Good place for riding lessons near Chicago? (Elgin, Glenview: leases, buy)

[water_bearer]

Hi. Lifelong Chicago resident here. I know where to FIND several horseback riding stables, but I'm wondering if anyone here has an honest review and a suggestion for me:
As an adult in my 30's, I'd like to finally take riding lessons at a GOOD facility. Any horsey people out there know where I can find a good stable / trainer that won't be a 2 hour trek from the No. Side? Also, I do not have my own horse and probably won't for a while.

[Chinolala]

I don't know the names of them, but I believe there are stables in both Glenview as well as Palos Park. I'd Google and see what you can find.

[water_bearer]

Originally Posted by Chinolala

I don't know the names of them, but I believe there are stables in both Glenview as well as Palos Park. I'd Google and see what you can find.

Thanks Chinolala, but like I said, I know WHERE they are, I just don't know HOW they are. I was wondering if anyone can actually tell me if a place would be good to go to as a beginner and as an adult, if the rates are reasonable, if the facilities are well-kept and the horses in good condition, if the trainers are tyrants, or if there's been a record of abuse or if a place is know for catering to a certain type of clientele, etc. Someone who has actually ridden or boarded at one could really help. Thanks for chiming in though.

[knitgirl]

If you have a car, Just N Tyme Farm in ELgin may work for you. There is a rider there who comes from the Printer's Row area. The farm is west of Randall Rd on the far southwest side of Elgin off Rt 20. The barn is a little rundown, but the horses are well taken care of. They have 8 or 9 school horses, though depending on your size, probably only 5-6 would be suitable. I started riding there as an adult several years ago and like both my trainers. One is a full-time school administrator, the other is a college student. They are both excellent instructors. There is another instructor who doesn't teach me who is also very nice. The owner can be a little tough until she gets to know you and sees that you are conscious of your own safety and the safety of the horses, but she has a really good heart and just doesn't want to see anyone hurt because they were doing something stupid.
You can buy a package of 5 lessons for $180. I'm not sure what the individual price per lesson is if you buy 1 at a time, but I think that if you do an assessment lesson and then buy 10 lessons (@$320) the assessment is free. I'm not 100% sure about that, but it used to be the case. She also offers leases if you decide you want to ride the same horse consistently. With a lease you can ride on your own once you've reached a certain level of competence as long as you are taking 1 lesson a week.

[Anthera]

Glengrove is excellent. Nice people, dedicated instructers, easy to get to. My daughter rode there for years, and we were very happy with the quality of her instruction and the horses. Rates were reasonable (for really cheap rates you need to go to Barrington).

The Horse Forum is good for group flat lessons, but I don't recommend group jumping lessons there. Some of their horses are too skittish for my taste.

I used to ride at the Noble Horse on Orleans in the city, but I don't know if they still give lessons there.

[Calidreemer]

What discipline do you want? I have two or three places in mind but I have to know what discipline you want to learn.

I have been taking lessons at a small, family owned barn. I don't have my own horse and the rates are very reasonable to me. The owner/trainer is not a tyrant. I also can recommend another intructor/trainer and then a couple of others depending on what your goals are.

[water_bearer]

Originally Posted by knitgirl

If you have a car, Just N Tyme Farm in ELgin may work for you. There is a rider there who comes from the Printer's Row area. The farm is west of Randall Rd on the far southwest side of Elgin off Rt 20. The barn is a little rundown, but the horses are well taken care of. They have 8 or 9 school horses, though depending on your size, probably only 5-6 would be suitable. I started riding there as an adult several years ago and like both my trainers. One is a full-time school administrator, the other is a college student. They are both excellent instructors. There is another instructor who doesn't teach me who is also very nice. The owner can be a little tough until she gets to know you and sees that you are conscious of your own safety and the safety of the horses, but she has a really good heart and just doesn't want to see anyone hurt because they were doing something stupid.
You can buy a package of 5 lessons for $180. I'm not sure what the individual price per lesson is if you buy 1 at a time, but I think that if you do an assessment lesson and then buy 10 lessons (@$320) the assessment is free. I'm not 100% sure about that, but it used to be the case. She also offers leases if you decide you want to ride the same horse consistently. With a lease you can ride on your own once you've reached a certain level of competence as long as you are taking 1 lesson a week.

