By Britney Grover
Portraits by Averee Dye
Like many equestrians, Megan Sorentino has loved horses longer than she can remember. She started riding lessons at 5 and began volunteering at stables as soon as she was old enough, dabbling in dressage and participating in hunter-jumper and Pony Club. After moving to a home barn, Megan began training a little as others noticed her connection with horses and asked her for help. “I didn’t know why I could get things to work when others couldn’t,” she said. “I didn’t feel like I really knew how to help people communicate with their horses better, so I never thought it would become my career.”
In 2012, Megan discovered classical equitation through Craig Stevens at a clinic. “The reason I became a rider was because I love horses, and all the instruction I had gotten before that clinic was about dominating and ‘making’ my horse do things,” Megan said. “Craig’s approach was to be in harmony with the horse and move together as one, rather than to force movements.”
That clinic changed the course of Megan’s life. For the first time in her life, she found a desire to be a trainer—the right kind of trainer. After completing three bachelor’s degrees at Colorado State University, she went to Seattle to study at The National School of Academic Equitation under Craig and his then-wife, Mary Anne Campbell. She then took everything she learned in both places and started her own business, Classical Horsemanship, out of a round pen in her parents’ backyard.
Classical Horsemanship has only grown since: In 2020, Megan and her husband, Joe, purchased a 35-acre property in Fort Collins, Colorado, and worked to transform it into a riding school facility. They dubbed their dream property Falcon’s Landing, after the horse who introduced Megan to dressage. “To have our own facility with a beautiful view has been such a dream come true,” Megan said. “Still sometimes when I’m riding, I stop to look at the sun reflecting pink and purple off the snowy mountains and can’t believe it’s real.”
Was your family horsey?
My mom is afraid of horses—though she has gotten much better—and my dad rode when he was growing up but neither of them were horse people. Most kids have horse show moms, but I had a horse show dad: He was the one who always took me to riding lessons and horse shows growing up. After watching me for many years, my dad decided to start riding again.
Did you have any special horses or ponies when you were young?
My childhood pony, Fancy, who is now 29 years old, has been a big influence on my life. She has seen me through my training transition. I’m so grateful for all the love she has given me over the years, even when I was young and ignorant. When I was a child, she carried me through so many jump courses, across long trail rides and worked cattle with me; now, she continues to be one of our best school horses at Classical Horsemanship. Her transformation from stubborn pony that dumped me at fences to doing piaffe and passage has been one of the greatest lessons of my career. As soon as I started respecting her thoughts and feelings, she started to give me more. Fancy’s friendship for over two decades has been one of the greatest gifts.
What equestrian achievement are you most proud of?
Training my horse, Grayson: Shortly after being introduced to Craig’s equitation philosophy, I bought Grayson, an Andalusian-Lipizzaner cross that was not very well bred, and I was in way over my head. Grayson loved to rear and was extremely angry due to how he was started. Grayson taught me how to ride a blow-up, and eventually I learned what a horse feels like before they explode. Grayson was the best gift a young aspiring trainer could receive—totally crazy, athletic and strong.
When I tell people today about Grayson, no one believes me except for those who knew Grayson at the time, because now Grayson is a happy and willing partner. He often greets me when I go to catch him and schools high-level dressage movements. Because of my experiences with Grayson, I feel confident I can improve the rider-horse relationship when people bring me difficult horses. Grayson was so screwed up that he taught me a lifetime of lessons in only a few years, and we are eternally bonded because of it.
What do you teach at Classical Horsemanship?
We teach a few different lineages of equitation, but they all have roots in French Classical Dressage. One is called Mediterranean Work, horsemanship started around the Mediterranean in antiquity. It helps reestablish lightness in the horse, teaches riders better feel, calms the horse and creates trust between horse and human. We also do a lot of seat work based on the French military system, with lunging riders doing exercises to find their balance and learn to move with the horse, as well as teaching aids from the School of Naples—a language that allows riders to place the horse’s weight on each of the four feet and control the horse’s speed. In-hand work allows the horse to learn the language before the rider is up, and is also useful for rehabilitating lame horses, which is one of my specialties.
What are some of your favorite things you’re able to do through Classical Horsemanship?
One is to rehabilitate lame horses. So many horses’ lameness issues can be solved through training the horse how to move well—balanced so they can carry the rider comfortably. It’s not something I started out to do, I just started noticing a pattern: horses that were lame in conventional training programs were no longer lame in our program. The way we work horses is not through force; we encourage the horses to have good posture and balance, and through these techniques we’ve made many lame horses happy, healthy riding companions that are now sound under saddle. We even have an old Grand Prix horse that was retired due to soundness issues and that I’ll be showing this summer, now happy, healthy and moving the best he ever has.
I love to bring out the beauty in each horse, even if it doesn’t win them any blue ribbons. Every horse is capable of high-level work and so is every rider. It takes time, patience, and gentleness. One of my favorite demographics to work with is older beginner riders. I think it’s their last chance to learn the art of dressage, and my favorite thing is to be able to give that to them. It makes my heart so happy!
What’s the best thing about your life?
The culture and community we’ve built into Classical Horsemanship! Every rider here believes in being caring and gentle to the horse, kind to each other and having a whole lot of fun while continuing to improve their horsemanship.
For more information, visit classhorsemanship.com
