Peters Property — La Tierra Nueva

Just beyond the gate house, on a coveted flat parcel of land in the horse-friendly La Tierra Nueva neighborhood, sits the home of equestrian Julia Peters. Peters knew one day she would have her dream home with a stable for her horses. In 2016, that dream became a reality. “It’s my dream and my sanity,” she says of her set-up. “I don’t take a bit of it for granted.”

Peters spends her days as a partner at Avalon Trust, a local financial advisory and wealth management firm, but her nights and weekends are dedicated to her horses: Bruce, Gaucho and Brava. Gaucho is a Crillo that Peters imported from Uruguay. The handsome bay is the one she chooses for trail rides. Brava is a rescue from The Horse Shelter and Bruce is her competition horse. Peters competes in western pleasure and hunter under saddle competitions. Western pleasure involves competing at the walk, trot and lope along the perimeter of an arena. The horses are judged on their movement and disposition. Hunter under saddle is a similar competition, but English-style riding on flat ground, without jumping. Peters’ passion for these events takes her to various states throughout much of the year. “I’m gone two weekends each month,” she says, “I only take November and December off.”It’s understandable that Peters would want her horses close by. With the help of Holly Matt of Pegasus Design Group, Peters made the decision to position the stable close to the main house. She can easily check on the horses and feed them. “It takes me five minutes to feed in the morning and then I’m out the door,” she says.

When pulling in the driveway for the first time, visitors may find it difficult to distinguish which dwelling is for the homeowners and which is for the horses. The green pitch-roofed stucco structures are similar in appearance. “She aligned it with the home,” says Peters about Matt’s vision for the stable.

Peters initially thought she wanted a center-aisled barn and certain other features, but Matt explained they would not be ideal in Santa Fe’s arid, often windy climate. “I had something entirely different in mind [at first],” Peters acknowledges.

Matt considered Peters’ wishes and after a bit of back and forth, they designed the stable and tack room to coordinate with the existing home and guest house. The resulting design was a somewhat enclosed area that not only looks inviting and beautiful, but also functions as a wind barrier. 

Matt convinced Peters to install a bathroom and small kitchenette in the tack room, where Peters’ first childhood saddle hangs on a rack alongside the saddle belonging to the father of her life partner, Seth Graves. The senior Graves’ saddle is the first one that local silversmith and saddle maker Clint Mortensen ever made. Of Seth’s father, Peters explains, “He was a wilderness biologist for the State of New Mexico and did backcountry riding to count bighorn sheep.”  

Peters’ assortment of horse bits (a metal device that attaches to a bridle and helps direct the horse by its mouth) is fashionably displayed above the saddles on S-hooks positioned along a wrought-iron rod. “I got the idea on Pinterest,” she says.

The entire stable took around six months to build, which was slightly longer than Peters anticipated. She says it was well worth the wait, though. “The contractor completed the work under budget, and everything is really well constructed.”

Peters can now focus on what she loves best, riding and competing. Her goal is to qualify in any discipline for the American Quarter Horse Association World Show, held in Oklahoma City. Having already scored well in several previous shows, Peters is on her way to accomplishing her goal. “Work is what I do; this [horses and riding] is who I am.”