GRIT Fall Training Camp
The GRIT Fall Training Camp marks the final integrated training opportunity of the 2025 season, bringing athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors together for a weekend of reflection, development, and shared learning. With a continued focus on high-performance sport science, skill application, and mindset growth, this camp also places intentional emphasis on social license in equestrian sport, supporting all participants in understanding their role in shaping the future of the industry.

october 3-5, 2025
Apply a Growth Mindset Framework
Athletes in the GRIT program are supported in moving beyond their comfort zones, embracing challenge, and developing long-term resilience. This final training camp of the year offers an opportunity to reflect on growth, identify new areas for development, and solidify mindset tools for ongoing progress.
Train Like a High-Performance Athlete
Auditors will gain valuable insight from equestrian legends Ian Millar, Amy Millar, and Christilot Boylen, alongside professional strength and conditioning coaches, mental performance consultants, and other experts in high-performance sport. See firsthand how elite athletes train, recover, and prepare for success.
Understand the Journey from Comfort to Growth
True progress comes from deliberate challenge. Through expert-led sessions and practical demonstrations, this camp explores how pushing physical, technical, and mental limits, intentionally and with support, builds sustainable high performance. Athletes, parents, and coaches will learn how to navigate this process both in training and competition.
Engage with Industry Leaders and Expand Your Perspective
Connect with Olympic riders, national-level coaches, equestrian sport scientists, and professionals leading conversations around athlete development and social license. Whether you're an athlete, coach, parent, or industry stakeholder, the auditor experience will provide meaningful insights into the evolving demands and responsibilities of equestrian sport in Canada.

SCHEDULE
14875 Bayview Ave, Aurora, ON
October 3, 2025
Opening
Light breakfast and coffee will be served in the indoor arena!
Welcome
We are excited to begin the camp with an energizing start, featuring opening remarks and a special address from Ontario Equestrian. We will also celebrate excellence within our community through a special acknowledgement and the presentation of the Coach of the Year award.
Mock horse inspection
All GRIT athletes take part in a simulated FEI jog, an essential element of international competition. This interactive session offers a closer look at the standards of presentation and professionalism required on the world stage, while giving athletes valuable practice in a supportive environment.
Dressage
Christilot Boylen will work with GRIT dressage riders Lauren Pinelli, Kayla Welsh, and Hilary Leblanc to explore the fundamental principles of dressage.
Guided debrief
Athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors can join guided debriefs led by performance advisor Ruth Allum, with equestrian experts Ian Millar and Christilot Boylen. These sessions offer a collaborative space to ask questions, reflect on the day’s lessons, and explore a growth mindset, providing insights to support learning and development for everyone involved.
Flatwork
→ Jumping
Christilot Boylen kicks things off with experienced GRIT eventers Emalee Bodimeade, Saffron Klotz, and Avery Tallman, joined by jumper Holly Heikkila, work with Christilot Boylen to sharpen dressage fundamentals before moving to Ian Millar for grid work. A flat-to-fences session highlighting the foundation eventers rely on across all three phases.
Lunch
Join us for a delicious and nutritious barbecue lunch provided by Healthy Now, served in the GRIT event tent. This catered meal is designed to fuel your body with wholesome, energizing ingredients to keep you feeling your best throughout the day.
Flatwork
→ Jumping
Valentina Da Silva Giusti, Abigail Hineman, Emma Robinson, and Keira Smith, our newest GRIT jumpers, refine flatwork with Christilot Boylen before Ian Millar guides them over grids to build rhythm, balance, and confidence in the ring.
Guided debrief
After the second jumping session, athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors join performance advisor Ruth Allum, mental performance coach Paige Mattie, Ian Millar, and Christilot Boylen for a guided debrief. The session offers a chance to reflect on key takeaways, ask questions, and explore lessons from both jumping groups, promoting a growth mindset and deeper understanding of rider development.
Flatwork
→ Jumping
Avery Clune, Ruby Stringel, and Kyleigh Whitwell our last jumping group of the day! With Christilot Boylen they fine-tune control on the flat before Ian Millar challenges them with grids to elevate rhythm, balance, and accuracy.
Closing Debrief
At the end of the day, athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors join Ruth Allum, Paige Mattie, Ian Millar, and Christilot Boylen for a guided debrief. This session offers a chance to reflect on the day’s key takeaways, ask questions, and explore lessons from all sessions, reinforcing a growth mindset and deepening understanding of rider development.
October 4, 2025
Opening
Light breakfast and coffee provided in the GRIT event tent!
DRESSAGE
This second day of training builds on the momentum established during the first, as our 2025 GRIT Dressage riders Lauren Pinelli, Kayla Welsh, and Hilary Leblanc continue to deepen their work under the guidance of Christilot Boylen.
