APAHA is sponsoring an educational symposium over the Labor Day weekend that will explore the teachings of APAHA’s founder, the late Bettina Drummond, with the focus on creating the balance and lightness in riding that is the foundation for creating art in horsemanship.

Many of the demonstration riders are former students of Bettina and students of the French system of riding and training that was so much a part of Bettina’s approach. Olivier Puls, a former member of France’s prestigious Cadre Noir and an expert in long-lining and the French system, will join APAHA as a featured guest to share his knowledge and the lessons he learned in his work with Bettina.

Auditors are very welcome. The cost of auditing is a $25 per day donation to APAHA, which can be paid at the door or online through Stripe by clicking here.

About APAHA

APAHA was founded by Bettina Drummond, who sadly passed away in March of 2025 after a year’s-long battle with cancer. Bettina was a gifted teacher, rider and trainer of the equestrian arts who spent her formative years training with Master Nuno Oliveira in Portugal. The many years she spent with Oliveira gave her the opportunity to develop her skills as a rider and trainer with not only Oliveira as her teacher but also his trained horses as her teachers. Bettina came to realize the value of these horses in providing her with an understanding and feeling of true balance and lightness and harmony between horse and rider. Hence, she set as her goal the creation of an organization that could give American riders and trainers access to horses that could provide them with the opportunities to gain the same understanding and feel from trained horses as well as access to education to help them explore riding as art.

Bettina was internationally recognized as an artist who collaborated with artists in many disciplines to create beautiful examples of the art of horsemanship. Her riding inspired sculptors and painters to create. And, she collaborated with dancers and musicians of many genres. In keeping with Bettina’s vision, APAHA is dedicated to providing American riders and trainers with a higher level of education with the hope that they will then pass on their knowledge to their students. In that way, APAHA hopes that horsemanship as an art will spread to more and more riders and trainers and will therefore be preserved for future generations.

APAHA continues working to protect and promote horsemanship as an art form in America. Through its support of educational programs, workshops and performance demonstrations, APAHA seeks to educate riders, trainers and artists in other disciplines on the role of riding and horses in the world of art. Through its programs, APAHA works to ensure that horsemanship as an art form is preserved for future generations.