved from Philadelphia to Roseburg OR where she grew up on a small farm. By 18, she earned her “B” rating in Pony Club and graduated with an Associates of Science degree with honors.
Whitney found an unlikely star in a 10 year old Hosteiner gelding named “Charlie”. For his first 10 years of life, Charlie was just a trail horse for an 80 year old man. But his amazing heart, quick knees and great scope proved to be a diamond in the rough. Whitney took him from trail horse to three star competitor. While riding on the East coast, the team finished International Events at Morven Park and the Virginia Horse Center. After completing the Rebecca Farms international three star, Charlie retired and is still doing what he loves at the age of 23: teaching students how to jump.
Whitney decided to return to her roots, and premium eventing country, by attending Bryn Mawr College in Philadelphia PA. While there she was a working student for Susie Beale, and trained with Olympians Phillip Dutton and Boyd Martin. She studied abroad in England, passing up the pub-crawls to instead be a working student for Carol Gee of Fernhill Sport Horses when she could inbetween classes.
The high point of Whitney’s overseas education was representing the United States at the SRNC in Zurich Switzerland. The teams were made up of elite student riders from around the world who competed in dressage and show jumping on "catch" rides, or horses they had never ridden before. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a focus on Sports Psychology, Whitney returned home to build Westwood Stables as her business and training facility in Roseburg OR.
Whitney made the move back east to train with Bruce and Buck Davidson, before finally settling in Southern Pines, NC. She teaches, rides, trains, and does clinics and sales. She and her Advanced horse, “Lusty” have competed at top levels in Eventing. She has built a loyal and loving base of students, clients and owners while still maintaining a rigorous training and competition schedule. With her positive approach focused on both horse and rider psychology, Whitney is able to give riders of all riding levels a fun learning experience.
To book a clinic or set up coaching and training, please email info@valkyriesporthorses.com
