We just moved to the area from Tampa Bay two months ago and discovered Black Creek Hill Farms while…read morelooking for trail rides. We are so glad we found them. Brenda, the owner, is an incredibly warm and friendly person who does some wonderful things at her farm. The day we arrived for our trail ride Brenda greeted us, got us situated with gear and horses. Then she personally adjusted the saddles and stirrups to ensure the best fit. The farm has a number of volunteers who help guide the riders through the trails in the beautiful surrounding countryside. Our two volunteers were incredibly polite and thoughtful as they guided us through the ride. The horses were gentle and responsive. The entire experience was wonderful from start to finish. After we returned to the stables Brenda talked about the impact the horse therapy they do at the farm has had on participants. This has literally changed peoples lives. Outstanding place and people. We will absolutely be returning. Highly recommended.

Fun and excitement riding the trail with my grown girls. Staff was very professional, patient, fun…read moreand accommodating. I recommend Black Hill Farms for beginners and experienced riders. We had a great time.

If you're looking for a laid-back no drama facility to board your horse, relax on amazing trails or…read moretake lessons, then look no further than Hidden Spring Farm! Lighted arena with great footing, dressage ring, open field jumps and great trails. What more could you want?!? Full board to pasture board, they have you covered! You and your horse become part of the family. No matter your skill level they have you covered with lessons from beginner to advanced.

Barrett, the head instructor of Top Flight Equestrian, has extensive experience that's been…read moreincredibly helpful for me and the rest of her students at learning about horses, riding, and showing / eventing. A lot of people evaluate a trainer by their experience. Barrett has that down, since she has over 20 years experience in the equestrian (dressage / eventing) world. However, being a great trainer requires 2 other aspects that are super important which Barrett shines in. The first of those 2 things is to make things enjoyable, entertaining and fun. There's many highly qualified trainers that are so burnt out that they make lessons like pulling teeth. Barrett instructs in ways where you can tell she loves the sport and that love for it is contagious for all of us. The second thing is the ability to convey that knowledge to someone. It's not just about knowing it, but actually being able to explain it in so many different ways and angles that she can make a concept make sense to someone that's 7 or 70 years old, experienced, or even completely new to riding. Barrett has shown she can easily adapt her lesson to any of these situations. Highly recommended!

My 13 year old son and I have been taking lessons from Barrett for several months now. She is an…read moreamazing instructor. My son describes her as phenomenal. She is dedicated to her craft, very knowledgeable, with decades of experience. She's committed to excellence, yet instructs with thoughtfulness and patience. Her passion for horses, horsecare and riding shines through every time we're with her. My husband recently observed one of our lessons and he was impressed with her teaching style. She is right there with the student, engaged the entire time, coaching and instructing. I'm also impressed with the way she has easily maneuvered the different dynamics of teaching a wide range of ages and abilities. My 13 year old son quickly connected with her and respected her leadership and instruction. As a 39 year old mother of 3, and beginner, she has been just as great with me - patient, thoughtful, yet challenging. We really can't say enough good things about Top Flight Equestrian.

This post is in response to Gary and Carol Maguire's comments AND to celebrate 25 years as a…read moreboarder, student, and finally, dressage instructor, at MacNair's Stables. Unlike the Maguires, I was not a first time horse owner and had boarded at several different barns in two states. The care and concern for the horses at MacNair's is exceptional. As an instructor, I have had the opportunity to visit many boarding stables in and around the Raleigh area. MacNair's stands out with the many opportunities and facility highlights that are available on the 150 acre grounds. While primarily a hunter jumper teaching facility, you will find dressage, eventers, trail riders, western, and endurance. There are many horses on the property that are stabled in two separate barns as well as pasture boarding. There are two indoor riding arenas, one dressage arena and two large sand arenas as well as large grassy areas and miles of trails. Children can begin lessons at the age of 8 and there are a few riders in their 80's. There are about 200 lessons given on the farm every week with numerous trainers. With that in mind, the Maguires mentioned "arrogance" which affects ring use. With 200 students in one week, group lessons will have priority over ring space. One rider, on his own, cannot expect to have a ring to himself. There are many places to ride. The stalls are thoroughly cleaned each and every day as well as the water buckets. If an owner comes hours after the stall has been cleaned, there should be manure and urine there. If not, something is wrong. If the water buckets were just cleaned and an owner comes to the stall, there will be a slight delay as the buckets will be filled one at a time. There will be a short window of time with an empty bucket. This is normal. The Maguires mentioned a bacterial infection with their horse. Their horse had a bone fracture and had to have a surgical procedure at the vet school. Any time there is a surgical procedure, there is a chance of infection. This is true with human or horse. Roundup is used, by the owner only, in areas that need weed control. Its use is strictly administered, as directed, for farm use with horses and cattle. As far as the comments from the Maguires about "cliquey, uppity, arrogance, superiority" - I must say that children, friends, family, complete strangers, and many others continue to come to MacNair's in order to participate in the whole horse learning experience that I have come to love over these 25 years. These people have become life long friends and mentors to me. To finalize, let me tell you about our lesson horses. Some are now in their 30's and continue to thrive under the care of the fine staff at MacNair's. They are healthy and sound. They are well taken care of. They love the job of teaching young and old the special bond between human and horse. And to you, the Maguires, may God richly bless you and keep you as you continue your search for perfection in your next horse adventure. Amen!

Gorgeous barn and endless trails and pastures to explore. Well loved and cared for horses. Kids…read morelearning responsibility WITHOUT staring at a phone. Well-run shows and great support from trainers ensuring that riders meet their personal riding goals. A great place to spend time with horses and friends.

