Testimonials

"I can't tell you just how much you have helped my riding and me. In spite of my 'handicaps', I have enjoyed it more under your tutelage, than with any other trainer. It's not just the Centered Riding technique; it's your personal involvement and enthusiasm with your students. If your goal as a Centered Riding Instructor is to help people, then you are a tremendous success.” ~ Sheri

"Thank you for a wonderful experience! Refreshing to observe a clinic where the instructor was so individually sensitive to each horse and rider. You Take The Time!" ~ Linda

"This has been the greatest experience! I have been looking for the "way" to better communicate with my horse and this is it! It just makes sense! THANK YOU!" ~ Karen

"Breathing from my center really helped me feel more stable. I didn't realize how tense I was until we worked on breathing." ~ Cynthia

"Jane has given me insight into releasing tension in myself threfore causing my horse to be tension free. I hold more balance now and feel more centered on my horse" ~ Marcia

"A great clinic - lots of learning in a fun way!" ~ Tricia

“Jane turns the process of learning into a positive experience for both rider and horse. Her expert eye allows for fine-tuning of position, movement and balance before poor habits have time to form. And her patience and enthusiasm are priceless.” ~ Louise

“I am so impressed with the way Jane coordinates what the horse needs with what the rider needs. Her keen eye, knowledge of the biomechanics of the horse and rider makes for good progress as well as a happy horse and rider. My horse is moving better, is more relaxed, and is happy during training sessions!” ~ Joanne

The following is a letter that I received from Susan King.  You will see her riding Jesse under the pictures link - Before and After CR:

Jesse (my horse) and I took our first Centered Riding lesson in September 2003 with Jane. Prior to coming to Jane, we had had only a handful of lessons. We couldn't find anyone that was dependable or would stick around. Some of the instructors I've watched left me very leery of taking lessons because of the way they would tell their students the horse was just lazy and to either whip or kick their horse until the horse did what they wanted. This left us having to learn by my reading how to do things in books and magazines then going out and trying to do what I read, not knowing if I was doing it correctly or not. When Jesse and I would go for trail rides sometimes it could take us up to 20 minutes to go the first 200 yards because he would take a couple of steps and stop, take a couple of steps and stop. I would become frustrated and would squeeze, kick, or do whatever to get him to go. The only thing that would work would be if I had a riding crop and even then it was work and not fun.

I saw Jane's demonstration of Centered Riding at Equifair in Memphis in 2002 and became interested in Centered Riding then. The way Jane explained things and her interactive demonstrations made a lot of sense to me. I liked what I saw and heard. I went out and bought Sally Swift's book, Centered Riding, read it and tried to do what I read. Then in 2003 a friend of mine told me Jane was going to be giving lessons here so I signed up and Jesse and I took our first Centered Riding lesson. I wish I had a video of that lesson to see the way Jesse moved at the beginning and then see the difference in the way he moved at the end of that lesson. I never thought it was because I was stiff and unbalanced, which made him stiff and unbalanced.

At the beginning of that first lesson Jesse had such a short stride and would swish his tail every now and then. Jane then stopped us and got me to release all the tension in my joints, drop my center, use my soft eyes, breathe, and relax. Just by her getting me to do this, Jesse relaxed immediately. His stride lengthened, his head dropped, and his tail quit swishing. I didn't have to squeeze or kick to get him to move. Then we worked on all this at the trot. It was such fun.

After that first lesson, when we would go out on trail rides with my friends, they would comment on how happy Jesse seemed and also on how much better he was moving. They wanted to know what I had done. I told them about Jane Crowley and Centered Riding and they should think about taking a lesson from her the next time she was in town. They've now taken lessons from Jane and learned things that have helped them and their horses. We all can't wait for Jane to come back to our area so we can take another lesson!

Jane is wonderful to work with. She has a calm demeanor; a great personality and the ability to explain things in a way that helps a person become a better rider and a better partner with their horse. She understands horses and can pick up on when the rider is doing something wrong, even something like a person holding their breath, just by watching the way the horse moves. By getting the rider to correct their errors and getting the horse to relax and enjoy the lesson, it becomes fun even when learning something new and you just don't want to stop. It's a wonderful feeling when you and your horse are communicating and working as true partners. Jane has helped me to realize that Jesse's movements are a direct result of the way I hold myself when I ride. She's also helped me to break some of my bad habits, like squeezing all the time to get Jesse to go. I truly believe that in working with Jane, there is nothing that Jesse and I can't accomplish.

~Susan King