Ashley and her team does a wonderful job building confidence in young riders. my daughter not only learned to ride, but she learned horsemanship, horse care, and a love for the sport. Highly recommen! read more

As an adult re-rider, I wasn't looking for a highly competitive or elite show barn. I was looking for a place where I could receive quality instruction, enjoy my time with horses, and continue learning in a supportive, low-pressure environment. I found exactly that here at AME! The horses are well cared for and genuinely seem happy, which says a lot about the program. One of the things I appreciate most is the atmosphere. The younger riders encourage one another, everyone is welcoming, and there is a true sense of community. The facilities are functional and always improving, but what really makes this barn special is how it feels. I never worry about fitting in or keeping up appearances. I get to be the most authentic version of myself every time I walk through the gate, without judgment or expectations. The common thread among everyone here is simply a love of horses. If you're looking for a welcoming barn with quality instruction, happy horses, and an environment where riders of all ages and goals can enjoy the sport, I would absolutely recommend Ashley Mason Equestrian. read more

I only spent a short time at this barn and left about a year ago, but I how disappointed I was in this place has stayed on my mind. during the time when I first signed up, I was told about how great it is, how custom the programs are, how many different opportunities there are, and the truly personalized care everyone receives; inclusive. while I do agree there are some neat opportunities when Ashley brings in other professionals for classes or clinics, it is not worth the pain of everything else. it was and still is my understanding that only a relatively small group of people are prioritized and have had good experiences, but from what I have experienced myself, the following is very likely a more realistic picture of what you will get. for one, how much you are paying matters... if you are on the lowest tier, you are lowest on the list of people Ashley cares about and it is hard to advance if you do not have the budget. her effort with me, not being a more wealthy client was astonishingly low. even those I had known to pay for the most expensive package for lessons/showing/boarding felt jipped when all was said and done. regardless of that, lessons with Ashley specifically (not the other trainers) were extremely unstructured and little instruction or advice was actually given. She very clearly either had little interest in or had difficulty paying attention to more than one student at a time, so group lessons (basically the only thing available unless you are a special few...) are basically "supervised" freestyle practice... and I once saw a lesson with approximately 12 students... it was a mess and the arena was not sizable enough to safely accommodate that many children, in my opinion(all inappropriate considering the price and what was promised). while every trainer has their own philosophy, and they do not work for everyone, which is okay, Ashley had particularly strange rules about never jumping a single horse above 2ft unless it was in competition (if this has changed since, I do not know), so I felt extremely under challenged and frustrated as a rider of 10+ years who did not have the financial flexibility to partake in competition. The goal of this was to home in on the basics of riding/jumping in the hopes that it would translate to higher jumps but in reality that is not how it worked if you cannot ever practice the more difficult courses or higher jumps. the second goal of this rule was to be gentle on the horse's and pony's legs because these animals were CONSTANTLY in use... I think way more clients were being taken on than could be practically scheduled or handled. All that is to say, this was my experience when I was even able to get a lesson. I was cancelled on repeatedly and it was hard to reschedule. Communication was a huge weak point of this facility (although Ashley has no problem openly saying judgemental things about her students to other clients and employees). during one month I had paid ahead in full, and was not able to get in for a single lesson because time management is a huge issue here (only one lesson out of that month will I conceed and say the cancellation was truly beyond anyone's control) Ashley agreed to suspend payment and give me the next month for free because of this, but I was never scheduled then either. I was never contacted again, though I tried, never saw any money back, and quit the place in frustration. While employees and student volunteers did their best to keep the place clean, stalls were not to the standards that I think any self respecting horseman would allow. since leaving I have only heard other horror stories about neglect of the animals, which is certainly much more serious than my own personal gripes about lesson quality or Ashley's personality. the bottom line is that there are double standards, promises often go unfulfilled, there is an air of immaturity, and this place is not of the quality it tries to portray for horse or rider. read more

I would recommend to put in some research and really think about where you want to invest your money if you're looking at coming to Ashley Mason (which there will be a lot wasted if you come here from canceled lessons). I'd like to say I'm surprised at these bad reviews but I am NOT after our experience. If your child is not with the "in" crowd they will be left out of barn communications, ignored, and not properly taught horse things. My daughter attended for a very long time and still could never safely tie up a horse even. A few bad instances include no one assisting a 7 yo find the proper girth for a horse she hadn't ridden in over 6 months resulting in over an hour spent tacking and only getting a few minutes of ride time. Another is not being told lessons were going to be running late and Ashley herself ignoring all communication from me but responding in front of us to another parent. These are a few examples of what we experienced for months and I should have left sooner. After our last encounter I didn't even find it worth it to finish the time we paid for I was so ticked. I wasn't stepping foot back there. I was also told it was in their contract to have a SIXTY (ridiculous!) day warning to ending lessons but I never signed a single contract. I would also highly recommend being cautious buying a horse from Ashley. It was my fault for not doing my own vet check prior because I thought these horses were cared for. We purchased a pony who came with what Ashley INSISTED was sunburn on her eye. We did everything to try and heal this "sunburn" which kept getting worse. Upon a vet visit we discovered she was actually going blind which resulted in her becoming super skittish and not even safe. She actually ended up giving me a severe head concussion when I tried riding her towards the end landing me in the hospital. So I was not only out over 3k for that, we were also out 2.5k+ that we purchased her for and Ashley was unwilling to help what so ever in that or all the vet bills we acquired in our care with this. The pony ended up being given away to a previous owner which makes me happy but what a huge waste of money at about 4k in the dump. I am also certain with our Pony when she returned to the stables to be rehomed that she wasn't ever being turned out. It's really unfortunate but for the HIGH cost of this place I would stay far far away. read more