Rivendell Gypsies Farm, located in Harriman, Tennessee, is owned by Ron and Kate Cowan. Both of us are life-long lovers of horses, but we were never in a position to have our own horses while living in Northern California. Whenever we traveled on vacation, we rented horses for scenic trail rides, or rides on the beaches in California. As we approached semi-retirement age, we pondered how we could fulfill our dreams, and purchase our own small farm in an area we would ultimately enjoy retiring to. Our plans were small -- we thought about purchasing 2 horses for trail riding purposes. We even thought that if we could find a big enough barn, we might be able to rent out a few stalls for extra income :-) Always being ones to do our homework, we researched various areas of the country where we could afford to purchase a small farm, and create more balance in our lives between work and play. Our vacations were scheduled around visiting the areas we thought had potential. Although the Grand Junction, Colorado area came in a close second, we fell in love with the area around Knoxville, Tennessee, and in fact purchased our farm on our very first visit! Neither one of us are particularly known for letting grass grow under our feet!

Having made the decision to move to Tennessee, we attended the Western States Expo in Sacramento, California in June of 2004 to view different breeds of horses. We planned to find out if one particular breed was more suitable for us, especially considering we were middle-aged, first time horse buyers. At the Expo, we saw our very first Gypsy Vanner horse, and were immediately in AWE. In fact, we were convinced that we had just seen a unicorn!! From that moment on, we both knew that no other breed would suit us. Our choice was further solidified when we attended a draft horse show in Grass Valley, California. We witnessed a horse owner, with a Gypsy mare and 3 month old foal, standing surrounded in a crowd of people! Both horses remained calm, even with a little girl running around the legs of the mare. Being grandparents ourselves, we realized how important this would be when our grandkids came to visit us.

Before leaving California, we purchased our mare, Clononeen Chriona, and our gelding, Bowtie. Both horses were shipped to us after we settled into our new farm. But then as the old saying goes, it's just like potato chips - you can't stop at just 1 or even 2 horses. We are now the proud owners of 6 Gypsy Vanner horses, and breed 2 Gypsy Vanner foals per year for sale. So much for our plan of renting out our excess stalls :-)

Ron also became very excited about the prospect of driving our horses, especially when our first 2 horses came to us fully trained to drive as well as ride. Ron and Bowtie now participate in various driving events including obstacles, dressage, and pleasure marathons!