Sonnenhof may be a small dressage barn, but it packs a punch! At their beautiful farm in eastern Connecticut, the Grey family offers a whole slew of programs geared to develop dressage riders of all levels. Kirsten, originally from Germany, is the backbone of the program and acts as head trainer and manager of the barn. Her daughter Jannike is a Grand Prix rider who still teaches part time at SEC. They are helped by a devoted team of trainers specializing in one or the other aspect of the program.

A Complete Equestrian Education

This is not a pretentious place, instead, the luxury lies in the quality and diversity of the training. The core focus here is Dressage, based on German classical principles. But since variety refreshes both horse and rider, there are many options: hangbahn (hillwork) training in the adjoining woods, vaulting, jumping, quadrille, horsemanship and grooming lessons, as well as camp in the summer for both children and adults.

Physical Conditioning for Horse and Rider

Here, the trainers believe that balance in both Horse and Rider is the basis of good riding in every discipline. Both horses and riders are first taught to build balance and strength through basic dressage, then move on to hillwork, poles, cross rails, jumping gymnastics and jumps to develop rhythm, precision and coordination and back to more advanced dressage. The trainers at Sonnenhof believe that jumping and dressage are NOT exclusive to one another and that they need each other! In order to improve your physical conditioning, they can also take lessons specifically tailored for dressage riders, in a fully equipped Pilates studio fittingly set up in a horse trailer.

The Horses Are Family Too.

At Sonnenhof, you’ll find a small selection of well trained, level headed school horses who will help get you to the next level. They all have their specialty and of course their individual personality. When the Gray family takes on a horse or a pony for their school program, they commit to giving them a home until it is time for a well deserved retirement at a lovely facility in Virginia. Of course, you can also board your own horse at SEC, or take advantage of flex leasing options. If you are looking for a mount, ask Kirsten who will be able to help with that.

German Dressage Excellence in a Family Package

For the more ambitious riders

Kirsten Gray believes in training for all round horsemanship, not only riding, so at Sonnenhof you will be able to prepare for the Equestrian Achievement Badge, modeled after the qualification system of the German Equestrian Federation. For that, you will participate in special Clinics in Dressage and Jumping, Groundwork and Handling as well as a Grooming. Those clinics by experts in their field are a treat in themselves. Showing is in the cards too: every year team Sonnenhof participates in several shows for all levels, from schooling shows on the premises to large high caliber dressage shows. The whole team believes in continuing education and all are students themselves, regularly getting refreshers from their own trainers (such as European trained David Collins and FEI Rider Heather Mason) and even world-famous clinicians like Frank Henning, Laura Graves, Klaus Balkenhof or Hubertus Schmid through the “Old Masters Seminar Series” at Avalon Farm in North Salem.

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Location

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Sonnenhof is situated at 145 Eden Hill Road in Easton Connecticut.

Airport

John F. Kennedy International Airport