Ocala, FL – This week’s Ocala Sunday Spotlight features Lilly Geitner, a versatile junior athlete with a lifelong connection to horses. Daughter of Daniel and Cathy Geitner, Lilly has embraced the equestrian lifestyle and has been dominating in the hunter, jumper and equitation rings, achieving top placings in all three disciplines. In our interview with Lilly, we delve into her career highlights and explore her aspirations for the future.
WEC: Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’ve ridden my whole life. Both of my parents are riders and trainers, and we live in Aiken, South Carolina. I did the pony divisions and went to pony finals. In 2021, I was champion in the medium greens at USEF Pony Finals on Farewell, my awesome medium pony. I did ponies for a while, but that was my last hurrah in the pony world.
Since then, I’ve been doing jumpers, hunters, and equitation, but my absolute favorite is definitely the jumpers.
WEC: Do you know where you might want to go to college?
I’m committed to the University of Georgia equestrian team, and I’m really excited about it. I’m a junior this year, so I have one more year in High School left. All of my friends go there, so I’m thrilled to be with them, and it’s not too far from home—about three hours.
I think I want to major in interior design or real estate, but I’m not quite sure yet—somewhere in that category!
WEC: Tell us about some memorable moments in your riding career?
I participated in Medal and Maclay finals last year for the first time, and both went really well. It was so much fun to compete with my friends and some of the best junior riders in the country. I also won a super fun night class in the summer here at WEC and I won a few hunter derbies too!
WEC: What does a normal show week look like for you?
Our show schedule is pretty packed. I typically show at least four horses, but sometimes it can be seven or eight. We start on Thursday with a performance class for my derby horse, jumpers on Friday, we usually skip the jumpers on Saturday and classic on Sunday. Equitation usually happens on Friday and Saturday, and I show the junior hunters on the weekend. I’m usually running around from ring to ring—it’s a busy schedule, but so much fun.
WEC: Tell us about some of your favorite horses you’ve ridden.
My favorite pony was ‘Welly’, the Farewell pony. He’s the most amazing pony I’ve ever seen. Then there’s my derby horse Banks Mill, we call him ‘Ray’ in the barn. He’s perfect, and I love him. Banks Mill was one that did international derbies with my dad.
‘Darcy’ my friends’ horse helped me qualify for Maclay finals in a funny moment—I went off course in the second to last week to qualify, so the next week, we had to do the Maclay, and we won. I was on my Georgia visit and had to leave super quick to go show.
I recently got a new horse named Houston, from the Jayne family. I’ve been showing him in the Low Junior Jumpers, hoping to move up soon. I’ve also been showing my dad’s ex-grand prix horse Fazous in the Medium Juniors, which has been really fun.
It’s cool to show the same horses my dad used to show; it’s like passing down generations.
WEC: What has been your experiences at WEC?
This is honestly one of my favorite horse shows. We have a farm and house down here, so it feels like home. I just love it so much. All the classes are fantastic, especially when they put the Medium Junior/Amateur Jumper class at night. It’s the best competition venue, a great place for young riders to work their way up through the levels.
Thank you, Lilly, for taking the time to chat with us! We’ll be cheering you on this winter circuit!