I made an account for the sole purpose of responding to this post for those moving from SoCal to Texas (Hill Country, Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, Corpus, etc.) I am not surprised this thread has resurfaced as so many people are moving to this area. I moved to South Texas in 2015 and, unlike so many of the people who live, ride and show in Texas who replied to the OG post three or four years ago… I have relocated here, and then subsequently, re-relocated my horses out of Texas.
First off, welcome to Texas! It’s mostly great here outside of the hunter jumper world. As a lifelong equestrian, former working student, FEI groom, and professional-turned-amateur originally from the east coast (think, winters in Wellington, summers in NY/NJ/Traverse City since the late 90s), I have personally experienced the struggle to ride and show in South Texas, specifically, “Hill Country:” The informally named region developing into what should become the “suburbs” of a San Antonio-Austin metroplex similar to Dallas-Fort Worth in the next decade.
Disclaimer This is a very long post and I have very strong opinions from firsthand experiences with most of the barns and trainers mentioned above, whether at their facilities or at shows they attend. I am no one’s parent (no kids) and I own a few jumpers.
My time in Texas as an equestrian was spent predominantly as an owner of a fairly successful 1.50 horse. Multiple professionals found a lot of success with him over the years, even in the Dallas area. However, Austin was not the right fit for us: more than zero trainers labeled my horse as “unconventional, unsuitable, high maintenance, ‘an asshole’,” and my favorite remark, “Miserable to flat… because his canter makes my low back sore.”
This is my story and hopefully a comprehensive, updated reply for those looking to move here from s non-native Texan. I am a longtime forum reader and I have never felt inclined to post on here until now. I hope that my experiences outlined below help others moving to Texas feel less alone. Hopefully, someone learns from me and avoids making the same painful, stressful mistakes.**
After a few years in Texas, due to the crazy commute (Roundtrip commute to my former barn would take me at least three hours before morning traffic each way) and overall lack of quality care at the full board and training facility, I ultimately decided to move my horses back to the east coast for the winter season and ended up traveling bi-weekly to keep them with my childhood trainer in Florida. My overall experience as an equestrian in Texas was more negative than positive compared to riding on the east coast, Florida, and in the Midwest extensively from the schooling show level to WEF since 1999. In the end, my horses were happier back on the east coast, though I miss having them close to where I now live and work in Texas.
Now, I know my situation is unrealistic for most adult amateurs reading this- Before you write me off, I’d like to share that before permanently leaving the Texas equestrian community, I emailed, toured, boarded, taught lessons, took lessons, met with staff, talked with friends (both amateurs and professionals) from ALL of the barns mentioned above. I spent countless hours driving all over the state to visit more than a few of these farms and trainers; taking lessons; informally touring/interviewing whomever was asked to show me around; emailing/messaging back and forth with these farms through contact forms; following some of their adult amateur clients on social media to see their organic experiences, and lastly, consulting one or two of my closest friends who are successful professionals about my top picks based on experiences working with them or hearing about them from their peers- everyone has an opinion, but these pros had nothing to gain or lose by honestly giving me their opinions of sharing what they knew of the trainers, riders etc. in question.
More than any one trainer or barn, it should be said that one of my horses suffered more than others living in the freezing hot, dusty-dry, soaking wet training climate for most of the year (only non-native Texans will understand that description of riding in Texas lol). He was imported at age eight and did better in northern Texas than south Texas. Ultimately, Dallas and Florida both became a flight away me and the consistency in Florida was best for him.
For reference if you’ve read this far: I am not someone who has always been an amateur or grew up being able to afford full care and training at show barn without working student or grooming opportunities.I grew up riding/showing in both the Florida humidity and in the Midwest in freezing conditions, working in barns that only had a tiny indoor arena. I have also worked as a working student and a groom during summer and winter circuits for both local and FEI professionals.
My family spent most summer vacations in SoCal (staying with family and friends). I have many friends who still still ride in SoCal. I worked in Orange County, CA for a short amount of time before COVID (my second job at the time) and I’m decently familiar with the horse communities out west… I have co-owned a dozen or so horses as a thirty-something year old and solely owned a few horses in the past five years on a self-funded rider/owner/small business owner “budget.”
I was lucky to grow up with riding and working opportunities in some of the BEST barns and training programs in the country. I started riding in early elementary schools as a lesson kid growing up with non-horsey parents on an upper middle class budget. Owning and riding horses today as an amateur is simply becoming unaffordable for most. Cost of living in Austin and Hill Country in Texas is now higher than in most parts of SoCal, as of 2022. If you’re going to commit to horse ownership here, good horsemanship, “horse first” staff, and a professional, goal-oriented barn environment were my top considerations when searching for a new barn.
