Our Trainers
Mike McGrath
Mike grew up in northeastern Pennsylvania where he was introduced to horses through summers at Hunter/Jumper riding camps, competing in Gymkhana sports, and weekends trail riding with his family. After taking a brief break to finish his classic education, Mike got his boots back in the stirrups and has never looked back.
Through this new exploration of his passion for riding, Mike found his niche in eventing and took the initiative to gather a solid foundation in each phase of the sport: Dressage, Showjumping, and Cross-Country. During this time Mike also took the opportunity to study under 3x Olympian Boyd Martin as a working student. Under Boyd, Mike not only gained more knowledge of the sport of eventing but also found his passion for horse care and the management of young horses.
Since riding under Boyd, Mike has worked at several top sport horse barns including that of 5* rider Allison Springer.
In early 2023 Mike established McGrath Sport Horses at West Addy Farm in Upperville, Virginia. Here Mike prides himself in finding talent in young horses and OTTBs, finding a place for them in horse sports. He also enjoys teaching children and adult amateurs to ride and reach their highest potential.
Devon Sutherland
Devon grew up in Woodbine, Maryland where the horse bug bit her at nine years old. After moving with her family to northern Virginia at 13, she joined a hunt seat IEA riding team where she learned a great set of foundational horsemanship and riding skills, specifically in the hunter/jumper ring. The horse Devon started riding in Virginia, Barnaby, had evented in his past, and Devon worked hard to get him back out competing. He ended up taking Devon to her first couple of events, and was the horse that began her love of the discipline.
Once she realized that eventing was the sport that she wanted to pursue, Devon applied and was accepted into the working student program of olympic event rider Phyllis Dawson at age 17. This was where Devon learned how to care for, manage, work with, break, train, and compete all different types of horses.
Since then, Devon has been striving to continue her education in all aspects of the equestrian world and has worked under several top notch riders and programs including 5* rider Sean McQuillan, Jacqueline Mars’ Stonehall Farm, and 5* event rider Allison Springer.
Devon is now a trainer here at West Addy Farm. She applies her well rounded knowledge and skills to teach and train the horses and riders that come to West Addy. Devon does this all while continuing her own education and competition experience to pursue her upper level goals with her up and coming horse “Mega Bucks”, a 2016 OTTB. Cash, as he is called in the barn, was acquired by Devon as a naughty four year old, and she has been successfully and competitively bringing him up the levels. He currently competes at the preliminary level, with his first 2* scheduled for fall 2024.
