About Horses of the Sun

Horses of the Sun is an equestrian facility located approximately 25 min. south- east of Ottawa, the capital city of Canada. We are a riding school, a Voltige training center, an archery center (traditional foot archery and mounted archery), a nature education facility, but first and foremost, we are purveyors and educators of life skills.
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Horses of the Sun opened its doors in Vars (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) in September of 1997. We offer weekly classes and summer horse adventures for children (7 years of age and older), teenagers, and adults who are interested in learning riding, the sport of Voltige, traditional archery, mounted archery, about nature, and life skills.

Sonja Koch and Uwe Schneider are the Owners and Operators of Horses of the Sun. Sonja is the principal instructor and brings more than 40 yrs of riding, voltige, energy work, and teaching experience.

Both Sonja and Uwe have a Police Screening for the Vulnerable Sector.

Sonja Koch

Owner and Operator

 Sonja is the owner / operator and principal instructor at Horses of the Sun and her mission is provide a safe and fun places for horses and people alike. Her calm and relaxed personality makes you feel comfortable and right at home.
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She is a certified riding instructor by German FN and the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association.

​Her professional achievements include:

• German Riding Award – Silver
• Competitive experience: International dressage, jumping, and Voltige, elite gymnastics, and ballroom dance
• International Voltige clinician
• Ballroom and Latin dance teacher and Choreographer
• Studied circus arts with Cirque du Soleil
• International rider, horse trainer and clinician
• Recipient of the 2005 Dr. Dan Offord Award of Excellence
• Reiki Grand Master
• Certified Herbalist

With over 40 years of experience teaching riding and Voltige (She was Canada’s first Voltige instructor) Sonja's focus is to establish a trusting and strong relationship between the horse and the riders. Her unique teaching style allows students to be themselves and learn at their own pace while gaining confidence and skill. She's a patient teacher with the ability to simplify complex concepts with ease.

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Uwe Schneider

Owner and Operator

German-Canadian horse and archery enthusiast and owner/operator at Horses of the Sun Uwe Schneider has put his heart and soul into creating a safe and fun environment for kids and adults alike to learn to ride, voltige, do archery or experience nature.

Uwe's talents are diverse, he has a M.Sc. in Environmental Chemistry and Toxicology, worked for 20 years at Environment Canada and is a course conductor and water quality educator.  When he's not on horseback or the archery range you can find him in the woods clearing a new trail or in his workshop building a cool new toy.

An accomplished voltigeur he won many awards:  

• German Voltige Award – Silver
• International Competitive Voltige (3 years Individual)
• Voltige Champion of South Germany

​Uwe is the primary archery instructor at Horses of the Sun and teaches with passion and an unparalleled depth of knowledge. With over 35 years of experience as voltige instructor and training horses for voltige, Uwe also supports Sonja to give your kids the confidence and skills they need to start their equestrian journey.