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Tamarak Equestrian

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Canada
Saint Catharines, ON
Tamarak Equestrian

An individualized, boutique hunter/jumper show and training program. We are located in St.

We focus on building confident, successful riders and producing top quality hunter ponies that are extremely rideable and competitive at the highest levels. Tamarak Equestrian aims to find talented hunter prospects, polish them, and match them up with the right rider. Catharines, ON, approx 1 hour from both the Toronto and Buffalo airports.

06/14/2025

🚨SPOILER ALERT🚨It’s me 🙋‍♀️

And I’m now a professional athlete and coach, which I’m sure would also floor all of my former gym teachers.

I was told I was lazy.
I was told that I was just making excuses.
I was told that I was just unfit, not ill.

None of those things were true, and it hurt to hear that from people who were supposed to be building me up.

THIS is the importance of meeting your athlete where they’re at, valuing their strengths, and helping them overcome their weaknesses.

I never even considered it could be possible for me to compete at a world championship… until another coach told me and my friends that we couldn’t.

It brought back those feelings of being labeled as ‘less than’ other athletes. And I wasn’t about to sit back and take that again.

So I found a new coach who looked at me and saw what I could bring to a team instead of just my list of medical shortcomings.

And you know what happened?

I ended up being capable of doing more than I had thought physically possible for me… because I was given a supportive space to grow and to push myself, while still having my needs respected.

A coach should ALWAYS be working WITH their athletes.

Don’t give up on the ones that struggle.
Don’t give up on the ones that get emotional.
Don’t give up on the ones that need some extra support.

They could end up going farther than either of you imagined.

06/11/2025

Fun fact - I was in Australia on the auction site on my laptop, on my phone with my mom in Canada, wondering if we’d gotten Charm or not, when the auction company (in the US) then called my mom on the landline, while they were on the phone with the owner 🫠.

After some international telephone tag, he was ours. And the rest is history. I never sat on him or saw him in person beforehand, I just saw an opportunity to get a pony with potential in my budget and I took it.

Now, not every pony I’ve had has gotten the 100% ideal “fairytale” ending I dreamed of for them. Some did, some got real close, and for others we had to pivot our goals. But every pony I’ve produced has ended up with a job they like and a happy new owner who was thrilled to have them.

I’m not fearless.
I’m not a miracle rider.
I’m not someone with an endless budget.
I’m just someone who, despite all the odds, believes I can achieve the things I want and is willing to go after them.

Almost every pony/horse we’ve bought has been a calculated risk based on the belief that we can make dreams happen.
- that I could show at the Royal at all, period
- that I could still make it to Royal in the junior hunters
- that I could learn to train a young pony from start to finish
- that I could produce a pony good enough to qualify for Pony Finals
- that I could produce one that gets ribbons at Pony Finals
- that I could produce a Royal champion
- that I could take on challenging ponies and new riders and still make them winners

We don’t deal in “wouldn’t it be nice” here; we deal in “how can we make it happen?”

So when you’re ready to make sh*t happen, let’s talk.

06/07/2025

Three different stalls and one just as perfect as the next! Thanks you’re the best 😊

06/06/2025

💣 Truth Bomb 💣 Your trainer is not your family, and they’re not your friend.

This is common phrasing that genuinely makes me cringe, as I find too often it’s used to justify/explain unhealthy or unfulfilling relationships with trainers.

I’ve said it myself, as an excuse for “I can’t leave even though I’m unhappy”; they’re like family, and they said I’m part of their family!

Let’s be clear - I will care about you like a friend/family member, I will be your shoulder to cry on, I will be your cheerleader, I will push you when you need it, and I will call you on your crap. But that doesn’t make me family.

You are paying me to be your teacher, to be your leader, and to help you become a better rider. That is my JOB.

Do I have friends that I coach? Yes. But that relationship is always separate from our coach/student relationship.

When you’re in a lesson or at the show ring, we’re not friends.

When we’re making decisions about your/your horse’s show career, we’re not friends.

When you’re asking me for honest advice, we’re not friends.

I want my barn to be a safe space where you feel at home, and I want you to feel 100% comfortable and at ease with me.

