SADDLE UP
of all ages are doing all sorts of horsey things at Willow Dell Equestrian Center near Senoia: children grooming ponies, teens saddling their horses, moms and dads sipping lemonade — there’s always a supply in the tack room refrigerator — as they sit on the barn porch while their children prepare for their riding lessons. The youngsters are responsible for grooming and saddling the horses they will ride. Or they may be prepping for a horse show somewhere in the Southeast, packing tack trunks and giving their horses a last-minute beauty treatment before hitting the road. The center’s competition team competes on several A-rated show circuits in Georgia and across the Southeast. But Willow Dell is not just for kids. The equestrian center teaches adults, too, whether they are beginners fulfilling a long-held dream of horseback riding or are more advanced riders expanding their skills. Wednesday nights are special — that’s when a group of women gather for a group lesson before sharing a potluck supper. And, of course, where there are horses — Willow Dell usually houses 15 — there is always a collection of companionable dogs and cats, some of whom live there and some of whom are just visiting. “We’re very happy here,” says owner Maureen Forman. “There’s no traffic and plenty of nice people.” She discovered Willow Dell Equestrian Center, a 38-acre farm on Elders Mill Road, when she and her husband Peter Whitfield moved his business, Final Mile Logistics, in 2010 to be closer to Atlanta HartsfieldJackson International Airport. About a year ago Forman purchased Willow Dell, named for a settlement in east Coweta, and recruited Mann — a nationally-recognized trainer who september /october 2013
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