112 SIDELINES AUGUST 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
By Don Rosendale
F
or a sneak peek of what’s likely to be in the fall lines
of Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger, or maybe just for
some fashion tips on what to wear for the “best-dressed”
challenge at Rolex next year, maybe it’s time for a trip to Barbara
Wadsworth’s pocket-sized shop, Horse Leap, in Amenia, New
York.
It’s no secret that Seventh Avenue designers — sketch pad and
Nikon in hand — venture to the little shop on Amenia’s main street
to pore through Barbara’s racks of consignment clothes, getting
inspiration for “authentic” hacking jackets and jodhpurs for Saks
and Neiman customers who have no intention of ever putting a
foot in a stirrup, but who still want to look the look.
For decades, until it closed, the chic place to make sure you
had the right rat catcher for fall cubbing was M.J. Knoud on Fifth
Avenue in New York City. So why has the center of gravity for
authentic riding moved 89 miles north to Amenia, a town lacking
the same resonance as say, Middleburg, Aiken or Millbrook?
“We have two active foxhunts right here in Amenia,” Barbara
said. “Most of what people think of as the ‘Millbrook hunt country’
is actually in Amenia, and the Golden’s Bridge August hunter pace
starts 20 minutes from the front door.”
The site of the Millbrook Horse Trials is also in Amenia, famous
horse dealer David Hopper is 15 minutes from the store and Fitch’s
Corners (another premier horse trial) isn’t far away. And if you
don’t want to play on some of the private polo fields in Amenia,
Mashomack is 15 miles cross country.
One guarantee that comes from shopping at Horse Leap is that
the master won’t banish you from the meet for inappropriate attire.
“You’d be surprised,” Barbara discloses, without naming any
names, “how concerned people are that they are properly turned
out for the meet.”
Riders come to Barbara
where they know they’ll
get the right color garters
for their boots (white) and
the proper rain gloves,
fingers forward (and also
white) tucked under the
saddle. She’s not selling
just clothes, but self-
assurance, and Horse
Leap
sells
authentic
equestrian gear, either
new or “slightly broken in.”
And while, of course, the
hunter who pays $1,500 a
month to stable his or her
horse and a four-figure
hunt subscription each fall
would be worried about
mere costs of a riding
jacket and pair of britches,
Barbara discreetly provides
e
Fashion
Leap Into Fashion in
New York
Customers shopping at Barbara’s
Horse Leap are in search of
authentic riding gear.
another service. After all, little Suzie in her jodhpurs eventually
outgrows that $750 Melton jacket, and daddy’s bones become too
creaky to ride so his $2,000 Huntsman “pinks” are of no more
use. And it’s not the kind of stuff you put in a lawn sale.
It’s at that point that Barbara steps in, discreetly buying the
used-but-still-perfectly-wearable riding clothes. And that it’s
slightly worn is not a problem. “I’ve had people ask me to ‘rough
up’ garments so they didn’t look shiny new,” she said.
“People who love foxhunting are also crazy about plates and
ash trays and glasses with foxhunting scenes,” Barbara said,
adding that one of her favorite pastimes is collecting decorated
Haze Atlas glassware, painted with scenes of mounted horsemen
chasing foxhounds chasing the fox. “It’s hard to find a full set,” she
said. “So, I just buy a few pieces at a time until I can assemble a
full set.
Another popular item in Barbara’s consignment section are
Hermes scarves, typically showing saddles, bit or horses. On
Madison Avenue, these are $450. In Horse Leap, $150 to $250.
Barbara is a 1984 graduate of the equestrian program at Mount
Holyoke College, and came to Amenia to train horses and teach
riding. But she eventually tired of that. “It’s awfully cold standing
around a riding ring in filthy weather,” she said.
While most of Barbara’s customers may be from local foxhunts,
shoppers visiting Horse Leap
on a Saturday morning might
find the design staffs from
Seventh Avenue designers,
such as Ralph Lauren and
Tommy Hilfiger, figuring out
how to turn out authentic
hacking jackets. Two hundred
bucks, slightly worn, at Horse
Leap — $750 at Saks Fifth
Avenue next year.
About the writer: In earlier years,
Don Rosendale competed successfully
to the Third Level at dressage, Prelim in
combined training and raced sports cars
internationally. He now lives a quieter
life on The Oaks, in the Millbrook hunt
country raising Thoroughbreds for the
track and organic vegetables for the
tables at Michelin-starred restaurants.
Horse Leap attracts equestrians as well as fashion designers
from New York City.
All photos by Don Rosendale
Glasses with foxhunting scenes
are highly sought after by
foxhunters.
