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Courtship Ranch
Caters to the hands-on, active horse owner.
We are located in the equestrian community of Shadow Hills/Lake View
Terrace area, only half a mile from the Wheatland Avenue exit from the 210 freeway. Convenient to northern Los Angeles, we are minutes away from Pasadena, Burbank, Hollywood, La Canada, and San Fernando.
With over 80 stalls, three lighted arenas, and a half dozen turnouts, we offer a wide variety of stabling options. Your horse can stay either in an enclosed barn, partially sheltered pipe stalls, or pasture board. Horses are fed twice daily, and automatic waterers provide continuous fresh water.
The choice of riding arenas consists of a lighted 200' x 90' area, lighted 100' round pen, and a lighted 50' round pen. The ranch backs up to the Angeles National forest with direct access to over 800 miles of trails. If that isn't enough, just through the ranch's front entrance is a trail that leads to the Little Tujunga Wash, Angeles Golf Course, and the Hansen Dam area for even more miles and miles of trails. In the works for late 2010 is a cover for the large arena and an enclosed bull pen for the youngsters in training.
We are fully perimeter fenced, behind a code-accessed electric gate, and have round the clock on-premises owner and ranch foreman.
We suspect hundreds, if not thousands, of horse owners have spent time at the Ranch in the last thirty years. If it’s been a while since you've visited, come see us. You won't recognize the place!
Ranch History
Courtship Ranch has been a continuous boarding operation since the 1970's. Jack and Barbara Thompson originally built the facility in Lake View Terrace at the base of Oliver Canyon, between Little Tujunga and Big Tujunga. At that time the J-Bar Ranch, as it was called, was known for breeding quality Quarter Horses and golden retrievers. Marc and Royan Herman bought the Ranch in 2003 to run in conjunction with their property, Peacock Hill.
They renamed it the Horse House and made numerous upgrades and improvements over the five years that they owned it. When the Perkins family decided to move to California in 2009 they knew they wanted to own and run a commercial horse facility. Stevi Fielding, of Dilbeck Realtors, knew just the place. With "good bones" already there it didn't take long for Phil and Lyles to embark on another round of upgrades.
They replaced all the electrical, built 4 new turnout areas, replaced and repaired old fencing, and upgrading the existing barns and tack sheds. A client lounge, landscaping, painting, new drainage systems, and new perimeter fencing was added. Rumor has it the over 200 year old California Fig tree on the property was a way point on the Wells Fargo Butterfield Overland mail route!
Meet the Family
Lyles as co owner and ranch manager, brings years of horse experience, having grown up in Virginia to a fox hunting family. She started riding at 7. Having no horse of her own she caught rides on anything she could. Teaching her to be comfortable on just about anything. She showed hunters until high school when a chance conversation got her into 4 years of riding jumpers. She rode several years as a groom for Lucy Coates, hunt master of the Deep Run Hunt Club.
Later she bought her first horse, a 3 year old QH/draft cross that she fox hunted until she realized that while his heart was in it, his jump just wasn't and sold him to an endurance rider. He went on to become high point endurance champion for the state. Lyles resumed showing with the purchase of her next few horses and competed in amateur owner and adult amateur divisions riding under the guidance of Adair Frasier Roper of Beaufort Farm and Jan Simpson of Hampton Row Stables of Goochland, Va.
A stifle injury to her favorite mare got her into breeding and a new interest in TB/Warmblood crosses. Marriage saw a move to Florida, the sale of her farm in Virginia, and a full time focus on showing the Florida circuit with Ken and Emily Smith of Ashland Farm in Delray, Fla. A move to Russia in the late 90's seemed to forebode an end to riding for awhile but the chance discovery of a riding stable where the chef d'equipe of the Russian Olympic team taught gave Lyles the opportunity to pursue dressage training.
From there it was a few years riding in the UK then back to the States. In Pennsylvania, Lyles now joined by 2 of her children rode dressage with Anita Imms of Simple Gifts Farm. At the same time she volunteered to train horses at the therapeutic riding facility, Sebastian Riding Associates. This morphed into exercising and schooling horses, and working with the instructors in recognizing the horse’s needs.
Through this great partnership with Jenny Dec, the program coordinator, and all the wonderful instructors ignited an interest in providing horses for therapeutic riding programs. It is a long term goal for Courtship Ranch to find, train, and provide horses for use in therapeutic riding programs on a loan basis.
Philip, as co-owner, might have a job off the ranch but he still works long hours as the resident maintenance man. His love of tools and "fiddling" has led to some beautiful building improvements and well thought out upgrades to the ranch. Though he didn't grow up riding he did come from an Oklahoma family of farmers. He became comfortable around horses acting as a groom for his wife at the many horse shows he attended. Several summers on ranches with the family convinced him that he was ready for full time life with horses. After a hard week at work he prefers to saddle up his QH and go on long trail rides through the mountains.
Alan, the oldest of the Perkins kids, doesn't care who, how, or what he rides as long as he gets to ride. Some days finds him riding his big TB huntseat or dressage, and other days he is riding western on one of the other horses or bareback on his sisters mule pony. Currently he is looking for a paint horse that he can do gymkhanas on.
Eddie likes to ride his QH/Welsh pony on trails. He's our laid back guy who is happy just sitting around on his pony not doing much of anything other then chatting with anyone who wants to talk.
You can almost always find Neal riding her "pink" mule pony. While they would like to go on more trail rides they don't very often seem to get past the arena gate. Her next goal is to bump her brother Eddie off his pony so she can have it.
Brian is the non riding child in the Perkins family but he can be found helping around the ranch, most weekends.
Other family members include Miss Penny, the Labrador, who can be found wandering around the property looking for jolly balls to play with or people to pet her. Pepper and Curry, resident cats, keep the rodent population away (but not the two guinea pigs). Our 2 goats will eat any carrots the horses don't want. With various peacocks, rosters and chickens around Courtship Ranch, don't be surprised if you find eggs in your horses hay feeder!
Update!
Alan managed to find himself a paint horse and during the search his Dad found one too! Alan and his chestnut paint, Pardner, are having fun riding the area trails and participating in ACTHA sanctioned trail rides. Phil ended up with Dundee, a dun paint, that he liked to cruise around on until he took a tumble and broke his wrist. (Lesson learned- always check your girth and don't let your horses race home.)
Eddie has traded his pony Smurf to his sister and is now riding a lovely palomino QH, Val. Together they are trying for end of the year high point awards in Western Pleasure and Western Equitation for 11-18yr olds.
Neal managed to wrangle Smurf from her brother Eddie and has been enjoying great success at local shows. She and Smurf are doing well in hunt seat equitation classes and Neal hopes to soon compete in some over fences classes.
Be sure to check out the Gallery and the Latest News sections for photos taken at the horse shows!