One Year Later: Gathering Farm Remembers and Rebuilds

The new Gathering Farm indoor on a sunny February morning. Photo by Abby Powell. The new Gathering Farm indoor on a sunny February morning. Photo by Abby Powell.

It’s a sunny but chilly February day in Hamilton, Massachusetts. Gathering Farm is a buzz with boarders tacking up their mounts for a morning ride and the barn staff are doggedly going about business as usual. Horses bundled up in their turnout blankets happily soak up some of the warm sun’s rays as they doze in their paddocks. It feels like a normal late-winter day, but there is one key difference between present day and this time last year: there’s no snow in sight.

The fact that there is no snow on the ground is in stark contrast to early 2015, which saw over 70 total inches of snowfall in Boston and the surrounding area between late January and throughout February. The record-breaking winter wreaked havoc on farms around Massachusetts as the immense weight of the snow caused several indoor arenas and barns to collapse. Tony and Leslie Bartolotti’s Gathering Farm was one of those farms and they suffered the loss of their historic indoor arena.

Gathering Farm was home to the USET eventing team in 1970’s and the indoor arena itself was built in 1979. Leslie recalls the gamut of emotions she experienced in the immediate aftermath of the wreckage: grief, loss, guilt, anger, shock, and immense thankfulness that no one was hurt. Now one year later, they have rebuilt and moved forward.

The riding arena at Gathering Farm collapsed last night. Firefighters were dispatched Tuesday at 7:46 p.m. Nobody was in…

Posted by Town of Hamilton on Wednesday, February 11, 2015

In the weeks that followed the collapse of the indoor, people with memories of the farm – former vets, farriers, rider, and trainers – came out of the woodwork and stopped by to mourn the loss of the historic structure and offer support. It took a few weeks of soul-searching for the Bartolottis to decide that rebuilding the structure from scratch would be the way to go, and another few months to form and finalize a plan.

“We stayed very much focused on our end-game: rebuilding and keeping the business going.” said Leslie.

Construction on the new indoor began in August and slowly but surely came together. It was important to Leslie to choose a company with equestrian experience, so she selected Chip Cheston of Tasks Unlimited, GC. “I’ve ridden in a lot of rings, but I’ve never thought about how high the windows needed to be or how large the door openings should be to accommodate a tractor.” said Leslie, “We needed some hand-holding so it was great to have their expertise!”

“We also want to thank Mike Waidlich of East-West Arena Construction for our fantastic IGK footing,” said Babette Lenna, Gathering Farm’s resident trainer, “It is the best dust-free footing I have ever ridden on.”

Gathering Farm Indoor Construction

The steel frame begins to take shape. Photo via Gathering Farm’s Facebook page.

In the meantime, operations at the farm had to continue. The farm’s two trainers Babette Lenna and Asheley Ireland had a busy training, teaching, and competition schedules planned.

“I really applaud Babette and Asheley for riding, teaching, and training through everything,” Leslie said. “Babette jumped through hoops to keep us going.”

The farm’s single outdoor arena saw a lot of use over the summer and fall. Fortunately, it seemed that Mother Nature took pity on the Northeast after the hellacious winter. The area was blessed with a relatively dry season which meant there weren’t many days lost to poor footing outdoors. As the season wore on, the lack of rain did cause some challenges with hard ground, but the unseasonably warm fall – and the giant outdoor lights (the kind you might see at a football game) that Babette rented – made it possible to ride outside well into November.

Gathering Farm Indoor

A boarder enjoys the arena on a bright Saturday morning. Photo by Abby Powell.

“We ended up being able to make lemonade out of lemons,” Leslie said. Riding in the wind and a rain and while horses were running around in paddocks neighboring the outdoor ring was a lesson in riding through distraction. “I think it sharpened everybody’s skills!”

Gathering Farm’s eventing team did end up getting a later start to the competition season, but Leslie’s daughters Grace and Lena have also been able to find silver linings to being indoor-less for a season. Grace said she felt better prepared at shows since being forced to ride without mirrors all the time, and Lena was thankful for all the trailering practice they got as they trucked out to ride – Ferial Johnson of Ledyard Farm in the neighboring town of Wenham generously offered up the use of her indoor area to the Gathering Farm crew.

“2015 is a year we will never forget and it will still take us time to recover,” said Babette, “However we are an amazing group at Gathering and are reminded everyday how luck we are!”

The new indoor was completed the first week of December – just in time for the first inclement weather of the season to hit. There is still work to do yet – some site work and staining still needs completion — but everyone at the farm is now able to enjoy shelter from the biting February wind as they ride. The new steel structure should put everyone’s minds at ease for many winters to come.

“We joke that it is probably the strongest structure on all of the North Shore,” said Babette.

“I’m so proud of how the barn stuck together,” Leslie said. “It has been worth the wait and an exercise in keeping things in perspective. I think we’ve built something to stay.”

Gathering Farm Indoor

Lena, Leslie, and Grace Bartolotti in front of the farm’s new addition. Photo by Abby Powell.

“Something that really hit home for me last year was how much of a family a barn is,” Asheley added, “It’s more than just riding.”

Other Massachusetts farms that also lost indoor arenas or barns in last year’s storms have moved forward as well. Dry Water Farm in Stoughton, Rainbow’s End Stable in North Attleboro, Letter Perfect Farm in Uxbridge, and Highland Hill Farm in Berlin have all rebuilt their indoors as well. Flying High Stables moved their operation from Andover to a different facility in Hamilton.

“We just picked up the pieces and moved forward,” said Leslie, “Which I think is a very ‘eventing’ attitude and it’s what helped us.”