Front Range Show Stables

02/04/2025

Front Range Show Stables’ Claire Gordon-Neff was asked to contribute again to this week’s The Plaid Horse Trainer Tuesday pt 2!

Welcome to Trainer Tuesday! Each week we ask trainers a question and gather their answers for you. These trainers have a range of experience, backgrounds, and focus points of their programs, so the answers have as much variation as you would expect and also probably much more similarity.  This week...

01/28/2025

“Riding and horse showing are, in my opinion, two different skill sets. Horse showing is really about tapping into your riding knowledge and tools in a situation filled with variables that you cannot control (the weather, the courses, the footing, the competition, the judging, the spectators, the energy around the ring)… When we’re new or inexperienced competitors, the excitement and nerves create a “fight/flight/freeze” response which, of course, makes it harder to access your riding toolbox and hear your horse (or coach!). Mistakes are often made when the body is in this neurologically dysregulated state of “fight/flight/freeze.”

In these moments, I think it’s always safe to assume, everyone is doing their best and none of these riding errors are made intentionally. That said, being an expert in the show ring takes practice–lots of practice! It takes repetition and consistency to compete in a horse show with a regulated nervous system. I believe it requires a good, understanding, thoughtful coach who knows how to prepare you and your horse for competition and tries to create a consistent routine, preparation plan, and prescribed horse show schooling and ring-side agenda that can provide a rider with structure and predictability in a sea of horse show chaos.

Being an expert in the show ring takes years of practice and there’s just no substitute for time in the ring! You should never be embarrassed for having a chemical response to stress and stimuli–it’s normal and human. Mistakes happen–even great riders mismeasure, misjudge, or misremember! Be kind to yourself on your journey towards horse show ring expertise! Mistakes are just lessons in horse-colored wrapping paper!” -Claire Gordon-Neff for The Plaid Horse

Welcome to Trainer Tuesday! Each week we ask trainers a question and gather their answers for you. These trainers have a range of experience, backgrounds, and focus points of their programs, so the answers have as much variation as you would expect and also probably much more similarity.  This week...

01/25/2025

Three cheers!!! Sadie LaBrie and Obora’s Goldwing are reunited and it feels so good! Huge congrats to Sadie on her lease of the adorable gelding, *Borris*, by Gemini! Look for these two superstars in the Children’s Hunters this year! Many thanks to all involved!

01/25/2025

🏔️❤️🐴

By Ariel Univer As a trainer, I keep very few secrets from my clients. Where some may be more tight lipped or filtered, by nature I’m more of an open book. This is true for myself professionally and personally. It has served me well at times… and at other times caused me some issues. For […]

01/24/2025

Are your horses still stuck inside after the recent snow and cold temps? Our amazing team clears the snow off the paddocks so the horses can enjoy their time outside without risk of injury or unsafe footing! Thank you, Team FRSS!

01/20/2025

So grateful for this big warm barn! Our horses are munching hay in a toasty 47 degrees while it’s 11 outside. ❄️🏔️💙🐴🌈

📷: Bree Patel

01/18/2025

Front Range Show Stables sends heartfelt congratulations to Krista Blew on her lease of the incomparable Pop Rocks (Finn)! We are overjoyed for Krista & Finn! Look for this magical team in the Adult Amateur Hunters this year! Many thanks to all involved!

01/16/2025

Front Range Show Stables would like to congratulate our 2024 USHJA Zone 8 HOTY Award winners:
* 3'3" Greens - Pop Rocks (9th)
* 3' Greens - Chapman BZ (7th)
* Low Children’s Hunter - Quinn 42 (1st), Boulahrouz (2nd)
* Children's Hunter U 14 - Brio (3rd)
* Children's Hunter 15-17 - Chapman BZ (1st), Luc L (3rd), Pop Rocks (6th)
* Low Adult Hunter - Over Ice (1st), Crypton Z (2nd), Kaloyan (4th), Diadoro (6th), Quasar (7th)
* Adult Amateur Hunter 36-49 - Diadoro (3rd), Con Brio (6th)
* Amateur Equitation 36+ - Kirsta Blew (2nd)
* 2’3” USHJA - Cool Thunder Z
* 2’6” USHJA - Quinn 42

01/08/2025

Front Range Show Stables would like to heartily congratulate long-time friend, client, and teammate, Ashley Diener, on her purchase of Front Range Sport Horses’ yearling, Joviality FR (Jac’Potes x Zimplicity)! “Joey” and Ashley were destined for each other and have been connected since he was born in 2023. Congrats on the purchase of your very own young horse, Ashley! We’re excited to help, support, and cheer for you every step of the way!

