User Rating: 35 out of 5 stars (22 ratings)
Woodlawn Stables
- (703) 780-4344
8907 Richmond Hwy, Alexandria, VA
22309
Get directions
Cross Streets: Near the intersection of Richmond Hwy and Mt Vernon Memorial Hwy
38.716656
-77.132889
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| Categories: | Horse Boarding Stables, Other Sports |
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Recent Reviews
1-3 of 19 Write a review
User Rating: 3 out of 5 starsOriginal review...
I go there: English riding. Safety conscious. Good horses, knowledeable instructors. Working student program. Summer camp. No real trails.
Since writing that review, I have left Woodlawn. I had come back to riding after a break of over a year, with low confidence, so at the time Woodlawn suited me. I became fed up with paying for an hour lesson and getting half of that. I also missed having real contact with horses. It seems rude to stick a bit in their mouths, make them work, and leave - that's about all I was allowed. The contact you get with the horse by grooming them, tacking up, and brushing them down after is a big part of the experience. I had other reasons, but these were the deciding factors.
I miss Belle.-
User Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
I rode at Woodlawn as a teenager, and now I am 45 yrs. old, and I liked the structure and security of my lessons back then. I was a timid rider and I am still safety concerned. Being 'kept back' is more time for you to practice to be a better rider so that other riders catch up. If you want individual attention, pay for it and take a private lesson. Don't criticize a barn for their policies. Different stables will have different strengths and some are more suitable to suit a rider's needs.
Some stables may be more relaxed in their safety policy and maybe that is where you can get the freedom you seek - or get injured - due to their laxed policy or your poor choices that can get you injured.
Woodlawn Stables is justifiably concerned about their horses, their instructors, and their riders, even though riders sign a release of liability.
And if you were to be injured for a choice you made at another riding stables, would you sue the stables for not having strict policies or accept responsibility for your actions?
Woodlawn taught me to ride, gave me support, taught me safety and personal responsibility.
Woodlawn Stables is successful for being a riding school based on many factors. It may not be the school for you and the avenues you want to go in your riding career. -
User Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
My daughter rode at Woodlawn for about six months. The instruction was good. The horses are beautiful and well cared for. The barn is very clean. They were however reluctant to advance my daughter based on her ability. They mostly used her age as a gauge for determining which class she'd be in. She came to Woodlawn knowing her leads and jumping an average of 2'6" in shows. She was put in a class with girls who were still learning to canter. I had her moved into several different classes, some of the instructors are far more experienced, and personable than others. After about six months I decided it just wasn't working out. One other key point in making the decision to leave, their late policy. You have to cancel your class within 24 hours, or you forfeit. Also, if you are more than 10 minutes late, you forfeit. We were commuting from DC, 12 miles door to door, and I was leaving 2ish hours to get there. So in addition to their reluctance to advance my daughter we had also forfeited $200 in classes, due to traffic and children's illnesses. We decided to go elsewhere. Woodlawn was not for us.
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Comments (2)
Safety is important, but we all need to realize that even with all the safety precautions you can think of, injuries are always possible. While I did feel kept back, I also understood how that is an opportunity to strengthen and solidify a skill, yet knowing that never changed how my money covered a full hour lesson and I was getting considerably less than my 60 minutes. They need to find a way to make use of those minutes not spent in active teaching and riding. It was nice to chat with the instructor and the other adults in my class, but that is not what I wanted to pay for.
Safety is important, but we all need to realize that even with all the safety precautions you can think of, injuries are always possible. While I did feel kept back, I also understood how that is an opportunity to strengthen and solidify a skill, yet knowing that never changed how my money covered a full hour lesson and I was getting considerably less than my 60 minutes. They need to find a way to make use of those minutes not spent in active teaching and riding. It was nice to chat with the instructor and the other adults in my class, but that is not what I wanted to pay for.