Karin Reid Offield Contact: 561-301-7818
Objective: I intend to bring all my knowledge, my equestrian enthusiasm and a lifetime of horse credentials to the Roaring Fork Valley Horse Council. I will work with Aspen and for the Board of Directors of the RFVHC to help maintain and improve a sustainable, generational equestrian community.
"I began riding horses and competing as a child and made equestrian sports my life. From competing on the international stage in dressage, winning national jumping championships, horsemanship to reining, roping and racetrack colt starting, creating children’s riding programs and creating world-class equestrian facilities, I have an intimate and vast knowledge of the equine industry.
In Aspen, beginning in the 1950’s, we spent decades riding horses learning to jump, playing polo, barrel racing and we learned how to go on trail rides to have fun and come back safely. The riding stables where we spend our days include the Aspen Riding Club on Sixth and Gillespie; Jim Smith’s Ranch at the Stillwater area; the Dixon Oval; the Aspen Meadows; a stable in the South Hallam Lake neighborhood; Danny Barry’s ranch where the Prince of Peace Chapel now stands; W/J Ranch; Carol Craig’s in Woody Creek; Sam Howell’s home & stable on Sneaky Lane; St. Finbarr Farm in Carbondale; The Frank Ranch, Old Snowmass; The Vagneur Ranches in Woody Creek; Trudi Peet’s home ranch in Woody Creek; Vivian Goodnough’s Ranch on McClain Flats/Whitehorse Springs; and Erickson Ranch on Red Mountain, where I was the head instructor and helped John Sweeney and Jon Hollinger to build.
Horses she owned could not be successfully wintered in Aspen unless there was indoor facilities — something at that time did not exist. A move south to Tucson and then out west to California for high school I was “on her own” since I was 12 years old and one of the first competitors to move to the east coast from California as a junior rider. Hunters, Jumper and equitation trainers included Jonas Irbinskas, Jimmy Kohn, Richard Keller, Ken Nordstrom, Ronnie Mutch, Patricia Heuckeroth and Carl Knee.
My very first riding instructor was Vivian Goodnough, the owner/operator of The Snowflake Lodge, now torn down and gone from the Aspen landscape. Together, all of us kids and adults, kept our horses in every kind of stable that surrounded the town and our horseback riding activities thrived. We held treasure hunts searching throughout the town’s dirt streets in search of our bounty on horseback. Vivian instilled in each of her students what it took to look after and care for horses. Her riding programs were a horsemanship course comparable to the current Pony Club instruction today. She was a taskmaster and it was fun. We played Cowboys and Indians, we were in parades, we held horse shows, we had bake sales to earn money for our equestrian education. She taught us how to make money in the horse business.
I rode hunters and jumpers throughout the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’sin California and the East Coast and after a full western career with reining, cutting and roping in Sedona, Arizona, I switched to dressage. I was the proud owner of Lingh (RIP), one of the worlds’ most famous dressage stallions. My equestrian competitive career took me across the United States and into Europe. I now live in Northern Michigan and am the owner of Brek-n-Ridge Farm, a small training and clinic barn, I teach, ride and train horses.
Horse Experience
Executive and Public Relations Experience
JUMPERS: AN Unfinished love story about Grand Prix Show Jumping
Objective: I intend to bring all my knowledge, my equestrian enthusiasm and a lifetime of horse credentials to the Roaring Fork Valley Horse Council. I will work with Aspen and for the Board of Directors of the RFVHC to help maintain and improve a sustainable, generational equestrian community.
- Owner/Builder – El Rojo Grande Ranch, Sedona Arizona 1992 – 2004. 176 - acre community equestrian center in Sedona featuring trail rides; stagecoach rides; a vaulting school for kids; working student programs; roping and riding programs; a two-acre park to host weddings and community events for 500 people and a small commercial store for the tourists and townspeople specializing in art to wear and ranch souvenirs. Builder of the website www.elrojograndesedona.com and a past admin of the El Rojo Grande Ranch Face Book page. These two sites helped save El Rojo Grande Ranch from development.
- Born and raised in Aspen, Colorado, the daughter of Kay and Roy Reid. Roy Reid Real Estate; Coates, Reid and Waldron.
"I began riding horses and competing as a child and made equestrian sports my life. From competing on the international stage in dressage, winning national jumping championships, horsemanship to reining, roping and racetrack colt starting, creating children’s riding programs and creating world-class equestrian facilities, I have an intimate and vast knowledge of the equine industry.
