Amazing place- Ms Kim and Ms Taylor are the best around- my kids started training there. since they were little. Wouldn't go anywhere else

I did camps 2 years in a row. At first they wernt nice. the second year mrs kim was AWESOME!!!! I completely suggest this. ive fallen off twice both times were a scare but i was fine. tip: use epson salt in your bath after you fall off. and you sometimes might feel like they're pushing you but they just want you to get better. read more

I also have not had the issues described by some here. I believe that some people may have been disappointed due to their expectations, not the experience itself. This is not a "free-ride" setup. These are instructed lessons. My daughter (5) and I both attend lessons and have had a great experience! Kim has been flexible and I absolutely love and appreciate how she has taught both of us more than the mechanics of riding. My daughter is learning responsibility and respect for animals and other adults. It is great to see the more advanced riders working with our small ones. If you are truly looking to join an academy with a "family" atmosphere, then this is the place to go. Also Yelp needs to update the business info . The address is 16055 E 300 S Zionsville, the farm and facilities are amazing . read more

I also bought a groupon, but couldn't even get the stables to return my calls or texts (per the instructions on their voicemail). I contacted groupon, and they would contact the stables to call me back. NOTHING. I was very disappointed that I did not get to ride. Groupon refunded my money. There are too many stables around Indy to put up with stuff like this. Why would you do a groupon if you're not interested in treating your customers right. Get it together, Sterling Shields. read more

I purchased a Groupon as well. I thought it was ridiculous to have to pay extra tax and tip. I have been riding for many years and ride competitively on my college's equestrian team, so I'm not a beginner. The indoor arena had so much crap in it that it was hard to navigate and very small. The horse I was riding was fine, but had some serious confirmation faults (that impacted his gaits) and refused/ran out on almost every (tiny) jump we did. The lesson itself was fine, but not worth $40 some dollars after you add in the "tax" and tip. As someone else said, after my lesson I was told to sweep the aisle-ways. Yeah no. I have absolutely no problem cleaning up after myself but you can't ask your customers to clean your barn! I also got yelled at for walking through the "lounge" to get into the barn even though nothing was labelled, I had never been there before, and no one was there to like greet or tell me. I live very near to this barn and I see their student program at shows and my normal trainer and I joke about how much of a mess their riders are. read more

My daughter has been riding with Sterling Shields for seven years now and she absolutely loves it, she has learned so much and Kim has treated us like family. The students learn a lot of responsibility and a lot about the horses and how to take care and train the horses. They are responsible for cleaning up and doing chores, but my daughter doesn't mind she is there hours in the evening when she rides and loves every minute of it. read more

My children have been taking lessons there since 4/2013. I took them for 1 lesson just to see if they would like it, and they were hooked like nothing I've seen before! They want to be out at the barn with the horses all the time. Kim is very good with them and I'm quite proud of what great riders they have become. I would recommend Sterling Shields Stables, hands down. read more

Good horses, mostly friendly group of people. Enjoyed majority of my experience and other adult riders (kids too) with noted exceptions. Though Kim Shields is a knowledgeable trainer, there are more professional trainer / instructors in the Indianapolis area. Very temperamental personality and when in a BAD mood verbally attacks her clients. No one deserves that poor treatment. read more

Couldn't give lower than one star or I would have! Really bad experience with our Daisy troop field trip. Bossy, rude, and condescending owner Kim tried to charge us for Mom's who came along to help and not ride and also wanted to charge one of the Mom's for bringing her 2 year old because we were on the property. Kim didn't remember the guides names at the stables but I will give her credit for knowing her own horses names at her run down barn. We were even offered a folding table located next to the makeshift restroom in the filthy barn to give our kids a snack. We opted to feed the kids outside on the grass. The only positive experience was that once we did get started with the indoor riding Kim disappeared, probably to count the money, and left us with the teenage guides, who were very sweet and nice to the girls. Wouldn't go back if you paid me to. read more

