18 SIDELINESMAY 2014
FORHORSEPEOPLE • ABOUTHORSEPEOPLE
While the horses have room to graze, the nutritional value
of the grass is also low. “It’s challenging to maintain healthy
hooves here because of the lack of nutrients in the grass,” Lisa
added. She spends hours researching supplements and feeds
to ensure the horses are receiving proper nutrition.
Nutrition is only part of the challenge in maintaining healthy
hooves. Farriers are also in short supply. The farrier Lisa uses
livesonMaui and flies inevery fiveweeks just to trim thehorses
she and Jennifer own. And there is only one veterinarian on
the entire island of Oahu. “I’ve had nights when my mare was
colicking and the vet was about to perform surgery and he
received another emergency call. It’s hard because he can’t be
in two places at once,” she said.
Perfect Partnership
Working as an engineer for the government leaves Jennifer
little time tomaintain the property, care for the horses and ride.
Leasing the facility to Lisa gives her peace of mind, the ability
to ride and access to training and lessons when time allows.
Like Lisa, Jennifer spent her childhood riding, though not
jumpers.She learned to ridewesternandparticipated incutting,
reining, rail classes, showmanship and halter. She rode in a
few English events, but didn’t discover her interest in jumping
until pursuing a degree in Chemical Engineering at Colorado
StateUniversity.
There she met her husband, a law student, and in 2007 the
couple returned to Hawaii and settled into their equestrian
property.
Though Lisa operates the facility, Jennifer is active in the
local horse industry. For the past three years she has served
as president of theHawaii Horse ShowAssociation (HHSA).
The association offers hunter, jumper and western
competitions throughout the year on the Hawaiian island of
Oahu. Clinics are an integral part of the association’s mission
to help Hawaii’s equestrians continue to learn and grow.
Sportsmanship remains the primary focus for all competitors.
“We bring in a lot of mainland clinicians and judges for our
shows,” she said. “We’ve had Greg Best, a two-time silver
medal Olympian, and Kyle King as clinicians, and Wilson
Dennehy, Robert Gage and John Berkos will be judging our
shows this year.”
The USEF-recognized shows attract 40-50 riders per event.
While Hawaii may seem like a whole different world from
mainland USA, you might be surprised to find the exact same
classes are offered on the islands that are offered everywhere
else. Exhibitors are competitive and often travel to Sonoma,
California, andNewYork to compete.
Lisa’s expertise as a trainer combined with Jennifer’s
involvement in the industry creates a unique atmosphere for
the barn’s clients, especially for the young girls who ride there.
“The girlswanted to seewhat the horses did at night sowe had
a sleepover for them,” Jennifer says. “We had 12 girls here for
the night. We organized a scavenger hunt and they could see
what the horses did in their stalls at night.”
Bothwomen couldn’t bemore pleasedwith the arrangement.
“I have been blessed to have a place to run my business with
the support of friends,” Lisa concluded.
It turnsout Hawaii isn’t thatmuchdifferent thanPortlandafter
all.
About the writer: Katie Navarra has worked as a freelance writer in the horse
industry for 12 years. She has been a lifelong horse lover and recently purchased
a dunQuarter Horsemarewith hopes of re-entering the show ring in 2014.
Trainer Lisa LeSourd, second from left, runs her CalypsoHorseTraining out
of Jennifer Littenberg’s, center, beautiful B&RRanch inKaneohe, Hawaii.
The open-air stable includes 10 stalls.
The seven-acre facility includes Jennifer’s home, a 10-stall barn
and a 72- by 200-foot
covered arena.
