Gayle Lampe and Callaway's Born To Win

FULTON, MO – Gayle Lampe is a woman who knows what she wants and pursues it. Along the way, she has given encouragement and friendship to numerous other riders and equestrian students.

This year, she celebrates her 40th anniversary of joining the faculty of William Woods University, where she is a professor of equestrian science. She has taught at WWU ever since her 1968 graduation from Stephens College, except for a year-long leave of absence spent teaching in California.

Her list of accomplishments is long, including awards for her skill as a professional, coach, judge, author and rider. Having dedicated her life to the development of the saddle horse industry, it is not surprising she is a legend in the business.

Lampe has received many awards due to her involvement and influence in the industry, including the Master Instructor Award, the highest honor given by the American Riding Instructors Association.

According to ARIA director Charlotte Kneeland, "This award is given to an instructor who has reached the pinnacle of success and accomplishment, while maintaining the highest standards of personal and professional integrity."

She was also the 2007 recipient of the Audrey Gutridge Award and the Castleman Award, given to an individual based on contributions to the professional equine industry. She has been named the United Professional Horsemen’s Association Equitation Instructor of the Year, the Missouri-Kansas Horse Person of the Year, and is a two-time recipient of the Distinguished Professor Award at William Woods University.

Other awards include Missouri Horse Shows Association Trainer of the Year and the American Riding Instructor Certification Program’s Instructor of the Year.

As a coach, Lampe has helped students find their niche in the show world, whether in training, showing or managing. She coached the United States saddle seat equitation

team to a gold medal at the first Saddle Seat Equitation World Cup. She has also coached numerous students to championships of their own, and she has conducted clinics in 18 states and three different countries.

As a judge, she is known and respected nationally and internationally. Holding judges cards in nine equestrian disciplines, she has judged shows in 43 states, as well as in Australia, Canada, Great Britain and South Africa.

With all that she has done, the accomplishment of being an author is even more remarkable. She published "Riding for Success, Both In and Out of the Show Ring," and has written many articles for various equine publications, including Saddle & Bridle, The American Saddlebred, The Morgan Horse and The National Horseman.

As a rider, she has earned numerous awards with her horse, Callaway’s Born To Win. Together they won the Ladies Five-Gaited Championship at the 2003 Kentucky State Fair and the Ladies Five-Gaited Championship at the 2003 and 2005 UPHA American Royal National Championship.

Lampe and Born To Win also won Reserve World’s Champion Ladies Five-Gaited in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007. Callaway’s Born To Win was named the best open five-gaited horse in the nation in 2004, 2006 and 2007 and High Point Grand Champion in the Ladies Five-Gaited Division in 2007.

In 2007, Born To Win was named the United States Equestrian Federation Regional and National Five-Gaited Open Horse of the Year, as well as the Missouri Horse Shows Association Champion Ladies Five-Gaited Horse. He was also Best of Breed High Point Five-Gaited Ladies Gelding, Best of Breed High Point Five-Gaited Overall and People’s Choice Champion Five-Gaited Ladies Gelding.

Lampe has a strong track record through the years; the true test of an equestrian. She has proven time and again that she has what it takes to coach, train, show and make a difference.

She has been recognized for many of her accomplishments, and she continues to ride and coach, always giving back to the horses and people she knows and loves, the saddle horse industry.