At the tender age of 13 Dakota Griffith would be quick to tell anyone who would listen that some day she would become a horse trainer. Her dream became a reality in 2011 at the end of her final year in youth.

As the daughter of Leigh Ann and Sid Griffith, Dakota grew up on a large horse farm in Columbus, Ohio that is home to Ohio State’s Hunt Seat team and accredited riding programs.  Sid Griffith is the Head Coach of the Ohio State Hunt Seat Equestrian Team, and her mother is the professor for the accredited Riding Program at The Ohio State University.

“One day my dad left to judge a horse show and brought back a 16.3-hand liver chestnut gelding named Wamps Power Pine who had frostbitten ears and a floppy muzzle,” Dakota recalls. “When my dad unloaded the gelding, my mom looked at him in horror thinking that he could not have brought this “nag” home for their little girl.  For me, it was love at first sight because he looked exactly like a teddy bear.  I knew I would never do anything else.”

Dakota’s first training experience was with a very talented French dressage instructor who taught her to ride in a very military style, and according to Dakota, was a taskmaster. But she says Doug Carpenter and Rick Skelly were her biggest training influences.

“Doug used to come and stay at our place when I was little, and I can remember being overwhelmingly excited for his visit.  He was very patient with me. I would have every horse I owned saddled in the barn waiting for him to arrive,” Dakota says. “Rick Skelly has also been an important coach for me.  He is the person who really worked to develop and mentor my love for hunter under saddle. No matter how hard he challenged me, I knew he always expected me to trust him and execute the task.”

Over the years Dakota has had the opportunity to show  many great horses such as five-time Congress Champion and four-time AQHA World Champion, Opinions; Nitrojen, an AQHA World Champion Hunter Under Saddle horse to which

Dakota added multiple events to his regime. When the Griffiths were approached about selling him it was the biggest heartbreak of young Dakota’s life, but her mother was adamant that

there was a young brown mare in Wisconsin that would change her life forever.

According to Dakota, Hopeful Assets was the horse that put her on the map.  Bred by the incomparable breeder, Sandra Balzer, Hopeful Assets is out of one of the top producing thoroughbreds in history, Gypsy Loom.  Dakota’s first trial ride on Hope did not go so well, and she tried as hard as she could to buck her off at Larry and Rhonda Spratto’s ranch.  Armed with a cashier’s check and an empty trailer, Dakota’s parents saw talent in the mare. With the exception of a few training sessions,

Dakota did all of the riding and training on Hope herself.

“Our first show, my dad had to lead me in the gate.  Going our first direction I realized that this was the horse we had been searching for,” Dakota says. “As we turned the other direction and cantered off she slammed on the brakes and went firing behind her with both hind feet.  To make a long story short Hope liked to do things her way, but I came to learn that she had an intelligence and heart like no other horse I will ever have the privilege to ride.”

In addition to being named the highest point earning Hunter Under Saddle horse in AQHYA history together, Hope and Dakota earned five consecutive AQHA Hunter Under Saddle High Point titles as well as multiple Performance Halter High Point awards.  By accumulating over 1,300 points together Dakota made Hope an Open AQHA Champion herself in addition to an AQHYA Champion. After five years together Dakota decided it was time to breed Hope and this year her goal is to show one of her babies at the Congress in the Masters Hunter Under Saddle.

Dakota says bringing up the babies and getting them to the show pen is by far one of her favorite parts of the job. She also enjoys coaching both amateur and youth riders.

“I feel that some people are great trainers and some are great coaches.  I hope to do both very well but see my focus more on training horses at this stage of my life,” Dakota explains. “I work closely with our farm’s head instructor, Allison Applegett who coaches the Ohio State team with my Dad as well as our IEA team.  She is one of the best young coaches I know, and I feel that we complement one another.”

While Dakota Diamond Griffith Performance Horses primarily operates out of the Griffith Columbus, Ohio facility, the family recently purchased a ranch in Venice, Florida known as Pink Barn Farm.

The Griffiths purchased the Columbus, Ohio facility, known as Sid Griffith Equestrian Center, in 1998.  The 50-acre facility was the original home to the legendary Hill Farm, one of Standardbred racing’s most important facilities. The farm originally had close to 200 stalls, but the Griffiths turned one building into a party facility and can keep about 130 head now. The farm boasts a 100-by-200-foot indoor arena; a 60-by-250-foot indoor arena, two large lighted outdoor arenas with all weather footing, a large jump field and about a dozen grass paddocks.  All workers live on-site which the Griffiths believe is important to running a facility of this size.

The Florida ranch is fondly called Pink Barn Farm due to Dakota’s obsession for all things pink. The house is pink and the barn is pink. The ranch is situated on 14 acres, minutes from the ocean and only about a mile from Fox Lea Farm, one of Florida’s premiere show facilities. There are 12 stalls with plans to expand to 30. Sid Griffith built a beautiful, large manicured track, round pen and hot walker all with a gorgeous lakeside view.