[BelleOfTheBall]

I'm probably going to school in Cortland or Otsego counties (SUNY Cortland or Oneonta), and was wondering if there were any show barns in those areas? I may be qualified for Eq Finals, so a place to train for those would be great, or I plan on eventually doing the A/O Jumpers with my horse, so a barn where I can begin working toward that would be great too =] I'd be willing to drive probably an hour, maybe a little longer if the barn was exactly what I was looking for...any suggestions?

Thanks!!

[Nski32]

There are a bunch of barns in Skaneateles NY, which I would say is about an hour from cortland.

Heritage Stables- Mike Mcgowan Trainer
http://www.yellowpages.com/info-LMS5...?from=qpibp-mi
-They dont have a website of their own, but I know they go to all sorts of rated shows, if you call they can probably fill you in better.

Claire Affleck Training-Claire Affleck Trainer
www.claireafflecktraining.com
-while im not a huge fan of this place, you might be. They arent a "huge" barn per say, but I know that the care is good.

Affinity Farm Inc.- Kim Allan Trainer
www.affinityfarminc.com
-this is where I ride. We dont go to "AA" shows, but its a great place and im not sure if you are just looking for a place to practice, or what..

these are the only places I can think of at the moment that would be about an hour away.



ETA: there are a couple QH type hunter barns in the area, but I dont think that is what you are looking for exactly.

[Nski32]

here is the Syracuse PHA website trainer directory.

http://www.syracusepha.org/trainers.html

hope that helps!

[sa11yb]

Those are good suggestions. Keep in mind that a lot of barns here do not have websites. There is also Wolfden farm, http://sabrawolf_1.tripod.com/ that is in that area.

[MintHillFarm]

Feel free to PM me, maybe I can help...

[Angela Freda]

Those are good suggestions. Keep in mind that a lot of barns here do not have websites. There is also Wolfden farm, http://sabrawolf_1.tripod.com/ that is in that area.

Wolfden would be a bit far, through bad winter weather from Oneonta/Cortland, much closer to Corning.

I cannot think of his name... BNHunterT in Ithaca area...?

[Nski32]

There is also If Only Farm in Freeville NY, which isnt too far from cortland, according to mapquest its 20 mins, so its got to be less than and hour away.

www.ifonlyfarm.com

Great farm, Ive been to shows there before, great trainers and quality instruction. They show at all sorts of levels.

If I lived in that area they would have been at the top of my list of barns to try.

[horserider12]

gary duffy is near ithaca

[meupatdoes]

Having ridden at If Only, I disagree that it is an awesome place.

I think it is ok, but the calibre of instruction is medium.
Servicable, but nothing that is going to put the polish on to hit the circuit and move up in the jumpers.
They try to act like they are a huge show barn, so when one of their students wants to buy a horse and you mention that you have one for sale, they will be like, "WELL. We need one that can WIN and there's NO CEILING ON THE MONEY." (That is a direct quote. DIRECT.)
Then you'll be like, "...Sooo...you want one that can win at Washington...???"
And then they clarify: "Uh, the local circuit and some nearby As."
That conversation completely sums up If Only.

Gary Duffy is in Ithaca but heads south for the winter (because unlike If Only he Actually Does the big circuits) as he doesn't have an indoor.

Stay far, faaaaaaaar, faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar away from On Course Ventures.
They will sit there and explain to you that your horse needs weeks of learning to trot on the longe, for which they will bill you in one end and out the other, but amazingly the second the horse leaves the endless longing and we-couldn't-possibly-jump-yet program he will march around a 2'6" course with changes within minutes of arriving at the new trainer's.
If you find someone, completely independently of them, to look at your own horse for sale they will 1.) insist on getting commission even though they did NOTHING and you only lesson with them once a week and do not even pay your board bill to them and then 2.) quietly arrange, ***without telling you***, to take YOUR customer that YOU found to other barns to look at other horses their other clients are selling.

Couldn't be less qualified, couldn't be more sheisty.


In short, pickings are slim.
When I was in law school in Ithaca I finally gave up, sent my horses to VA, and did school M-W and the horses Th-Sun.

[meupatdoes]

Wolfden would be a bit far, through bad winter weather from Oneonta/Cortland, much closer to Corning.

I cannot think of his name... BNHunterT in Ithaca area...?

Maybe you are thinking of Rob Bielefeld and his then (I don't think anymore?) partner Scott, who trained Samantha Hallman and had some super, super nice horses.

I think they are in Kentucky now.

