At Oakhurst Farm, we take coach development seriously. Equestrian sport needs strong, inspiring and educated coaches to ensure the continued development of capable, enthusiastic and skilled athletes. It is our belief that Athlete and Coach Development go hand in hand and Oakhurst’s coaches Ruth Allum and Helen Richardson are both EC NCCP certified Coach Developers – certified nationally to deliver classroom, online and in-person training and to evaluate and certify new and advancing equestrian coaches in Canada. Ruth and Helen have also completed their Master Coach Developer certification and train and evaluate new EC NCCP Coach Developers across the country. In 2023, the Coaching Association of Canada named Ruth one of the most influential coach developers in Canada, awarding her the 2023 Community NCCP Coach Developer Award.
As coaches and coach developers, the Oakhurst team feels strongly that growing the sport means sharing knowledge with other coaches and teams. Working together, we can build a stronger community of equestrian coaches and athletes in Canada – and if the community is strong, we will have more meaningful competition opportunities and more peers to enjoy the sport with!
While we coach in the disciplines of Eventing and Dressage, we work with coaches and teams of many equestrian disciplines. From helping to new coaches work through the pathway to certification to working with established coaches and provincial / national teams to define appropriate yearly training plans, we’ve got a wide range of experience to share to help coaches continue to grow. Working with coaches and provincial groups across the country, Ruth and Helen have been involved in the development and delivery of the following training:
Through Ontario Equestrian/Equestrian Canada:
- Long Term Equestrian Development – What’s the best model for development through
the lifespan of an equestrian athlete? - Plan an Equestrian Practice – prepare a practice plan for lessons that includes appropriate progressions and opportunity for skill development and refinement.
- Analyze Equestrian Performance – Developing the coaches eye to analyze, identify and correct beginner, intermediate and more advanced technical equitation issues and faults.
- Design an Equestrian Sport Program – Design a yearly training plan for a horse/rider that considers competitive goals and opportunities, seasonal training priorities and identifies horse/rider development.
- Manage an Equestrian Sport Program – teaching coaches to consider their program and operation – manage staff, manage finances and athlete travel, report on athlete progress and manage the equestrian business.
- Performance Planning and Advanced Practice Planning for High Performance coaches – Focusing on creating and refining an athlete’s periodized training program according to the demands of equestrian sport, as well as their individual development needs and educating coaches to reflect on the structure of a yearly plan, appropriately sequence training and development priorities to achieve peak performance.
- Coach Preparation Clinics for Instructor, Competition Coach and Competition Coach Specialist and Competition Development – HP1 candidates – hosting a mock evaluation to provide feedback and help prepare for certification.
- Coach Development and Certification Cohorts for Instructor, Competition Coach and and Competition Development – HP1 candidates – developing, hosting and training coach candidates to prepare for certification and developing coach developers to deliver the cohorts.
- Coach Developer training, mentoring, updating and certification – preparing Coach Developer candidates to deliver training for and evaluate new coach candidates at all levels, both online and in-person.
Through our own program at Oakhurst, athlete development is a large part of the rider training – not just the technical training time in the saddle, but time spent learning the additional skills needed to excel in sport – tactical, mental and physiological training is a large part of our program. We know what has worked for us and we are happy to share the knowledge. We’ve worked with coaches and teams across the country – through online and in-person clinics – to deliver the following:
- Athlete development clinics – Yearly show team planning clinic with Yearly Training Plan preparation and discussion with athletes and coaches.
- Technical skill based riding clinics – Teaching eventers to event!
- Coach mentoring
- preparing coaches for certification
- demystifying the coach certification pathway
- Clarifying the EC Coach Status vs Certification
- coach evaluations (mock and certification)
- Certification cohort mentoring – designing and delivering cohort based training for candidates from Instructor and Competition Coach to Competition Development (HP1) across the country.
Check out Ruth’s current Clinic calendar.
Want to talk to us about how to be the best coach you can be?
Send us an email and we’ll get back to you!