New facility: Horses can run year-round in East Hawkesbury

The structure is the size of a hockey arena and is made of canvas over a metal frame.

Owner Jeannine Bastien said the $140,000 investment will allow Synergy Equestrian to expand its business.

The centre will board horses for the winter and its riding, dressage and vaulting lessons will now continue year-round.

Bastien said she expects the shelter will stay above freezing level.
Riders will be able to take the horses on a sandy riding floor, while spectators watch from a heated room.

"If they don't get to run around, the horses just stand there and eat all winter. They're sedentary and they lose muscle mass. So does the rider," she said.
Synergy also hosts therapeutic riding for people in wheelchairs, as well as day camps.

"When you have someone in a wheelchair, they enjoy riding a horse. The swiveling movement of the hips is not something you get in a wheelchair, and you also get the feeling of height. When you're on a horse, you're sitting high on top of the world," said Bastien.

The centre is also collecting corks at the Vankleek Hill Farmers' Market, which will be cut and added to the riding floor.