About Us

Oak Leaf Farm is located in Mebane, North Carolina. Conveniently located near the I-40/85 split in Orange County, close to Chapel Hill, Durham, and Burlington. Oak Leaf Farm has been in operation since 1995 and is owned and run by Susan Hart. Susan has been passionate about horses her whole life. She started riding as a youth, taking lessons in the hunt seat style in Avon, CT. After a brief sabbatical in college she started riding again, studying and competing locally in the Hunter and Jumper arena in Maryland. Since her lessons were mainly focused on the jumps and not the flatwork in between the fences, Susan decided to broaden her knowledge and sought out dressage master Helene Asmis of Dedication Farm in Sykesville, Maryland. With Helene's guidance, Susan gained more knowledge and technical skills in the fine art of riding. Helene Asmis, daughter of Col. Heinrich Asmis, studied in Europe with Egon von Niendorff and Major Paul Stecken. Susan became a long time student of Ms.Asmis and learned the art of feel, timing, lightness, and communication while gaining technical skills in Classical Dressage. Susan was introduced to the Baroque style of riding that emphasized Ground work, Long Lining, Lateral movements and Self carriage. Susan competed successfully in Halter Classes, Long Lining, and under saddle in Dressage as well as Jumping. Susan later took her studies a step further and studied Natural Horsemanship to gain a better understanding of the nature of the horse and how to gain a horse's trust and respect through a horse's natural language. Susan's current interests are in riding as a performance art and passing on her unique knowledge of equestrian art to her students.