Coaching Staff

Vanessa Bartsch, Head Coach

A former student athlete at Stanford, and volunteer coach, Bartsch returned to the Red Barn full time during the 2004 season to lead the renovation and reopening of the stables under the management of Stanford Athletics. As the Executive Director of Equestrian and Head Coach of the Equestrian Team, Bartsch has led the team to twelve consecutive Regional and Zone Championships, as well as 11 Top-Ten National Championship Finishes, including 22 individual National Championships and Res. Championships. Bartsch was awarded the IHSA Coaches Award in 2006.

Tina Davey, Assistant Coach

Davey joined Stanford’s team in 20016, bringing extensive experience as a trainer and coach, most recently at Mississippi College where she served as the as the Director of Equestrian Programs and maintained a boutique show barn with private clients. Prior to that, Davey ran Elvenstar’s Orange County training barn, where one of her roles was coaching the University of California, Irvine equestrian team. Tina was a student athlete (and co-captain) on the University of California, Santa Cruz Equestrian Team. Davey helps teach and mentor Stanford’s IHSA, AEL and IEA Teams, in addition to helping manage Stanford’s horses and serving as a program director to the Riding Academy.

Jennifer Cameron, Western Coach

Cameron joined the coaching staff for the 2015-16 season. With a diverse equestrian background showing on the AQHA, AMHA, and A circuit with National Championships in Trail in Western Pleasure, Jennifer brings her Western experience to the team. Under her coaching, the Western team has taken home Regional Championships, Top Five placings at the IHSA Western Semi-Finals, and athletes have gone on to the National Finals. Cameron holds a B.S. and Post-Bac in Equine Science and she is currently completing a MSc in Clinical Animal Behavior

Kate Douglas, Dressage Coach

Douglas began competing in dressage in 2005 under the tutelage of Katie Hoefs Martin. She won the 2013 Region 7 Second Level Jr/Yr Champion on Fein Style, the 2014 Reserve Champion Silver Stirrup National Award on Don Marco, and was top 20 Third Level Open at the 2015 US Dressage Finals on Don Marco. Kate has consistently placed top three in Year-End Awards from USEF, USDF, CDS, Performance Horse Registry, and the American Hanoverian Society. She has ridden in multiple clinics with US Olympian Lisa Wilcox as well Former FEI 5* Judge Axel Steiner. She has trained multiple horses up from prospect to successful upper level dressage horses and uses her training and show experience to guide the Stanford Dressage team.

Gwyn Gordon, Hunt Seat Coach

Gordon, a co-founder of the Stanford Equestrian Team, spent stints working for Richard Spooner, Patty Ball, Constance Kilmartin, Lucie Wharton, and Steve & Jenny Newell. Gordon served as the Head Coach of the Team in the 90′s, a volunteer position at the time, after starting Cardinal Farms in 1993. In addition to being a co-collaborator with Coach Bartsch, and former Wester Coach, Jana Cain in the efforts to renovate the Red Barn in 2004 (she still serves on the Red Barn Advisory Board), Gordon returned to the coaching staff where she has served as a clinician and coach for the Hunt Seat Team for the past dozen years, helping coach riders to the Zone and National Finals.

Taylor Singmaster, Western Coach

Singmaster has an extensive show career that includes championships at AQHA Congress and the NSBA World Championship Show, multiple year end top ten finishes on the AQHA and NSBA circuit, competing for the University of South Carolina’s NCEA Equestrian team and becoming a PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor.
She coaches Stanford’s Western team, as well as the Red Barn’s AEL team and Stanford PE classes. She also teaches therapeutic and adaptive riding at BOK Ranch where she is also the Volunteer Coordinator.. She has her BFA and MFA in Photography/Videography which remains an important pass-time for her