Thanks knitgirl. That does sound like a lovely place, and it's one I hadn't heard of before. However, if I don't have to, I'd much rather not drive out as far as Elgin. I will certainly keep it in mind though.
I don't necessary mind if the facilities are a little run down or old. I can think of plenty of impeccable facilities that over work or starve their horses. As long as everything is well-maintained and safe, and the horses are in excellent condition, I'm ok.

[water_bearer]

Originally Posted by Anthera

Glengrove is excellent. Nice people, dedicated instructers, easy to get to. My daughter rode there for years, and we were very happy with the quality of her instruction and the horses. Rates were reasonable (for really cheap rates you need to go to Barrington).

The Horse Forum is good for group flat lessons, but I don't recommend group jumping lessons there. Some of their horses are too skittish for my taste.

I used to ride at the Noble Horse on Orleans in the city, but I don't know if they still give lessons there.

Thanks Anthera. Yes, Glengrove has been at the top of the list because it's the one I'm probably most familiar with, not to mention it's an easy commute.
Thanks for the info about Horse Forum.
Noble Horse stopped allowing riders there a couple of years ago when they turned the place into a horse theater / dinner show. Other than stabling the carriage horses there, that's all they do now.

[water_bearer]

Originally Posted by Calidreemer

What discipline do you want? I have two or three places in mind but I have to know what discipline you want to learn.

I have been taking lessons at a small, family owned barn. I don't have my own horse and the rates are very reasonable to me. The owner/trainer is not a tyrant. I also can recommend another intructor/trainer and then a couple of others depending on what your goals are.

Well Calidreemer, for now what I'm most interested in is starting from the ground up. I guess that makes me a pre-beginner. I've had some experience being on and around horses throughout my life, and I'm certainly a good deal more knowledgeable about animals in general than most city people... enough not to do most of the stupid things people do around horses. But never having had formal lessons technically, I won't know what direction or rather how far I'd like to go until I get into it properly.
It's not as if I've never been inside a barn before, but I didn't grow up in one either. So I don't want to be treated like an idiot because I'm not a 12 year old who has been riding since the age of four, nor do I want to be the only 31 year old in a group of the like. One on one or at least small group lessons where I'm not always riding the same horse, and am treated like an adult would probably be best. I'd like to focus on sensible horsemanship and proper equitation, with an introduction to both English AND Western if possible, just to be well rounded. Proper horse and tack care, safety, and solid ground work are paramount first.
Then, if the instructor or instructors are what I'm looking for, and my experience is a good one, they should be able to tell me what if any direction I have the skills to go in. Mainly for the near future, I'd just be looking for a sound, sane trail horse on which I could learn. Eventually, I night want to do some low level hunt seat stuff... Show Hunter / Equitation, etc. Like I said though, I won't really know until I get into it. Who knows? Perhaps I go in a different direction and fall in love with the sparkly-tassled shirts at WP shows, and raise halter QH's someday. I doubt it though, but you never know.

[Calidreemer]

Then I would suggest looking at the Midwest Stable directory Horse Stables - Midwest Horse Stables Directory - Midwest, Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana and doing some research. The three places I know would probably not work for you if you want to ride different horses. One is in Antioch (where I ride) and they only have one lesson horse right now who goes both English and Western and is used in shows and knows his stuff. He is totally sane, but can challenge you if you aren't a confident rider. Never unsafe, just ignores you until you get it right. I buy 5 private, 30 minute lessons for $150 which I think is very reasonable. I don't like group lessons.

The other two are just over the border in Wisconsin. One is a woman who gives lessons on her one lesson horse who goes English and Western. I know she is looking for another horse to add to her lesson program. She teaches children and adults. She is really good too. The other is in Wisconsin and uses natural horsemanship teaching techniques to help people learn from the ground up. Her lessons were $50 for 30 minutes I believe.

There are some barns closer to Chicago, but I don't know much about them. I think you may want to go with a larger barn that has a bigger pool of lesson horses and offers different riding disciplines. The only thing is that those large barns can get kind of cookie cutter to me, but you may find a good fit. Unfortunately it's hard to find lots of barn choices close to the city. If you want specific information for any of the barns I told you about let me know and I will PM you.

BTW - if you lessons don't start from the ground up as a beginner - run!