Meet Our Instructors

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Melissa established Transitions in 2013. She is a Grand Prix Level Dressage rider and a USDF Bronze and Silver Medalist. Melissa is a successful instructor/competitor and often travels across the U.S. teaching all disciplines and levels. She has been blessed enough to travel internationally teaching clinics and lessons in Australia, France, Canada, Spain and soon Italy. Her training methods are a combination of classical/ natural horsemanship. Melissa toured for 6 years with the “World Famous Lipizzan Stallion Show,” performing throughout various parts of the world in front of as many as 15,000 people! Since 2006 Melissa has performed and competes with a large group of horses mostly stallions of different breeds such as Friesians, Andalusians, Lusitanos, Hanoverians, Arabians, a paint mare, and more. Her “signature horses” have been featured in virtually every horse magazine, several T.V. shows. Melissa has been performing with the famous Majestic Friesian Stallions who starred in a big movie titled Albion: The Enchanted Stallion, honored to become a Breyer horse and the list goes on!


Melissa's training methods are a combination of Classical Dressage and Natural Horsemanship. She is known for getting the most out of her students and horses by creating a fun, laid-back, yet effective environment. Melissa is an extremely diverse trainer/clinician/competitor and offers beginner to advanced riding instruction and training in Dressage, Jumping, English and Western Pleasure/Equitation, Driving, Western Dressage, Reining, Natural Horsemanship and Trick Training.   



Melissa Ashcraft

Owner and Head Instructor

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Level 3 Instructor

​Nicole Miller​

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Level 1 Instructor



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 Nicole was gifted her first pony at 2 years old and, with that gift, a love of horses was born. ​Growing up on a farm in rural Indiana only cultivated that passion, and she now uses her experience to foster that same feeling in children.


 Nicole is the leader of our Pony Club and Junior Rider programs: our groups for young children ages 4-7 and 8 and up, respectively. With these programs she educates children on the care of horses as well as basic riding skills.