I met Lola when I was helping her mom find a place in Dripping Springs and learned more about her ranchette and horses! I was growing to learn how many “horse people” were in Dripping and wanted to interview her and let you all meet her! She loves horses and has such a compassionate heart for animals! She rescued several of her horses and I loved getting to pet them all!
Meet Lola!!
Hey Lola! Tell us more about yourself…
I grew up overseas, mainly throughout Africa, as my parents were both diplomats. I followed in their footsteps and now also work as a diplomat myself.
What brought you to Dripping Springs?
I was working in Mexico in 2018 and visited Texas for the first time and fell in love with San Antonio. I loved it so much I invested there and lived there for a little while during the pandemic. While in San Antonio, a dear friend visited me and we decided to explore the hill country. We ended up booking an Airbnb in Dripping for two nights. While we explored everything the town offered, I noticed how much it reminded me of Kenya, where my family lived for many years and where I graduated high school from.
Kenya is the most beautiful country. I vowed that one day I would live in Dripping and fulfill my dream of owning land, having a huge garden, lots of pets, and horses. Ironically about a year later, I ended up buying in Dripping very close to the Airbnb we stayed in and now I have four horses! I love this city more than any other I’ve ever lived in.
What do you love about living here?
The people, the sky, the open land, the small town vibes, wineries, farms, and hidden gems, Dripping is just such a beautiful place.
What does your ideal weekend in Dripping Springs look like?
A lesson at the barn in the morning, lunch at Summer Revival, Dripping Springs Farmer’s Market, and a chill day at home hanging with my horses and doing home renovation projects 🙂 OR heading to a fun winery in the area.
What is your favorite place to go out to eat?
I am a strong supporter of Summer Revival since they opened. Such a cool concept, beautiful wine, amazing owners and staff, and just the perfect example of a small business thriving in Dripping with such a strong community. We also love 12Fox for a great local outdoor hangout, Hawk’s Shadow winery with its amazing hill country views, Sidecar for a cute, small town experience, Parmeson Tasting Room for their amazing Sauvignon Blanc, and Natkhat for delicious Indian food.
Tell us about your horses…
Bubba, an Andalusian Lusitano, is 22 in February. The previous owner of my house, Barbara (who has since passed, RIP) left him for me as she knew it has always been my dream and she was moving across country. He is a dog trapped in a horse’s body. Ritchie, 19, is an American Quarter Horse, and he is Bubba’s best friend who used to help train little kids in beginning riding at Riding Club of Austin. His prior owner trains horses at a barn in Dripping called Upland Farm and specializes in Dressage. Our two miniature horses, Penny and Prim, are rescues saved from a sad fate of slaughter.
My partner Mark convinced me (he didn’t have to try hard) we needed to adopt the sweet babies! An amazing non-profit called Sweet Mercies Rescue Ranch saves horses every month from these saddening, inhumane auctions which push 80,000+ horses a year to horse slaughter in Mexico and Canada.
Sweet Mercie’s does amazing work, work I hope to emulate one day. Penny is a stubborn sassy princess and Prim is a sweet, shy, but extremely intelligent blue eyed girl. These girls are both almost two and give the old men a run for their money.
Have you always ridden horses?
I started riding in 1997 when my parents work took us to Haiti. I practiced jumping and spent almost every day after school at a barn. I loved it there. The horse I cared for was a beautiful mare called Mata Hari. Three years later we moved and I stopped riding just because it was so expensive in our next location – Belgium.
In 2020, in the midst of the pandemic and after a bad breakup, I was traveling through Boerne and drove past a barn that inspired me to take a lesson again, all these years later. From there, I started riding at the San Antonio Polo Club with an amazing trainer called Ashley Hammill. Since I was older and scared of breaking my bones, I decided to try dressage instead of jumping. I immediately fell in love with dressage as it is all about training and developing a true connection with the horse. I’ve been training in dressage since!
My current trainer in Dripping is named Elise Wood, at Dancing Oaks. She is fantastic and I feel so lucky to have met her! I met her while shopping at HEB Dripping shortly after moving to town and saw her wearing equestrian clothes, so while in the dairy aisle, asked if she knew of a good barn and turned out she was a trainer – an amazing one at that!
What are good ways to meet other horse people in Dripping?
Besides HEB, I suggest Facebook and just talking to people at your current barn or driving around and spotting arenas. I have found that the horse community is a small one and most people know one another.
What are some notable stables or training facilities in the area?
What advice do you have for someone moving into the area who has horses?
Reach out to some local barns and ask questions. Horse people are amazing people and always stick together and help one another. I’d be sure that wherever you are moving you clearly understand the deed restrictions.
If you want to board horses, for example, ensure that is allowed on your land. Also, several places have restrictions on the number of horses, so it can be challenging but it is really important to know in advance. Lauren can help you with this!
How can we follow you on social media?
@lolabarrow on IG. My IG is primarily dedicated to horse content. I started focusing on my IG account when I became a new horse mom. I had never lived a “country” life and I had zero clue what I was doing and I wanted to share that with others who might be experiencing something similar as new horse owners.
Looking for more info on “Horse People” in Dripping Springs? Watch this youtube video below and see Lola’s adorable horses in it!
I love meeting the locals in Dripping Springs! There are people from all over the world who move here and are drawn to the natural beauty and small town charm.
Thinking of moving to Dripping Springs Texas? I’m a local real estate agent and would be happy to help you buy or sell real estate in this area! There is such a vibrant scene of new businesses, unique people and fun things to do making Dripping a hot spot for people seeking adventure and a unique lifestyle. Call or email me today to get started! 512-569-8480 or laurenclark@magnoliarealty.com
Lauren Clark is a passionate and driven Realtor living in Dripping Springs, Texas and serving the entire Austin and Hill Country area. She marries her 21 years of creative marketing skills with the real estate industry to bring you the best experience possible when buying or selling real estate in the Dripping Springs and surrounding areas.
