About Michele
Michele Ingold Hobson is an international level event rider and instructor. She grew up in California, and began riding competitively when she was in her teens. She attended college at the University of Colorado, Boulder from 1986-1990, and went back to California to ride with Ginnie Bryant before moving to Virginia in 1996 to train with Jimmy Wofford at Fox Covert Farm in Upperville. Michele has competed through the advanced level both in the United States and abroad, and has trained many horses from unbroken youngsters to moving moderately experienced horses up through the levels. Her natural skills emerge when seeking horses in the overseas market to train; importing from Ireland, England and New Zealand.  Those include: Sir Thomas, The Master’s Dun, Sky Sport, Dexter Wong, Hometown Hero, Upstage and Church Road. Of these horses Upstage was sold to Olympian Karen O’Connor who went on to complete multiple CCI4* including the 2006 World Equestrian Games in Aachen; Dexter Wong was sold to Sara Davis who competed him successfully at multiple CCI3* and advanced level horse trials before retiring him to teach up and coming young riders; Sir Thomas went on to take young rider Wendy Masemer to her first preliminary and intermediate horse trials before retiring as a dressage horse; and Church Road was sold through John & Beezie Madden as a Grand Prix show jumper. In the last few years, Michele has taken time off from upper level competition to start a family. She hopes to return to competition as time allows and her horses' training progress. Currently, Michele is involved in breeding top quality sport horses emphasizing the same successful traits as those horses she purchased abroad. Her oldest youngster, Quattro au Lait (purchased as a weanling from Rock Hall Farm in Boyce, Virginia), was victorious in the 3 year old division of the fledgling USEA Future Event Horse program in 2007, as well as the 4 year old division in the USEA Young Event Horse program in 2008. For more information on Triton Farm offspring, please visit both the Breeding Program and Sales pages.
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When not riding, teaching or coaching, Michele enjoys photography & gardening, and is kept busy raising her son Braedon together with her husband, Simon (also in the equine business as a race horse trainer...see www.HobsonRacing.com)
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Competition Highlights
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Domestic:
1997 Eastern DeBroke Preliminary Champion -- The Master's Dun
1996, 1998, &1999 Radnor CCI2*
1997 Essex CCI2* 6th Place -- Sir Thomas
1998 Essex CCI2* 4th Place -- Sky Sport
1999 Fair Hill CCI3* 13th Place -- Sky Sport; and
1999 & 2000 Rolex Kentucky CCI3*/CCI4* -- The Master's Dun & Sky Sport
International:
2001 Warendorf, Germany CIC3*
2001 Luhmuhlen, Germany CCI3*
2002 Punchestown, Ireland CCI3* -- All with Sky Sport
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Special Horses
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Occasionally, one is lucky enough to have exceptional horses in their life. What makes them special is different for everyone, but the following are horses that propelled Michele's career, and touched her heart in one way or another.
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Hometown Hero (1992-2001)
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Michele purchased Hero from New Zealand in 1998 as an inexperienced youngster. He had a very willing attitude, and a natural ability to learn. He started eventing in 1999, and quickly moved through the levels completing his first 3-Day in the fall of 2000. He moved up to intermediate, finishing 6th in his first CCI2*, and was winning and placing in the top five at events in the summer and early fall of 2001. He had an enormous heart, and always aimed to please; qualities you can't teach an event horse, but must be born with. Tragically, Hero was lost in a freak accident on a cross country course in September of 2001. He will always have a special place in Michele's heart as there will never be another like him.
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The Master's Dun
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Dune was Michele's first "project" as he was purchased from England as an unbroke 3 year old in 1993. Since she had another horse competing at the preliminary level, she wanted to start a horse from scratch. Furthermore, he was purchased sight unseen on a recomendation from her trainer at the time, and, admmittedly, because of his unusual dun color. She never dreamed she would end up competing him at the Rolex CCI3* in 1999. Though he encountered a bumpy road of soundness issues which prevented him from becoming a world-class horse, he provided Michele with great confidence to compete at the advanced level mainly because of their unique partnership. After retiring from eventing, he went on to compete successfully at upper level dressage. He now enjoys his role as the patient "nanny" to all the weanlings at Triton Farm.
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Sir Thomas
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Michele's first attempt at buying a horse overseas resulted in the purchase of Thomas, an Irish TB cross with CCI2* experience. At the time she had just started competing at the preliminary level, so he was her schoolmaster. They had many successes together at both the preliminary and intermediate levels before making the move east to compete at Radnor CCI2* in 1996. A little over a year later, they competed and placed 5th in their first advanced horse trial. An injury prevented him from competing at Rolex, and after his rehabilitation, was sold to a Young Rider who, in turn, was also able to compete in her first preliminary and intermediate horse trials. The invaluable experience Michele gained with Thomas, as her first upper level horse, gave her the ability to succeed with the horses that followed. Now in his mid 20's, he enjoys retirement and being spoiled.
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