All of that being said, here are my honest my following recommendations if you absolutely must relocate your horses to the Austin/Hill Country area because you cannot keep your horses in SoCal in a program you know and love:
But, and this is a BIG but if you are truly inquiring about riding as an employed amateur here with goals to improve, work with a trainer consistently, and ride/show/split costs with other working adult amateurs in the Austin area: It’s going to be more expensive than SoCal and/or be a longer commute daily in most cases. Hill Country, where a handful of these farms are located, is more expensive to live in, commute to/from, and yes, board and train hunters and jumpers.
If you wanted to get an idea as to how much more, consider how far your closest, local show is to your current barn- For myself in Florida, it’s a hack to the show, no trailering-in involved. If we only compare shipping based on mileage to A rated local shows (from Austin to the Houston and Dallas areas), the closest show is in Katy (mentioned by someone else) is more or less 300 miles round trip from home, and that’s just the shipping at $1 per mile (professional shipping is more).
Unless you live in Hill Country, commuting before and after work from downtown Austin to these smaller, scenic, boutique riding facilities is roughly 45 minutes to 90 minutes each way depending on traffic, etc.
Madrone, for example, is located in a residential neighborhood slightly north, mostly west of downtown Austin. In recent years, the barn manager told me that the neighborhood HOA actually put a stop to Madrone and Madrone’s clients riding in the (very) small covered arena (this maybe had changed this year, not sure), meaning: All boarders share one, moderately sized outdoor arena all hours of the day. The outdoors here are average sized at best in the Austin area and the footing is more likely than not going to be supported by ebb and flow tech with felt pieces- It floods. It freezes. It’s often a bit dusty, and, it’s used all day. Not everyone here drags and waters daily, in my own experience, which was new for me. There is very little grass, so grassy areas (when there is grass) are limited to turnout and hand grazing in South Texas. For those who aren’t familiar with the geography, we have multiple rock quarries in this area as well as rocky formations, which greatly increases excavation and surface coats. Again, not great for anyone but especially competitive jumpers who compete in large outdoor venues like Traverse City, WEC, WEF etc. More often than not, you will show in a covered or indoor arena if you show in Texas.
That being said, the footing and overall size of Madrone’s outdoor arena was recently improved and expanded to accommodate their clients and horses. Before anyone jumps down my throat about Madrone or their head trainer Rachel, let me say that it is the only farm and training program anywhere in Austin OR San Antonio I would move my own horses into if I had to or truthfully, recommend to anyone moving here. Rachel and MJ do a very nice job, period.
Downsides: It’s in a residential neighborhood, there are many 1-2 horse owner/riders who use the 40 or 50-something stalls and facility and only half a dozen grooms. I know that many farms offer “full-care and training” and successfully coach amateur and junior clients and horses with a “six to eight horse-to-groom ratio.” When I was considering moving to Madrone my older jumper truly needed more one-one-one attention.
Second spoiler: I ended up paying double what Madrone’s posted board and training costs were in 2021 just for a stall, groom, and feed/hay in Wellington during season. With training, coaching, show fees, vet, shoeing, supplements, laundry and occasional splits (excluding shipping, insurance, or my own housing, hotels, etc) I paid roughly 10-12k per month for my FEI horse and 4-7k for my younger jumper. I don’t have any recent experience showing hunters of my own.
Showing with Madrone will NOT be 10k per month per horse if you are mostly showing locally in Texas or WEC (where they travel to for a few weeks in the winter). However, it could easily be 8-10k every couple weeks after shipping your horses to WEF, Thermal or Traverse City from any barn in Austin, regardless of the the quality of the training program/services provided. It’s out of the way from major highways, horse shows, etc. and, your own flights, rental cars, and hotels will add up too.
Runner Ups to Madrone closer to San Antonio and South Austin: Monarch Stables in Buda and Oakwell Farms in NE San Antonio. Hands down easier commutes from downtown Austin or downtown SA- No one is driving to Fredericksburg nor Bulverde (Switch Willow) from Austin during the week to ride- It would be faster to drive to Houston. Would not recommend either for the trainers or facilities for competitive adult jumper riders. If you live and work in Austin or Hill Country, check out Madrone. It’s by far the better option, commute-wise, but everything (like, even the grocery store some days, is an hour drive round trip depending on where and what time you’re on the roads- I absolutely hate driving here and I grew up driving in MA and NJ.
If your daily commute to Hill Country (Madrone) or northeast San Antonio/South Austin is more than four hours round trip on weekdays with traffic (brace yourself, it’s gridlocked most afternoons rn driving either way), you may want to consider keeping your horses in SoCal or, or driving/flying in to ride on the weekends in Dallas or Houston. I hear about more and more amateur owners flying from one city to another within the state of Texas to ride because it really is that congested on the roads since the exodus from CA in 2020 and still now. Endless highway construction from Dripping Springs Round Rock to Boerne to New Braunfels to Bandera started to pick up within the past few years (since everyone started relocating to south Texas a few years ago) and road closures (one lane each way) start around 9 PM in most cities.