FEI RUle Discussions
Join FEI steward and expert Lori Green for an interactive session exploring key FEI rules and regulations. Athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors will gain insights into competition standards, ask questions, and deepen their understanding of the rules that guide high-performance equestrian sport.
Flatwork
→ Jumping
Valentina Da Silva Giusti, Abigail Hineman, Emma Robinson, and Keira Smith revisit flatwork with Christilot Boylen before tackling jumping grids with Ian Millar. The emphasis is on reinforcing fundamentals, improving rhythm, and developing confidence in applying Day 1 lessons to more challenging approaches.
Mental Performance
Join mental performance coach Paige Mattie for an interactive session designed specifically for coaches and parents. Explore strategies to support athlete confidence, resilience, and focus, while learning practical ways to foster a positive environment that promotes growth, motivation, and long-term performance success.
Lunch
Join us for a delicious and nutritious bowls provided by Healthy Now, served in the GRIT event tent. This catered meal is designed to fuel your body with wholesome, energizing ingredients to keep you feeling your best throughout the day.
Flatwork
→ Jumping
Emalee Bodimeade, Saffron Klotz, and Avery Tallman, joined by Holly Heikkila, continue building on their dressage and jumping fundamentals with Christilot Boylen and Ian Millar. The focus is on refining connection, precision, and balance over fences, applying the lessons from Day 1 to more advanced exercises and combinations.
FEI RUle Discussions
Join FEI steward and expert Lori Green for an interactive session exploring key FEI rules and regulations. Athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors will gain insights into competition standards, ask questions, and deepen their understanding of the rules that guide high-performance equestrian sport.
Flatwork
→ Jumping
Avery Clune and Ruby Stringel return to advance their skills with Christilot Boylen and Ian Millar. Day 2 focuses on precision, efficiency, and consistency in grid exercises, building on the foundations honed during the previous day.
FEI RUle Discussions
Join FEI steward and expert Lori Green for an interactive session exploring key FEI rules and regulations. Athletes, coaches, parents, and auditors will gain insights into competition standards, ask questions, and deepen their understanding of the rules that guide high-performance equestrian sport.
October 5, 2025
Opening
Light breakfast and coffee provided in the GRIT Event Tent!
DRESSAGE competition simulation
Christilot Boylen will guide GRIT dressage riders Lauren Pinelli, Kayla Welsh, and Hilary Leblanc through a modelled competition experience. Building on the foundational principles of dressage, this session will simulate the competitive environment while focusing on correctness, consistency, and the application of fundamentals under pressure.
Course Walk
Together, Ian and Rob will highlight key questions to ask on a walk, how riders should evaluate lines, distances, and jump placement, and the strategies required to successfully navigate technical tracks. Athletes will gain practical insight into how course design influences riding decisions and how to adapt a plan to maximize performance in the ring.
Eventing in Practice: A Model for Competition
Watch fundamental skills in motion! Eventing pro, will ride the same jumping course as the GRIT athletes, showcasing how rhythm, balance, and timing guide every approach and fence.
Jumping in Practice: A Model for competition
Experience fundamentals at speed! Show jumping pro will ride the course, demonstrating how balance, rhythm, and clear decision-making create smooth, confident rounds. By seeing the pros and riding side-by-side, athletes and audience gain insight into the shared principles that underpin performance across all disciplines.
Dressage in practice: A model for Competition
See the fundamentals come to life! Dressage pro will ride a full test, demonstrating how rhythm, balance, and connection form the foundation of every movement.
Pillars of Equestrian Social Licensing
Discover how public trust shapes the future of equestrian sport! This session dives into what it means to earn and maintain a social license, exploring how ethical practices, transparency, and horse welfare build credibility. Through real-world examples and discussion, participants will learn how their choices, both on and off the horse, impact the sport’s reputation and sustainability.
Lunch
On the final day, join us for our last lunch of the Fall GRIT Camp, featuring sandwiches, wraps, and salads, a chance to relax, connect, and refuel together before the weekend wraps up.
Jumping Competition simulation
GRIT eventing and jumping athletes will tackle the full course in a competition simulation, going head-to-head. With lessons from the pro demonstration fresh in mind, they will focus on rhythm, accuracy, and decision-making, transforming observation into performance. Valentina Da Silva Giusti, Abigail Hineman, Emma Robinson, Keira Smith, Ruby Stringel, Emalee Bodimeade, Saffron Klotz, Avery Tallman, Avery Clune
closing ceremony
This session will feature closing reflections, key takeaways, and recognition of athletes, coaches, and staff who made the camp a success. Special awards will be presented to highlight standout moments and accomplishments. We’ll wrap up on an inspiring note and send everyone home motivated to carry their GRIT experience into their daily training environments.

