By Howard Koplowitz
From the time she was a little girl, Lynne Holzhauser knew she was destined to work with horses.
“I’ve been here since I’m a baby,” the 59−year−old said inside her business, Lynne’s Riding School, a stable that has been in her family for nearly 65 years. “I’ve been here in the barn working with my parents. I don’t know too much else.”
The stable, at 80−33 70th Road in Forest Hills, is equipped with 12 horses and one pony for riding lessons and birthday parties.
Holzhauser got into the family business — which has been around since 1945 — at age 12, when it was known as Stanley’s Parkside Riding Academy. She took over in 1982, changing the name to Lynne’s Riding School.
“I was a trail guide. We always rode in the park,” she said, referring to nearby Forest Park.
She expanded the business by booking birthday parties, where children and even adults can ride around the indoor dirt track for an hour.
The business also takes riders outdoors to Forest Park year−round and has stalls available for horse owners needing space to store their horses.
Holzhauser takes a hands−on approach to running her business, arriving at 5 a.m. and ending her day at 6 p.m. She teaches riding classes, cleans the stalls, takes care of the horses and saddles up during slow times.
“You do whatever the horse needs. If the horse is sick, you need to know what’s wrong with them. If they have a change in routine, something’s brewing,” she said.
It is the customer satisfaction that makes running Lynne’s Riding School rewarding, Holzhauser said.
“That makes my day — if they’re just happy to be with the horses,” she said. “Just enjoying them makes my day.”
Private lessons run from $30 for 15 minutes to $70 for 60 minutes, with discounts if lessons are bought in a five−session package. A pony ride around the track costs $10 for three laps and birthday parties are $300. Gift certificates are also available.
Lynne’s Riding School can be reached at 718−261−7679 for more details.
Reach reporter Howard Koplowitz by e−mail at hkoplowitz@timesledger.com or by phone at 718−229−0300, Ext. 173.
