Barbara Cleveland and Valentales

Team #82

Victory Lap - Photo by Jeff Lawton

Barbara started riding at age 9 in Poulsbo, Washington.  Active in 4-H and showing in a variety of horse show events, Barbara started and trained two of her own horses.  When she attended Washington State University, where she majored in Interior Design, she trained and showed their Arabian stallion for two years.  Dressage was just starting in the U.S. at that time on the East Coast.

Barbara moved to Hawaii in 1964, where she started her career as an Interior Designer.  Sailing and diving took the place of horses her first 20 years in the islands.  When she and her husband moved to the Big Island in 1986 she discovered that Hawaii Preparatory Academy had a great adult riding program that included dressage.  That is where the dressage seed was planted. 

Barbara and her teammate, Valentales, have a long history.  Starting in Hawaii in 1989, Vali, an Appendix Quarter Horse that had won the Snaffle Bit Maturity Championship as a 4 year old and a Cutting Horse Championship the following year, seemed a dubious dressage prospect. The 16’2 hand gelding, however, was out of a great line of Parker Ranch Thoroughbreds and by a racing AQHA stallion named Tell n’ Tales
    
Several weeks after she bought Vali, Dorothy Maxfield, the daughter of Lazelle Knocke (who was the first Century Club member) traveled to Hawaii from New Jersey to judge a dressage show and conduct a clinic on the Big Island.   Barbara and Vali ended up winning their Training Level classes. Dorothy felt that he had the potential to do well in dressage with his great attitude and work ethic.  At age 49 Barbara quickly became immersed in the world of dressage.  
     
The Clevelands decided to return to her husband’s home in Santa Barbara in 1991. Upon arrival she began working with the local trainers. Her goal was to earn the USDF Bronze Medal, which happened in 1999. She did ride several 4th level tests before deciding that the pirouettes and half passes were just too much for her senior horse.   Barbara has been active in the SB-CDS chapter during the past 21 years serving on the board as chapter chair, vice chair, social chair, and newsletter editor. 

Barbara and Vali were overwhelmed by the warm and generous support of the Santa Barbra-CDS chapter for their Century Ride Saturday, April 2, 2011, at the Earl Warren show grounds in Santa Barbara, CA.  Hilda Gurney, renowned trainer and Olympic medal winner, was the judge.  As Barbara had worked with Hilda 10 years ago, it seemed apropos that Hilda would judge her Century Ride.

Barbara's hometown newspaper, the Santa Barbara News-Press, published a feature article about Barbara and Valentales Century Club ride.  Read the story here.  Congratulations, Barbara!