Ian Millar School of Horsemanship

An equestrian from a young age, Brittany has had a passion for horses since she first set foot on her uncles Clydesdale farm. Brittany currently owns four horses at various stages of the training process. Her competition experience is predominantly in the hunter ring, though she has taken lessons in many disciplines, including hunter/jumper, eventing, dressage and western pleasure. Brittany is an Equestrian Canada Certified Instructor and has been coaching since 2018. Prior to becoming a certified horseback riding instructor, Brittany spent ten years coaching gymnastics and still holds her coaching certification with Gymnastics Canada. Most recently, Brittany has begun taking lessons in vaulting, combining her experience as a former gymnast and certified gymnastics coach with her passion for horses.

Karen is not only the Executive Director of Wesley Clover Parks, she is also an accomplished equestrian and horsewoman. Karen started riding in the Ottawa Valley at the age of 6, and began training with the Millar family at 16. Karen has been successful in the show ring from a young age, competing at the Royal Winter Fair in the Large Pony and Junior Hunter divisions. Since then she has enjoyed a number of career highlights, winning the High Amateur division with Victoria at the Royal Winter Fair, and competing at the Canadian Championships with Quervo Gold before having her first child. Karen was named Equestrian Canada’s Rider of the Month after a unique double victory in Spruce Meadows’ prestigious final four competition in both the 1.30M and 1.40M Jumper divisions.

Today she competes at the Grand Prix level across Ontario, and in Florida during the winter months, with mounts Teddy du Bosquetiau and Calvin Klein. In 2017, Karen placed 5^th in the 1.40M Open Welcome at the Ottawa National and was the 1.35M Champion at the Ottawa International. Karen’s passion for equestrian sport is apparent both in and out of the ring, and is what sparked her vision for Wesley Clover Parks!

An Equine Canada Certified Instructor, Maeve has many years of experience competing on the local show circuits in both the hunter and jumper rings. Maeve has been an instructor at Wesley Clover Parks for over three years, and particularly enjoys teaching students of all levels and getting to be a part of their riding progress.

Melodie has been riding and showing in the Ottawa area for over 35 years.  In fact, she started here at The Parks it was the National Capital Equestrian Park!  She worked for 2 years as a show groom with a local rider who was mentored by Ian and Lynn Millar. This was also a barn with many members of the Ottawa Valley Hunt and she often rode out with the hunt. After 18 years working retail at a sporting goods shop that also sold riding equipment, she returned to working at a barn full time and began teaching.  Achieving her competitive coach in 2010, she came back to the NNEP as an instructor for the city of Ottawa until it closed.  She then worked for a large animal vet for 3 years before again returning to what is now Wesley Clover Parks! Melodie has shown both Hunter and Jumper disciplines and believes in developing confident riders regardless of their desire to show, or just enjoy.  She loves sharing her passion and knowledge!

Mandi Dupuis has been riding and training horses in the Ottawa Valley for over 40 years. As a young rider, she was an avid member of Pony Club and showed on the Trillium and A-Circuits. Her early coaches and major influences included Sandi Patterson, Jill Henselwood, Dorothy Langman, Vicki Andrews and Cara Witham, and she has carried their principles with her throughout her own riding and training career. For years Mandi trained horses and coached young riders throughout the Valley, many of whom went on to national levels of competition.

Mandi has been an Equestrian Canada Certified Competition Coach for 25 years. She teaches all levels from beginner to competitive in hunter, dressage, and western disciplines, as well as teaching therapeutic riding programs. She joined our team of instructors here at Wesley Clover Parks in 2014, and along with our regular lesson program, Mandi also teaches our Equestrian Canada Rider Level Courses and is a Level 1-4 evaluator here at The Parks.

As a coach, Mandi focuses on developing good communication and a successful partnership between horse and rider, while prioritizing safety and education in all aspects of horsemanship. She believes that regardless of a rider’s ambitions, they should understand and practice true horsemanship at all times. She shares her years of experience generously and fosters a love of horses in all her students while always maintaining a positive attitude and having fun in the process.

Vanessa’s love of horses began after seeing them for the first time at the Carp Fair right after she turned one. She finally started riding lessons when she was 8 and hasn’t looked back since. She has always wanted to learn as much as possible about horses and was a member of the Ottawa Valley Hunt Pony Club where she started testing for her rider levels in 2013. Knowing that she always wanted to have horses as a part of her life, she started completing her Equine Canada Rider Levels in 2016 and was officially certified as an instructor in 2020. She has competed at all levels on the local show circuit in the hunter ring and was Reserve Champion in the Medium Pony division her first time at Trillium Championships in 2016. Her talent for equitation is apparent in her consistent top placings, having been the 2017 Equitation Champion in her age division for the Eastern Ontario Trillium Circuit. She is excited to start sharing her passion with anyone who wants to learn to ride as she studies to complete her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree at the University of Ottawa.