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About
Hi, my name is Kathryn McLain Rubin but everyone calls me Lainie.
I’m currently a junior at Dreher High School in Columbia, South Carolina. I am an equestrian who has focused on the hunter/jumper/equitation rings for about ten years. I do my best to balance the demands of my challenging classes at school and the maintenance and training needs of my green horses. That work doesn’t leave much time for other activities, but I have enjoyed being a part of the National Honor Society at school and being a part of the South Carolina Hunter Jumper Association’s junior committee.
I have also been a member of the Tally Ho IEA (Interscholastic Equestrian Association) team for the past several years. I love getting the chance to ride different horses and I enjoy spending time with my friends and other equestrians. Riding can be a pretty individual sport, so being a part of a team and having the chance to feel more connected to the sport and to my equestrian community through IEA has been wonderful!
Although I love to compete, I am most proud of the behind-the-scenes work that I do that helps my horses get to the show ring. Long hours spent cleaning stalls and water buckets flow into even longer hours grooming and training at home. I also enjoy helping my Mom with our small family horse/pony business. In helping to train and then lease or sell our ponies and horses over the years, I’ve learned a lot about how challenging the equestrian industry (and owning a business) can be in addition to learning how to select, train, and market our animals. This small family business has allowed me to continue to afford to train and show and has also allowed me a very personal look into how a small business operates.
I am so grateful for the opportunities that I’ve been given to catch-ride for my trainers and other professionals on both the local and A circuits. These opportunities have led to working student and grooming positions that have really helped my overall horsemanship and given me an entirely new level of appreciation for all the hard-working trainers, grooms and farm staff who make having horses possible.
Although I love to compete, I am most proud of the behind-the-scenes work that I do that helps my horses get to the show ring. Long hours spent cleaning stalls and water buckets flow into even longer hours grooming and training at home. I also enjoy helping my Mom with our small family horse/pony business. In helping to train and then lease or sell our ponies and horses over the years, I’ve learned a lot about how challenging the equestrian industry (and owning a business) can be in addition to learning how to select, train, and market our animals. This small family business has allowed me to continue to afford to train and show and has also allowed me a very personal look into how a small business operates.
I am so grateful for the opportunities that I’ve been given to catch-ride for my trainers and other professionals on both the local and A circuits. These opportunities have led to working student and grooming positions that have really helped my overall horsemanship and given me an entirely new level of appreciation for all the hard-working trainers, grooms and farm staff who make having horses possible.
My goal for the last two years of my junior career is to qualify for and compete at various national equitation finals (including IEA Nationals) as well as junior hunter finals. Eventually, I want to become a veterinarian so I hope to join a college equestrian team that will enable me to continue to enhance my horsemanship skills while achieving my academic dreams!
