Located on 75 acres in the heart of central Ohio’s horse country but just minutes from the I-270 outer belt, Brave Horse has been meticulously planned and developed to provide a peerless show experience for riders, horses, trainers and spectators. Owners Matt and Amy Harris first acquired property for the new facility in 2015 with a goal of expanding high quality showing options in the Hunter Jump
er disciplines in central Ohio. Harris convened renowned experts in equestrian facility development, including architect John Blackburn, AIA of Washington, D.C, land planner Mark Kline of MKSK in Columbus, Ohio, and Karen Leeming and Lawton Adams of Footing First, to partner in the design of this spectacular new destination for equestrian sport. Now complete, Brave Horse Show Park and the Brave Horse Show Series is poised to present a new vision for equestrian sport in the region. Brave Horse features five state-of-the-art arenas dressed with the highest quality competition footing. A Grand Prix arena, built to specifications to accommodate internationally sanctioned competitions, features a subterranean watering system and a proprietary blend of footing used by Olympic and World Cup level equestrian facilities. The facility also features 250 permanent 12 x 12 horse stalls in 5 stable buildings with wide and well lit aisle ways and natural ventilation. Other additions to the grounds include a large show office, vendor area for equipment, apparel and catering services, hospitality area, judge and in gate boxes, landscaping and water features, green spaces, lighting enhancements and more. To support his vision of a show experience that meets and surpasses standards of national competition, Harris recruited internationally respected operations expert, Mike Belisle, to oversee the Brave Horse show series. Belisle’s resume includes management duties at top tier shows in North America such as the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, Florida, The Washington International Horse Show in Washington, D.C., Silver Oak Jumper Tournament in New Hampshire, and the Anglestone Tournament in Ontario, Canada, among others. In addition to the Brave Horse Show Series, the internationally sanctioned Split Rock Jumping Tour will move the fall portion of its jumping series from Lexington, KY to Brave Horse and present two weeks of competition, September 27-October 1 and October 4-8.