If you truly love your trainer and barn friends in Socal, flying back and forth may be worth it based on time spent commuting alone and the cost of showing if your horse must trailer from Austin to literally anywhere, especially if your trainer is close to major shows. If you are paying 1-2k a show there and you are also more than a little on the fence about driving 90-180 minutes round trip to the barn, boarding here is probably not for you,
MANY if not most of the amateur hunter/jumper riders in Texas work remotely, for themselves, do not work, or have flexible work schedules that allow them to ride during the week in the morning or early afternoon- If you can afford horses in TX, you also need to be in a position to avoid all of the traffic starting around 3 PM well into the evening hours. If you normally start your trek to work after 5 PM, it’s going to be tough to ride at Madrone or anywhere in Hill Country. I second the commenters who recommend against Colleen (Silver Fox) in Wimberley, Oakwell, and Monarch. At more than one of these farms, late riding lessons/hacking is not a viable option for the working adult amateur riders during the week (think after 6/6:30 PM): Madrone is the superior option for working adult amateurs.
If you can imagine commuting weekends to Dallas or Houston, Woodhill (Matt Cyphert) and TKO Sport Horses (Trapp O’Neal) are my top recommendations for any hunter/jumper rider or owner who would like the option to ride/show with staff who regularly work with more than one adult amateur owner at a time- Many “boutique” farms here cater to one or two “big” clients who own multiple horses, even if the owner only rides and successfully (key word) shows one or two horse, placing consistently locally and nationally. Horses here go lame for multiple reasons, but more often than not for no reason at all in South Texas- It’s a brutal climate.
As a result, there are next to zero competing adult amateur riders at those farms in Austin/Hill Country/San Antonio at the farms mentioned above with the exception of Madrone. I could make an entire post about trainers in central and south central Texas that only have one adult amateur winning classes, which in my mind, is not a welcoming community for any equestrian on a budget who needs to relocate to Austin or San Antonio. San Antonio just lost the best two trainers in the area to Ocala- A husband and wife, both professionals, have publicly voiced their difficulties putting horses and clients first in Texas, and they owned their farm and surrounding land. They sold their farm last month, so the closest places I would recommend for those in south San Antonio, Boerne, etc. would be outside of Houston.
Both TKO and Woodhill have junior and adult riders who show almost exclusively in Texas and the surrounding states (Colorado, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Nebraska, even Mexico). Madrone, TKO and Woodhill all offer quality, relatively affordable training and board AND full care options for your ponies if you can’t make it out to the barn to ride during the week. Monarch and Oakwell stay more local (south Texas shows), but they too have a few clients who travel out of state in the winter/summer months.
PJP (Peter Pletcher) is a great option in the Woodlands, but, PJP is out of state for both the winter and summer seasons (think November through July or August): If you cannot afford to go to Wellington for season, look elsewhere, but this is a great place for competitive hunter riders. Kelley Lorek, Colleen Brombach, and others do travel to Florida and/or Thermal, but due to the drama and professional issues some people I know have had with both Kelley and Colleen. The issues vary, but Colleen coaches kids (no adult amateurs in years other than her own daughter) and Kelley’s program has absorbed many of Colleen’s unhappy clients and vice versa over the years. What I’ve been told is that boils down to the typical junior rider/parent drama. Neither of them have competitive amateur adult riders competing above 1.15 consistently.
At Colleen’s more specifically, she struggles to maintain staff and clients due to how lesson program students/leased horses/ “full care” training is managed for her clients who simply cannot afford to travel out of town every week. From what I’ve seen and heard, Colleen does not get along with most professionals (their words, not mine), though she and her husband hold THJA board positions and her daughters are very well liked, accomplished riders. Despite this, some kids and parents absolutely love her.
In summary, Texas is wonderful for many things. I love the tacos, the views from our home in Hill Country, the friends I have made, and the community that has supported my small business in South Texas. The weather alone (ice and occasional snow in Austin during winter and months of days well over 100 degrees in the summer) was reason enough to move my guys back to a more stable climate. Sadly, the hottest time of the day (and Texas heat is no joke) is after work and this is simply not healthy for horses nor riders.
I just read in a FB Buy/Sell group that one professional who moved her operation to East Texas lost her twelve year old to heat stroke and is selling the others because they are struggling to acclimatize. A good insurance policy for your horses is absolutely recommended, but the BEST thing you can do is visit, talk with, and seriously consider the trainers, barn managers, grooms, and fellow adult ammies who will be around your horses when you are adjusting to life in Austin- After too many calls to a trainer/barn owner who simply didn’t have the resources or staff to care for my horses, resulting in thousands of vet bills and countless years off my life stressing over details I never had to explain to fellow riders and professionals on the East coast or in the Midwest, I knew I needed to make serious changes and wish I knew what I know now.
