Amanda riding Austin Chase photo credit: Caitlin Demura
Amanda riding Mr Wild Forrest photo credit: Pure Silver Photography
Meet our trainer Amanda Hester
A native Texan, Amanda started riding horses at the young age of six. She began with the basics of
Hunter/Jumper and showed in the local H/J circuit, where she learned many valuable lessons riding a
variety of school horses. At age 11 she got her first horse, Herbie Hancock, and began learning the art of
Dressage. From 2009-2015 she rode and trained under the watchful eyes of Julie Madriguera and
Lyndon Rife in Pilot Point, Texas, where she earned her USDF Bronze Medal on three different horses
that she owned. At the same time Amanda was fortunate to ride and learn from Carlos Torrel, Lendon Gray and George Williams.
She was invited and accepted the offer to attend the
2012 Lendon Gray Emerging Dressage Athlete program in Wellington, Florida, as an auditor.
In 2020, Amanda purchased the OTTB, Mr. Wild Forrest, and with the help of trainer, Molly Hunt,
trained and competed in the local hunter/jumper circuit, winning many blues and championships.
Amanda’s dressage career made great strides when she gained the ride on Foxglove Equestrian’s Austin
Chase and began training with Gail Abele. She had great success with Austin, earning her USDF Silver
Medal in her first season of showing. After some time spent at the Small Tour level, she took the bold
step of competing Austin Chase at Grand Prix, a level new to both her and Austin with success.
In 2022, Foxglove Equestrian purchased a young talented horse, Django, with high hopes for his
dressage career. In 2023 Amanda and Foxglove Equestrian moved to Aiken, SC to expand both her
knowledge of dressage and the opportunities offered in this part of the country. Amanda competed
Django soon after arriving in Aiken, earning scores to 70% and two championships.
Amanda is committed to being the best she can be to her horses, her clients and her clients’ horses. To
this end, she has applied and has been accepted in the JJ Tate Academy Trainers Program and looks
forward to bringing this indispensable knowledge to her riding and to her clients.
Amanda riding Lindo Verde Photo Credit: Bob Ohlemann
Amanda riding Austin Photo Credit: Lynn Novay