Horse Connection

geoff young

Turning off the two-lane road outside of Kiowa, Colorado, I was struck by the effect of natural wood fence, red barn, green grass, and still ponds surrounded by furrowed columns of century old cottonwoods. It was indeed a pleasing effect. And after taking in the gorgeous horses and beautiful antiques that filled the stately barn, it was apparent that all of these elements completed a picture of perfection; an end-result of Leslie Malone’s vision that is Harmony Sporthorses.

The 282-acre farm, on the high plains just west of the Rocky Mountains, had previously been a feedlot, back when cattle herds outnumbered housing stampedes. Later, it served as a Draft horse breeding operation.

After starting the business at her home in Parker, Colorado, in 1996, the Malones purchased the property, and Leslie took to the task, in this case a labor of love, and transformed the property into a symphony of horses, art, and passion. It has become a nationally respected farm for breeding and training sporthorses.

The opportunity to express her lifelong passion for horses and art came to Leslie later in life after she had raised a family of two; son Evan and daughter Tracy. But she didn’t just rush headlong into the horse business. She wanted to do it right-for the benefit of the horses.

Around 2001, after researching other farms, including Hilltop Farms, for ideas and inspiration, she was sought out by Hilltop to form an outreach partnership. The passion of this partnership goes beyond the horses. The desire to educate and improve the training methods in this country (shared with Scott and Suzanne Hassler) has resulted in the forming of the Young Dressage Horse Trainers Symposium. The first symposium held in 2005, was acclaimed as a bold and dedicated endeavor to promote interest in, and develop education regarding young horse training. Both Hilltop and Harmony worked together to bridge the gap between breeders and trainers, in addition to educating professionals in how to develop young horses to their full potential.

The 2006 Young Dressage Horse Training Symposium will be held at Hilltop November 3-5. To learn more about this groundbreaking program go to www.hilltopfarminc.com.

Expanding and building onto the old barn at Harmony, Leslie used the information gleaned from trips to Germany and other fine horse facilities to create her perfect barn. She and her builder personally designed and custom built the stalls. The wonderful windows in the arena are reminiscent of the ones in Germany, and the antiques that fill one wing of the barn create an environment that not only nurtures the horses, but people as well. In regards to the numerous antiques in the barn, Leslie commented, “I’m from New England, and New England people don’t throw anything away.”

Leslie designed all aspects of the barn, and being an artist who works in paint, colors and fabrics all seem to come together in a symbiotic relationship with the organic nature of the barn.

Carriages from Denmark, circa the late 1800’s, adorn the huge aisle off the indoor arena along with a carousel horse and several sleighs. Magnificent wood tables and vestibules line one wall, while ribbons and trophies sit in cases on the other.

The barn has an “old world feel” to it with tongue and groove southern yellow pine on the interior, and on the second floor, a beautiful space overlooking the arena invites one to sit on the houndstooth couch in front of the fireplace and discover hidden treasures here and there. Simply put, the barn is a celebration of art and beauty, with energy provided by the horses, resting in their stalls and providing a heartbeat to the building.

Leslie’s priority continues to focus on the well-being of the horse. Hidden in a large room behind the stalling area, are mammoth water tanks connected to a fire suppression system, aided by fire doors that can be closed to protect parts of the barn. I had never seen a system like this, and it only reinforced the fact that the horses are the most important part of Harmony.

Leslie frequently breeds to the Hilltop stallions, as well as her own stallions Johnny Weismuller, Baroncelli (a partnership stallion), Davidoff Hit, and Rousseau, with offspring from Riverman and Royal Prince of Hilltop. There are some retired horses; George, the 18-tear-old grand prix horse, Mazurka who is 27-years-old, and V-Athena who is 20 who reside with some horses with special needs, with Leslie providing the care they need to live out their days in peace and dignity. It is indeed a place full of harmony.

While there is room on the farm for numerous horses, Leslie is not about big, bigger, or the biggest. “I don’t want to get so large that I don’t know all of the horses names,” she said with a smile. Seldom does one see an operation of this scale that has a sense of family to it.

Leslie Malone discovered the accord in her life through dedication to her marriage and family, her art, and her love of horses. Everyday, that dedication manifests itself through the success of the champion horses that she and her team produce and show, and through the beauty and the visual delight that is the perfect barn of Harmony Sporthorses.