But we still need to have a working relationship. And I still have a job to do.

05/27/2025

Team Tamarak had an amazing first two weeks at Silver West 🤩

For a small team of only 4 horses, we brought home quite the ribbon haul! (There’s even a couple missing here)

But more importantly - everyone had some truly great performances, and there were significant improvements from just week 1 to week 2.

Hey Jude has handled her move to hunterland so well, so bravely, and truly is doing her best to learn all the hunter things.

Poundcake has really started to smooth things out, be a more receptive partner, and is continuing to build on the work we did over the winter.

After a last minute pony change, we’re quickly putting the pieces together with Moonlight Maddie.

And of course our beloved Mickey D always brings his ‘A game’ for every rider.

I am also beyond proud of my riders, who all managed to keep smiling and laughing through the cold, wind, and rain, and were so proud of their partners and happy with their performances even before ribbons were given out. Everyone applied what they learned from week 1 and it showed in their rides week 2.

And lastly, thank you to all the family members who came to support our little team and lend a helping hand. Special shout out to the horsey moms who make my life easier when I have 5 places to be at once 🙈

Now we start building again for July 💪

Huge props to .ca for the amazing coverage 📸📸 we ❤️ you!

05/07/2025

Confidence comes when you feel safe to face challenges. If you (or your horse) find showing to be scary, nerve-wracking, and/or stressful, there’s an element of safety missing from your program.

As a junior, I was showing from a place of fear:
- Fear that I wouldn’t be good enough
- Fear that I wouldn’t be able to handle my horse
- Fear that I would be yelled at if I didn’t win

Until I got to a barn with a trainer who listened to how I felt and what I needed. I didn’t need more pressure and I didn’t need to be drilled on my mistakes. I just needed to feel safe in the show environment.

You need to feel safe to make mistakes without fear of repercussions or disappointing those around you.

You need to feel safe in your training and preparation, that you will be able to handle whatever may come up.

You need to feel safe to voice your thoughts and feelings without being dismissed or belittled.

You need to feel safe that you are appropriately matched with your horse and the horse is prepared as needed.

Your horse needs to feel safe in their knowledge and ability, and if they’re green and not there yet, then they need to feel it’s safe to trust you and your trainer.

When you surround yourself with people who create a safe space for you and your horse, that is when you’ll be able to start releasing your stress and nerves, and enter the ring with good faith.

05/06/2025

Stop waiting for success to show up at your door.

Good things take time, this is true, but don’t let yourself get stuck in a holding pattern either. Being patient isn’t the same as being stagnant.

If the months are ticking by with no improvement, or the years are ticking by and you’re still not reaching your goals, it’s time to change things up.

And nothing will change if the program stays the same.

Seek a new perspective, try a different approach, explore new ideas - you have to go out and GET what you want.

Many of my riders come to me feeling stuck; they’ve been trying their best but not seeing results, and they keep being given the same generalized advice that isn’t panning out.

So we break it down and tackle each problem on its own to gather more information. The more options we explore, the more of the bigger picture we can see.

Tweaking the components is how we improve performance. Learning the why behind the corrections is how you become a better rider and horseman.

An individualized program is how you finally start to ✨shine✨

04/22/2025

We are pleased to officially welcome our working student Keri McLeod to Team Tamarak! Keri grew up in Calgary, Alberta, where her passion for horses started at a young age. She began showing and quickly progressed to leasing horses and competing at venues like RMSJ and Spruce Meadows, as well as other local events. In 2020, Keri moved to Nova Scotia and spent four years working in the equine industry before relocating to Ontario where she completed the Horse Groom program through Skilled Trades Ontario at ICANTER. As part of the Tamarak team, Keri is continuing to grow her career in the horse world while also working towards becoming a Certified Equine Massage Therapist.

04/08/2025

Winners don’t settle for “good enough”; they keep reaching for “as good as it gets”.

We don’t stop working on flatwork because your horse knows how to walk, trot, and canter.
➡️ Do they do these things well? While relaxed, supple, and balanced? In collection and extension? With lateral movements?

