About
About Kellie Summers
Hi, I’m Kellie Summers- Educational Horse Rider and I’m passionate about improving relationships between horse and rider. I’m firm but fair and kind to my horses, confident yet capable.
There are so many people who are not enjoying their horses to their full potential, whatever that may be, whether under saddle or on the ground. Little niggles, manner issues or quirks you just can’t get sorted. You may have trouble floating your horse. Other horse owners may not be feeling confident or would like to brush up on their skills. I’m here to help!
I currently live in Bridgewater and work out of the Mount George area of the Adelaide Hills and can come to you depending on location.
I’ve been riding for 30+ years, attending Marion Riding Club as a teenager and I’m currently an active member of the Strathalbyn Hunt Club. I’m passionate about hunting, which for me is a group of riders jumping fences after the hunt master. There are no hounds or foxes in our club, it’s a non competitive and social outing. In September 2021 I won the Convener of the year award for my organisation of the Echunga Hunt run.
My clients have included owners who have wanted some miles put on their newly broken horses, horses that need to be brought back to work after some time off, owners who are time poor needing their horse to have a tune up. There have been horses who haven’t done a lot of trail rides and I’ve taken them out to the forest and along the road, I’ve desensitised them to dogs and kids! I’ve helped people get their stubborn horses to float load and helped build topline on horses from the ground work designed to increase muscle before they could be saddled.
I have started horses under saddle in a manner that doesn’t break their spirit, but instead encourages them to interact with us to show how they’re feeling.
I’ve created better partnerships between horse and rider through groundwork that teaches respect and reduces anxiety. I’ve worked with horses to sharpen their responses to the aids and to stand still at the mounting block. I love re-educating thoroughbreds straight from the track to ensure their after race lives are successful.
I’ve helped riders who need to brush up on their skills to learn some new tricks.
I offer training and schooling by the week at the place I agist in Jupiter Creek. Send your horse to me for further education.
I have two lovely quiet school horses who suits 9 year olds – adults (under 85kg).
If you or your horse need a tune up, some new skills, riding lessons or confidence then please get in touch and I’d be happy to help.
Kellie's Story
Kellie had always begged borrowed or stolen a ride from whoever would lend her a horse. Once a family friend told her that she could ride her horses if she could round up cattle bareback like her father had made her do. While she was never made to test this challenge, she was given many privileges from people to be allowed to ride their horses.
Occasionally she’d have lessons when her parents could afford them, or she received birthday money, learning from a variety of instructors over the years gaining valuable knowledge from everyone she could. Her parents were very supportive. They knew how much she loved horses but had always said she needed to have a job and driving before buying one of her own. Kellie made and sold Fimo jewellery all over Australia to help pay for a horse.
Kellie’s first horse Eldorado was a lease arrangement where the horse went back to the owner at the end of their pregnancy. Kellie was devastated to no longer have the horse that had meant so much to her. When the lease arrangement came to an end, Kel convinced her parents that it was time to buy one of her own.
Kel’s parents knew nothing of horse ownership. They knew that these four-legged creatures had consumed their daughter and they had no hope but to let her succumb to the pleasure and the pain of horse ownership. Kellie had some money saved to go on exchange to Germany but instead spent the money on her first horse.
Slapstick
Slapstick was a 7 year old thoroughbred gelding who had been off the track around 18 months. He’d been educated quite well, and Kellie was very excited to bring him home to a paddock at Eden Hills not far from the train station. She visited every day before and after school. They attended Marion Riding Club just down the track in Shepherds Hill Reserve and rode out alone to and from the grounds, while most arrived by float. This was quite convenient for Kel except on the odd occasion that Slappy would nick off home up the hill and Kel would have quite a walk to go and find him again.
Kellie and Slappy had many wonderful years together until the time that she was ready to start a family and decided to take a break from horses for a while. Slappy moved from home to another and then she sadly lost track of him.
Kel spent the next few years away from horses while growing a couple of successful businesses with her family, firstly Strawberries Galore, later followed by the wedding industry with the award winning Set Your Scene. In 2009 her son Jayden was born.
In Recent Years
In 2014 Kellie bought herself another horse, Floyd and got back into horses with a passion. From there she had Pringles, Ollie and Hottee as well as a few memorable racehorses she educated and rehomed. Her passion and knowledge grew and she began to train horses and riders as a job in 2017. In 2018 she sold the wedding hire business and went into horses full time.
In the past few years Kellie has been working with both horses and riders to further their knowledge and create better relationships. Her passion for seeking to improve each and every horse or rider is shown in the enthusiastic way she teaches her students. Her goals are not in winning ribbons competing, but in making sure that the horses are able to perform at their best, willingly, through being mentally and physically comfortable.
Kellie’s desire to achieve comes from wanting her students and their horses to become the best versions of themselves that they can be! Kellie will push her students to the edge of their comfort zones without taking them too far and having them lose confidence.
Kellie firmly believes that a happy horse and rider combination is almost unstoppable, no matter what discipline they choose.
