“It was the place to be,” Lucy Matteo of Fort Washington, PA says, “it was always big—even when it was the little shows.” Quentin Riding Club, once a fixture on the show circuit for hunter/jumpers and saddlebreds has fallen on hard times. The Lebanon County Tax Claim Bureau has announced that the property will be auctioned off in September to satisfy nearly $100,000 in unpaid taxes.
Matteo’s fond memories of Quentin’s shows and its storied history are part of a vast tapestry connecting her with thousands of equestrians who first entered the show ring on their ponies and came back year after year to the stunning, historic venue. “I remember the fun and the kids playing on the lawn,” Joan Mitch says. “I’m sad to see that they’re having problems.” Mitch, who lives near Allentown, says her group, the Pennsylvania Arabian Horse Association used to have their East Coast Championships at Quentin, and she worked in the office for the venue’s Mason Dixon horse show. “It was a great place; everyone really loved going there.” While Mitch was not involved as a rider, her daughters did show at Quentin. “It was glory days, and a great facility. I hate to see this happening to it.”
“I came into equestrian sport rather late in life,” Curt Melick of Harrisburg says. “I was 40. My recollections of Quentin start in the late 90’s.” He and his wife own a saddlebred. “We would also show at the Fall Show when it was still combined with the hunter/jumpers. Like a lot of riders, I cut my teeth at Quentin.” Melick served on Quentin’s board for three years.
The club’s current president, Greg Shaffer, started a GoFundMe effort in April, seeking $80,000 to pay debts and cover the cost of repairs to the facility. “For some time now I and others of my generation have heard about how wonderful and glorious the QRC used to be,” he wrote. “Well, we’d like to see it for ourselves. And we’d like to share it with all. In order for us to do this we need to ensure it survives. Please help us preserve a piece of equine history.”
A Sign of the Times?
In 2015 the jewel in Quentin’s crown—the Fall Show—moved to Swan Lake Stables. The club’s president at the time, Larry Minnich, said then that there were a lot of reasons why it made sense for Quentin to give up rated shows. “We’d like to have a horse show every day, but if it doesn’t make any money and doesn’t make any sense then there’s no reason to do it.” He said expenses related to rated shows were also a factor. They had to rent jumps and hire special judges for the event.
Matteo, who moved from the hunter/jumpers to eventing in high school, says she thinks a lot of venues are having trouble. “They used to have big events, but they’re closing or making smaller events.” Melick said that the facility has had problems. “It has deteriorated over the years. But back then it was truly a wonderful place to show.” He said that the Keystone Classic, an annual saddlebred show that once was part of Quentin’s schedule, moved to the Horse Park of New Jersey. Mitch, of the Pennsylvania Arabian Horse Association, says that they moved their show to Lexington, VA.
In an interview in 2015 Minnich, the former president of Quentin Riding Club’s board, pointed to footing problems caused by a development built nearby. “Back in 1990 a development above us put a water right of way in. That works okay unless you get a heavy storm and then one of the rings floods. The new footing they have for Hunter/Jumper shows is very expensive. While we don’t mind doing that, we don’t want it to wash away.”
Melick says Quentin is dealing with some fundamental changes in the ways people spend their time. He explained that when he was on the board they were dealing with declining membership. Despite efforts to bring in new members, it became an increasingly steep climb. He likens Quentin’s predicament to that of many country clubs. “Country clubs are in something of the same thing. They’re a one-trick pony. People want to play different courses. They want to be able to move around. I think the time has changed. You can’t run a business on a declining customer base.”
In addition to losing members, Quentin has also lost boarders at the stables, and today only a handful of horses are boarded there, according to a report on WGAL-TV which aired in June.
The cost of maintaining the historic property, combined with declining membership and the loss of significant revenue-producing horse shows has left Quentin Riding Club in a dilemma that seems intractable, as the date for the county’s auction of the property looms. In mid-July the three month old GoFundMe page dedicated to the Quentin Riding Club, with a goal of $80,000, had zero donations.
From Equestrian Pageant to Dinner Club
The Quentin Riding Club is a piece of American history, situated on an 18th Century farm which housed the first Hackney horses imported to America from England. Owned by the Coleman family, the farm’s foundries were critical sources of artillery for George Washington’s army. Through the 19th and 20th Centuries, horses remained the center of life on the farm, which changed hands many times. Moonlight rides through lanes shaded by maples, sleighrides in the winter, hacks through the countryside on miles of trails and eventually a robust schedule of horse shows kept the focus on horses.
The social life revolved around the horses and eventually led to the creation of restaurants to serve the members and the public.
Anita Spinelli of Green Lane remembers her days showing her young horses at Quentin. “We had our Palomino shows there. I remember we were going for points and I was really pregnant, jogging one of our horses.” She says that the place was so much more than a horse farm. “The Philadelphia Mounted Police showed there, too, in the 70’s.”
“And the driving demonstrations, too” Ellen Lea says. “They did things like that between divisions. And everybody had their Jack Russells, their Aussies, and their Corgis.” Lea is Matteo’s mother, who reflected on the many diversions available for show parents at Quentin. She says they had great vendors, and great food, too. “The set-up was great. You could watch the schooling while watching the classes.”
“The ring itself used to have grass with the limestone on the perimeter. A lot of horseman are wistful and fond of the facility,” Melick says. But times have changed.” He says that he has nothing but great memories of his time at Quentin, both as a board member and as an exhibitor.
These days the events calendar is heavy with social events, such as Karaoke nights, with less emphasis on the horse shows—even though they still feature a fun horse show series. Equestrians who competed at Quentin during its heyday have fond memories of the Riding Club, and many regret the harsh reality that a cherished piece of their riding history may soon be lost.
Find Quentin Riding Club’s Go Fund Me page at https://www.gofundme.com/help-save-the-quentin-riding-club.