About Kathy Pavlich
Meet Kathy Pavlich. Like so many of us, Kathy was bitten by the horse bug at an early age. She started riding with her father and sister on rental horses at age 5. As a teenager, she’d swap horse care for riding lessons-- Sound familiar? She finally bought her own horse when she was 25, a running quarter horse. The pair showed English pleasure and hunters. Kathy’s mare was….shall we say…..”expressive.” Her trainer suggested that the pair take dressage lessons to learn some discipline (Dressage….the Catholic school of equestrian sports!) and so began Kathy’s journey in the world of dressage.
Kathy has trained and shown an eclectic array of horses; off-track thoroughbreds, running Quarter Horses, Paints, and, of course, Warmbloods. She has been training consistently with Bert Rutten (Netherlands) since 1995 and with Judy Harvey (Great Britain) since 2000. She has also trained extensively with Debbie McDonald.
Looking at Kathy’s award history, the word “plethora” came to mind. She started making her mark in the record books in 1996 when she earned the title of National Dutch PSG Champion. Since then she has amassed quite an ensemble of Reserve Championship and Championship awards (Region 7, State, and National) from 2nd Level through I1. A grand total to date of 24!!! Not surprisingly, she is a USDF Bronze, Silver, and Gold medalist! When asked, Kathy would consider the highlights of her dressage career so far was earning a 72% on her Grand Prix test in 2005 on her Dutch gelding, Havanna, and qualifying for the 2007 USEF Dressage Festival of Champions (Gladstone, NJ) on her Hanoverian gelding, Bocelli, in which she finished in the top 10 of the country for Intermediaire 1.
Kathy trains horses and riders through Grand Prix at Shadow Ridge Equestrian Center in Highland. She offers full training, show coaching, and monthly clinics.