Barn Lounge

BY JESS CLAWSON Zachary Parks had an unlikely start to his equestrian career. During his very first ride, on the beach in California, he fell off and got his...

BY JESS CLAWSON Kasey Evans understands that good things take time. The southwestern Virginia resident takes the long view on green horses and riders, which lets her keep an...

BY LAUREN MAULDIN Horse shows—I can’t help but love them. Grooming, spectating, photographing or competing, there are few places I’d rather be than watching hunters strut in the hack and jumpers...

BY SUSAN GILSTRAP I was in 5th grade when my drawing that I worked so meticulously on wasn’t chosen to be hung in the hallway with all the other kids’ artwork....

BY NINA FEDRIZZI Take it from me, if you’re lucky enough to find yourself stabled near Lebanon, New Jersey’s Hart Farm at the next horse show, you’re in for...

BY LAUREN MAULDIN I’ve spent a long time feeling like I was lesser within the equestrian world. Growing up riding at a small private barn, our focus was fox hunting and...

BY JEWELL COX Ever since I can remember, I’ve had the dream of owning a horse, caring for it, and competing in barrel racing. I wanted to experience the special connection...

BY PIPER KLEMM Today I started work early, grabbed lunch, went for a run, worked more, headed to campus, donated blood, returned home for more work, and ended the...

BY LAUREN MAULDIN I remember being surprised the first time someone called me a control freak. “What? No! I’m easy going, go with the flow.”

BY SISSY WICKES Much has been made by this author and many others of the hardships faced by the sport horse breeder in North America. How do breeders in...

2018 Honorable Mention in Creative Nonfiction BY CAROLYN GETCHES There is something magic about the bond between a human and a horse. It doesn’t have...

BY LAUREN MAULDIN I haven’t lived in the same state as my parents or any of my extended family for over ten years. I’ve gotten used to the distance. Although I...

BY LAUREN MAULDIN Lifelong equestrian and east coast native Andrew Ellis wears many hats within the hunter/jumper industry. Rider, horse show manager, announcer, USEF Safety Committee member, certified EMT....

2018 Fiction Honorable Mention BY SHANNON FOX Normally when Paige put her foot into the stirrup and swung herself into the saddle, she was filled with a...

by Jess Clawson Kristen Hamel is the owner of Sunset View Farms, a horse show parent, founder of the Hamel Scholarship and the Hamel National Horse Show 3’3” Medal....

BY JESS CLAWSON Courtney Hayden-Fromm didn’t necessarily envision that her entire professional life would involve horses, but as the owner of Old Seoul Equestrian, horses are beyond even a...

BY JESS CLAWSON Barn drama is as prominent as barns themselves. It happens everywhere… even if you’re the only boarder. “Did you hear what so-and-so did?” I say to...

BY LAUREN MAULDIN I avoided therapy for a long time. Part of it was stubbornness. I come from tough stock. “No pain, no gain” and “Walk it off” were practically hung...