Spruce Meadow Farm

Awful experiences here! Bought a package of private lessons… it was a deal for get 4 lessons for the price of 3… received the 3 poorly given lessons but called many times to schedule the 4^th I am owed yet with no call back… also to start my first lesson a terrible storm was rolling in (thunder & lightening) and I know that horses are flight or fight animals… so I called my instructor I had a lesson with that day to see if we could cancel but she got all argumentative and said that our horses ride in all weather they’re used to it… and you can’t cancel now it’ll screw up scheduling yada yada… so I went event though I didn’t feel comfortable on the horse in that weather… even if we were in the indoor arena… second lesson I had scheduled with the same person as last but when I arrived she had forgot I was coming and asked another girl to give me my lesson, which was ok but she was too young to be giving lessons if you ask me… third lesson, I had yet a different instructor again so I had to explain to her what I had learned the last time or worked on, etc. also this time I was put into the indoor arena with two young children on horses, horses that the instructor said didn’t get along with my horse and those children weren’t any good at controlling their horses if they got too close to mind which a couple run-​ins happened throughout the lesson where I felt my safety was at risk… oh and there was another girl just practicing around us while the three other lessons were going on plus the 2 instructors equaled way too many people and horses in a small arena… it wasn’t even productive… horrible! Oh and did I mention one of the instructors said out loud to the other girls where they should put their tips if they get any… really? how rude… frankly I don’t think they deserve tips for their poorly run barn… switching to a barn I trust and where I know I’ll get exceptional attention that is conducive to my learning of riding.

I came to Spruce Meadow twice in 2013 — once was part of a «date lesson» they sold my husband (birthday gift) and one was under a groupon I had happened to buy the same week (for less than half the price).
Our first visit we used the «date lesson» which was intended to be romantic I suppose but really just ended with a small gift bag with soap petals and 2 boxes of conversation hearts. Whatever though, I was there for the horses!
Scheduling was very difficult but when someone did manage to answer the phone they would be apologetic and pleasant. It took several calls but we finally got the date. When we arrived we were greeted by 2 young girls, teenagers, and they proceeded to show us how to clean the horses. We spent about 30 minutes of the lesson cleaning and grooming alone. I didn’t see an «adult» the whole time we were there (a liability nightmare, might I add) but the girls were very sweet and seemed to know their stuff.
I got to ride Lucky, a beautiful older girl who was a good horse for a first-​timer. We spent a while walking, turning, and stopping, and by the end of the lesson I was trotting with Lucky and having a wonderful time. Had that been my only experience with the farm, min. 4 stars for sure, like Erica S.‘s experience.
BUT
We came back for the groupon lesson a few weeks later (again, after a tough scheduling process). There was an older woman present there this time, but she was the only instructor there for 2 riders (despite the fact that we were each supposed to have an instructor). We again went through the grooming process and then went out to ride. We had informed her several times that we had been there before, but it seemed to go one ear and out the other, and she kept treating us like everything was brand new. We also asked for the same horses, as we both had a great experience the first time, but that was ignored as well.
The horse I was given to ride was not feeling well that day, but I was still supposed to learn how to ride on him (I heard the girl helping around the stables quietly mention that he was sick and wasn’t the best choice, but he was the choice anyway because the «good horses» were off somewhere else). He was miserable and wouldn’t walk, even when lead/​yanked/​yelled at by the instructor. She kept telling me to «squeeze harder» and came over and physically pushed my legs into the side of the horse — still nothing. She left me and the horse parked under a tree for 10+ minutes while she attended to another rider. I felt bad for the horse — he clearly did not want to be out. The other horses were happily walking around.
She kept claiming that it was me, which was embarrassing, frustrating, and NOT AT ALL HELPFUL for a new rider. I don’t mean to say that if I were more experienced the horse would have acted exactly the same — but there was clearly something wrong. When I mentioned I had gotten to a trot on Lucky, the instructor scoffed and said that I shouldn’t have been allowed to do that. It was the first time she recognized my comments about having already been there.
Like Donna H., I too was interested (BEFORE the 2^nd lesson) in continuing and paying for some regular lessons, but all my comments and questions about it were answered with something like «oh that’s nice.» Really, the whole time, we felt like we were nothing but a huge bother that day and like we didn’t belong there at all. They clearly weren’t interested in making us new regular customers. It was all very weird.
I appreciate the Farm and what it does to help/​rescue/​treat «unwanted» horses, but it really needs to improve its business model and customer service if it’s going to be in that realm.
One star for the first lesson, one star for the horses. It’s not their fault. :)

Well worth the wait to get a one hour riding lesson in using a Groupon. My personal instructor, Kaycie, was excellent. I was instructed in the basics of riding English style: how to mount, control the reigns, walk and trot, dismount, and groom the horse afterwords. A short tour and intro. to their other rescue horses followed my session. Very nice kept horses and grounds for riding, both indoors and outdoors. Jumping is next, lol. Seriously, I will revisit.

Awful… Won’t return phone calls to schedule a lesson… I was owed one more on my package… teenage instructors which you get a different one each time… staff is unprofessional… and lessons are disorganized and crammed together with many others in the same time slot as you. Never going back… switched barns already where I get more personalized attention, consistent instructor and times!

I hate to do this, because I didn’t even get the experience of horseback riding from Spruce Meadow Farms, but that’s also why I’m forced to give them a one-​star rating.
I purchased a groupon for me and my girlfriend to have horseback riding lessons as part of her birthday present back in September, and it’s now November, and I’m still trying to book an appointment.
I leave messages, but no one calls me back. It’s really disappointing.
UPDATE: I eventually received a call back, and was able to be booked on a cold day, and got to ride around on the indoor track, which wasn’t quite as cold, however, I was looking forward to riding a horse outdoors.
I’m adding a star, because I liked the horse I rode around on. He was a racehorse rescue with a scar across his mouth, which made it a shape that caused his tongue to stick out a little. I felt a connection to this horse, because I also have a scar by my mouth, but not nearly as bad as his, considering my tongue does not involuntarily hang from my mouth.