Wilmington, Ohio – This week’s Wilmington Sunday Spotlight shines on Charlotte Babbitt. The young professional, riding and managing at Riffle Hitch LLC, comes from a successful international Three-Day Eventing background, and recently made the switch to the Show Jumping ring. With her special mare, Vivianne Blue PS, Babbitt has spent time at both World Equestrian Center locations honing her skills and working toward the top level of the sport. We caught up with the determined athlete to learn more about her contagious passion for the sport and the horses.
WEC: Tell us about how you got start riding and where you are now.
I started riding as a little kid. My mom rode when she was younger and when I decided I wanted to start taking lessons, she was totally on board! It actually got her back into horses as well. I took lessons for a few years, the typical English and Western things. I wanted to started jumping and got my first horse when I was ten. My cousin is a top Three-Day Eventer, so that inspired me to go in that direction.
I lived in Nevada with my family, but right before I started high school I moved out to California to be around better trainers and do it full time. I evented out there and got my first good horse about eight years ago. I produced him all the way through the 4* level of eventing and won young riders on him.
I ended up getting a job working for Will Simpson in Ocala about three years ago and moved down there. I loved the Show Jumping world and it was all really attractive to me, so now I am following that path. This past winter, I was connected with Nicki [Simpson] and Simone [Besutti] and now I have been with them for almost nine months. I ride and manage for them at Riffle Hitch. It is absolutely amazing and they have been so helpful for me and Vivianne.
WEC: Tell us about your experience at World Equestrian Center.
I was supposed to jump the CSI3* in Kentucky last week, but I ended up deciding that I wanted to jump here instead. My mom was in town visiting and actually shipped my horse up here on Friday for the check in and I drove up in the middle of the day Saturday to jump the grand prix!
I love WEC. I have spent a lot of time at WEC – Ocala and think it is amazing. Last week was my first time here in Ohio and I absolutely love it. You can’t beat it. It is so nice here and so convenient. We are staying at one of the Home-Away-From-Home’s which is great. It is only two hours away from us in Lexington and we just want to come back here all the time. The indoor is huge and it is so nice to be able to get the horses indoor experience here. It is just awesome and we definitely are planning to come back.
WEC: What is your long-term goal in the sport?
My long-term goal is to ride at the top of the sport and I will do pretty much anything that I have to do to get there! I would love to travel the world riding. I have seen a lot of sides of the sport and a lot of different versions and I think I have a good understanding of how to get there one day. In the meantime, I am just trying to get as much experience as I can. I don’t have as much experience in the show jumping world, so I am trying to get in the ring as much as possible. It is so cool to have Nicki and Simone as mentors. They have been all over the world so it is really awesome to work for them and follow them along.
WEC: Tell us about your mare, Vivianne Blue PS.
I don’t know how I got so lucky! She was the last horse that I sat on in Germany at 8pm. She was a nine-year-old when I got her and was developed a bit late. She doesn’t like the German way, you can’t tell her what to do. She likes to go her own way and have a bit of personality and fight. She will jump anything for me. I can’t believe that she is as good as she is to me because I learned on her, I had never jumped a big jump before her. It has been crazy to unlock her potential. She jumps a ten every single time and is so opiniated and hilarious in the barn. She was really introverted when I got her and showed no personality, and now that I’ve gotten to know her she just has the best personality. She is a little fireball and tries so hard. She has given me a ton of firsts and I feel so incredibly lucky to have her.
WEC: What motivates you to do the sport every day?
I just love the horses. I will work all day in the barn alone, I actually prefer it. I grew up doing it on my own eventing and I will go out and be in the barn for 15 hours and love every second of it. I am also super competitive, so I love to watch all of the training pay off at the shows. I love to learn everything about the horses and figure out what makes them tick. I just enjoy getting to know the horses and help them be their best.
Thank you, Charlotte, for taking the time to share your journey with us! We wish continued success and can’t wait to see you at the top of the sport!
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Results can be found at horseshowing.com.
All horse show images are provided by Winslow Photography and can be purchased onsite at WEC – Wilmington or online through their website.