My breaking point was one winter when I fell asleep exhausted in my car after shoveling ice and soaked bedding out of my horses’ stalls AND because not one staff member answered my texts or calls at 7:00 PM on a Thursday. Imagine walking into the barn after work to find everyone (two employees) has left for the day and your horse’s automatic water has frozen and its pipes have burst. Your horse is shivering in a corner, without access to potable water, their shavings are freezing over, and no one answers the phone. The “on site” groom/spouse of the trainer is also nowhere to be found. I slept in my car overnight until someone showed up the next morning and gave written notice that I was leaving to my trainer, stating what I experienced, but that respectfully, I would honor our contract, pay in full, not contact her existing clients directly, etc. and keep the matter between us, becauseI just wanted out. This trainer, called me within MINUTES of sent email. I ignored her two calls and listened to a frantic, inappropriate voicemail in which they are actually screaming, defending their behavior and the lack of attention to this concern until the message cuts off. This professional was recommended to me as a developing pro myself looking for mentorship and teaching opportunities. I was given the opportunity to teach paying lesson students and pony kids without pay, since I had been “out of the game for a while, and initially was offered “professional development opportunities.”
Within months, I was teaching more lessons and receiving zero coaching or training. I often flatted horses while all other junior clients and our trainer were out of town, supervised our working students, lesson kids, set jumps, managed feed and supplements all while paying for paying for full board and training. I was told my fees were reduced ro cost, but l, in reality, I found a price sheet in a drawer and realized I was paying $150 more per month than the listed fee for “full board and training.” When I respectfully brought up the lack of mentorship I was receiving, my trainer informed me that my other, paid profession’s schedule didn’t work for them to help me now or in the near future, though we had discussed my availability at length before I ever began working with this individual.
My issue with this individual wasn’t as personal as it is professional and in regards to what’s best for my horses. My horse, a week later, blew an abscess and cracked both front feet since his pads quite literally froze to his body. I spent newly $15,000 on corrective shoeing and a hoof supplement alone for him over the next twelve months, and ultimately, decided to give him six months to a year off to let him heal as I acquired a third horse last year. Most people cannot afford to do this. In Texas, some trainers think, “Well, things happen and that’s just how it is.” It’s not. It shouldn’t be, and I have never had basic horse management issues at a an “AA” barn and training facility except in Texas.
I have friends who all happily keep their horses at home or with the professionals I have mentioned above, including the trainer I ultimately left for good- They were out of town that week at a winter AA rated show and I never went into detail about the night I ultimately decided I couldn’t take it anymore in TX and considered getting out of the sport (for a few hours) for good. I felt extremely isolated, and stressed daily my horse was receiving basic care, let alone positive training or professional mentorship.
I have friends who had ridden at TKO, Woodhill, and Madrone over the years and highly recommend all three farms. The bottom line is that anyone moving to this part of the country in today’s economy, or really, anywhere new, should not only conduct research online, but visit the farms themselves to form genie own opinions. Lastly, and I cannot emphasize this more, ASK YOUR TRAINER TO CALL AND MAKE THE INTRODUCTION FROM PROFESSIONAL TO PROFESSIONAL EVEN IF YOU ARE A VETERAN EQUESTRIAN.
Your trainer will get a read on the perspective trainer quickly: The opinion of a profesional you know and trust trumps all of your research and investigative skills, one hundred percent of the time. If you have a horseman or horsewoman as a trainer, a real, know AA professional: They would have already been helping you to relocate so long as they know you’re considering it- Have the talk. If the professional you are researching does not take your existing trainer’s call, or makes excuses week after week, as to why they can’t discuss your move to their facility, RUN.
It is the norm in this industry at the top levels for one professional to call the other when ANY client leaves their farm, even if the break-up was messy. Leave this to the professionals if you can stomach the commutes here, or just keep your horses where they are happy.
Had I known what I know now, I could have saved hours of headaches and thousands of dollars. Get off COTH and have a real discussion with your trainer for their professional help with this transition. And, after going through all of this, one can potentially understand why I ultimately decided I needed a more professional, experienced professional in my life- I have since appealed for Amateur reclassification and I still have so much to learn, each and every day. I value my trainers, grooms and our staff more now than ever before.
The hunter/jumper community in Texas is growing every day and programs are experiencing rising costs and growing pains. Newcomers from either coast should invest their time, money, energy, and time spent with horses into a community and program that fits best for your horse first, and then for your goals and “lifestyle” (showing, commute, social circle). I hope this helps and I am truly sorry for the length of this reply.
