#192 Michael Lenard & Horsespot
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Release Date: 10/16/2025
#204 Washington & Lee Head Coach Chris Mitchell
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
is the Head Riding Coach and Associate Professor of Physical Education at Washington and Lee University. With more than 30 years of experience in the equestrian industry, he has coached nationally competitive collegiate riders and programs at Albion College, Randolph College, and Cornell University. A Virginia native, Mitchell has also served as Director of Jumper Programs for the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association and remains active in collegiate equestrian leadership through the IHSA. In 2025, he received the IHSA Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his longstanding contributions to...
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#203 Otterbein Dressage Alum & IEA Rep Montana McKnight
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
grew up in Nicaragua, where she trained in Jumpers and Dressage. She went on to compete in the IDA at Otterbein University, earning B.S. degrees in Marketing and Psychology in 2020. After interning with the IEA Marketing Office during college, Montana joined IEA Marketing full-time following graduation. She has since relocated several times and is now based in Denver. She has served as a Youth Board Advisor since 2021 and helped develop the IEA Team Captains Campaign and Region Captains programs.
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#202 EQ Media Carrie Wirth
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Carrie grew up at United States Military Academy at West Point, where her father served as Officer in Charge of the Cadet Riding Team. That early connection led to a lifelong relationship with the Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association (IHSA). After a career in marketing and communications Carrie moved to Wellington, Florida and later founded EQ Media. Today, her firm manages IHSA’s communications, marketing, and sponsor relations and also works with W. F. Young on brands including Absorbine.
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#201 Penn State Alum & Author Rennie Dyball
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Rennie Dyball is the author or co-author of more than twenty books, including the award-winning SHOW STRIDES series, GOOD BOY, EDDIE, and THE ADHD FIELD GUIDE FOR ADULTS. She is a freelance editor, a college essay coach, and a lifelong horse lover who competes in the adult hunter and equitation divisions. In college, Rennie rode on the Penn State IHSA equestrian team for four years, serving as captain during her senior year.
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#200 IHSA Founder Bob Cacchione
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Celebrate the 200th episode of the Riding in College Podcast with IHSA founder Bob Cacchione. Follow along as he shares how he started the association with just six schools and a dozen riders and how it expanded in the years since. The concept was simple but revolutionary: eliminate the need for riders to own horses and provide mounts at each competition in a catch-ride format. Honored as one of the 20th Century Most Influential Horsemen, Bob Cacchione is mentioned as a beacon of the industry by most of the podcast guests.
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#199 UVM Animal Sciences Chrissy Rohan
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at the University of Vermont. She began teaching riding at my family’s farm in Charlotte, Vermont while she was in high school, and—with the exception of several years dedicated to raising my children— She has been teaching, coaching, and training ever since. Her background is rooted in the hunter/jumper industry, and she holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Education from UVM. Her role at the University allows her to bring together her formal training as an educator with...
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#198 Albion Western Head Coach Nichole McColley
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
McColley's tenure with Albion Equestrian began in August 2024. For the last 12 years, McColley, together with her husband, Travis, has been serving as the coach for the McColley Equestrian Team. The McColley Equestrian Team has achieved significant success at both IEA and YEDA competitions. They clinched the 2018 and 2020 YEDA National Champion Senior High Team titles, as well as claiming the 2019 YEDA Reserve National Championship Senior High Team. In addition to team successes, they have coached numerous YEDA individual National and Reserve National Championship riders in...
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#197 Alum Camryn Lubner University of SC & Skidmore Rider Lillard Peschlack
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Camryn Lubner, from Southampton, New Jersey (a small town about 40 minutes outside Philly) and graduated from the University of South Carolina in May of 2024. She was on their IHSA team for all four years, competing in Open Flat and Fences throughout her career and attending Nationals in 2022, 2023, and 2024. She have been riding and showing horses ever since she could walk and have had the privilege of living on and running a horse farm my entire life. Lubner graduated with a degree in Statistics and Finance and started her career as a Financial Analyst in July of 2024. Lubner still competes...
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#196 Centenary Alum Barbra Crossmyer Reis
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Barbara is a United States Dressage Association Bronze Medalist with Distinction, Silver Medalist, and Bronze Freestyle Bar recipient. She is currently pursuing her Silver Freestyle Bar and has one score toward her Gold Medal. A lifelong equestrian, Barbra earned her B.S. in Equine Studies from Centenary College and holds a British Horse Society Assistant Instructor Certificate from Porlock Vale Equestrian Centre in England. After early experience in hunters and eventing, she dedicated herself to dressage in 1995 and has since competed successfully through Intermediate I, earning numerous...
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#195 University of Toledo Coach Sammy Rothman
Athletic Equestrian: Riding In College Podcast
Samantha Rothman is the Assistant Trainer and Professional Rider at Stonehaven Farms. She has been coaching the University of Toledo IHSA Team since the 2021-2022 season along with our farm’s IEA Team. She graduated from Lake Erie College with an Equine Teacher Trainer Major and showed in Open Fences and Flat for my 4 undergraduate years. During her freshman and junior year she advanced to IHSA Nationals as her region’s Cacchione Rider.
info_outlineMichael Lenard is a co-founder of Horse Spot, where he serves as CFO and leads the Sales and Customer Success efforts. With nearly two decades of experience in horse show management, Michael brings a deep understanding of the industry. He has managed USEF competitions, is an experienced show secretary, and recently earned his USEF ‘r’ Jumper Judge license. He’s also a lifelong hunter/jumper competitor, with accomplishments up through the 1.40m level, including notable wins at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show and in Wellington, FL.
Michael was the captain of his IHSA collegiate equestrian team, leading them to three consecutive Regional Titles and earning multiple top-10 individual finishes at Nationals, including an Individual National Championship in 2010.
Before diving full-time into equestrian tech, Michael built a distinguished career in public accounting and consulting, ultimately serving as Managing Director at a specialized financial consulting firm. He holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Accountancy, is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), and a Certified Forensic Examiner.
Today, he’s helping modernize horse shows through Horse Spot — a show management platform that handles entries, schedules, results, payments, and more. If you haven’t seen it at your show yet, you likely will soon. It’s a game-changer for any organizing horse shows and a breath of fresh air compared to the outdated systems we've all had to deal with.