Riding Lessons

LESSON PROGRAMS

NJEC has a wide selection of school horses and ponies, ranging from very beginner to competitive for the “A” rated level. Our spacious indoor arena allows us to separate disciplines and levels of ability.

North Jersey Equestrian Center fosters refinement between both horse and rider. Individual planning with students, along with solid direction will lead to superior achievements.

NJEC promotes family values, togetherness, and gives kids a healthy focus.

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Rob Burroughs

Rob Burroughs began his riding career at the age of 12 and worked his way up the ranks to become a top junior rider at the age of 17. He rode and worked for Carl Knee of Wellington, Florida, a former Olympic coach. He was given the opportunity to show many hunters, equitation horses, and grand prix horses.

From there he went to work for Scott Stewart at Old Salem Farm, whom is known to be the most prestigious hunter rider of his time. Rob brought many pony hunters, jr. hunters, and amateur owner hunters to all of the top A circuit horse shows. Later Rob joined Scott Stewart and Ken Berkley’s team in Flemington New Jersey and Wellington, Florida.

In the fall of 1999 he rode and taught Mindy Minetto at Stonehedge Farm, which led him to North Jersey Equestrian Center in the fall of 2002. Rob took the reins as head trainer of North Jersey Equestrian Center where he trained many horses and riders to championships at all of the top A circuit shows. His experiences at the show ring include pony hunter, junior hunters, equitation, amateur owner hunters, children hunters, adults and amateur jumpers. He and his clients have enjoyed much success at the following shows:

Rob has also been honored as the Zone 2 high point trainer two times. Most recently, one of his students won the wild card class for both the equitation and hunter finals at HITS.

Rob is now accepting new clients. Please call NJEC and join his winning team!

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Stefanie Owens:

 
A New Jersey native, Stefanie Owens began her riding career  at age seven. With over 15 years of showing experience and countless Championships, Stefanie has trained with some of the best Trainers in the industry including Michael Newman, Mark Leone, Steve Weiss, and Alan Korotkin.
       At the start of 2005 Stefanie began working for a top Trainer and ® rated Judge in South Florida where she has trained riders of all ages and ability levels including Adult and Junior beginners to riders on the advanced showing level. Stefanie’s objective is to help her Students achieve their goals and challenge them to perform at their full potential. Stefanie has also owned and sold many of her own horses and pony’s throughout her illustrious career and is extremely knowledgeable in that field. Stefanie is always willing to assist her clients with those endeavors upon request.
       After many successful years in South Florida, Stefanie is extremely excited to make her return to the great state of New Jersey and very proud to be part of the team at the North Jersey Equestrian Center.

 Stefanie is also a Certified Equine, K-9 Massage Therapist.

 Success At:

WEF (Circuit Champion)
HITS
M&S
Vermont Summer Festival
Harrisburg
Tampa
Wellington
Venice
Capital challenge
Atlanta
Biltmore
Zone Finals
Garden State
New Jersey
Jacksonville

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Susan LaBagnara

Susan has been teaching dressage for over 15 years, and has been located at the North Jersey Equestrian Center since 2009.   She has a special talent for working with non-traditional horses, as well as horses with behavior issues.
Susan believes that correct riding is a lifelong pursuit.  She sets high standards for her students, and believes that there are no shortcuts to success.   She utilizes many different techniques in order to get the very best from the horses she works with, including long-lining, work in hand, and cavaletti.  Additionally, she has her students frequently work on the lunge-line to improve their balance and posture.
After beginning her riding career as an eventer, she turned her focus to dressage.  Susan has trained with some of the icons of the dressage world, including Nuno Oliveira, Hilda Gurney, Belinda Nairn-Wertman and Uwe Steiner.  Currently, she trains with Katie Riley and Paul Belasik.  She has also studied Parelli Natural Horsemanship with Nita Jo Rush.
Susan works as an advanced practice nurse at UMDNJ, where she works with children with cancer and blood disorders.  She holds a master’s degree in nursing from the University of Colorado and is currently pursuing her PhD.

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Andrew Penny

Andrew has spent his entire life loving horses and being a part of the equestrian world. From being raised by his parents who ran a boarding school and stables, to coaching riding, and training and managing horse farms as an adult, Andrew has acquired an impressive resume.Andrew loves to work with riders and horses of all levels. Many of his students compete successfully in shows throughout the the Northeast He is happy to take new clients and help them and their horses enjoy the world of riding as much as he does.

