Knollwood Families and Students,

 

The moment we have all been waiting for is finally upon us and we are reopening TOMORROW! Our reopening plan will take place over a series of four phases.

 

PHASE 1

For Phase 1 of our reopening, we will only be offering private lessons.  Group lessons have too many people in the arenas, barns, and lounge areas at one time to be deemed safe.  Riders permitted back at this time are those who are able to ride independently in a safe manner. This means, no beginner riders, no tiny tot riders that require hands on from our instructors.  Safety is and always has been our top priority in introducing people to the amazing animal that is a horse.  Now with the added need for safety around distancing, we feel it is best to stick to more experienced riders at this time.  Instructors will be reaching out to you to schedule their lessons with you.  Your day/time may have changed and we understand that may be frustrating.  That is one of the reasons we have extended our private lesson hours to 8:30 pm most days.  Saturdays and Sundays will be 5:30pm. This also means that group lesson balances can be converted into credits toward private lessons.  If you were a groups only rider, feel free to reach out to your instructor inquiring about private lesson availability!

 

PHASE 2

For Phase 2, we hope to be able to begin offering mini groups for independent riders and small camps for riders that can safely follow our sanitization measures in the barn.  This would be the time that riders can come back into the school barn and ready their own horses.

 

PHASE 3

For Phase 3, we hope to be reintroducing beginner riding private lessons and Tiny Tot lessons, on a more limited schedule with assigned helpers for horse delivery, while continuing on with our regular scheduled private lessons.

 

PHASE 4

For Phase 4, we hope to be back to full operating as normal, potentially without masks!  Horse shows in the barns and out of barns, summer camps and back to experiencing Knollwood Farm as we had been before the COVID-19 days.  

 

We are striving for Phase 4, but please keep in mind that all of these phases, protocols and schedules are subject to change based on the CDC and State government recommendations.  

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR PHASE 1

Riders who qualify for Phase 1 of reopening have been notified by their instructor. If you think you qualify and have not heard from your instructor, please reach out to them.

 

Here's what you need to know to prepare for your lessons if you or your rider meet the Phase 1 qualifications:

 

Needless to say, things have changed.  Starting with social distancing and PPE/sanitization measures, the measures are not just to protect you, but to protect our staff who are so eager to see you all, but need to stay healthy to maintain our amazing school horses' care! 

• We require that all students and parents who come into any of our facilities or are near our staff are wearing a mask.   Riders are able to pull down their masks while they ride. If you do not have a mask, you will be asked to remain outside our facilities.  If your rider does not have a mask, we have a limited supply of masks for purchase (subject to availability).  If there is not a mask available here for purchase, your rider will be asked to reschedule once they have acquired one.

• We have provided some sanitization stations which will be regularly sanitized by staff.

• We have also converted all of our lesson bridles into snap reined bridles so we can easily swap out and sanitize reins so no one is using previously used, unsanitized reins! 

• We have provided spray and leave cleaners for the bathroom facilities and ask that all customers spray down the toilet handle and seat, sink faucet, paper towel dispenser handle and door knobs after their use of the bathrooms, but should feel free to do so before as well! 

• If parents are in the lounge (which will be sanitized hourly) they are asked to keep masks on and maintain social distancing as much as is possible.  If parents are in the arenas we ask that you maintain social distance.  If in an indoor arena, it is asked that you keep a mask on.  If outdoor, you can pull your mask down, but please increase your distance from our staff.

