Instructors
Audra Ravo-Putnam
Audra and Splash
Audra and Panda at Chemung County Horse Show 2012
|
Audra is the barn manager at If Only Farm and the Head Coach for the Ithaca College Equestrian team. She began as assistant coach in 2006 and has lead the 35-strong squad since 2011. Ithaca College riders finished Reserve Champion for the region in 2013 and sent two riders to the IHSA (Intercollegiate Horse Show Association) National Championships the same year. As an undergraduate at Ithaca College, Audra joined the If Only family in 2002. She competed in the Open division and went on to win the Alumni Equitation Over Fences division at the IHSA Nationals in Los Angeles.
Growing up in Westchester County, Audra started riding at the age of 7. She became a prominent rider on the East Coast showing "A" circuit, winning classes at HITS, Fairfield, the Hampton Classic and Old Salem on her horse, Splashdown (pictured). The Appaloosa / Quarter horse cross came into her life when she was 14, starting a winning athletic partnership and a deep love affair that lasted 13 years. In 1999, Audra and Splashdown were Champion at the Hampton Classic in the Junior Hunter Division. Audra is loved by her students for her natural ability to build a calm confidence in both rider and horse. She prides herself in taking every student - from beginners to advanced Hunter, Jumper and Equitation competitors - to the next level. In 2006, Audra earned her Master's degree in Exercise Physiology from Ithaca College. |
Heidi Hoffman
Heidi and Freddy
|
Heidi is If Only Farm’s resident dressage instructor, specializing in
training and lessons for dedicated riders working their way up the levels as well as for those in other disciplines who want to enhance their impulsion, straightness, suppleness, and connection in flat work. One of the coaches for the Cornell Dressage Club, Heidi is also a member of the USDF and Central New York Dressage & Combined Training Association, and a frequent attendee at clinics offered by top competitors such as Pam Goodrich and Tracy Durham. Heidi’s teaching is based on a strong interest in biomechanics and how best to achieve a soft and balanced position. Relaxation in both horse and rider being the ultimate goal to create the most effective connection between the two. Heidi owns two horses: Freddy, a talented Hanoverian gelding currently schooling Second Level, and Manny, her schoolmaster who helps her introduce students to dressage. Away from If Only Farm, Heidi is the principal cellist of The Syracuse Orchestra and offers private cello lessons to budding professional musicians. |
Audrey
Audrey with students on Gwen and Cricket
|
Audrey began riding at 9 years old in Hemingford, Quebec, Canada. Her parents decided to give her “a few” riding lessons for her birthday. 20 some years later, Audrey is still riding and learning. Her parents say, “it was the gift that keeps on giving”. Living on the US/ Canadian border and riding with a German riding instructor meant that Audrey explored the French, American, and German systems of riding. It was here, at Covey Hill Stables, that Audrey learned, regardless of the system - the horse is usually right. Audrey continued her education at Houghton College in their Equestrian Studies program. While Audrey chose to pursue a different degree, Audrey benefits from her course work in Foundations of Equestrian Studies, Eventing 101, Jumping I and II, and Breaking and Training. At Houghton, Audrey learned that the relationship with the horse is the most important “tool”. Post college, Audrey found her way to If Only Farm and has called it home for over 7 years.
Here at If Only Farm, Audrey specializes in introducing kids to the world of horses. Audrey works primarily with our beginner riders on becoming confident and competent equestrians. Audrey believes: if there is a disagreement - the horse is usually right; what your horse thinks of you is more important than any ribbon; and we all have more to learn. |
Sara Rodbourne
|
Sara got bit by the horse bug getting her Horse Lover badge as a 10 year old Girl Scout. That first ride on Misty, a wonderful little grey Shetland pony was transformational and confirmed that horses would play a large part in Sara's life. Whenever life was difficult, the barn was where she found happiness and healing. In high school and collage she participated extensively in Pony Club and deeply enjoyed learning about and practicing good horsemanship. Her love of horses and riding has continued for over thirty years. Sara has shown in hunter jumpers, dressage, and three day eventing.
Sara enjoys working with beginner and intermediate riders. She strives to give her students a strong foundation in good horsemanship and loves to teach her students how to achieve a secure and balanced seat, skills that will inform any riding discipline they choose. Sara has a special affinity for teaching with and riding ponies - for their small frame, ponies have enormous hearts and give their all. When not teaching or helping with barn chores, Sara also runs a pet sitting business specializing in care for dogs, cats, birds, reptiles and horses. Sara is happy to call If Only Farm her home in more ways than one - she lives on the farm with her dog, three cats and a bearded dragon. |
Zena Casteel
|
Zena has been working with horses for over two decades and continues to train weekly with instructors at IOF and other farms in the area, taking lessons in dressage, jumping, and trail riding. Zena also rides regularly in dressage clinics with Tracy Durham and Patricia Kottas. Riding many different horses every week, she enjoys applying what she learns to green horses learning the ropes and schoolmasters alike.
Zena’s riding and training philosophy focuses on teaching biomechanically correct techniques, allowing the work to benefit both horse and rider. She believes excellence is developed by practicing the “basics” to perfection, and that the best riding is nearly invisible, coming mostly from a secure and balanced seat. Her lesson program follows the dressage training scale, working first on rhythm with the goal of progressing towards collection, and incorporate everything from bareback work to dressage tests to x-country jumping. Her teaching emphasizes respect for our equine mounts and the safety of her students. A PhD student at Cornell University, Zena brings the same enthusiasm for teaching in the classroom to her lessons at the barn. She believes in an approach to teaching that is empathetic rather than critical, and encourages students to take a holistic view on riding, understanding the fundamentals of horsemanship and learning to interact safely with horses on the ground as well as under saddle. Above all, she wants her students to build confidence and compassion through their riding experiences and to remember, if all else fails, keep calm and halt at X! |
Terry Spada-Mayes - Retired in 2023
Terry with Moose, Whatley and Tigger
|
As a founding partner at If Only Farm, Terry was instrumental in building the Equestrian Center we enjoy today. From an early age she demonstrated a natural ability and love of horses and had her first rides as a kid on some of Susan Lowe’s horses. Over the years, she helped train many of the horses and riders that came though If Only’s doors while continually honing her riding and teaching skills with many outstanding horsemen and horsewomen: Michael Page, Candace King, Beezie Madden, Wayne Carrol, Scott Hofstetter, Judy Poss, Rob Bielefeld, and Gary Duffy, among others.
Terry has shown horses and coached students at many shows in the region, including Syracuse PHA, The New York State Fair, Erie County Fair, Lake Placid, Chemung County Fair, and has been a core organizer of the many of horse shows and training clinics hosted at the farm. Terry’s dedication to teaching continues today, with a focus on advanced riders and development of riders on the Ithaca College Equestrian and the Cornell Dressage Teams. Terry’s adult-rider group lessons, especially on Thursday evenings, are very well regarded locally and are a popular fixture at the farm. |
Joan Litzel - Retired in 2022
Joan and Brass To Gold
|
Joan has been riding as long for as she can remember. Her real equestrian eduction began at If Only Farm when she was 40 years old with her daughter, Cathe. With Susan Lowe as her trainer, Cathe placed 3rd in National Pony Equitation Finals in 1987 and went on to qualify for the Medal Maclay, and USET on her hunter, Huntington Bay. Joan was the groom! Many of Joan's students have gone on to compete successfully in local and regional competitions. She focuses on beginner/intermediate riders and loves to take a child from the beginning of their riding experience, and prepare them for a safe, competitive, and effective horsemanship future. Joan has been teaching for over 25 years.
|