However, they are QUALITY. $3,000 per month for full training, but QUALITY.
I rode with them briefly and took lessons with Chrystal, who is basically their assistant trainer, and she was **fantastic** and did a super, super job helping me teach my grey horse to jump.

[sa11yb]

1.) insist on getting commission even though they did NOTHING and you only lesson with them once a week and do not even pay your board bill to them and then 2.) quietly arrange, ***without telling you***, to take YOUR customer that YOU found to other barns to look at other horses their other clients are selling.

Couldn't be less qualified, couldn't be more sheisty.

Unfortunately this commission entitlement seems to run rampant among the horse business out here.

[classicsporthorses]

Hey, BOTB, I had sent you a PM (we're not a show barn), I think in the end you have to go and visit any of the area barns to see what feels right and fits for you.

As I had said in my PM, It depends on what you are willing to pay or can pay. Board can range for the mid-$300 to Nearly $1000.00/ month. Remembering that the higher the cost does not necessary mean better quality. There are some barns in the area where the horses get little or no turnout even though they have turnout space.

I am from the area (Ithaca), SUNY Cortland is my Alma Mater, and I work there as an administrator and can give you insight into living here. Oneonta is a bit more geographically isolated to larger cities (albany NY is 90 miles away as is Binghamton) but a lovely city all the same. It's about the size of Ithaca but not quite as "unique" as Ithaca.

Cortland is still very agrarian and rural yet it's 30 miles from Syracuse and 25 from Ithaca.

[meupatdoes]

Unfortunately this commission entitlement seems to run rampant among the horse business out here.

Some tips for living in or near Ithaca:

1. Be there during any and all sale transactions/demo rides/etc.
2. Meet the buyer/seller in person
3. Check USEF listed owner to make sure the person who says they own the horse and make the check out to me ACTUALLY owns the horse and isn't just agenting it
4. Insist that buyer and seller write checks to each other directly and that all commissions will get paid out separately
When you get to item four the faces get really fun to watch.

[Angela Freda]

Maybe you are thinking of Rob Bielefeld and his then (I don't think anymore?) partner Scott, who trained Samantha Hallman and had some super, super nice horses.

I only know Rob from Rochester. It was Gary Duffy I was thinking of, with whom my instructor/trainer Michael Jones rode with.

[BostonEq]

Oneonta is a bit more geographically isolated to larger cities (albany NY is 90 miles away as is Binghamton) but a lovely city all the same..

Not true. Binghamton is about 60 miles away - the drive usually only takes ~50 min.

[ExJumper]

I only know Rob from Rochester. It was Gary Duffy I was thinking of, with whom my instructor/trainer Michael Jones rode with.

Is Michael Jones still training? Is this the same Michael Jones who rented stalls at Patterson's for a while back in the day?

[Angela Freda]

Is Michael Jones still training? Is this the same Michael Jones who rented stalls at Patterson's for a while back in the day?

Same guy.
I have no idea. Last time I saw him was by chance shortly after 2000, at Devon.
I know lots of people have not nice things to say about him, but he was nice to me, trained my horse and me well, and gave me a chance to earn training I could not have afforded otherwise.
He could ride too.... First time on my horse he canters X the diagonal and I'm thinking 'crap he's going to ask for a lead change and he does not do those yet' when... Shazam! Lead change. Then there was the incident that wasn't at Syracuse when I was grooming for him.
And dang he always smelled so good.

[ExJumper]

Same guy.
I have no idea. Last time I saw him was by chance shortly after 2000, at Devon.
I know lots of people have not nice things to say about him, but he was nice to me, trained my horse and me well, and gave me a chance to earn training I could not have afforded otherwise.
He could ride too.... First time on my horse he canters X the diagonal and I'm thinking 'crap he's going to ask for a lead change and he does not do those yet' when... Shazam! Lead change. Then there was the incident that wasn't at Syracuse when I was grooming for him.
And dang he always smelled so good.

He was (and maybe still is -- it's been a while) a wonderful rider. That's what made everything else so hard to handle/understand deal with.

But that's water under the bridge, at least for me. Thanks for the info. I was curious to know if he was still active anywhere with horses.

[Angela Freda]

I just checked USEF and see no activity for a while.
I would really love to know where he is/what he is doing.


Sorry to hijack, OP

[MHM]

Last I heard, Michael Jones was a braider for somebody in Ocala. That was a while ago, though.

OP, another place to look into is Cold Spring near Binghamton. Mimi Clayton (maiden name) does a good job, and it's not far from Cortland on Route 81.