We offer english or western riding lessons 7 days a week, year round to both children and adults. No experience necessary.
Conventional Program:
All riders, begin with an evaluation lesson. At this time, the instructor is able to determine the student's placement based on their riding ability. Due to the flexibility of our lesson program, we can accomodate the needs of every family's schedule.
Lessons revolve around mounted riding instruction with an emphasis on ground and mounted safety. If you're not familiar with how to care for a horse and how to tack up, that will also be included in your lesson.
We have a large, lighted outdoor arena with permaflex footing and a variety of jumps. Cross country jumps can also be found along our well-maintained trails. During the winter we ride indoors on our track.
Kinderide Program:
Gateway also offers a special Kinderide program, designed for children ages 5 - 7. At this time, Kinderide is offered only on weekends. Lesson components include horsemanship, basic grooming of the horse, ground and mounted safety, and mounted riding instruction. Each session is limited to 4 riders so that each child has one-on-one time with the instructor. Each child is also assigned a "pony handler" that will walk with the pony during the lesson, on lead if necessary, as well as observe and assist the child during ground activities. At the end of each lesson, the instructor will consult with the parent on what was covered during class, anything that may need reinforcement, and detail the child's accomplishments. Once the child has a firm grasp of how to sit on a horse, control the horse (starting, stopping, steering at both a walk and a trot), and feels ready, then they are moved into the conventional lesson program.
