Lara Knight

Lara Knight

Advisory Board Member

Lara Borson Knight was raised in Catharpin, VA on a small farm nestled on the edge of the Manassas Battlefield National Park. She grew up galloping down the trails on her mother’s retired arabian endurance horses, participating in Pony Club, and eventing under the direction of Deanna Vaughn. In 1993 she discovered the sport of equestrian vaulting which is best described as gymnastics on horseback. After a few years she was invited to become a member of the US Friendship Vaulting Team and performed nationwide with them. Retiring from the competative side of vaulting in 1999, she continued to coach her home based team, Virginia Vaulters, as well as coach/clinician other teams to numerous awards and championships until her relocation to Nashville, TN. Upon moving to Nashville in 2003 Lara once again became competative in three-day eventing. Though she still occasionally does clinics for vaulters, she loves teaching eventers and starting young riders. “Being able to start someone out right and give them a good foundation is very rewarding to me. And with my background in vaulting as well as riding, I offer a slightly more unique lesson for my beginning riders that they wouldn’t find elsewhere. We center on balance, rhythm and harmony with the horse and classical prinicples.” Lara has been blessed to train with world notable masters such as: Torrence Watkins, Phillis Dawson, J. Beal, Stephen Bradley, Dominique Barbier, and Monty Roberts, Leslie Law, Phillip Dutton, Jimmy Wofford and Dorothy Crowell. As well as running her competative training barn in Nashville, Lara is also the Head Trainer of the Maker’s Mark Secretariat Center located in Lexington, KY, a non-profit organization dedicated to the reschooling of OTTB’s for second careers and adopting them to new families. Horses have always been and integral part of Lara Knight’s life and since discovering the sport of Eventing she has never shied from the hard work and dedication necessary to make opportunities to keep pursuing her dream of representing the US in international competition. She currently competes at east coast based events (Chattahoochee Horse Trials, Jersey Fresh, Poplar Place, Ocala, and Ky Classique Horse Trials). Lara currently has a couple horses making they way up through the eventing ranks, and we look forward to seeing her at Rolex in the future!