Meet Katie

Katie Anderson was born and raised in Santa Cruz, California. Her love for horses began at an early age, and by the time she was four she had talked her parents into letting her start horseback riding lessons. By age ten she was taking English riding lessons at a Hunter/Jumper barn, and by 12 she had her first horse, a Thoroughbred mare named Lady.

Her passion for horses only grew with time, as did her desire to compete and move up the levels in the Hunter/Jumper world. At 14 her parents bought her Bugatti, a young, talented, but green Thoroughbred. Under the guidance of trainer Dick Widger, Katie and Bugatti developed a wonderful partnership and were competing in the Junior Jumpers by Katie’s senior year in high school.

Katie (and Bugatti) went to college at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, where Katie earned her Bachelor of Science in Animal Science, focusing primarily on Equine Science. She worked multiple jobs in order to afford Bugatti’s board and maintenance expenses, including riding for a local trainer and working as a Vet Tech at a Large Animal clinic.

Since graduating from college, Katie has worked as an Assistant Trainer at several successful Hunter/Jumper barns, including Hayden Showjumping (now Hayden Clarke Sporthorses) in Laguna Hills, Ridgemark Farm in Santa Cruz, and Hunter Bay in Portola Valley. She also was Barn Manager at Sterling View Farm in Morgan Hill where she oversaw the care of over 70 horses, from unbroke young horses to retired showjumpers. She first started her own training business in Morgan Hill and Santa Cruz before taking a break from the horse industry for a few years to focus on family.

After getting married, Katie and her husband Jeff moved to Idaho where they bought a lovely horse property with a five stall barn, a 3 acre irrigated pasture, and a small arena. After the birth of her daughters Katie started teaching and riding again. However, after five years in Idaho, the Anderson family decided they weren’t cut out for the long, cold winters (and long, hot summers), so they moved back to sunny San Luis Obispo, where Jeff and Katie had once attended college.

Katie now offers lessons, training, showing, and sales in San Luis Obispo County, out of two different top-notch facilities: The Equine Center in SLO and Rancho del Rio in Atascadero. Katie is excited to be back in the Hunter/Jumper industry, competing and coaching at local shows, all while continuing to prioritize her family and young children.