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Karl Bauer - Owner & Head Western Trainer

Karl Bauer wrote in his high school yearbook that he would own the largest equestrian complex in New Jersey by the time he was 40. Pretty tall goal for a high school senior. But on Jan. 28, 2001, Bauer turned 40, and in July 2001, North Jersey Equestrian Center in Pompton Plains opened for business after years of planning. And yes, it is owned by Karl Bauer, and yes, it is the largest equestrian complex in the state. Bauer, who has a Bachelor’s Degree in Animal Science from Delaware Valley College, Doylestown, PA, began showing horses at 4-H shows and open competitions when he was 9. Five years later he began taking lessons from Robert Standish, USET’s executive director. In 1973, he began training and showing horses for Standish as well as his own at AQHA events. Bauer has since bred, trained and shown American Quarter Horses, many of them ROM, national and world champions as well as Superior Horse Achievement earners. He specializes in youth and amateur riders that show western pleasure, hunter under saddle, equitation, horsemanship and showmanship at the local, state, national and world levels. Past President of the New Jersey Quarter Horse Association, he has been an AQHA national affiliate since 1997, and was seated on the NJQHA Board of Directors for six years. He is a member of the AQHA Professional Horseman’s Association, Breeders Referral Program and the National Snaffle Bit Association. His talent and experience have earned him numerous awards, including the 1998-99 NJQHA Breeder of the Year. In addition, he has two back-to-back world championships in Mounted Shooting under his belt in 2006 and 2007.

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Chris Workman

North Jersey Equestrian Center is pleased to welcome Chris Workman. Chris  has joined us from Florida where he spent several years preparing and conditioning horses for the pleasure horse industry.  With a patient approach, Chris specializes in starting the young prospects and also has great success returning the seasoned show horses to the pen.

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April Kleiner – Assistant Western Trainer

April Kleiner holds a Bachelors degree in Equine Science and Management from Morrisville State College in New York. During her college career, she successfully showed in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association with the College’s Western Riding Team, where she competed western horsemanship. After graduation, she moved to Oklahoma to work for John and Debby Letham, who run a well-established breeding and training farm. While in Oklahoma, April successfully rode, trained, and showed Appaloosas. She then moved to New Jersey to run the western program at North Jersey Equestrian Center. At NJEC, April is responsible for the day-to-day care of more than 25 horses, teaches western riding to students of all abilities, and trains horses in a wide range of western disciplines. She also serves as the western riding coach for the Stevens Technical Institute Equestrian Team, and trains the team in western horsemanship and reining.

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Therapeutic Riding at North Jersey Equestrian Center

Lisa Gephardt

Lisa, a nationally certified therapeutic riding instructor, founded and runs Stella Therapy Riding, a New Jersey Non-Profit Corporation.  The benefits of therapeutic riding have been recognized for many years. It is a proven method of increasing the physical, mental, emotional and developmental capabilities for individuals with disabilities, functional limitations or medical issues. There is a healing interaction between horses, riders and the people who help them.
In addition to riding, Stella Riding students are involved with many aspects of horse care, from grooming and bathing to tacking up before a lesson and untacking when the lesson is finished.  The bond between the horse and student begins, literally, from the ground up.
Stella Therapy Riding runs out of the North Jersey Equestrian Center.  We have several instructors and many volunteers who assist our students and make sure that their riding experience is positive, educational, and fun. Currently students in the program range in age from five to 62 years old.  While many are on the autism spectrum, we also work with students with Cerebral Palsy, AD/HD, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, Depression,  Anxiety, Down’s Syndrome and Traumatic Brain Injury, to name a few.
The program uses a  variety of horses that are specifically matched up with the students based on their size, abilities, and personalities.

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Ready to lease a horse? Contact NJEC to see what horses we have available!

Lesson Prices:
$55 for a 1/2 hour private lesson
$75 for 1 hour private lesson
$65 for 1 hour group lesson

Training With Rob Burroughs:

Private Session: $75.00

Pro Ride: $55.00

Full Service: $1300.00/mo. (includes board and grooming)

Contact us today to find out more!

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