Goldens Bridge Hounds North Country Hunter Pace Review

The first 15 minutes of this one frustrated everyone. Teams were being released just a minute apart, and my horse — Vulcan, a big, green draft cross who was absolutely certain the group ahead of us was where he needed to be — spent the first half of the ride trying to close the gap while the team behind us was asking every two minutes if they could pass. It's a faux pass to refuse, so every time I said no made me more nervous. However, given we were in single file with thorny trees on one side and a 7-foot tall field of pretty corn stalks on the left I didn't have much choice but to ask them to wait until we had more room to move to the side. It seemed like the entire pace we were either running up on the tails of horses in front of us or trying to create distance from teams behind us doing the same.

Once things opened up, though, it turned into exactly the kind of ride I show up for: long flat fields built for a proper gallop, a stretch of flower fields, a tree-lined road, a couple of short wooded paths. It was the last stretch of summer so while we enjoyed the greenery we chatted wistfully about how beautiful this area will look in a few weeks, when the fall leaves decorate upstate region with their famous hues.

The format itself is classic hunter pace — teams of 2-3 released at intervals, judged not on speed but on how close you land to a secret "ideal pace" (walk the downhills, water, mud, and rocky ground; trot the narrow wooded trails; canter the wide trails; gallop the open fields). I'm usually faster than target, but this time we were much slower so I would advise to just really push the speed on this one.

Two things kept this from being a five-star outing: no jumps, which is the part a lot of us show up for, and no midway break — you're in it start to finish with no chance to reset.

Post-ride, they redeemed themselves a little: a genuinely nice lunch spread, beer and wine, good seating, everyone actually socializing afterward. Vegetarian options were thin but present.

The horses come from Rounded Creek Farm, Manhattan Riding Club's partner stable, and it shows — lush pasture, modern stabling, tack that was well-fitted and clearly well-maintained. These aren't lesson-horse-quiet mounts; they're trained hunters with real personality, which is exactly why the club vets riders before approving them for a pace.

Vulcan had more forward energy than I wanted for the first half — young, strong, and very motivated to catch the group ahead — and I was genuinely a little nervous handling that while also managing the traffic-jam start. But once we lost sight of the riders ahead and he couldn't chase anymore, he settled completely and gave me zero trouble the rest of the way. Good horse, just not a great match for a start order this tight.

$420, not including transportation — which tracks with what these paces generally cost around NYC, but isn't nothing. Add my rental (Avis, $142, split with another rider) and you're solidly into "this better be worth it" territory. However, I'd like to note that the only other operator that I know of that offers day leases on hunter paces in the area charges much more - $650 to $950 per pace! And while I am currently writing my review of the one ride I did with them (so stay tuned for that!), I can say confidently that Manhattan Riding Club provides a much better experience!

Was it? Sort of. It's not a bad way to spend a weekend morning if you've got a car and the budget. But since most hunter paces in this price range cost about the same, and this had absolutely no jumps, I'd put my money toward a jump-filled pace before I booked this one again. I wouldn't say that the lack of jumps made this particularly beginner friendly either - there were a lot of open fields so horses could just get away from under you if you didn't know how to handle them in the open country.

The organizers mentioned the next one would be jump-heavy so I wouldn't say don't go to GBH paces at all if you like jumping - just maybe ask before committing next time.

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