King's Bridge Farm

02/09/2025

🥺 May we never forget the unicorns who taught us so much!

This made me tear up

01/30/2025

Suzanne and Montana had some fun in the sun riding Suzanne’s two OTTBs this afternoon. Despite the 50mph wind gusts at times, both boys were all business as usual!

01/19/2025

01/12/2025

Morgan and Kat’s 6yo OTTB, Greg, looked super in the snow today. ❄️❄️❄️

It’s been so nice having Morgan home, we don’t want her to go back to school!

12/16/2024

Morgan Capone is home for winter break and brought ALL the Christmas cheer to KBF! It’s going to be a fun week of lessons!

Thank you, Morgan! We ❤️ you!

12/16/2024

A small stab in the heart is what you feel when you put up the day's riding list and you see riders sinking heavily in their shoulders when reading which horse they are assigned for the lesson. A small stab in the heart for that horse that for an hour will carry around a rider who has already decided that he does not like his horse. A small stab in the heart for the horse that did not choose the rider himself but still does his best, lesson after lesson.

Riding is a privilege and something you have chosen to do. If you chose to ride at a riding school, your instructor assumes that you actually want to learn how to ride. The instructor's highest wish is that you get good at it.

Often there is a plan and a thought as to why you are assigned to that exact horse. Before you mount up next time, ask yourself "what can this horse teach me today?" All horses have something to give, a feeling or a new tool in the box.

The art is actually in being able to get a lazy horse to move forward, to get an uncertain horse to gain confidence, a naughty horse to focus or a tense horse to be released. It takes work. If you think a horse is boring, it's more likely that you don't ride the horse as well as you think! It's not easy to be confronted with your own shortcomings, but it is in that very situation that you get the chance to truly grow as a rider.

The excuse that "it's not my kind of horse" is actually a really bad excuse. A good rider can ride any kind of horse. A good rider has trained many hours on different types of horses to become a good rider. A good rider can find and manage the gold nuggets in every horse.

If we absolutely want to ride, it is our duty to strive to do it as best as possible, even if it's only for fun. We owe it to every horse that carries us upon it's back.

Copied and shared with love for all of our horses, ponies and riders 🐎❤🐎

11/30/2024

In honor of Small Business Saturday, consider gifting the experience of horseback riding lessons on one of our safe and seasoned lesson horses. Happy holidays!

10/24/2024

All I Want To Do Is Jump

I ran a fairly large lesson program for almost 20 years. This is a statement I have heard over and over, both in my lesson barn days and from colleagues today.

All I want to do is jump.

There are a few problems with this. Let's start with the horse. I love the old horseman's saying " horses only have so many jumps in them ". Is that 100, 1000 before it becomes lame.... No one knows....but horses certainly weigh a lot and the concussion landing on those small little legs is significant. Horses also get bored, burned out....and let's face it...sour.
Respect for the horse . The riders job is to do the best thing for the horse. Most horses only need jumped a few days a week. That means if a lesson horse works 5 days a week, only 2 of those are jumping days. 3 of those are purely flatwork or hacking.

Riders : most of jumping well has NOTHING to do with jumping. Riders need to work on pace, transitions, straightness, their position, effectiveness of aids, balance, ability to change positions smoothly ( from 2 point to sitting etc ) and so much more.

So if you are one of those students who Just Wants To Jump , please replace that with "I want to be an effective rider and horseman or woman . I want to do what is best for the horse "

And instructors who cave to this plea from students
Only YOU can set the CULTURE of your barn. Talk frequently about horsemanship and doing right by the animals.

10/20/2024

Welcome to KBF!

We pride ourselves on having a very friendly, nonjudgmental, and drama free environment. Our trainer has over 20 years experience in training riders and horses, and has helped our clients struggling with horses with behavioral issues as well. She is extremely patient and respectful towards both her students and the horses, and does not yell at, or denigrate them. She pushes her students enough to progress, but focuses on developing a solid foundation first. She does not place students in situations where she feels they are being pushed to do things that are beyond their ability or confidence level. She has a great track record of building confident riders. We have helped many riders whom have had bad riding experiences in the past that may have frightened them to ride, or that are new to riding and need to take their time and build confidence.

We have a great group of boarders and lesson clients who are very friendly and welcoming. Our lesson horses are seasoned pros, and safe, solid citizens. We are very conscientious about our school horses work load. For those looking to do more than the weekly lesson, or desiring to move up to a higher level, we can guide clients through the process of finding a horse to lease or purchase. We have many great, trusted connections that we have known for years. We attend some local schooling shows, but our focus is on building a solid foundation of good horsemanship and a love of riding.

If you’re looking for a safety focused, positive and fun riding experience in a no pressure environment, look no further! Come for a visit, or try a lesson!

Call or text Montana at 203-247-5669 for more info.

10/20/2024