In Aspen, beginning in the 1950’s, we spent decades riding horses learning to jump, playing polo, barrel racing and we learned how to go on trail rides to have fun and come back safely. The riding stables where we spend our days include the Aspen Riding Club on Sixth and Gillespie; Jim Smith’s Ranch at the Stillwater area; the Dixon Oval; the Aspen Meadows; a stable in the South Hallam Lake neighborhood; Danny Barry’s ranch where the Prince of Peace Chapel now stands; W/J Ranch; Carol Craig’s in Woody Creek; Sam Howell’s home & stable on Sneaky Lane; St. Finbarr Farm in Carbondale; The Frank Ranch, Old Snowmass; The Vagneur Ranches in Woody Creek; Trudi Peet’s home ranch in Woody Creek; Vivian Goodnough’s Ranch on McClain Flats/Whitehorse Springs; and Erickson Ranch on Red Mountain, where I was the head instructor and helped John Sweeney and Jon Hollinger to build.
Horses she owned could not be successfully wintered in Aspen unless there was indoor facilities — something at that time did not exist. A move south to Tucson and then out west to California for high school I was “on her own” since I was 12 years old and one of the first competitors to move to the east coast from California as a junior rider. Hunters, Jumper and equitation trainers included Jonas Irbinskas, Jimmy Kohn, Richard Keller, Ken Nordstrom, Ronnie Mutch, Patricia Heuckeroth and Carl Knee.
My very first riding instructor was Vivian Goodnough, the owner/operator of The Snowflake Lodge, now torn down and gone from the Aspen landscape. Together, all of us kids and adults, kept our horses in every kind of stable that surrounded the town and our horseback riding activities thrived. We held treasure hunts searching throughout the town’s dirt streets in search of our bounty on horseback. Vivian instilled in each of her students what it took to look after and care for horses. Her riding programs were a horsemanship course comparable to the current Pony Club instruction today. She was a taskmaster and it was fun. We played Cowboys and Indians, we were in parades, we held horse shows, we had bake sales to earn money for our equestrian education. She taught us how to make money in the horse business.
I rode hunters and jumpers throughout the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’sin California and the East Coast and after a full western career with reining, cutting and roping in Sedona, Arizona, I switched to dressage. I was the proud owner of Lingh (RIP), one of the worlds’ most famous dressage stallions. My equestrian competitive career took me across the United States and into Europe. I now live in Northern Michigan and am the owner of Brek-n-Ridge Farm, a small training and clinic barn, I teach, ride and train horses.
Horse Experience
- Owner/Operator – Brek-n-Ridge Farm 2010 – current. A 38-acre riding stable in a summer tourist destination on the Great Lakes. Specializing in riding lessons and programs for children and adults, over 200 families a summer sign up for lessons during the three-month season.
- Hunter/Jumper Equitation Champion West and East Coast, Top ten (9th) in 1970 Medal Finals, Pennsylvania Nationals, Instructor and competitor East Coast and Canada. See Full Bio offieldfarms.com.
- Western, roping, reining and cutting horse training and Western Dressage.
- Dressage Gold, Silver and Bronze USDF Medalist, Winner of Regional Championships held throughout the USA.
- FEI International competitor riding world famous Dressage Stallions, Tiamo Trocadero, Hexagon’s Louisville and Lingh under coaching by Olympic trainers Robert Dover, Michael Poulin, Steffan Peters, Bo Jena, Francois Mathy among others.
- 2006, Karin became the proud owner of the world famous dressage stallion Lingh and manages his breeding career around the world.
- 2008 Olympic Selection Trials Competitor
- Owner Operator/ Riding Instructor – www.breknridgefarm.com
Executive and Public Relations Experience
- As President of the RFVHC Karin led the member based organization into a collaboration with the Equine Land Conservation Resource (ELCR) in Lexington, KY. and Jenny Cook the Michigan States Equine Representative that wrote the Trails Safe Passing Plan (TSPP) Stop! Speak and Stand Back. Presented in March 2023 as an American Trails webinar, the Trails Safe Passing Plan is now being used and recognized across the United States and Canada. More Information can be learned at www.rfvhorsecouncil.org/trails-safe-passing-plan-tspp.html
- President of the Roaring Fork Valley Horse Council (RFVHC), Marketing and Promotion Chair; administrator of the RFVHC Face Book Page - current www.rfvhorsecouncil.org www.facebook.com/keephorsesontrails/
- In October 2019, a call from the Sierra Club informed Karin that El Rojo Grande Ranch in Sedona (her former ranch) was soon to be sold to a developer as a site for 600 manufactured homes. Karin built the website www.ElRojoGrandeSedona.com to defeat the developers proposal and the community won!
