Free Artists Creative Equestrians

Devon has been involved in the sport of equestrian vaulting for 39 years, having had an exciting individual vaulting career with seven world championship medals including an individual gold medal at WEG Rome in 1998 and a team gold medal at WEG Kentucky in 2010.  He is the most decorated vaulter in USA history, is one of the most well known vaulting figures in the world, and still actively competes with his team to this day. 

A California native, Devon has a University of California degree in theater arts and is the founder of Free Artists Creative Equestrians (F.A.C.E.), located at El Campeon Ranch in Thousand Oaks, California. As the head coach and horse trainer, Devon has worked hard to make F.A.C.E. a hub for training and a competitive leader for his equestrian sport for 17 years now. Devon is currently a trainer/ coach/ choreographer/ performer, and competitor with F.A.C.E.  When asked what his motivation for all this is, Devon’s answer is clear.  “I love teaching others how to believe in themselves and to reach their potential.  Vaulting simply brings horses, athleticism, and the arts together like nothing else, and is the craft I know best.  I am also just passionate about performance, be it through theater, dance, music, or film, and I love nothing better than to express those passions in harmony with a horse.” 

Devon was USEF’s 2005 winner of the Becky Grand Hart Equestrian of Honor Trophy, is an AVA Hall of Fame inductee, served on the USEF Board of Directors for a decade, and has served on numerous committees with the federation and his affiliate over the years in service to equestrian sport.  He dedicated to enhancing the sport in any way he can, with a focus on fielding teams and representing the USA on the world stage.  He has hopes to compete with his horse team at WEG 2018 for his 13th world championships.  

Devon is also passionate about photography, writing, traveling the world for adventure, running international clinics, dressage development with his horses Maximillian and Cimbasso, but more than anything about being a father to his 7 year old son Nico Maitozo-Menn.  

Kalyn Noah has been an equestrian all her life and an internationally competitive vaulter for 14 years. She began vaulting at the age of 16 with Sundance Vaulters. In 2004 Kalyn was recruited by coach Katariina Alongi of Coastline Vaulters where she went on to join the squad bound for the World Championships in Stadle Paura, Austria. Her squad brought home a bronze medal that summer, and the experience ignited a lifelong passion for squad vaulting. Since then, Kalyn has founded two vaulting clubs in Texas and Canada, won multiple national titles in squad and pas de deux, and has represented the USA at three World Championships. Vaulting became her way to self discovery through avenues of music and horses. Kalyn continues to be an actively competitive vaulter, clinician, and coach. She strives to foster the willingness to be fearless and creative in her students, and to help develop a love for harmonious movement with horses. Kalyn joined Free Artists Creative Equestrians in 2016, and is proud to be a part of the vision to display vaulting with an artful application of technical knowledge.

“Talesia, or Tisa as most of her friends call her, has been involved with vaulting with true passion since she started training with F.A.C.E. in 2002. As a horse enthusiast already, Tisa committed to vaulting with full force going on to become Women’s National Champion in the Bronze division just two years later. Tisa was part of numerous F.A.C.E. squads as well, and not only competed with them internationally but also traveled to Germany and Brazil to compete individually. Tisa has always shown great versatility as a vaulter in her ability to both fly and base, as well as exhibiting a level of flexibility that most people could never imagine while still showing great strength. Although Tisa has retired from competitive vaulting in order to get her BA in History/ Religion, an MA in education, and teaching credentials, she continues to practice vaulting with great skill. Tisa helps F.A.C.E. in countless ways as a lunger, performer, rider, coach, and general horse expert/advocate. In her continued passion for horses Tisa has maintained her drive for equestrian competition as a jumper, so when she is not leading educational sessions at the Ronald Reagan National Library where she works or training horses and vaulters at F.A.C.E., she is jumping her horse "Archer" at her home facility in Somis, CA.”

“As a founding member of F.A.C.E., Shannyn has been a pivotal part of our club’s history. Starting with vaulting at the age of 11, Shannyn started training with Devon Maitozo a couple years later with the Baronsgate vaulting club in 1999, and immediately traveling to Germany with that group to broaden her vaulting horizons. In 2000, Shannyn was part of the Baronsgate Team USA squad that went to successfully represent the USA at the World Championships in Mannheim, Germany, and was part of that group to become the founding members of F.A.C.E just thereafter. Shannyn went on to compete internationally with the F.A.C.E. squad as the nation’s very best vaulters representing our country in not only our groundbreaking showing at the World Equestrian Games in Jerez, Spain in 2002, but also as an individual in countless international competitions in Europe for the following decade. Over the years Shannyn has also been an active contemporary dancer and dance enthusiast, bringing this sensibility and skill to not only her vaulting, but all the classes she teaches with our program. Shannyn has made a significant mark on the club’s style and artistic brand. Shannyn is also a certified GYROTONIC® instructor and likes to implement this knowledge into her teaching of vaulting as well. Although Shannyn is not currently competing, she still performs in vaulting shows, films, and photoshoots, regularly demonstrating her skillful style as a choreographer and dancer.”