Barn Manager—robin south

My husband Martin and daughter Tessa at the 2007 NATRC Heart of Dixie Ride.

With Sylvia at my first competitive trail ride. I had waited my whole life for that experience! It was wonderful!

Warming up Crusader for our first dressage competition.

Since I was 5-years-old, all I wanted was a horse, and if I was going to be allowed a choice, it was going to be an Arabian. I devoured everything ever written by Walter Farley and Marguerite Henry, and I memorized Smokey the Cow Horse by Will James. I spent sleepless nights dreaming of the day I would bring home my own four-legged soul mate. My passion knew no bounds.

But life never seemed to cooperate. I was always riding someone else’s horses, never my own. In college, I spent as much time as I could manage at a Quarter Horse farm taking their green horses out on the trail. I worked with young horses at an Arabian farm in Colorado, teaching them ground manners and confidence. I visited several of the large dude ranches in Colorado for rides in the mountains. Any time I saw a chance to put my hands on a horse, I took it.

I was both envious and elated when my mom, Linda, bought her first horse, a fiery chestnut Arab, in 1996. For the next few years, I lived vicariously through her as she took on several more horses and worked hard at learning to communicate with and train her horses through Natural Horsemanship. With her encouragement, I began my own apprenticeship in Natural Horsemanship, working with her horses, auditing various clinics, studying different practitioners and working my way through the Parelli program.

Then, in 2002, I met Guimauve (aka Gu) and Sylvia, a wonderful mother-daughter pair of gray Arabians owned by my mom’s friend, Heidi Argo. Though Sylvia was not the soul-mate I had dreamed of, I knew she would be the perfect horse to share with my daughter Tessa. It took me almost 2 years, but I finally talked Heidi into selling Sylvia to me. Just a few months later, Heidi sold her farm, and I agreed to give Gu a good home. After all this time, these 2 incredible horses - Arabians at that! - were mine.

Over the next year, I put in a lot of time and sweat into Bridlewood as its acting manager, with the intent to have it restored and running as a successful boarding facility. By the end of 2005, I was in negotiations with the incumbent managers to take over the lease for Bridlewood. I signed the lease on January 1, 2006. What a way to start the new year!

In 2010, my daughter Tessa began her foray into the world of eventing and combined training. This was a new experience for both of us, but it was great fun. Due to Sylvia’s age, Tessa decided to use my Paso/Quarter cross mare Roxy as her competition horse. Watching the two of them learn and mature together has been such an exciting pleasure!

2011 has seen an immense improvement in both my training and riding knowledge, as I’ve continued to study and learn about the disciplines my daughter and I have chosen. It’s amazing how much information is out there and how helpful people are willing to be when presented with passion and enthusiasm.

The past six years have been such a rewarding and exciting time for me, my family and our horses. I’m continually dreaming and scheming for the future of Bridlewood and my place in it. I can’t wait to see what this year brings!