We don’t move right on to courses because your horse knows how to jump.
➡️ Are they straight the whole time? Do they turn well? Is the pace consistent? Is their form excellent? Is the arc of their jump correct?

We don’t move up in division height just because you survived the height you’re currently doing.
➡️ Are you consistently putting in performances without many technical errors? Are your trips smooth? Is your current foundation strong enough to stand up to bigger challenges without undue risk to you or your horse?

We don’t rush to the show ring just because your green horse is jumping at home.
➡️ Are they jumping full courses with filler? Are they able to do this smoothly with straight lines? Do they have any off property experience? Can we introduce showing in a way that won’t be intimidating for them?

Winners understand that the way to succeed at advanced skills is to master the “simple” things that underlie those skills.

Winners perfect their skills at their current level before moving on to harder ones.

Winners understand that excellence takes time: they’re playing the long game.

You can race to mediocrity, or you can hone your abilities to the highest ex*****on.

Which one are you going to choose?

04/01/2025

If your show team’s morale plummets or turns toxic when someone isn’t doing well, then it’s not really a team, it’s a trauma dump.

Your team (this includes riders, coaches, parents, grooms, etc) should always be lifting you up, never dragging you down.

🚩 If you can’t celebrate your win because other people didn’t win, that team doesn’t serve you.

🚩 If you get sh*t on for not winning, that team doesn’t serve you.

🚩 If you’re only treated well or only get attention when you’re winning, that team doesn’t serve you.

🚩 If there’s mind games and backhanded compliments, that team doesn’t serve you.

I’ve been the one who wasn’t allowed to be happy because I won the class that someone else was crying over.

I’ve been the one who was berated if they didn’t win (sometimes even when I did, because I didn’t win easily enough).

I’ve been the one on the receiving end of comments from teammates like “no pressure, but everyone is expecting you to be champion”.

I walked out of all of those environments (and in most cases, I wish I’d done it sooner). Those are not the kind of people you want in your corner. They are hindering your progress, whether or not you realize it yet.

Get in a space that makes you feel GOOD.

Surround yourself with people who want you to succeed - but still BELIEVE IN YOU and SUPPORT you when you don’t.

Put yourself in a team that INSPIRES you to keep working hard, to VALUE yourself as a rider, and to be a good teammate yourself.

You won’t rise to the top if you’re surrounded with negativity that will pull you down.

02/20/2025

to Mickey D, reserve champion in the small horse division at Silver Playoffs 🏆. Thanks once again to for sponsoring this division ❤️

02/05/2025

This is Shooter. Did he end up being a successful show pony? No. Did he end up being a great lesson pony? No. Did he become the cutest lawn ornament I’ve ever had? He sure did.

That being said, he is the pony who taught me the most about how to ride, train, and troubleshoot green ponies.

He was spooky, always anxious, easily stressed, incredibly sensitive, stubborn, extremely fussy about bits, mistrustful, threw tantrums during training, and could be set right back by one bad ride.

If you knew me back then, you know I would typically never have volunteered to ride one like that. But for some reason he was different.

I studied bits and bought as many as it took to figure out what he liked.

I researched horse behaviour and pain responses.

I tried all kinds of different training exercises, supplements, and treatments.

But most important of all:
➡️ I learned to separate my body and mind to communicate confidence even when I didn’t feel it myself.
➡️ I learned to remain calm, pat him, and continue on with compassion when he spooked, understanding that he didn’t mean any harm.
➡️ I learned that prioritizing flatwork and basics over practicing full courses will give you a more rideable pony.
➡️ I learned that patience and praise will always give you a better horse than punishment and frustration.

After he developed heaves and was struggling with work, I retired him from riding altogether. But while he may be a “failure” by many standards, he’s still a happy pony with a good life. And the knowledge he gave me helps me develop other ponies and set them up for a good, happy life with their kiddos (and lots of ribbons too).

Address

2835 Oille Street
Saint Catharines, ON
L2R6P7

Opening Hours

Tuesday	8am - 9pm
Wednesday	8am - 9pm
Thursday	8am - 9pm
Friday	8am - 9pm
Saturday	8am - 9pm
Sunday	8am - 9pm

Website

https://www.tamarakequestrian.com/info

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