Growing up on a farm in Kent County, southwestern Ontario, Janet
had a dream to own a horse and ride. Despite her persistent
requests to her parents, it was not to be. After all, her dad
was an ag rep and tractors were the way of the future. When she
and her partner, David Hodgson, moved to the Uxbridge area late
in 1990, she longingly admired all the horses in the fields and
her dream to ride was rekindled. A year later, David surprised
her with a Christmas present of three riding lessons. A
business card at a local bank advertised riding lessons. The
card was for Pinedale Quarter Horses and the instructor was
Dianne Howe. These three lessons resulted in the purchase of
her first horse AJ (Azures Jay Tee) followed a year later by a
yearling. Janet has often remarked that had that first
instructor not been Dianne and that first horse not been a
Quarter Horse, she probably would never have gone past those
first three lessons.Janet and David quickly determined that they wanted more property and a return to their farm roots. They purchased 65 acres of vacant land overlooking Claremont and started to build Thunder Ridge Farm in 1994. Dianne and Hilton Howe helped them buy some broodmares to get their breeding operation underway.
At the beginning, all the horses lived outside and eventually they were able to build a six stall barn. Over time they expanded to a 20 stall barn with an indoor arena and two full-time staff with several boarders. While it was a lot of work, it was a wonderful learning experience and the best part was foaling and bringing the young ones along, getting them in the show pen and finding them homes. Several of their foals continue to show on the Ontario circuit – For The General (Shorty), Scotch Bar General (Whiskey) and Investment in Time (Dillon) and we continue to be very proud of their success. Generals Golden Boy has become a successful stud in the Netherlands.
"At the beginning we hired other people to do the showing, but I gradually had the courage to do some of it on my own. As I had never ridden until I was 42 years of age, it was a very steep learning curve and it has taken quite some time to keep the nerves under control in the show pen."
"I started with halter and longe line. Sundance (Generals Belle Dude) was from our first foal crop and had been my favourite from day one due to her dependable and unflappable personality. I showed her as a yearling in longe line – winning 1st and 2nd (with Generally Amazing) at the Area 3 Futurity. That was a complete thrill for a brand new exhibitor. When Sundance turned 4, I started showing her under saddle and over several years we competed in all around novice amateur competition, winning high-point novice amateur for Area 3 in 2005. Together we competed in Showmanship, Hunter Under Saddle, Hunt Seat Equitation, Western Pleasure, Western Horsemanship, Trail and in her last year we added Western Riding. Of all the classes, Trail is my favourite, followed by Horsemanship and Western Riding. Sundance retired in 2006 and enjoys her life as my trail riding companion."
"In late 2004 I purchased Eddie (Eddie Dee Echols), as a 3 year old and we started taking him to the shows to bring him along. Eddie has a lot of talent, but is not without his challenges especially for a novice rider. Jill Rout has been training him and all of her excellent work is finally paying off. Eddie and I compete in Halter and Select Showmanship, Horsemanship and Trail. Last year, Jill started him in Western Riding and I hope to add that and Equitation in 2009. Eddie qualified for the Select World Show in halter in 2008."
"In 2009 we will also be starting Cheyenne (Ima Belle Dude Too), Sundance’s 5 year old sister, in the show ring. Luckily she shares my love for Trail and has natural talent. She, like Sundance, is unflappable and very trustworthy and it will be exciting to see her in competition."
In the meantime, Janet and David relocated Thunder Ridge Farm in mid 2008 to the Grafton area. They picked a 40 acre piece of vacant property and started again with a new house and six-stall barn. This move and a desire to find a better work/horse/life balance will focus her showing in the future to the Carp shows and one Area 3 show. The plan is for this to become their retirement location.
"Although we loved the breeding aspect of the horse business, we do not have any further plans for breeding or expanding our herd. We are down to six horses, including two -20 year old retired broodmares. In addition, we have two wonderful Great Danes, Dallas and Maggie, four house cats and two barn kittens."
In the real world, Janet worked for the Province of Ontario and retired in 2001 as an Assistant Deputy Minister. Since that time, she has been the Chief Operating Officer for the Innovation Institute of Ontario, a small not-for-profit organization supporting the research and innovation sector. The benefit of the move to Grafton has been that instead of wasting time driving to the City, she now commutes on the Via train from Cobourg – a very civilized form of travel and one that allows her to catch up on her reading.
"I am also an avid gardener and am looking forward to this spring and planning many landscaping projects." In 2008, Janet succeeded in another dream – running in a 5 km run. While that may not seem like an amazing feat – the first competitive run for a 58 year old is a success no matter how fast you are. Her goal was to run the entire distance without walking or stopping and she did it. She hopes to do more of this in 2009.
Janet has also been on the Area 3 Board of Directors for the past 10 years (President in 2008) and has really enjoyed working with the many talented volunteers who work tirelessly to make horse shows run seamlessly.
"I would like to thank the following people. First my partner David, who has supported me with this horse addiction and made it possible to live this dream. Jill Rout has been my coach and trainer for the past 5 years. She has been an excellent teacher and very patiently has helped me learn to ride competitively and given me the confidence to show. Dianne and Hilton Howe who helped David and I from day one, teaching us the ropes, sharing their vast knowledge with complete newbies. I would also like to thank Bob McCrae, our vet, and Scott Salverson, our farrier, in Uxbridge who kept our horses alive and thriving. We have met so many wonderful people and made such excellent friends in the horse community. It has truly been an amazing adventure."
Thank you Janet for the time you have spent volunteering on the Area 3 Board of Directors. Your experience and knowledge will be greatly missed!!