• We require that all Students over the age of 18 and Parents/Guardians sign our COVID-19 Liability waiver as well as an updated standard Risk Release Agreement. This means, when you or your student first comes back, a waiver will be brought out to you to sign in your car by your instructor or a helper.  Please make sure you stick around to sign these waivers rather than just dropping off your rider!  Your rider will not be allowed to ride if the waivers have not been signed by an adult.  Feel free to call the barn upon your arrival to let someone know you are outside and ready to sign! 262-367-2391

 

Our schedules are now staggered and extended, and staff have been assigned specific days to teach so that we are not ever over crowding the arena.  While we have two lovely outdoor arenas we intend to use during this gorgeous spring weather, we cannot schedule our lessons too far in advance based on the use of those arenas as they are weather and wetness dependent.  Instructors will be split each day with half teaching at regular times (3:00, 3:30, 4:00 and so on) and the other half teaching on the quarters (3:15, 3:45, 4:15 and so on) to keep from having any "shift changes" where there are a number of people in the arena at one time.

 

Another major change is that no riders will be permitted into the school or show barn at this time. Because of that, your arrival protocol has changed:

• Please do not arrive any earlier than 10 minutes prior to your lesson unless you would like to remain outside of our facilities. 

• Charts will now be posted on the door outside the school barn lounge and the show barn lounge.  It will show your time, your instructor, your assigned helper (who will be delivering and retrieving your horse), and which arena you will be riding in. 

• Five minutes prior to your lesson, please go to your assigned arena and wait there for your horse delivery!

While we know this is a bummer as so much of our community loves spending time with our amazing school horses, this measure is to ensure the safety of our staff, our ability to control the number of people inside the barn at any given time, and limiting the number of things we need to be regularly sanitizing.  You and your students are permitted inside the show barn lounge or riding arenas to watch, but we cannot permit long periods of watching in the arenas or lounges as it may crowd the areas and make social distancing impossible for parents who have children riding at that time, or for students who are arriving for their lessons at the appropriate times.  We ask that anyone in the lounge is a parent of a student riding, a parent and student arriving 10 min prior to their lesson, or someone just using the restroom.

 

Our intention is to stringently follow recommendations on masks, cleaning, and limiting groups of people in our facility in the hopes of keeping our barn and community moving forward toward normalcy, instead of having to take steps backward into our homes and isolation.  We can't wait to see you guys back in the saddle! 

 

Stay Well and Stay #KnollwoodStrong

 

Team Knollwood hopes you are all enjoying the beautiful sunny days. The farm is green as can be, and Carol’s apple tree is starting to bloom!

First of all, thank you again to everyone who pitched in and supported the best lesson horses in the world in their unemployment.

 

Thanks to your donations to Merton Feed and all the fundraising projects you’ve done and are still doing, all 30 lesson horses are fat, shiny and happy.

We stand in awe of your kindness and generosity. We don’t know how to possibly thank you enough, but we’ll sure try.

 

We’re beyond thrilled to be working on our slow, phased reopening plans.  We’re reviewing our processes and staffing to make lessons as safe as possible and we look forward to sharing more information as soon as the phase I master plan is complete.

The Knollwood Summer Show has been rescheduled to August 22 and 23 from its original June dates. This will allow all of our riders to get back into riding shape, and get the lesson horses back up to speed as well.

Weather permitting, we may even hold the Saturday classes in the big outdoor ring. Imagine the game division with all that space to play!

 

We’d love to add another show in early October as well so we have three qualifying events for the finals of the Knollwood Challenge.

 

The popular Knollwood Prep camp has also been rescheduled and will be held August 10-14. Originally planned for June 8-12, this camp offers KF show riders a chance to immerse themselves in riding close to the competition. This camp helps riders make new friends, and creates memories for a lifetime.

 

Riders will focus on all things horse, and will have a blast in the process. Please contact us if you’re interested in joining your fellow show stars for a week of camp just for you!

 

Team Knollwood has been busy while you’ve been schooling online!

 

 

The show barn is clean as a whistle, the manure pile has been removed, and a ton of fencing has been replaced all over the farm. Thanks to some generous used furniture donations, the farm office has been refurbished, and the old striped carpeting is a thing of the past!

Richfield Video featured Knollwood in one of their Virtual Visits which was a mix of scenes from the farm, live interviews with Scott and Carol, and the video from their UPHA LIfetime Achievement Award in 2019. You can watch it here.

