FEATURE
ELLA DALTON A love of horses brings life-long learning WORDS: APRIL BILODEAU
M
OST JUNIOR riders
competing at the top of the circuit have followed a specific plan: Start in the Pony Hunters, then move up to the 3’ to 3’3” classes, followed by the 3’6” equitation and beyond. But for 15-year-old Ella Dalton, that path looked a little different. In 2017, she attended her first USEF rated horse show, showing in the Walk-Trot aboard a pony named Prince Charming. Her next rated show wasn’t until 2021 where she competed in the 2’ equitation and hunters. While attending HITS Thermal, Dalton was exposed to just how much opportunity there was for her in the horse world.
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THE PLAID HORSE
October/November 2023
PHOTOS, FROM LEFT: KATIE BROWNE; BROOKE MARIE PHOTOGRAPHY
