After accomplishing her goal and making it to the Grand Prix Dressage National Championship, Jodie Kelly-Baxley has her sights set on Europe for herself and her horse Grayton Beach for 2027.
Destin’s Kelly-Baxley, 42, recently placed sixth overall at the Grand Prix Dressage National Championship at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, which earned her a spot to compete in the National Championships in Europe. But due to unfortunate circumstances, the trip to Falsterbo Nations Cup in Sweden fell through.
But a trip to Europe with Grayton Beach is high on her list for next year.
Backstory
Kelly-Baxley has been doing dressage her whole life.
“I rode growing up,” she said, noting they have a barn in Destin.
When she graduated from Fort Walton Beach High, she had plans to go to Auburn University and become an architect.
“I did the tour, got to the drafting building and they said, ‘You will not see the outside of that building for five years. So, put your life on hold,” she said.
By that time, Kelly-Baxley had already had a few horses in training and was starting to ride professionally.
“It made me do a little sit back and think,” she said.
After a “big pow-wow” with her parents, Brant and Laurie Kelly, who were 100 percent behind her, she decided to give professional riding a shot.
She stayed home and went to Okaloosa-Walton Community College and was able to continue riding, and ride professionally.
“They stood behind me … and here we are,” she said.
“I love it, but it’s a lot of work,” Kelly-Baxley said.
“They say if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. I beg to differ,” she said.
“I do love what I do, but I absolutely work many days of my life,” Kelly-Baxley said.
Kelly-Baxley said she had a great example in her dad, who has since passed away.
“He loved what he did, but he worked a lot of days of his life,” she said.
If Capt. Brant Kelly wasn’t fishing, he was building or fixing something. He built the Lady K charter boat and ran it for more than 20 years, before building the 65-foot Relentless. He also built their house and a barn for the horse.
“Horses are no different. No matter the weather, they still have to eat, they have to be taken care of … it certainly builds character,” Kelly-Baxley said.
In dressage, you must work up through levels.
She did juniors and young riders and competed in different age brackets and levels.
But once you are over the age of 25, riders are over the age bracket for competition.
“But you still have levels,” she said.
Road to the Grand Prix
Kelly-Baxley described the Grand Prix Championships as the “crown jewel” of dressage competition.
And to qualify for the National Grand Prix you must compete in international competitions, known as CDIs.
A CDI is a top-tier, international dressage show, where an international panel of judges, judge the competition.
“That’s what I did all season,” Kelly-Baxley said.
And in April she had a big win at a CDI, which clinched her a spot for the National Grand Prix Championships in Ocala.
“Over the year, we set goals for ourselves and our horses. You try to set attainable goals, and a little lofty … a nice balance,” she said.
Her goal this year was the Grand Prix National Championship, which turned out to be an observation event for Europe.
The competition
Before the competition, Kelly-Baxley received an email saying that the top eight riders would need to stay and meet after the Grand Prix and talk about travel plans to compete in Europe.
“It was cool just to be on that e-mail list,” Kelly-Baxley said.
“I had no intention of being asked to stay. But I was really excited to be in the group that was discussing Europe,” she said.
The competition started on May 13 at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala.
“Once it started, I was far more competitive than expected. It was really cool,” she said.
Kelly-Baxley finished fifth.
The next day, she placed third in the Grand Prix Special.
“Once you hit third, you go to the press conference … it is a big deal. It was very exciting,” she said.
On Day 3 was the Grand Prix Freestyle, where you ride to music.
“I was a little lower on that because my degree of difficulty is not quite as difficult as some of the others,” she said. She and Grayton Beach placed seventh.
But when the final points were tallied, Kelly-Baxter and Grayton Beach placed sixth overall.
So, she stayed for a discussion about a trip to Europe.
“It was really exciting and kind of surreal,” she said, still not knowing what was next.
For Kelly-Baxley, she had met her goal and was done, but now there were dreams of moving on.
Dreams of Europe
The coaches were to meet on Tuesday and then let the riders know who would be going to Europe.
“When they called me, they thought I would be a good candidate for the Nations Cup team in Sweeden,” Kelly-Baxley said.
“My only goal was getting to the championships, and the fact that Europe was on their radar for me was so so exciting,” she said.
She sent in the paperwork, and plans were to be finalized in two weeks.
So, for two weeks she planned to be in Europe for the summer, she said.
But then she got a call. They had a few last-minute withdrawals, due to injuries, so they ended up not having enough riders to represent the United States at the Falsterbo Nations Cup in Sweden and decided not to send a team.
“I was invited to go … and now the US is not sending a team to Sweden,” she said.
Kelly-Baxley says there are three paths to Europe for a rider and her horse.
One is to be on a team where the federation funds most of it, including the flight for the horse, and room for the rider.
Secondly, if you are not on a team, and want the experience to be over there, and your horse is under the age of 14, they offer training grants.
“I would have qualified, but my horse if 15, so he wasn’t eligible for a grant,” she said.
The third way is to fund yourself.
“You still have to get permission to compete individually over there, but I would have to fund the whole trip myself. I was not prepared for that this year,” she said.
“My goal was the championships …that’s what I accomplished,” she said.
“So, this summer I stay home, which is unfortunate, but the fact that I was able to get that far, was really an honor,” Kelly-Baxtley said.
Kelly-Baxley bought Grayton Beach as a 3-year-old and trained him his whole life.
“It’s rare that a rider owns their own horse and competes their own horse and does all the things,” she said.
“The fact that I was able to live in this not-horse-mecca (Destin) and still be able to buy him as a baby and train him up and get asked to represent the U.S. internationally is huge,” she said.
Fired up for the future
“That was just a season; we’re not done yet,” Kelly-Baxley said.
“I have a renewed fire lit under me. Next year is definitely Europe … whether I’m on a team,” she said.
“Now I have the confidence that we belong there. That’s my goal,” she said.
Her plan is to put a European tour together, whether on a team or individually, but to start working on funding now.
“It’s a big trip for a horse,” she said, noting they would stay a couple of months.
“The top trainers in the world are over there … I’m excited about this new goal,” she said.
In the meantime, Kelly-Baxley will be looking for sponsorships for Grayton Beach.
Flying a horse to Europe costs $20,000 to $30,000 for the round trip, she said.
“Then you have rider and horse expenses one you are over there,” Kelly-Baxley said.
She estimated it would cost about $50,000 for the summer to compete in Europe.
This was the first year the National Championships were held in Ocala.
“We’re hoping for it to be there again next year,” she said.
“It just wasn’t on my radar this year,” she said of competing in Europe.
“Now I know I’m part of that group … you got to have that sense of I belong here. I have accomplished this … the next step is Europe,” Kelly-Baxley said.
And she has no plans to stop riding anytime soon.
“I don’t plan on giving it up,” she said, noting there are riders in the 60s riding.
“You can ride a really long time, which I love. Not giving it up anytime soon,” Kelly-Baxley said.
Fun fact
Kelly-Baxley named her horse after the local beach in Walton County: Grayton Beach.
But then again, she has tried to name all her horses over the years after beaches, especially in Florida.
Some of her horses’ names have been Lido Beach, Reding Beach, Ocean Beach and Normandy Beach.
However, she is limited to names because of breeding and having to start the name with a certain letter, due to the breed. She imported Grayton Beach, a Dutch Warmblood, from Holland.
Not giving it up anytime soon.
This article originally appeared on The Destin Log: Destin rider eyes Europe after national success
Reporting by Tina Harbuck, The Destin Log / The Destin Log
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Tina Harbuck, The Destin Log | USA TODAY Network