- Executive Producer – “Harry & Snowman” a documentary. Winner of 10 Film Festival Laurels. Theatrical release date September 2016, After a successful national release. 17th most successful documentary released in 2016, earning a top 15 Documentary of the Year acclaim. www.harryandsnowman.com. In 2013, Karin partnered with documentary filmmaker Ron Davis and became the Executive Producer of HARRY & SNOWMAN, a heartwarming and inspiring story of animal rescue, compassion, and connection between man and animal. Snowman literally rocketed them both into stardom in just two-short years, in the mid 1950’s as National Champions. 2015, HARRY&SNOWMAN premiered at it’s first film festival in RaleighDurham, North Carolina in April 2016. HARRY&SNOWMAN was picked up by a theatrical distributor and opened around the United States September 30th, 2016. HARRY&SNOWMAN continues to be shown for charitable causes and THE SNOWMAN RESCUE FUND.. Contact Karin for information and availability.
- Producer - Win a Ride on Lingh Contest 2011 Held in Germany
- 2009-2013, Karin's co-founded with John Boomer, the TDF's Equestrian Fundraising School, an online school for students to study and participate in fundraising and giving. This program was retired.
- 2010 and 2011, Karin created the Lingh.nl Dressage Tool Box Symposium and Tool Box Kit and held the first Tool Box Symposium at the Bay Harbor Equestrian Facility in Petoskey, Michigan. See OffieldFarms.com for details.
- 2011 Karin and St.GEORG magazine in Germany collaborated on “Win a Ride on Lingh” which resulted in two cover stories and excellent press coverage for her world famous stallion. Karin instructed the winning rider, thirteen-year-old Hannah Allescher from Murnau, Germany.
- 2010, Karin sponsored an international writing contest offering a free breeding opportunity to her stallion Lingh. After hundreds of applicants the winner was published in a September 2010 international publication of “Horse Connection” celebrating The World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany.
- Producer – Las Vegas World Cup Photo Contest, Las Vegas Nevada 2005, 2007, 2009
- 2009, While living in Sweden Karin and her www.Lingh.nl brand created a “Breeders Meet” in Las Vegas at the World Cup inviting participants from Holland and Sweden to be guests at Harrah’s Casino.
- Executive Producer – “The Search for America’s Next Equestrian Star” 2007 Go to www.offieldfarms.com home page to purchase the reality show series.
- 2007, Karin with Robert Dover successfully acquired national television coverage for the Las Vegas World Cup.
- Promotion of dressage through her 2005 “Offield Farms” sponsorship in Las Vegas for the FEI World Cup Dressage Final and became a multiple year endeavor and her sponsorship enabled national television coverage of the Las Vegas dressage event.
- Filmed and edited 8mm film at Bennet College, based on an original story "Be Safe, Be Free"
- Still photographer for an 'Environmental Study on Pollution' sponsored by Stanford University. Award winner for outstanding photography and music.
JUMPERS: AN Unfinished love story about Grand Prix Show Jumping
- Producer of JUMPERS, previewed in 1981 at the Aspen Film Fest. Jumpers was to be the first documentary about the sport of Grand Prix Jumping. Environmental and sports passions led her to apprentice for a group of Aspen-based film makers, opening her eyes to view her love of horses, specifically jumpers through the lens.
- Karin’s film would broaden the viewership, appeal and participation in show jumping in the same way. Forging relationships with Egon Mertz in Malibu California, Gordon Wright, Captain Vladimir Littauer via Fen Kollock, Paul Cronin and Jane Dillon and Gordon Wright, Karin’s interest in horsemanship surpassed even her expectations.
- 1980 jumpers previewed on the Dick Cavette Show on April 28th, 1980.Harry DeLeyer was Cavette's guest, along with Fannie Collins Gardiner
- National Council Member – Aspen Music Festival & School - current
- National Council Member – Equestrian Aid Foundation 2004 - retired
- Grounds and Building Committee – Birchwood Farms Golf & Country Club - current
- Food and Beverage Committee – Birchwood Farms Golf and Country Club - retired
- Audit Committee – United States Dressage Federation, retired
- Board of Directors – Trappings of the American West 1992 - retired
- Board of Directors – The Dressage Foundation - current www.dressagefoundation.org - current
- Co-Founder – The Equestrian Fundraising School, current/program retired