Don't blame the horses; blame the owner Kim! My friends and I (all working professionals in our 30s) bought these horseback riding lessons through Groupon. If you buy Groupon for these guys, watch out because there's all kinds of fine print and prerequisites that Kim (owner of Sterling Shields Stables) put on there! First you have to call and schedule a time with Kim for your lesson by giving them your Groupon number and barcode number. Cancellation is 48hr of your appointment. After 48hrs you forfeit your Groupon. Then you have to give your phone number so she can text you more information the day before your lesson; such as how much tax you have to pay ($9.75) and tip ON TOP of your Groupon. Bring you own helmet too because they'll charge you $5.00 for helmet rental. When we got there. First impressions, Kim was a bit rude but I thought nothing of it because my group was 5mins late and I can understand how she could be a little frustrated. Then the mandatory tax and tip charge was a "got-cha" charge that we didn't agree with but paid anyway. We all got through the lesson fine (Lydia her helper was great) until the end during the horse dismount lesson. Kim was instructing all of us on proper procedure for dismounting the horse. When it came my turn she instructed me how I should do it. When I got down off the horse she said with a "smile", "No! You didn't listen!" "You don't get off like that because the horse could run and pull you with!" Well I'm sorry that I'm a beginner and this being my first time getting off a horse, but is all this passive aggressiveness necessary?! I thought, wow does she belittle all her customers like this? I could have argued with her but I didn't. Instead, I asked her if I could try it again; to which she said, "No, you're good." and walked away. Finally, after walking the horses back into their stalls, we were told to clean up after the horses. That's right, clean! There was nothing in this Groupon that stated anything regarding having to clean! I personally don't have a problem cleaning after ourselves, so my friends and I all did it without objection. We got the brooms and dustpans and started sweeping away. As we were sweeping, Kim saw how one of us was sweeping with a push broom and said, "No! You're doing it all wrong!" She grabbed the broom from him and started to demonstrate how to use a push broom. Seriously? Yeah... As we continued, Kim saw how I was sweeping and runs over, grabbed my broom and said, "You didn't listen to directions again, did you?" What she was pointing out was that every person would sweep only a particular section of the stable. Well, it turns out that my part had several mats which blocked the sweeping area. So, I had to go around the mats and sweep a pile in the next area. Then she says, "You were a bad kid when you were a child weren't you?" I could not believe how I was being treated! This is just another example of how unprofessional, lack of customer service skills, and belittling she is. I probably should have said something, but I'm not that kind of person to stoop to that inconsiderate level. So, while we were finishing up cleaning, Kim told us that she normally make her students (whom are children) do the cleaning for character building and nothing else because at the end of every night they go through with an air blower to do all the cleaning. Yes, all that cleaning was to demean me and my friends and to treat us like children. If you like being treated like a child and pay your hard earned cash to clean their stables while getting demoralized, this is the place for you! read more

For a beginner, the experience here is great. I bought a Groupon and didn't have any issues other people mentioned. Kim responded to my scheduling inquiry immediately and cordially, I wasn't asked to tip (been riding for years, and never have encountered that...I think it's written on all Groupons since so many are for restaurants). Horses were safe and equipment (called "tack") was fine, Lydia (instructor) gave proficient and friendly instruction. If you're an advanced rider, the facility may not be what you're used to--large rings, fancy jumps, etc. But for a beginner, this would be a very nice experience in learning to tack up a horse and ride. Buy a Groupon next time they're for sale and give riding a try. I was also very impressed that Kim recommended a facility more suitable for a more intermediate/advanced rider like me, even though it wasn't her own farm. I think that shows a lot of character since she wanted me to be happy more than she wanted to make a buck. Very classy--I took notice and appreciated it. read more

Best place to take my daughter for lessons!!! I have taken her other places around town.

My sister-n-law purchased a groupon for my daughter for Christmas. She was very excited about getting riding lessons. My sister-n-law scheduled the appointment. She said it was difficult because all communication was thru texting. The day of her riding lessons, the whole family met my daughter and sister-n-law at the stables. There were no signs of where to park. Nobody was there to greet us,but we were early. The girl that gave my daughter her lesson was very good. She was patient, very informative and a great teacher. I would've given it a 5 star rating right there, but my brother joined us with about 15 mins left of the lesson. He drove down the driveway faster than the 5 mph posted sign. When he joined us, we all (my family) yelled at him for going fast. He apologized and said he honestly didn't see the sign. The lesson was over, we were all walking back to the front of the barn when Kim came running out of her house screaming about going the speed limit. She was very rude. Said we parked in the wrong area, again no signs for parking. She kept screaming she texted the rules to my sister-n-law, which she didn't. She called my sister-n-law a liar, because she never got the text. Then Kim said she would prove to her that she sent the text, but she couldn't find it in her phone. No apologies for it. Her professional manner ruined the whole experience for all of us. She needs professional classes on how to run a business and how to handle her temper. She might need to go to her doctor and have her medication changed. I work in healthcare, and if I would act the way she did, especially the first time I am meeting someone, I would be fired. We have another lesson with them, but we won't be going back. I will pray for Kim because she needs all the help she can get. Also, I felt really sorry for the girl who gave my daughter the lesson, she kept apologizing for Kim's behavior. I just kept thinking if she treats us like that, how does she treat her employees and the horses in private. read more