The weekend is almost here and I anticipate some good quality horsey time with my beloved Knight. In the course of my equestrian life I’ve been at about ten different barns (that I can count) both in Illinois and California. This new facility has some features that make it unique. in short, my new barn rocks.
1. Riding arena cupholders!!! #Classy
2. A cheering section that never leaves. They are our biggest fans as we walk, trot, canter, jump.
3. A built-in horse-show like atmosphere with a hiking/biking/riding trail down one long side of the arena. On weekends these little bike cars go by quite frequently. (Thank you, Knight for not acknowledging them.) There are also people out walking their dogs, riding regular bikes with their kids–the trail is a bit noisy and well-frequented. During one lesson a man was talking so loudly on his cell phone as he walked the path I was getting the whole picture of what was going on in his life. Not that I wanted to eavesdrop, I don’t know if he had a clue.
4. Stunning flora and fauna. This peacock is perching on a grapevine.
5. My handsome boy!
Your turn to talk: What unique barn features have you encountered? What plans are in store for your weekend?
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I'm Susan and this is my horse Knight. We have been a blogging team since 2015 and we're glad you're here. Tally ho!
My current barn has a mile long sand track through the forest that they maintain. Perfect to use to cool down on after a ride, or do stamina work!
Oh my gosh! That sounds incredible. Thanks for stopping by and commenting (and making me jealous–just kidding–no really). 🙂 Happy weekend!
That sounds great! I think the cup holders are brilliant!
Love the cup holders!
Ok #1 is awesome. Cup holders on the arena, I would’ve never thought of that! I’m forever wishing I could reach my water bottle while riding!! And, are there really peacocks there? Ok I’m completely jealous….and inspired!
Yes, there are peacocks and they make themselves OBVIOUS!!! They parade around, feathers unfurled. It’s quite a sight. Also, they are the noisiest things and have a very unusual squawk. They’re delightful.
How neat! We have a vinyard and winery here with roaming peacocks that is so lovely to sit and enjoy. Never thought of them at the barn. I’ll have to think about that one!
Arena cup holders are genius, I’m going to have to look into that! I just moved to my barn in February and considering Ohio winters it still feels new to me since there wasn’t much to do for a while despite two indoor arenas. My favorite things so far are: Heated and a/c tack rooms – my room-mates equipped ours with a fridge and coffee maker even! The marks a trainer created along the rail with electrical tape in the large indoor (you can tell where to set lines for any amount of strides!) and a jump field located a short walk from the barns, had my first cross country lesson with a local eventing trainer last night!
How cool that you have a jump field! The Midwest is so awesome for horses even if the winters are not that conducive to riding. The fridge and coffee maker are fantastic additions and I have never hear of marking off strides with tape. That’s sheer genius!
I am straight up making arena cup holders next weekend!!!!!!!!!!
Cool. Take pictures of your DIY!!!
It looks lovely! 🙂
Thank you!
The cup holders are pretty brilliant! My current barn is heated in the winter, first time I have ever had that and I really liked it. It also has hot water available in the wash racks.
I wish more boarding barns would have bathrooms or at least porta-potties. Having to squat in the back of a horse stall is just not my idea of a good time.
A heated barn is a gift from God. Seriously. I lived in Illinois and never boarded at a heated barn. The closest thing was just having the office heated. We’d grab our bridles from the tack room and plant them in the office while we groomed so the bits would get warm. 🙂
I have enjoyed it and will miss it this coming winter.
Cup holders. Hmm. Our arena is fenced with heavy duty fencing tape. Could I tack some cup holders onto the fenceposts, I wonder….
Maybe we could invent a kind of cup holder that can attach to one’s belt or breeches waistline. Then regardless of arena fencing, one’s beverage of choice would always be handy. P.S. My husband and I were looking at flights to Europe yesterday. We’re trying to make it to Italy, but my United Miles seem to get me further (i.e., not use up as many) by flying into CDG. I might be somewhat in your neck of the woods this summer! We have grand plans of renting a car, taking a train and and he wants to scuba dive in the Mediterranean. Not sure how things will turn out, but I might be looking to you for recommendations. 🙂
Would LOVE to meet you susan!!
Those cup holders are so genius! I’m totally in love with my current barn, but there’s nothing outlandishly cool about it- a nice indoor and outdoor, hot water in wash racks, a field we can jump in the summer. I just love it because the people are so nice and friendly and they take amazing care of the horses 🙂
love the cup holders too!! i also kind of love a barn with a moderate bit of activity going on at the periphery – i think it helps horses get used to weird looking things and noise and unexpected changes without a lot of stress.
my barn shares a parking lot with a state park, so we get lots and lots of hikers and bikers etc coming through. plus there’s an archery range on the property too… and boy scouts love to come and set up tents next to the pasture… oh and the gun range that we can’t see but can hear perfectly clearly. not a single horse at my farm cares about gun shots!
I am just going to chime in and say I also love the cup holders and the horses on the sidelines of course.
Those cupholders are genius. I’m going to tell my trainer about them!