 

We've enjoyed Facebook Live broadcasts on Saturday afternoons.

Although we would rather be teaching lessons, we've had some pretty entertaining experiences.

 

The school horses basically mobbed us the first day we went out in the pasture, and were terrified of Shelby's 'Derby Day' hat.

At first.

We hosted an entertaining 'Ask Scott Anything' broadcast, and raised some funds for the Food Pantry of Waukesha County last week with a School Horse Olympics broadcast.

 

Be sure to join us again this Saturday at 5:00 pm for a Happy Hour with the lesson horses and the instructors. Weather permitting, we'll venture out to the pasture and see what happens.

 

 

In the school barn, the tack cubbies have been reorganized ALPHABETICALLY, the stirrup wall in now labeled ALPHABETICALLY by riders’ first name, and all the work bridles are now hanging in the barn with the rest of the tack.  No more standing in front of the cubbies or the stirrup wall with that quizzical look on your face!

All the lesson tack has been cleaned and conditioned, and the school barn has been cleaned from top to bottom including ceiling fans and stall fronts.

 

The summer planting has started as well, with pots full of blooming flowers waiting to greet you at the door. Oh, and that adventurous yellow and white kitten has been helping us with spring plant clean up as well!

 

The school horses look fabulous, all shed out and shiny. We’ve tried our best to keep them company, but they really miss all their kids.  Your visits to the bridle path make them very happy, especially when you bring carrots.  They really do miss all of their peeps.

 

We’ve been riding the boys recently so they’re not shocked when they go back to work, and are happy to report that they all look happy and are ready to get back to work.

 

It looks like the Oshkosh Charity Horse Show will be our first competition of the 2020 season. Show management is working hard on safety protocols for everyone’s safety, and this spacious outdoor show seems like the perfect way to start the 2020 season.

Held in a park-like setting, Oshkosh has always been a favorite of exhibitors. Open barns, many mature trees, and that fantastic jumbo sized arena with open sides and a roof make the show feel like heaven. And it’s nearby!

 

We miss all of our friends, and can't wait to start teaching lessons again.  Please stay tuned for our phased reopening plans to get you riding again safely.

 

 

Tradition.

Honor.

Passion.

We Are #KnollwoodStrong

 

Hey guys,

For this week's Saturday Circuit, we are going to alternate strength with cardio to get a full body workout.  These will be timed exercises in a descending pyramid.  Start with 40 seconds per exercise, then 30 seconds, then 20.  NO REST IN BETWEEN exercises, 30 seconds rest once you complete a full set. Make sure you get a nice warm up in to prepare your body for this beast of a workout!

Exercise 1 - Curtsy Lunge

Chest High and weight into that front heel, alternate moving one of your legs back behind you like a curtsy and drop into a lunge.  Try to get that back knee as close to the ground as you can without touching and with control.  Keep that weight forward in that front heel and use those abs to help you rise back up with control.

Exercise 2 - Skiers

Much like a slalom skier, with bent knees, use your arms to help your momentum in jumping side to side with your knees and feet close together.  As you land, load back into your hips and spring back up and across for another jump!  Remember to keep your chest high and eyes front.

Exercise 3 - Forward and Back Lunge

Like a traditional lunge, you are lunging forward on one side, then back on the same side, then switching to the other leg.  If you need to put your foot down and reset between lunges for balance go ahead, but to challenge yourself try not to touch down in between!

Exercise 4 - Split Jump

From a lunge position, jump up and land down in a lunge on the other side.  Use your arms to help you in this movement, ESPECIALLY when you get tired!  As always, chest high and eyes front to make sure you are keeping your balance and loading into your glutes, hamstrings and quads as opposed to your back.

