52 SIDELINES JULY 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
By Lauren R. Giannini
M
issy Clark believes in the basics: The first is proper
position, because riders can’t function without correct
form. Then she believes riders should understand the
value of correct flatwork and the importance of consistent and
thoughtful horsemanship.
An experienced trainer with extensive hunter and jumper
mileage of her own, Missy is very successful and produces
competitive riders. She makes it clear that equitation, including
the Big Eq division, is not an end in itself, but an extraordinary
phase in a rider’s development.
“I teach equitation because it’s the proper stepping stone to
whatever you want to do, whether you want to be the best jumper
rider or the best hunter rider,” said Missy. “It’s the time in your
career when you can really focus on your riding, take a lot of
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lessons and fine-tune many details. Good riding is good riding
and that’s why I teach equitation.”
Missy’s history with horses and showing began when she was
very young. She was fortunate to work with some really great
trainers. “I was lucky.” Missy said, “My mom, Doris Clark, rode
professionally before she got married and she was the one who
taught me how to ride from the very beginning. The first time I rode
with George Morris — I think I was only 13 — was at a clinic at
the Buffalo Saddle & Bridle Club. After that, I worked with George
whenever I had the opportunity and our relationship and friendship
has continued over the years.”
Missy was showing at the Erie County Fair the day that Chuck
Graham, a well-known professional from the Buffalo, New York,
area, saw her ride and offered to take her on as his working
student. “He approached me – I can’t remember how old I was,
maybe 15 – to come and be his working student and his rider,”
recalled Missy. “In those days he didn’t have another professional
rider in the barn. So I rode everything from green horses to the
jumpers. Chuck was a great old horseman and I learned a lot – the
importance of a work ethic, the value of a program, consistency
with your flatwork and all the things that factor into making a
young or green horse from scratch. What I learned from Chuck
has served me well in my life.”
George Morris proved to be a long-term, albeit unofficial, mentor
for Missy. “George has been such an influence on me in so many
ways,” she said. “I couldn’t afford to ride at Hunterdon full time, but
I would be in and out for lessons or I would go for a weekend or
meet him at shows. When I was in my 20s, he helped me with my
jumpers. I have always appreciated everything George has done
for me. He has meant a lot to me throughout my career.”
When asked her favorite show as a junior, Missy didn’t hesitate
and said, “I always loved going to the Garden – it was magical.
That’s the only word for it, magical. It was just so amazing; nothing
can compare with that show. I was so fortunate to be able to show
there. My students competed there later. The very last year of
the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden (2001), my
student Brian Walker won the Maclay Final on Grappa.”
In 2000, an Irishman named John Brennan joined forces with
Missy. They married three years later. Their partnership has
Missy Clark:
The Value of
Equitation In
Equestrian
Education
Missy Clark
Photo by Kenneth Kraus
Tori Colvin, who rides with Missy, and Dr. Betsee Parker’s
Patrick dominated the equitation division at the 2014 Winter
Equestrian Festival in Wellington, Florida, and secured the
Christy Conard Perpetual Trophy for Equestrian Excellence with
four weeks remaining in the circuit.
Photo by The Book LLC 2014