01/07/2025

Resharing! ✨🏔️💙🐴✨

Things your riding instructor wants you to know:
1. This sport is hard. You don't get to bypass the hard…..every good rider has gone through it. You make progress, then you don't, and then you make progress again. Your riding instructor can coach you through it, but they cannot make it easy.

2. You're going to ride horses you don't want to ride. If you're teachable, you will learn from every horse you ride. Each horse in the barn can teach you if you let them. IF YOU LET THEM. Which leads me to…

3. You MUST be teachable to succeed in this sport. You must be teachable to succeed at anything, but that is another conversation. Being teachable often means going back to basics time and time and time again. If you find basics boring, then your not looking at them as an opportunity to learn. Which brings me to…..

4. This sport is a COMMITMENT. Read that, then read it again. Every sport is a commitment, but in this sport your teammate weighs 1200 lbs and speaks a different language. Good riders don't get good by riding every once in awhile….they improve because they make riding a priority and give themsevles opportunity to practice.

5. EVERY RIDE IS AN OPPORTUNITY. Even the walk ones. Even the hard ones. Every. Single. Ride. Remember when you just wished someone would lead you around on a horse? Find the happiness in just being able to RIDE. If you make every ride about what your AREN'T doing, you take the fun out of the experience for yourself, your horse, and your instructor. Just enjoy the process. Which brings me to...

6. Riding should be fun. It is work. and work isn't always fun.....but if you (or your rider) are consistently choosing other activities or find yourself not looking forward to lessons, it's time to take a break. The horses already know you don't want to be here, and you set yourself up for failure if you are already dreading the lesson before you get here.

7. You'll learn more about horses from the ground than you ever will while riding. That's why ground lessons are important, too. If you're skipping ground lessons (or the part of your lesson that takes place on the ground), you're missing out on the most important parts of the lesson. You spend far more time on the ground with horses than you do in the saddle.

8. Ask questions and communicate. If you're wondering why your coach is having you ride a particular horse or do an exercise, ask them. Then listen to their answer and refer to #3 above.

9. We are human beings. We make decisions (some of them life and death ones) every day. We balance learning for students with workloads for horses and carry the bulk of this business on our shoulders. A little courtesy goes a long way.

Of all the sports your child will try through their school years, riding is one of 3 that they may continue regularly as adults (golf and skiing are the others). People who coach riding spend the better part of their free time and much of their disposable income trying to improve their own riding and caring for the horses who help teach your child. They love this sport and teaching others…..but they all have their limits. Not all good riders are good coaches, but all good coaches will tell you that the process to get good is not an easy one.

*thank you to whoever wrote this! Not my words, but certainly a shared sentiment!

01/06/2025

Front Range Show Stables wishes to congratulate our 2024 Group 1 CHJA Year End Award winners!
* 3' Greens - Chapman BZ (2nd), Pop Rocks (6th)
* 3'3" Greens - Pop Rocks (2nd)
* Rusty Stirrup Hunter - Cool Thunder Z (6th)
* Pre Child Hunter - Boulahrouz (2nd), Quinn 42 (3rd)
* Children's Hunter U 14 - Brio (6th)
* Children's Hunter 15-17 - Chapman BZ (1st), Luc L (2nd), Pop Rocks (3rd)
* Pre Adult Hunter - Crypton Z (2nd), Over Ice (4th), Kaloyan (6th)
* Adult Amateur Hunter 36+ - Diadoro (2nd)
* Long Stirrup Equitation - Kaviya Blew (4th)
* Rusty Stirrup Equitation - Lindsay Moore (4th)
* Amateur Equitation 18-35 - Andrea Oliver (5th)
* Amateur Equitation 46+ - Kirsta Blew (1st)
* High Point Adult Equitation Rider - Krista Blew

01/02/2025

Happy New Year! Wishing you and yours a happy, healthy 2025 from Team FRSS! These are just a few of our favorite moments from 2024. Gratitude always to our fantastic team, clients, horses, and vendor partners. Cheers!

12/30/2024

🎄Cuba De Revel got a kid for Christmas!🎄

Sydney Lawrence was pretty hard to wrap, but somehow we managed to make holiday magic for this new pair! Watch for these two as they make their Junior Hunter debut together in 2025! Congrats and thanks to all involved!

12/30/2024

🎉🎉Best news ever!!!🎉🎉

Congrats to Kaviya Blew and her new best bud, Balou (Boulahrouz)! This amazing pair will be making their debut in the Low Children’s Hunters this year! Gratitude and best wishes to all involved!

12/25/2024

From our herd to yours, Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah! 🎄⛄️❄️🕎