Exercise 5 - One Legged Deadlift (one round on each side)

Grounding down into one of your legs, hinge from your hips to lower toward the ground while letting your back leg lift with a flexed foot, then hinge back up.  Speed is NOT the key here.  It's about control and good form so make sure you're taking your time with this movement.  To help with your balance, keep your gaze at the same spot on the ground, about a foot or two forward from your foot.

Exercise 6 - The Finisher - Combination Split Jump and Squat Jump

Just to make sure we got all we could out of this workout, we are combining a split jump with a squat jump.  Come down into a lunge then jump up and land down in a squat, jump up and land down in a lunge on the other side, repeat until time is up!  This is GOING to be rough, but it's an excellent strengthener and cardio movement that really puts an emphasis on your large muscle groups.  Use those arms for momentum to help you!

We recommend tacking on a glute and abs circuit for a full workout! As always, finish off with some light stretching to cool down.  

Stay Well!

 

Hello Knollwood Families and Students,

 

As many of you know, the State Supreme Court recently overturned the extension to Governor Evers' Stay at Home Order, forcing extended closures to many Wisconsin businesses until May 26th.  Since the order has been overturned, many municipalities and counties have, and are still, coming out with their own recommendations about staying at home or not. 

 

As things are clearly still very in flux, we intend to stick to our original plan of opening on May 26th for a limited schedule, private lessons only with established customers.  During this closing time, we have been hard at work on improving, not only the structure of our scheduling and billing, but also the experience of your lessons and time here at Knollwood Farm.  We had mapped out a four phase opening plan based on a May 26th opening and due to all of the upgrades we are in the process of completing, we feel it best to start this "new normal" with the best version of ourselves, on the originally planned open date.

 

Things have changed all over the world, and Knollwood Farm is no different.  Our first phase of opening is specific to established customers due to a greater ability to socially distance with students whose ability level we are familiar with and who have a greater level of independence in the barn and around the horses as needed.  It saddens us to not be able to offer our beginner and new tiny tot lessons at this time, as bringing new people into the industry we all love so much is a huge priority for us here at Knollwood Farm. Unfortunately, with the necessary social distancing measures to protect our students and staff from COVID-19, we would not be able to ensure a safe riding experience for children or adults who have never been on or around a horse before or who are too young to get around the ring solo.

Group lessons will also not be offered at this time as that would require too many people in the barn at one time based on public health recommendations.  We hope to bring our group lessons, beginner riders, and new tiny tot riders back as soon as it is deemed safe for all! As we get closer to May 26th we will release more details about our four phase plan, staggered scheduling capabilities to ensure everyone's safety, our new sanitization amenities around the barns, and our policies regarding all things COVID-19 while open. 

 

As we move farther and farther away from the start of this quarantine period, we are eager to put this behind us and resume business as usual, but as ever, your safety and the safety of our staff is top priority.  We intend to take every precaution to ensure our slow reopening offers a sustainable plan to continue offering safe lessons to you!

 

Stay well!

A Unique Knollwood Olympics –

  And a Way To Help Our Community

 

We’re living in unusual times which create unusual situations.  Team Knollwood is known for its ability to pivot, both on and off horses, and we’ve decided to put that skill to work for others. (And have a lot of fun in the process.)

 

We have an 11 year tradition of running a food drive each May for the Food Pantry of Waukesha County.  We’ve gathered more than 1000 pounds of food each year while Knollwood Kids assigned to teams vie to see which day of the week can gather the most food for the pantry.

In normal times, teams compete in ‘games of skill’ such as blanket races, helmet tosses, obstacle courses, and dance competitions to name a few.

 

While we may be ‘safer at home’ this year, we recognized that the food pantry would be missing our donations with kids being out of school and many of our neighbors being out of work.

Since we have essential workers on the job at the farm, and we have lesson horses known for their senses of humor, we’ve decided to let the best lesson horses in the world have their day in the Olympic and charitable spotlight.

