by Scott Hakim
To those in the horse show world, Old Salem Farm needs no introduction. It consists of 120 picturesque acres just an hour north of New York City, in the beautifully wooded area of North Salem. It has hosted events such as the selection trials for World Equestrian Games and Olympics, and is home to the Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows with classes from regional to FEI level.
The Hakim family became the owners of Old Salem Farm in 2001 and Scott Hakim serves as president, spearheading significant renovations and advancements on the property in the years since—while also starting and raising a family.
It started at camp when I was very young. That’s when I was introduced to riding horses and I enjoyed it right from the start. My actually falling in love with the sport was probably due to the influence of my older sister, Pam, who rode and showed horses.
I often ask myself that very question!
I really like having a product where our customers always come first. As president of Old Salem Farm, I get to set the policies for how we do things, and what I care about most is that we always treat people in a respectful, truthful way.
The biggest change has been that I’ve learned a lot over the years so that now I know much more about how to make sure we’re able to do the things I want to get done. I guess that’s something that only comes with experience. I don’t know, maybe that’s wisdom.
I’m really excited about our new $100,000 Governor’s Cup equitation class. This is the first time we’ve ever done this and I think it’s important that something like this is done for our equitation riders who really are the future stars of our sport. I’m also very excited about our June shows, and that our August FEI shows are back, plus the revamping and upgrading of our September shows.
Without question, my favorite memory at Old Salem was the first time I met my wife, Barbara. Barbara was a trainer at Old Salem, working for Robin Bacon, training ponies. I was a rider doing the Amateur Jumpers. Next would be watching my kids start riding there.
Old Salem Farm is an iconic name and facility, and I feel like I’m always trying to live up to it. Something I’m really proud of is how we continually improve the facility. We constantly work on improvements wherever they’re needed—the paddocks, the rings, the schooling areas. Whatever it is. I have lots more ideas and dreams on what we can work on. It’s all a question of when and how. We’re also bringing in Sarah Schering and Mark Dean as trainers. They both have extensive experience training students to the top level. Cori Reich will be continuing on with us and together, the three of them will be a powerhouse team.
There’s nothing I like to do more than spend time with my family—my wife, Barbara, and our children, Lilly, Henry and Emma.
We have two wonderful dogs, Daisy and Zoe. Both are rescues and they are very much family members. Isaac, a 1.50m jumper that Emma rides, is also an important member of our family.
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