Margie is a member of one of Canada's best-known equestrian families. Her grandfather, Major Gordon Gayford, was a member of the Canadian Army Team while her father, Tom Gayford, made history as a member of the Gold Medal Team at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, the only Olympic Show Jumping Team Medal ever won by Canada. A knowledgeable coach, Tom is the former Canadian Show Jumping Team chef d'equipe and continues to train a handful of students, including Margie.
With her family history, Margie couldn't help but be attracted to the sport and began her riding career as a young child on the family farm. While she had numerous hunter and jumper partners over the years, she made her mark with Inglewood by becoming a member of the Jump Canada Talent Squad, a program that identifies potential Canadian Equestrian Team members.
Margie has recently been enjoying incredible results with the German import, Stuntman. Margie began riding the talented Hannoverian gelding in the spring of 2004 and soon after placed third in the $25,000 Grand Prix of Collingwood. In 2005, the pair’s successful Grand Prix season included a third place finish in the $100,000 World Cup Qualifier at the Tournament of Champions in Palgrave, ON. Back in Collingwood in 2006, Margie and Stuntman scored their first Grand Prix victory in the $60,000 Kubota Cup.
Winston is also an exciting developing mount for Margie. Sired by the Dutch Warmblood stallion, Wellington, Winston was the National Six-Year-Old Reserve Champion at the 2005 Royal Horse Show. In 2006, he excelled in the National Talent Squad Championships, winning the second round.
A graduate of York University, Margie holds her degree in Economics and spent 12 years working for the Horse Publications Group as the Manager of Mail Order Sales. She now devotes her efforts to the horse industry full-time, working for both her family’s Gaylands Farm and Harry and Shawn Littler’s Wingberry Farms in King City, ON.
Stuntman
1996 bay Hannoverian gelding, 17.2hh by
Salieri
Owner: Wingberry Farms
Winston
1999 Belgian Warmblood gelding by Wellington
Owner: Wingberry Farms
Show Girl
2000 chestnut selle francais mare, 16.3hh
Owner: Wingberry Farms |
