Clinics

We welcome Tom Moates to the Virginia Highlands Route 220 Corridor a few times each year. These incredibly fun and diverse “roving clinics” are centered at our HQ in Bath County but also travel to nearby farms depending on who is on the list. The roving clinic format is 2-day with an overnight. Each participant gets a one-on-one slot each day and is invited to observe and learn from all the lessons along the route. Carpooling is encouraged and this group tends to be small and full of laughter.

Tom is an award winning author with hundreds of articles published in Horse Magazines from Equus to Western Horseman, Ecclectic Horseman to America’s Horse and many others. He is an author with entertaining as well as enlightening books about his horsemanship journey following Harry Whitney’s work including A Horse’s Thought and most recently Considering Horsemanship

Mattalyn Howard

Ongoing Virtual, and live in VA

Virtual packages offered through HH with the option to join an in person clinic lesson weekend when the dates are set! Contact Jaime.

Mattalyn Howard is a Dressage rider and trainer, as well as lover of the art of horsemanship and student of the horse. Mattalyn has been immersed in horses from every angle since she was a child. From gaited to jumpers, dressage to working cattle. With a strong foundation in the fundamentals of horsemanship and understanding equine behavior, Mattalyn has a way of getting through to horses on their level in a kind, thoughtful and loving approach. Mattalyn believes that dressage is for every horse and every rider. Dressage translates to “training” in French, and all the movements and exercises used in dressage are meant to increase strength, suppleness, responsiveness, and preserve soundness. This makes dressage beneficial to ALL disciplines and individuals! We all want happy, healthy, sound partners. Mattalyn has a fun approach to teaching that aims to help riders achieve their goals whether they simply want their horse to use his or her body better to preserve soundness going down the trail or are have high performance aspirations in any discipline. Mattalyn has a strong background in human biomechanics and a toolbox full to help riders find their neutral, most effective seat. Mattalyn is an FEI level rider and trainer, USDF Bronze medalist, a USDF “L” candidate, and has ridden with a delightful melting pot of teachers such as Harry Whitney, Jim Koford, Mark Russell, Herwig Radnetter (former Chief rider of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna), Erin Brinkman, JJ Tate, and many more riders and trainers that have influenced her riding and training style over the years. 

Jaime Hope Blees

Each horse I’ve taken on through this journey has been an opportunity for me to learn.

Though endurance riding is her sport of choice, Jaime loves to explore what a well-rounded horse is capable of, and believes good horsemanship is key. Khaleesi was started by Jaime as an unhandled 4-year old in 2014 and the subject of the 9-year journey of an unstarted filly to seasoned 100-mile horse as told in the blog green to 100. Khaleesi and Jaime completed their first single-day 100 mile race at one of the most challenging courses (the Old Dominion 100 aka Beast of the East) in the top 10 in June of 2023. Jaime loves the challenges being an endurance competitor offers: demanding a horse be in powerful mental, physical and emotional fitness.

With over 10 years of working with horses that don’t fit the traditional methods, Jaime empowers others to understand and resolve their horse’s issues. Don’t struggle alone with a horse that feels unsafe or simply not fun to work with anymore. Schedule a free consultation for a plan to go from overwhelmed or frustrated back to enjoying your horse. These basic shifts will help regardless of your discipline.

Located in Bath County, VA Jaime will meet with clients in the Bath, Highland, Alleghany, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Augusta and Botetourt Counties of Virginia as well as Pocahontas WV.