Born in 1960 in Brooklyn, New York, Amy has had a passion for horses for as long as she can remember.  Her riding career began early on when she took English riding lessons in Elementary school and quickly turned into a passion for jumping when she rode with Nancy Thomas of Thomas School of Horsemanship and later with Patrick Rice of Rice Farms.  She continued to train and compete through secondary school, and as she prepared for graduation, she knew she wanted to pursue riding as an occupation.  She also wanted to fullfill her father's dream of having his first-born child graduate from college with a four-year degree.

Salem College in West Virginia satisfied both dreams as she earned her Bachelor's degree in equestrian studies with a minor in business.  As part of her curriculum she attended the prestigious Meredith Manor in Waverly, West Virginia under the tutelage of co-founder Kay Meredith and the late Bodo Hagen.  She graduated with her Riding Master III degree with a major in dressage training and a minor in teaching.

With degrees in hand, Amy headed for warmer temperatures and discovered sunny South Carolina, where she taught at and managed a riding stable in Columbia for a few years.  During that time, she trained with Cindy Sydnor whenever possible and competed in dressage and combined tests.  Still wanting to advance her dressage, Amy became a working student at Graf Bae Farm in Aiken, SC in 1983.   For seven years she trained under the expertise of the late and great Bari Von Buedigen and for three of those years with rising dressage star Hokan Thorn. 

In 1991, Amy opened her own dressage training and teaching business in Aiken, SC and that same year married her husband Daniel McElroy.  Dan has been extremely supportive in all of Amy's equestrian endeavors and can be seen at the occasional show or clinic when he's not attending to fatherly duties or busy remodeling their lovely home. 

Amy has and continues to enjoy great success in the show ring (earning her USDF Bronze and Silver medals among many other distinctions) and so do her many students.  While Amy works successfully with all riders--Open, Adult Amateur, and Junior/Young Riders--she has found her particular niche in working with adult amateurs.  She loves to teach and to see her students succeed.  Fourteen of her students have earned their USDF Bronze medals and another four have also earned their Silver medals.  The McElroy Group is competitive and has an ambitious show schedule, which keeps Amy busy most of the year.  Amy herself tries to compete in at least six shows a year and is actively pursuing her USDF Gold Medal with the assistance of Gunnar Ostergaard and her current FEI partner, Swing King, a talented Danish Warmblood that she found through Gunnar.  Gunnar has been and is Amy's mentor and support system, and she has trained with him exclusively for the past five years.  She also is grateful for her friendship and business partnership with Mike Harrington who she met years before when he offered her the ride on his handsome gelding Riviero.  To learn more about Amy, please click here About Amy (cont.)

Photos:  Above left to right:  Amy and Detente, owned by Amy and Ann Timberlake, Canterbury Dressage, Florida; Amy showing Mike Harrington's Riviero at Chateau Elan, Georgia; Amy and Swing King owned by Amy and Mike Harrington.  Lower right: Amy and Gunnar Ostergaard at Xanadu Farm, Aiken, South Carolina.