Mrs. David Ahrenholz (Jeanne) - President and Field Master

Jeanne wanted a pony for her 11th birthday (didn’t we all?). Her father presented her with Ms. Bonnie Bell – a 16 hand Appendix Quarter Horse. The saddle she was given weighed 60 pounds. Jeanne couldn’t reach high enough to put it on the mare’s back. Determined, she learned how to throw herself up on the mare and ride her bareback. She became so agile she broke the girl's high jump record at school.

While she gave riding lessons while in high school and college she decided she wanted to major in merchandising. She didn’t want to make money off horses. “They are so special and sacred to me, “Jeanne explained. Instead she ended up buying a tack store for 10 cents on the dollar. She made the store a success and rode both English and Western, later showing Morgan horses. Soon dressage became her thing and really still is. She has earned her USDF (US Dressage Federation) silver medal and served two terms as USDF Regional Director. In May she and her horse Paxton joined the USDF Century Club by competing in a dressage show at the combined age of 100.

Foxhunting intrigues her but “Not everybody can foxhunt,” she was told and it took awhile to wrangle an invitation to hunt.  She had shown Morgan horses in a ring, done advanced dressage, and evented but knew she would have to give up some of the technical control. She succeeded,  joining the Lakeland Hounds in the Twin Cities Metro of Minnesota. Because of their small territory in the suburbs they were a drag hunt. She eventually became a joint MFHA for the Lakeland Hounds. One of her favorite memories was viewing a live fox during the drag hunt. She and Ned, her horse, followed the fox over two tricky creek crossings and saw the fox go to ground. She and the Huntsman were the only two riders still with the hounds.

She was introduced to Dr. David Ahrenholz  by a riding friend and they eventually married.  After retirement they decided to leave the snow and mosquitoes behind and purchased a beautiful farm in Landrum, SC. They both began hunting with the Green Creek Hounds and would cap on occasion with the Tryon Hounds. They soon reversed course hunting full time with Tryon.

When Beth Blackwell became Huntsman for Tryon and brought some of her hounds to Tryon, Jeanne swears they have never had a dry day since. She and her husband Dave enjoy the interesting members from various states and countries from all over the world that have a variety of backgrounds, cultures and experiences. They feel that is what makes the Tryon Hounds so inclusive and unique. And of course the winters are are wonderful!

Ms. Beth Blackwell, Huntsman

“Fox hunting is like fiction, everyone is writing their own story," claims Beth. "The day is never the same for any two people. Everyone has their own feelings and memories. One person may think everything went wrong. Someone else may believe it was the best hunt ever. It’s an eyewitness sport. You have a window of experience, your own little reality.”

Beth was a hunter/jumper trainer who was very involved in the show world. She had a show barn for kids. She was also riding some young horses for Herb Schneider who was head of the riding program at Auburn University. One day Herb asked if she would help him take some of his Basset Hounds out to hunt rabbits. Watching those dogs changed Beth’s life.

“When I watched the Bassets do their thing, what they were born for, I was hooked,” said Beth. Herb became her mentor. Soon she left the show ring behind and began foxhunting. She then fell madly in love with the foxhounds too.

Beth has hunted all over the place. Her first hunt was whipping-in to the Hardaway Hounds in Alabama. After a couple of seasons there it was Howard County Maryland, Radnor, PA , Big Sky Hounds Montana, Tennessee Valley, Red Mountain in NC, and DeLa Brooke in southern Maryland. When she was foxhunting with the Tennessee Valley Hunt, two of the Masters, the Whippers-In, and Beth took a pack of hounds (15 couples), 8 horses, the Bassets and joined up with 18 different hunts. They hunted with clubs in Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, and Arizona. The latter was wide open with no cover but very dry which makes it more difficult for the hounds to pick up scent. They viewed a lot of coyotes and offered up an epic adventure as they could see the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

After working with several hunts Beth decided it was time to settle down and find the perfect hunt club that she could make her home. The Tryon Hounds had everything that Beth was looking for. “They had extremely strong leadership,” Beth said. She was impressed with Bonnie Lingerfelt’s knowledge of foxhunting and hounds. 

“I was struck with Bonnie's understanding of the hounds both as working animals and individual needs and personalities,” she explained. “The kennel property was well laid out for an efficient working environment. The Board was organized and the finances were stable. The Riding Members as well as the Social Members seemed down to earth and friendly. The whole package was exceptional.”

In turn, Bonnie was excited when Beth said she needed to see the hounds before she could accept their offer. “No one, not one Huntsman ever asked that question before, “said Bonnie. That question sealed the deal for Bonnie and Tryon’s hounds won Beth over.

Dean McKinney enjoyed riding First Flight behind Beth Blackwell. “With Beth, everything is perfect. You see everything if you keep up. Beth’s hounds are so well trained you can almost always control them using just your voice.”  As Beth said, “It’s all about the hounds.”

Find out how many of her favorite fox hounds sleep in Beth’s bed in another weekly Spotlight on Tryon Hound Members.