Just east of Canmore, nestled in the hills behind Indian Flats, you’ll find the Bow Valley Riding Association (BVRA).
The club, which offers residents of the Bow Valley a place to keep their horses, is celebrating its 50th year in the valley.
“(We wanted) to say a thanks to the valley for the support they’ve given us through the years,” said Sue Falkner-March, president of the BVRA.
“Even more than that I think, is just being able to be here (in the valley),” added club secretary Lisa Young.
The club initially formed in response to a growing lack of space to house horses in the valley.
“I had a horse, and people with horses, we needed a place to keep our horses,” said Jim Burnett, who’s been a member of the club since it first began in 1966.
“It’s amazing. When we first came up here it was all big washouts and rock. It was a mess. To look at it now, though, you’d never know. People over the years really did a lot of improvements and made a pretty good club out of it.”
Falkner-March says because of the club’s Crown lease they are able to offer paddocks at a price that is attractive to a wide range of residents in the valley.
“In some areas it’s not very affordable to own horses, but because we have a Crown lease, it does make it quite affordable. So we have people from all walks of life as members.”
Members of the club are from all age groups and participate in various activities with their horses, including trail riding, horse shows and endurance or long-distance competitions.
The club currently houses about 60 horses and has one paddock available for purchase.
“Usually always there’s one or two paddocks, you know someone’s moved away so there’s a paddock available, or people often will share,” said Falkner-March. “So for sure there’s usually room for a few more horses at all times.”
All the horses at the BVRA are privately owned and are cared for by owners.
“We offer a reasonable situation for boarding horses,” said Falkner-March.
“Nobody’s doing the feeding and the caring, it’s the owners doing the feeding and the caring of the horses.
“People will enlist one or two friends to share feeding and share the rest of the care of the horses to make it a little bit easier.”
Falkner-March adds that caring for a horse can be quite a large commitment, but if you’re passionate about horses, then the BVRA may be just the club for you.
“I find most people who are interested in horses, because it’s such a time consuming, all-consuming kind of a hobby, it is almost an obsession. Then you happily care for them because they give you such a sense of wellbeing.”
