Cheryl Meisner Returns to Canada

Since Cheryl Meisner returned to Canada after many years of training and competing in Europe at the grand prix level, there have been some significant changes in her life. She is now a mother of two young daughters, married to husband Tim Webber, and running her own equestrian business in rural Nova Scotia.

Cheryl, 35, who evented as a teenager, became the head rider for Lobster Point Farms in Chester, NS, in 2001. Later, the chance to train with dressage Olympian and coach Bert Rutten of the Netherlands led her to Europe, where she campaigned a pair of Dutch Warmbloods – the dark bay stallion Paganini and the bay gelding Tango – with notable success, often returning to compete in North America shows. She and Paganini were short-listed on the Canadian dressage team for over ten years, and in 2010, Cheryl was short-listed for the national team with two horses (Paganini and Lucky Strike) and long-listed with Tango.

In 2011, Cheryl returned to Nova Scotia, resuming riding and training at Lobster Point Farms. There, under the aegis of long-time sponsor and businessman John Risley, she began Future View Dressage and competed in select FEI shows. In the winter of 2013, Cheryl travelled to Wellington, Florida, with her family and two horses in tow. She placed second in a CDI 3* grand prix special at the World Dressage Masters with Tango and third in a CDIW grand prix special with Paganini.

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Path to the Future

After a year spent giving university another go, Cheryl became even more convinced of her path. “When I was studying, I missed the horses and riding so much,” she admitted. In 2015, she moved Future View Dressage from the south shore of Nova Scotia to a rural location near Truro.

Future View Dressage (futureviewdressage.com) is a modern, attractive facility with airy box stalls and a 70 x 200’ indoor arena with European geo-textile fibre and sand footing. The property encompasses 60 acres of land, with 23 cleared acres for paddocks and pasture. Additional stalls are available for clinic participants or riders who trailer in to train with Cheryl. One full-time and one part-time employee assist with the daily business of running the barn. Plans for the near future include an outdoor dressage ring and additional stalls.

Initially, Future View attracted boarders coming in for the winter months or short stays for horse training or lessons aboard the farm’s schoolmasters. But now, less than two years later, the boarders are long-term – invested in Cheryl and her vision of schooling the horse systematically to its highest potential along with facilitating rider success at their particular level in dressage.

Along with training and teaching, Cheryl ensures that her clients and other area riders have availability to instruction from top riders via regular clinics. Last year, she brought in grand prix rider and coach Evi Strasser for a pair of successful two-day clinics in the spring and fall. This past September, Future View hosted a well-attended clinic given by renowned American Olympic rider and coach Debbie McDonald. Plans are in the works to continue offering clinics with world-class coaches every few months. When Cheryl can break away from responsibilities as mother, wife, rider, and trainer at her own barn, she travels throughout the Maritimes giving clinics.

Most days, Cheryl rides five to eight horses besides teaching. Her daily routine begins at dawn and doesn’t end until the final barn check at night. It’s a hectic, physically demanding life, but she’s enthusiastic about the challenge. “I feel so very elated when I see my students happy with their riding progress,” she said, adding that one of her long-term goals is “one day I would like to return to competition at the grand prix level and represent Canada internationally.”

New Horses, New Goals

Now 20, Paganini, Cheryl’s KWPN crown predicate stallion and star partner since he was seven, is semi-retired and sire to several offspring exhibiting dressage potential. Cheryl is currently bringing along some promising young dressage prospects. One is an 18.1-hand rising six-year-old black KWPN gelding named Galileo (Rousseau x Davignon). Calando, a striking 10-year-old chestnut gelding (Vivaldo x Goodtimes), will hit the shows with Cheryl again this season. Another very promising youngster she’s training is Hublot, a young KWPN mare sired by Paganini and owned by Nova Scotia breeders Steele Family Warmbloods.

Says Cheryl, “I’m very excited about moving horses along through the levels; about training young capable horses from the beginning to the grand prix level. I love having the opportunity to utilize the skills I learned in Europe.

“I’m in no hurry with these younger horses. They’ll tell me when they’re ready. We’ll start with bronze/gold level shows in the Maritimes first, giving the horses the experience they’ll need in order to compete in the more demanding FEI classes at the big events in Quebec, Ontario, and the United States.”

Cheryl’s business and busy family life have not stopped her from pursuing serious dressage goals. “I find running my own stable extremely rewarding,” she says. “Obviously, it takes a lot of juggling to balance my family life and work. My husband runs his own catering business and though not a horseperson, he does general maintenance around the barn, paddocks, and fields besides helping with our daughters and home.”

With family backing and the support of loyal clients and friends, Cheryl is very clear about where she is going with her life as a rider, trainer, and businesswoman.

“I’m in no hurry with these younger horses. They’ll tell me when they’re ready.”