This company is one of the worst I have ever experienced. My kid took lessons for about 3 years and…read moreI wish I would've opened my eyes sooner. My kid has gone through multiple instructors. Learned nothing about how to safely ride. The instructors are under-qualified and many just yell the same words at kids over and over. They are just in it for the money. The owner is creepy and flat out rude to his employees. This barn is dangerous and horrible for the equestrian community

Don't recommend boarding here. School horses are over ridden. Too many horses in pasture/paddocks.read more

Love the environment here! All the workers are so kind and helpful. All the horses are so sweet…read moretoo!!!

For a Therapeutic Horse riding facility... it has come a long way to attaining the whole…read moreperspective that they are trying to achieve. They care about their deserving riders as well as the non therapeutic riders. Lessons are given to beginners to experienced riders who want to learn and all those funds go towards the support of the facility and it's programs it offers to those in need. Riding a horse is quite the experience,not only for those that are able bodied, but those that need that kind of a connection in the world to make it right. And put a smile on their faces as well as their parents/care takers! What a facility and right up the road from me, gratefully!

This was a very nice race (I ran the half). It's not too big, so the most awesome thing is that I…read morewas able to leave my hotel and be in my corral in five minutes. Also, the race ended right at my hotel so that was great. Corrals were very orderly. Music along the course was good but not as much as other Rock N Roll events I've run. Volunteers everywhere were outstanding. They really did a good job there. Plenty of course support from spectators, policy and EMTs. Really pretty well organized. The weather was perfect the day I ran so I won't even bother to complain about the hills, although the one before mile 7 and the little one right before mile 12 I thought would kill me. Expo was small but efficient. On the not so great side, I don't like the company that did the timing for this race. It was hard to navigate on mobile and if you were a runner they made you sign up to get data (so just pretend you're a specator) and even then, the data was bare minimum. They need to look at how timing is done at other races to see it done correctly. Another thing I have to say is that Rock N Roll races make their websites overly complex and hard to navigate. To find info about the start corrals, I had to click a lot and then I just got a map. There were no instructions that said how you should enter the corrals, which would have been helpful since the bag check was in front of the start line across the course and the corrals went around the block. Make the logistics easy to find with one or two clicks. Especially on mobile. When people are traveling around they are more likely to have a phone or tablet than a full PC so optimize your website for mobile. Very poor mobile experience. I don't advocate traveling to NC due to their regressive and repressive governor but if they ever get their act together and decide to join the 21st century, this would be a fun race for everyone.

3/15 runs for the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame 2015!…read more WHERE IS RALEIGH? jk. If it weren't for this Rock n Roll thing, I would have never even considered Raleigh as a travel destination, running destination, or anything destination. I'm from sunny San Diego, and we have everything. lol. jk. THE EXPO If you've been to one RnR Expo, you've been to them all. There were a bunch of booths promoting some type of fitness food, gadget, destination, ect. Outside of the convention center, I loved how they dressed up the statue of Sir Walter Raleigh with racing gear. It was cute. I love the community spirit. THE SHIRT Also cute. Loved the squirrel! Wish the medal and the shirt would coordinate because they were two completely different designs. RnR should probably consider that for all its races. And you Raleigh folks, someone should have dressed up as a squirrel, or even Sir Walter Raleigh. Show your pride in your city. lol. THE ROUTE It was a little challenging, but doable. There were hills, and a lot of trees. Raleigh is known for being "The City of Oaks" thus a piece of bark flew into my mouth and it made me choke during the race. lol. Considering that this was a spring race, and with things starting to bloom... hello allergies! Pollen levels were HIGH. In addition to choking, I was sneezing a lot, and my eyes kept watering up. To my allergy-friendly friends -- start taking some allergy medicine prior to the race, and make sure it's the non-drowsy kind. You don't want to look drunk on the course. Despite the hills and the allergy attacks, I actually did fairly well. THE SOUTH You need to remember, you are in the South, home of the Chick-Fil-A. lol. jk. (They were everywhere though!) Sunday's in the South... prepare for closure! A lot of restaurants, grocery stores, sightseeing places were closed. Surprisingly, the half marathon was on a Sunday, as opposed to the typical South hosting races on Saturday's. The places I had in mind to check-out were all closed -- especially the restaurant I had plans to pig out at after the race, and unexpectedly, convenience stores for allergy medicine. I was hungry with a runny nose. Luckily Jimmy John's (gourmet sandwich joint like Quiznos) were handing out free sandwiches after the race, so half my problems were solved. It may not seem like I had a good time in Raleigh, but I did. A lot of funny stories came out from this mini vacation. (ie I ALMOST DIED VIA UBER. Well not really, but I had the potential to. And, weird people asking for my number... are Asians non-existent in the South or something? lol. jk.) Would I probably do it again? No, but you gotta do what you gotta do for the bling-age. lol. **If you run the 3 out of the 4 Rock n Roll marathon/half marathons in the same calendar year - New Orleans, Raleigh, St. Jude Country or Savannah you will earn the Southern Charm medal!

We have been drawn to the Childcare Network's throughout Raleigh for day- and childcare and…read moreBrentwood Rd location has been one of the best to work with. Ms. E, the director, has a welcoming staff that greet and speak to you when you walk in; the teachers communicate when there are concerns, and treat our children with fairness and kindness. We are very happy with the results that our last preK child has shown and will recommend this location to friends and family.