Team #618 Lindsay Shea and Obligato

Team #618: Lindsay Shea and Obligato
From: Germantown, New York
Ages: 74 & 27
Combined Age: 101
Test: Introductory Level Test B
Date: February 26, 2023

Lindsay Shea and Obligato joined The Dressage Foundation’s Century Club on February 26 under the supervision of Sarah Geikie, an FEI 4 Star dressage judge at the Aering Green Equestrian Center located in Schodack, NY. 

Lindsay rode most of her life, though as she said, “I was just a backyard rider, no real training.” She did a lot of trail riding, and some fox hunting and enjoyed clinics, but not disciplined training. That changed when she had a serious accident that required surgery and significant recovery. While many would have called it quits after a serious fall, Lindsay did not. Instead, she recognized it was time to get some serious training. 

Living in Germantown, NY, a town in Columbia County, horses are part of the social fabric. Lindsay reached out to a friend and asked if she knew of anyone who might take on a student. Her friend sent her to Aering Green Equestrian Center owned by Laura Fay. One of Lindsay’s goals was to work with a trainer on a safe, highly trained horse to learn skills that she could not only bring to her riding but also to her 17-year-old Andalusian mare, Zoey. She wanted to gain more confidence as a rider. 

Enter Laura Fay’s Obligato, known to many as Kody. Laura would often say she’d love to see Kody complete the Century Club ride, but as she is only in her early 50s and Kody is now 27, the dream of the two of them being able to do it together was not to be. In the past, Laura generously allowed many of her students to compete on Kody, resulting in three USDF bronze medals, two silver medals, and regional championships. After seeing Lindsay ride in lessons, Laura knew that this huge honor for her beloved Kody could happen. Congratulations to Lindsay, Kody, and Laura for this remarkable achievement.