08/15/2026
When kids are a part of Equestrian Essentials, the lessons are just the beginning.
Stonewall Ponies- Emily Elek and myself believe that offering more opportunities for those that wish to progress their skills and put in the hours is worth the extra effort. While this sport does involve financial and time commitments that we cannot change, we can find ways to support our next generation of riders, trainers, grooms, vets, farriers, bodyworkers, etc, and I believe this is one of our duties as professionals.
Emily and I designed a Ride on Your Own Program that offers the opportunity to any rider who can adequately and safely prepare their horse for a session, can walk and trot safely, and turn out their horse to put more hours into practice. More hours, more practice, more muscle memory and understanding gained.
All this, while the trainer riders are still working. The kids that participate not only get more ride time but now get to visually see where skills build to and if they're struggling, a trainer taking 30 seconds to demonstrate something they can go practice will allow them to deepen their understanding and build more mind-muscle connections. The immersion into a day of working ponies and finding their own rhythm at the barn is something once-a-week lessons can't match.
Whether you offer a riding lesson program, camp, run a training facility, or are a private barn, finding ways to encourage our youth is crucial to our sports survival. And, pouring into our youth with skills and horsemanship understanding that is horse centric and well-rounded, provides a greater outlook for our sports receptivity, welfare, and culture in the long run. We have the opportunity to develop our next generation of horsemen and horsewomen and the lessons are only the beginning of that.
