Tyler Mountain Riding Academy

10/02/2026

Selling this cute little kids’ day coat! I believe it’s approximately a size 10, but it’s not cut for a super-thin kiddo and could be taken in or let out if needed.

It’s made by Victor’s and in great condition. I had to take it in as payment, so I’m just looking to move it along.

Asking $200 + shipping OBO!

If you’re interested, message me and I’ll get exact measurements. 😊

09/17/2026

It's time to register! 👻🎃👻🎃

09/06/2026

Here for you when you need us 🤍🐴

08/04/2026

I remember every one of these pictures. I may forget registered names, students' names, or Lord knows, their parents' names... but I never forget the horses or the moments.

Sandy didn't have to write "under the direction of Marlena," but she did. I know she understands how much something as simple as that means to me. Sometimes all you want is for someone ( someone admired and I wanted to do well for because ~ it was her Barn she opened up to me) to acknowledge that maybe you did okay.

I looked up to Sandy for years before I ever worked beside her. I don't think she always realized that. I spent a lot of years just hoping she'd say, "You did a good job." I think she probably thought my confidence was through the roof because I was always telling her what needed cleaned, fixed, or done differently.
😂
The truth was exactly the opposite. I was just trying my best to be worthy of the
opportunity she gave me when she opened her barn and trusted me with the riding program.

Somewhere along the way, something changed. The horses felt different. The riders felt different. I stopped looking for reassurance and just started teaching from my heart. I don't know if anyone else noticed it, but I did, the horses did....

Stepping away has been harder than I ever expected. Losing Sox changed me, and so did the students, the horses, and every family that walked through those barn doors.

The reality is, I couldn't make a living doing it the same way anymore. What was once a good business, for a lot of reasonsmost of them outside my control... became something I was constantly trying to keep afloat.

That wasn't fair to my husband, family, or myself.

I tried. We did fundraisers, lowered lesson prices, offered specials, changed schedules... I tried just about everything I could think of.

At the same time, I found myself wanting something deeper with the horses and the students than the way things were structured allowed.
My heart had changed

I actually miss hearing "MAR!" (or whatever one-syllable version people came up with 😂). I think anyway LOL ...

I miss the run to me hugs before lessons, the few parents who always knew when needes a hug ... when everyone else got it backwards.

But I also know where my heart is leading me now. Helping people through the hardest day they'll ever have with a horse feels just as important as teaching them to ride one.

Thank you, Sandy, for those words. From someone who's usually the one writing about everyone else, it meant more than you'll probably ever know.

🐴🤎 And then... after I made it through all the pictures, I realized you'd saved him for last.

That was the icing on an already bittersweet cake. 💙

There are a few students who I've set goals with, don't think I don't think about you every single day. We're not done. Please give me the Grace that I will allow you on your hard days, if I'm anything
I'm loyal, and I keep my word ~

07/22/2026

07/19/2026

Did you know that horses communicate in a variety of ways? 🗣️

By being observant of our horse’s moods and body language, we can build stronger human-equine partnerships and become better caretakers.

Discover what to look out for to see if your horse is calm, happy, and healthy ➡️ https://issuu.com/equestrian/docs/us_equestrian_magazine_eca172f2b5b7e3/25

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07/18/2026

Sneak peek photos by Mar~

Available through Tyler Mountain Riding Academy, with or without horses!

Congratulations on your engagement are very own Katherine and Bill...

07/17/2026

What a fun group event Wednesday with the Kanawha County Schools Day Camp!

15 campers 2nd to 4th grade, counselors, teachers... and I do believe, for the first time (or at least in a very long time), a full-size school bus in the Tyler Mountain Stables parking lot!

We loved sharing the horses, a little Chincoteague history, some grooming, pony rides, and hopefully a little bit of the magic that horses have to offer.

Thank you all for spending part of your day with us. We hope you'll come back and visit again!

07/11/2026

A little update for our friends, followers, and barn family...

A lot of people have always thought Tyler Mountain Stables and Tyler Mountain Riding Academy were the same business. They never were. Tyler Mountain Stables has always been Sandy's. Tyler Mountain Riding Academy has been my business operating from that special place for years.

The barn is still there. The lesson program is still there. The horses are still there. My horses will still be there. Sandy will lease the lesson horses from me and Winston will stay there as well at least for now until he comes home. I'd love to have him somewhere at the trailer but maybe we can get one of these really good strong dads to clean the trail off for us so that we can do it from tms. I would give just about anything to get back into the woods regularly like I used to. And I know some of these kids would love it and they don't know what they're missing.

For years I've been slowly realizing that my heart has been leading me somewhere else. Every student, every horse, every lesson, every heartbreak, and every success has pointed me in the same direction.

Sandy will be taking over the riding program one week from Monday officially, but I will still help the transition of course. I know she'll do it in her own way. Please give everyone a little grace during the transition. It can't be as bad as that first booking app app that I had. So just remind yourself of that:-).

At 48 years old, for the first time in my life, I'm truly taking a chance on myself... and my husband is right beside me.

God bless him for that, because I know I'm not always the easiest person to live with. My brain never stops.

From the day we met at Tyler Mountain Stables, horses have been part of our story. My sister sold him Fawn for a dollar after he came home from war because she knew he'd fallen in love with her. Looking back, I owe that mare an apology more than anything. She put up with a young trainer who thought she knew a lot more than she did. Fawn taught me far more than I ever taught her.

Then came one of my midnight ideas.

I woke Frankie up and announced I was bringing Sox home to live in a giant Amazon party tent. Somehow, he didn't question me too much. That $499 tent turned out to be one of the best purchases I've ever made.

I slept out there in a lawn chair more nights than I can count. During one storm, I was literally hanging onto the tent trying to keep it from blowing away while Sox just stood there looking at me like I was the crazy one.

I thought I learned a lot in the 22 years I've had him prior to bring him here but it wasn't even close. That Amazon tent that I still have a little piece of, just like the kids that I'm going to remember from this generation and the one who started it I will forever remember that tent and the fact that no one, not even sandy, questioned the craziest idea that I had ever come up with.

Inspiration now for my newest ideas 🥹🤣🤎