Mackenzie Peer Returns to the U.S.A. to Work at Sonnenberg Farm

Dressage

U.S.A.

American young professional dressage rider Mackenzie Peer has returned to the U.S.A. after 1.5 years in Europe to ride for Sonnenberg Farm in Oregon.

Mackenzie Peer

Peer hails from Michigan but grew up in Overland Park, Kansas, where she trained with Emily Miles at the start of her career. A graduate of Blue Valley Northwest High School, she structured her high school years around her riding goals.

She began her international dressage career as a junior rider in 2017 on American sport pony Macu (by Mushu x Tre Awain Irish Sweeps), having competed at the 2017 North American Junior Riders Championships. In 2019 she won the USEF Dressage Seat Medal Final 14-18 gold medal with the Hanoverian bred Quantum MRF.

She returned to the international arena at Young Riders' level in 2021 aboard Lilly Schoeppner's KWPN bred Hernando (by Bretton Woods x Welt Hit II). She began competing Ansgar that same year, having bought the horse from Nicole Polaski. Ansgar was produced and shown at small tour level by Melissa Taylor until 2019, and Peer began training the horse under the supervision of Taylor and Lars Petersen in Wellington, Florida. She and Ansgar became the reserve champions at the 2021 U.S. Young Riders Championships.

Drawn to Europe

In 2022 she got the opportunity to compete Ansgar in Europe at the CDIO Compiegne and Hagen. The euro tour wasn't Mackenzie's first time in Europe. She had already spent some time training with Stefanie Wolf at Johann Hinnemann's yard Krusterhof in Germany in 2019.

Peer wanted a career in horses and began riding professionally for Taylor & Petersen at Helgstrand Dressage U.S.A. in Florida. She placed fifth on Franeur and eighth on Baileys On Ice at the 2023 U.S. Young Horse Championships in Wayne, ILL.

In the late summer of 2024 Peer moved to Europe to continue her career there. She was first based at Emma Blundell's Mount St. John farm in the U.K. but a few months later moved to the German base of Helgstrand Dressage under Eva and Ulf Möller. Peer got to ride some stallions in the stallion shows and competed a few horses from L to S level in Germany, including finished 12th and 20th in the consolation final of the 2025 Bundeschampionate with So Special (by So Unique x Lauries Crusador xx) and Liam (by Livaldon x Warkant).

Back to the U.S.A.

At the turn of the year the 24-year old Peer found a full-time riding job at Gina and Dan Ruediger's Sonnenberg Farm in Sherwood, Oregon, replacing Ben Albright and Ben Winger, who moved on to Devonwood equestrian centre in the same city.

"Mackenzie came to us after spending the last year and a half with Ulf Moeller and prior to that, with Lars," Dan and Gina told Eurodressage. "She comes to us with wonderful experience. She had great feel and a correct background. She has a string of 10 training horses, all home bred from 4 year olds to Grand Prix. Exciting times at Sonnenberg."

Mackenzie made her show debut in April 2026 on Sonnenberg's Primrosa (by Secret x Ampere), Paris (by Vivino x Furstenball), and Refine Time (by Jovian out of Fine Time) at Devonwood and last week competed Primrosa, Refine Time and Levanta (by Charmeur x UB40) in the national classes during the CDI Sherwood to qualify them for the U.S. young horse championships.