On Carson Valley’s Cutter Ridge Ranch, the steeds of Fitzpatrick Performance Horses spend their days roaming more than 100 acres of lush pastures and their nights dreaming of never-ending saltlicks in a heated 50-stall barn. Bridget Fitzpatrick, the owner and head trainer of her eponymous business, guides the horses with a steady hand that has produced nationally recognized amateur and youth riders. Her skills seem to have rubbed off on the facility’s hooved residents as well; among her many accolades, she can take credit for training several prize-winning arabian horses.

Fitzpatrick continues to introduce new students to equestrianism in lessons that impart the principles of styles such as Hunter and Western. Though the echoes of galloping hooves carry across the outdoor arena during warmer months, horses tend to retreat to an indoor arena and switch their shoes out for semicircular slippers when the weather gets colder.