The School Horse Olympics were to be held this Saturday, May 16, at 5:00 pm, our usual time for Knollwood online social hour, and we’ll carry on to raise funds for the Food Pantry of Waukesha County. 

Please join us on Facebook Live to watch Scott, Carol, Lin, Parker, and an all-star cast compete in a variety of Olympic events to raise funds for the food pantry.

Tentative teams include:

Panic and Scott

Dudley and Carol

Hugo and Parker

Picasso and Lin

 

 

We’re planning on games of ‘Bribe Your Horse,’ Musical Towels,’ and an action-packed finale of the ‘Blind Buggy Race’ with Scott providing the play by play.

Please join us online to watch our lesson horses and their staff pick up the slack for our neighbors in need.

Please donate online at www.Waukeshafoodpantry.org. And let them know you’re donating for Knollwood Farm, LTD

 

 Want to learn more about the Olympians and their staff member? Read on:

 

 

CH Callaway’s Don’t Panic is a treasure. Owned by the Kellner-Van Hecke family, this grand gelding enjoyed a celebrated career as a 5 Gaited Show Pleasure horse, winning the Junior Exhibitor Stake at Lexington in a Kentucky storm before he began his second career of introducing new riders to the show ring. He’s currently a member of the best lesson horses in the world club, and has, to the best of our knowledge, never played a game of ‘bribe your horse,’ or ‘musical towels.’ We expect him to enjoy it immensely. 

Good thing his teammate is Scott.

 

 

Dudley Do Right is our gentle giant of the school horse band. A giant paint cross, he’s comfortable teaching the wee-est of tiny tots, or racing around playing games with advanced riders.

He’s a pro at bribe your horses, and may even teach Carol a thing or two about how the game is played.

 

Hugo, AKA the Hawaiian Cat,  was born at the farm, so he’s technically a Knollwood Kid, although lazier than most of our claims to fame. He enjoys a good nap, trotting slower that anyone thought physically possible, and making life miserable for Picasso, his stall neighbor. However, he DOES have great speed in the pasture when he spies a friend bearing treats on a pasture visit, and shines in the game division.

Parker also grew up a Knollwood Kid, and works in both the show and school barns. She uses Hugo for her advanced beginner kids, and may have some tricks up her sleeve if required!

 

Like Dudley, Picasso is another gentle giant.  Officially registered in the APHA as Way Cool Willy, this giant is one of our cantering teachers, is tired of Hugo’s stall antics, and will do just about ANYTHING for a carrot or a mint. He uses his speed selectively, and it usually involves reaching food.

 

Lin is also a lifelong Knollwood Kid, and is now our assistant trainer who also excels at all things IT and marketing related.  If there’s something she can’t do, we haven’t found it yet. 

 

Klem will be competing with a guest celebrity who competed in the first ever Knollwood Olympics. Klem will excel at all games food related, and he proved his worth last week in the Olympic trials when he bested Dudley in both test events.  He isn’t shaped like a sausage for nothing!

 

 

Joey (AKA Rumours of War) will be making his gaming debut with a special friend as his manager. This will be Joey’s first Olympics, and we’re honestly not sure what he’ll think about it.  He IS the only contestant who has been practicing getting his front feet on the towel, however.  This might just work out!

 

 

No gaming event is complete without a pony!

Pony Frank  loves games, but does not like to be told how to play them. His manager is another lifelong ‘Knollwood Kid’ who has remained active since the age of 8. Frank is pretty great for a pony, and will work for a tiny bit of food. He does, however, like to do things his own way, so this team will be fun to watch.

 

Please join us for this unique FB Live event at 5:00 pm on Saturday, May 16.

And please donate online to the food pantry at www.WaukeshaFoodPantry.org.

 

 

 

 

This year's Knollwood Olympics will have a preliminary event. Dexter’s 21^st birthday party at 3:00 pm also on Saturday the 16^th.

 

Tradition.

Honor.

Passion.

And a whole lot of fun!