Rachel Williamson, Coach

Williamson is USDF Bronze and Silver Medalist, currently working on earning her USDF Gold Medal and USDF “L” program participant. Rachel was the 2010 SFP CDS Open Intermediare I and II Annual Rider award recipient. She has trained with Heidi Gaian & Pam Nelson of Villa Rosa Dressage for the last 20 years. Rachel was instrumental in founding the Stanford Dressage Team and has dedicated herself to coaching team members. In addition to coaching the Team’s dressage riders, Rachel often coaches the team’s Hunt Seat riders. Her unfailing ability to help a rider get the best out of her horse makes her an invaluable set of eyes on the ground for riders in both disciplines

Sadie Ingle, Coach

Ingle joined the coaching staff as a volunteer coach in 2010, specializing in the development of the the Team’s Walk Trot riders. Under her tutelage, Ingle has had five Top Five finishes at the National Finals (including Walk Trot National Champions, Sarah Lindsay and Eliza Richardtz). Ingle rode on the Stanford Equestrian Team as an Alumni/Grad Student athlete from 2007 – 2013 as she completed her PhD in Bio Chemistry. Prior to her time at Stanford, Ingle attended Otterbein University where she competed, and served in a leadership role, on their Equestrian Team.

Jim Hagman, Clinician

Hagman is the founder of Elvenstar Riding Academy and Show Stables with locations in Morepark and Orange County, CA. His riders have achieved success at the top levels of the sport, including top finishes at the Medal and Maclay Finals.

Jim partnered with Stanford during the initial concept phase of the barn’s redevelopment using his vast experience to help provide a vision of the new facility. After recognizing his talent as an instructor, Stanford asked Jim to work with the Stanford Team as a Clinician. He makes the trip up to Palo Alto as often as he can around Elvenstar’s busy show schedule to do intensive clinics with the team. Jim works with all levels on their riding and presentation in the show arena and the team appreciates Jim’s focus, energy and never-ending sense of humor.

Guy Thomas & Leslie Wright, Clinicians

Guy’s extensive experience includes competing at the 2004 Olympics, FEI World Cup Finals, World Equestrian Games, Young Rider Finals, international competitions, as well as a multitude of Grand Prix. Guy Thomas grew up in a riding family (his parents, Butch and Lu, won the 2015 USHJA Lifetime Achievement Award). The Thomas family owns and operates their successful Willow Tree Farm out of the Stanford Red Barn with clients competing in Jumpers and Equitation locally and internationally.

Leslie is a third generation horsewoman, her grandparents on both sides were involved in the horse business, and both of her parents were hunter/jumper trainers. Leslie competed successfully in the hunter and equitation divisions as a junior before turning pro. She joined Willow Tree Farms in 2014 where she has continued to ride and compete. She loves getting to show WTF’s young horses as well as Grand Prix mounts.

Cindy Brooks, Clinician

Cindy operates her training program, Northern Run, out of the Stanford Red Barn, and coaches the members of the Stanford Equestrian Team. Her career highlights include riding hunter Just for Fun to Hall of Fame and National Horse of the Year honors. She was awarded the Don Tipton Award for the P.C.H.A.’s professional high point rider 6 consecutive years, rode in the International Hunter Futurity West Coast Regionals 8 consecutive years, and has competed the International Hunter Futurity finals at Washington International. Cindy captured multiple championships at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show, Washington International, and The National Horse Show.

Colin Daly, IEA Head Coach

Daly joined the Stanford Red Barn in 2009 as the Head Coach of high school teams. In the ensuing years he has helped grow and develop the Red Barn and Woodside IEA Teams into Upper and Lower programs that are consistently some of the top in IEA Zone 10, sending athletes and teams back to the IEA National Finals annually. Prior to coaching at the Red Barn, Daly spent four years as the Head Coach of UC Davis’s Hunt Seat IHSA Team, and he also draws from two decades working privately training ‘A’ circuit hunters, jumpers, and field hunters. His love of working with juniors and seeing them develop the details of a solid equitation foundation makes him a natural fit for the IEA, especially in helping athletes learn how use their fundamental training techniques to thrive with horses they may be riding for the first time. Daly is in his 5^th year as the IEA Zone 10 Administrator and remains active in the governance of the IEA.