Karen Norton and Red Baron (CT)
Team #903: Karen Norton and Red Baron
From: Ashford, Connecticut
Ages: 76 & 24
Combined Ages: 100
Test: Fourth Level Freestyle
I have been riding my whole life. I grew up and lived in Murray, NE. I rode my pony and horses in 4-H and open shows until I graduated from college and got a teaching job at Parkland Middle School, Rockville, MD. In Maryland, I bought an Appaloosa horse that I rode Western on the trail system around the Potomac Canal.
After two years, I sold my horse and went cross-country to California. I rode a few times at a local stable but didn’t have a horse of my own again until a year later, when I moved back east to Connecticut and began a new teaching job at Mansfield Middle School.
At that point, I drove to Nebraska to buy a four-year-old Appaloosa gelding from my friend, Marge Meisinger, in Plattsmouth. That horse was the beginning of my long adventure of riding English and jumping. My Appaloosa was fabulous in open shows and eventing, and I never looked back.
At one point, I decided that raising my own foals and bringing them along would result in quality Oldenburg/Trakehner horses I could show anywhere. Over the years, my homebred horses won USCTA/USEA Awards and Trakehner Year End Awards. My last event was in 2015, and I decided to concentrate on dressage with my big boy, Red Baron. We were able to learn a lot, score enough, and progress enough to get our USDF silver medal. On 7/13/25, Red Baron and I completed our Century Club ride at Treasure Hill Farm, Salem, CT.
