Bucks County Courier Times
With a last name like Belmont, one would expect Kevin and Rebecca to have a passion for horses.
Although their name has no relation to the Belmont Stakes, the third leg of horse racing`s Triple Crown, Kevin and Rebecca Belmont do know a thing or two about horses.
Last Wednesday, the Belmonts secured Pineway Horse Farm in Middletown as their own. They paid $1.2 million for the 15-acre farm and plan a grand-opening celebration this fall.
Before making their purchase, the couple boarded a horse at Pineway for 21/2 years. While tending to the horse earlier this year, Rebecca Belmont was approached by a gentleman who thought she was the farm`s owner. He made her an offer for demolition. She went home and made the decision with her husband that saving the farm was something they were interested in.
"We always wanted our own horse farm," Rebecca Belmont said. "It`s just that we went from wanting a four-stall horse farm to [getting] a 66-stall horse farm."
The Belmonts said their purchase was made as a business deal, instead of as an agricultural or farming deal. Because horse farms do not produce a crop that could be carried off the farm, like milk or eggs, they are not recognized by the state as actual farms. Instead, horse farms provide a service and, therefore, are not eligible for grant money. So the Belmonts used loan money to help defray the farm`s cost.
But no matter what the cost, the Belmonts are excited about their new investment.
"The history of it being here is just so great that we couldn`t imagine it not being here," Kevin Belmont said.
The couple`s eventual goal is to establish Pineway Farms as a site to board, condition and care for horses, and train riders of any level of experience. They would like to start a moderately priced riding program with levels of achievement, similar to karate`s belt system.
While Kevin Belmont doesn`t have a lot of horse experience, his wife and Pineway Farms have rich histories.
The farm is more than 300 years old. Rebecca Belmont has spoken to dozens of senior citizens who used to ride at Pineway.
"When you go into town and mention Pineway, [people] almost always have a connection to us," she said. "You could be talking to an 80-year-old lady who says, `I used to ride there.` This is a landmark."
Rebecca Belmont spent her earliest days on a horse farm. Her father was a crop farmer. She spent seven years in Charlotte, N.C., working in her other passion - NASCAR. One of the last racing teams she worked for was with former Pocono 500 winner Kyle Petty as an assistant. While in Charlotte, Rebecca Belmont toured with Petty`s daughter, an award-winning horse rider. Charlotte is also where she met her husband, a former stock car racer.
"We traded in horse power for another kind of horse power," Kevin Belmont said.
In addition to his racing past, Kevin Belmont also is an established sign painter and graphic artist. He has detailed everything from cars and planes to mailboxes. He said owning and operating Pineway will not keep him from that work.
"People have this reservation that when we bought this farm I wouldn`t be lettering anymore and that`s not true," he said. "It`s a passion of mine and I could never let it go."
Equipped with dozens of modern amenities, Pineway is top of the line. The farm has five stall barns capable of boarding nearly 70 horses in all. The main barn is of post-and-beam construction, dating back to the farm`s origin. Pineway also boasts an indoor arena where horses can run or train regardless of time of day or season, and an outdoor lighted track. A jogging machine for conditioning came as part of the deal, too.
The Belmonts agreed that under their direction Pineway`s history and tradition would remain intact.
"Our desire is to keep it the way it was operated under the previous owner," Kevin Belmont said. "We`re going to be looking better and getting better daily."
