MEET THE TEAM

Ruel Johnson - owner

Ruel Johnson brings a lifetime of experience to training horses and riders, and believes that building a quality foundation of skills is the key to success. Ruel founded Blue Heron Farm after riding professionally on both coasts, and is a prominent figure in the Hunter Jumper community. Ruel’s riders have won many State and USEF championships, World Championship Hunter Rider awards, as well as going on to ride and teach professionally. Ruel has a love of the show horse and finds her greatest passion is to safely get people hooked on riding.    

Elizabeth Beasley - Head trainer

We’re so thrilled to announce our new head trainer Elizabeth Beasley! With twenty years of experience in the hunter/jumper industry, Elizabeth has been successfully competing up and down the West Coast since 2003, most recently through the Regional Grand Prix and National Hunter Derby level.

Elizabeth is a Washington native, with expertise in training and showing jumpers, hunters, ponies, and young horses throughout the west coast.

Her career in the equestrian industry started at a very young age, and the passion persisted into adulthood! Elizabeth began her professional career as a student at Maplewood Stables’ Horse Industry Training Program, run by the renown Julie Winkel, in Reno, Nevada. Because of her talent, enthusiasm, and horsemanship, she was then hired and continued on as a trainer at Maplewood Stables, working beside Julie for 5 years and coming highly recommended as she moved back to Washington state. Aside from working closely with Winkel, she has trained with many successful clinicians, including Lina Allen, Jose Alejos, Jos Kumps, Georgie Morris, Colleen Reed, and many others. She has had great success showing jumpers through the Regional Grand Prix Level, Performance Hunters, and has successfully trained ample juniors and amateurs to great results in the equitation rings with a positive, insightful, and inspiring attitude. Her attention to details and technical riding skills is exponentially beneficial to our program as she runs our day to day business, both at home and at horse shows.

The goal of her training program is to educate both horse & rider, from the ground up, in a fun, safe, and educational way, with an emphasis on technical riding to create well rounded horse men & women.

She believes in providing riders with a deep understanding of the basics: The foundations of flat work, the mechanics of how each horse moves, and how to treat them as individuals, to promote the greatest progression, both in their physical & mental well - being.

Elizabeth has trained riders through success in many upper level jumper classes, national & international hunter derbies, and big equitation classes.

FRANCESCA THORSTED- ASSISTANT trainer

Franny has been riding at BHF for over a decade. After an excellent junior career as a rider & working student, she stayed on as an irreplaceable Lesson Program Trainer.

Her calm demeanor and strong foundation make her a superb instructor to students of all ages and levels. She believes in supporting riders from the ground up - encouraging natural horsemahsip in an out of the saddle with an emphasis on FUN!

When she’s not teaching, Franny is riding her own OTTB, competing in the young hunters, or assisting Elizabeth with training rides on several horses a day.