lesson FAQs

Contact one of our instructors to inquire about pricing and availability.

Lessons fill up quickly. Purchasing your lessons through one of our packages not only saves you money but also secures your time slot each week!

*If none of our available time slots work for you, please feel free to reach out to us with a special

NOCO Equine specializes in beginner riders. We will happily take you from your first lesson through advanced flat work and even small cross rails.

We generally accept new riders to our program ages 4+, but our specialty is working with kids.

As a firm rule we do not ask our horses to carry more than 20% of their body weight. This roughly equates to 200lbs. Riders must be under 200lbs to ride our horses. This is for the safety of the horse and rider. 

I am more than happy to work with your child as long as he/she is physically capable of sitting quietly in the saddle and following instruction.

While I have spent time working with therapeutic riding programs and I am very familiar with riding adaptations for individuals of all needs, I am not a certified therapeutic riding instructor. Likewise, I do not have the staff or resources to have the necessary side-walkers on the ground to assist my riders. Rider safety is always my first priority. As such, I will always ensure my students are safe while in the saddle and may not be able to provide lessons to all children if I feel like their abilities or behaviors risk their safety. 

In general, dress for the weather! If it is cold outside, it will be cold inside the arena too. In cold weather, gloves, coats, hand/foot warmers, layers, etc. are not only acceptable but encouraged!

Long pants are required. This keeps your legs safe from chaffing in the saddle.

Please wear closed toe boots or shoes with a small heel (such as cowboy or riding boots). The heel prevents your foot from sliding through the stirrup and becoming trapped.

Riding gloves can be worn and are recommended for more advanced riders, but not required.

An ASTM/SEI certified helmet must be worn at all times when mounted. No exceptions, no bike helmets. If you do not have one of your own, you are welcome to use one of ours.

Dress shoes, open toe shoes, sandals, crocs, and tennis shoes are not suitable for riding.

No bulky or loose garments that could flap while riding or interfere with your ability to sit in the saddle or hold the reins (super hero capes, big mittens/gloves, fairy wings, etc.).

No jewelry that dangles and could get caught while riding.

Please plan to arrive on time for the scheduled start of your lesson. You can park along the North side of the barn opposite the trailers then head down into the barn. I will usually be waiting for you in one of the two wash stalls in the middle of the barn aisle with your horse. If you don’t see me, I may still be out grabbing a horse or finishing up a previous lesson. You’re welcome to wait for me in the barn aisle or at the front of the barn near the parking area.

We have access to a round-pen, indoor arena, and outdoor riding field. Depending on your lesson and the weather, we will use one of these three locations.

Parents, friends, and family are welcome to watch your lesson anytime. Please just be respectful of the lesson and any other riders in the area. Rider safety is our number one concern.

Most lessons will begin with grooming and tacking, followed by learning to lead the horse down to the arena. For our more experienced students (those who have proven to understand the basics of grooming and tacking,) I will have the horse tacked and ready for your lesson when you arrive to give you more time in the saddle.

Colorado weather can be unpredictable and wild. Although we have access to an indoor arena, rider safety is always our number one priority followed closely by rider enjoyment. Frozen fingers don’t make for an enjoyable lesson!

 In general, we will cancel lessons when the temperature drops below zero, there are high winds, or there is a big rain/snow storm coming through. I will do my best to contact you as soon as I make any decision to cancel. Ideally this is the night before or the morning of, but as we all know, Colorado weather changes quickly and often without warning. If you’re ever in doubt, please feel free to reach out and confirm! Likewise, if there is ever a lesson that I do not cancel but you feel is still too cold to come out, please just let me know! I’m happy to push the lesson to the following week.

If a lesson needs to be canceled due to weather, the lesson will either be rescheduled or credited toward your package.

Lessons can be purchased individually or in packages to secure your time slot each week.

Payment is due at time of booking for both individual and package lessons.

Packages are non-refundable unless NOCO Equine is unable to fulfill the package.

If an invoice is unpaid beyond its due date, we have the right to pass that lesson slot onto another rider on our waiting list.

HOW TO PAY

When booking over the phone, email, or text, we will ask for your email address. An invoice will be sent to your email address within 24 hours of scheduling. Payment can be made through the invoice or can be sent through Venmo (@NOCOEQUINE). If using Venmo, please just let us know before sending the money!

Life happens! If you know you will miss a lesson, or something unexpected comes up, please do your best to reach out to us as soon as possible to reschedule your lesson. The same goes for us! If for any reason we need to cancel or reschedule a lesson, we will let you know right away.

If you purchased a package and need to cancel a lesson, you will not lose that lesson as long as you let us know at least two hours prior to the start of your lesson. Your package will simply extend to the following week.

If you do not show up to a lesson without reaching out to us at least two hours in advance (no show), your lesson fee will be forfeited for that week.

Red River Ranch has kindly agreed to allow us to use their facility for riding lessons. Please be respectful of other boarders and riders at all times by following these general safety guidelines:

• No running, riding bikes, screaming, jumping, rolling on the ground etc. These behaviors can spook horses and cause unnecessary injury to both horse and rider.
• Minors under 13 must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
• Leave gates and doors the way you found them. If you open it, close it.
• Please leave your pets at home. They can be distracting for both the horse and rider.
• Do not enter or open any stalls or pastures without permission.
• Do not feed treats or other food to horses without permission.
• No smoking or drinking is allowed on the premises.
• No running up and down the barn aisle or through the arenas.
• Do not enter the arena while a lesson is in progress.

Before starting riding lessons with us, both rider and parent/legal guardian (if the rider is minor) must sign the following documents:

• LIABILITY WAIVER
• LESSON INFORMATION & POLICIES
• RED RIVER RANCH LIABILITY RELEASE AND WAIVER

These forms can be printed and signed in advance or signed on the day of your first lesson. 

The safety of our clients, riders, participants, horses and guests are our foremost concern. As such, we have a detailed risk assessment and emergency plan.

• RISK ASSESSMENT
• EMERGENCY PLAN