Mount Juliet, TN Outdoor Activities

For more than 20 years, Juro Stables’ husband-and-wife owners—Sara and Roger West, riding enthusiasts with backgrounds in the entertainment industry—have been instilling equestrian ardor in their students with guided trail rides and horseback-riding lessons. Dedicated to granting visitors of all ages and experience levels a chance to saddle up, the dynamic duo maintains a fleet of friendly horses that vary in size and temperament to ensure that each rider is paired with a suitably matched steed. Sage guides lead trail rides around the scenic landscapes surrounding the stables, wending past sites including active 6-foot-high creeks, ruins of old 19th-century homesteads, and wagon wheels carelessly left behind by litterbug pioneers. A cadre of expert instructors imparts their horse sense upon students during group and private lessons, and outdoor enthusiasts can continue to commune with nature during post-lesson revelries amid onsite primitive camping and cooking facilities.

The staff members at Segway of Nashville share their enthusiasm for the eco-friendly pedestrian device by leading tours and selling the Segway PT to interested gliders. Though the compact vehicle's gentle speed and acceptance on sidewalks is part of its draw, Segway team members also like to discuss the eco-friendly benefits they've discovered through various case studies. Since the two-wheelers are fueled by lithium-ion batteries, they don't pollute the environment or cause their drivers to waste money on candy and chips during each gas-station stop. The Segway of Nashville crew also sizes up customers, fitting them with the proper transporter for patrol work, factory jobs, or leisure outings.

Prescott Golf Instruction's PGA Level 3 apprentice, Jason P. Langley, tailors his lessons to the needs and interests of his students, and fosters a relaxed environment in which pupils can push themselves to become better golfers. Langley has worked with more than 200 junior golfers and provided more than 250 adults with course and range instruction to help them perfect specific elements of their games, such as grip and posture. In addition to honing technique during the lesson, Langley advises students on how to structure their independent practice sessions and reconfigure their workout programs to be more effective than a layman's thumb lifts.

Guns and Leather is as much an artists' studio as a shooting range. As onsite gunsmith for more than 30 years, Jeff Walle spends his days restoring and customizing firearms, sometimes machining a part for an antique rifle or working on an engraving.

Walle's respect for the tradition and history of firearms characterizes Guns and Leather, started by the Williams family as a humble 800-square-foot shop in 1999. By 2004, the Williams nearly tripled the size of their operation, moving to a 2,100-square-foot facility in Greenbrier. Today, they oversee a 75-foot indoor range split into five standard lanes with electric target retrieval and five computerized lanes with a Mancom system that can make targets pivot and moonwalk. They also supervise a 35-foot, 15-lane range in Hendersonville, which, like its predecessor, is outfitted with climate-control and air-filtration systems. Beyond supervising the ranges, the Williams also oversee a team of state licensed, NRA-compliant instructors that runs the Guns and Leather Shooting Academy, an instructional suite with courses tailored for everyone from everyday citizens to military personnel. To further demonstrate their commitment to responsible firearms practices, the Williams also coordinate a Junior Shooting Sports Program.

As a Sugar Creek Carriages horse, Flint attends so many weddings he might as well be standing on a cake. The charming percheron draft horse sports a fair complexion and snowy mane that match traditionally white wedding dresses and the wedding carriages he often tows. He is one of 10 well-groomed, mannerly horses and ponies that provide the horsepower for an array of stylish buggies. Additionally, the animals make appearances at festivals, reenactments, and kids' pony parties. Sugar Creek Carriages also networks with the entertainment industry, a connection that recently led pop singer Justin Bieber to rent a carriage while he was in Nashville and his unicorn-drawn chariot was in the shop.