Ms. Lydia Kolbas

Lydia is a transplanted Midwesterner and former Floridian. She grew up about 20 minutes from the Chicago Loop around the corner of Lake Michigan in Northwest Indiana. “I was born with the horse gene” Lydia says. She fell in love with horses on a pony ride at a County fair as a child. Her folks fostered her passion by making sure she got to ride at dude ranches on summer vacations. She also had an uncle who had horses and she would ride them with her cousins. On Sundays after church her family would drive out to the countryside and when they would pass farms that had horses running around she “would ask to stop and see if I could ride a horse and wouldn’t you know it —- every once in a while someone would come out of the barn and throw a saddle on and let me ride in their pasture! “

Lydia explains, “I’ve been an outlier in my career and an outlier in my passion with horses. “ As a female financial planner of her own company in the 1980’s, which was dominated by men, and then as a person who never had formal riding lessons, competed in shows, owned a farm or even driven a truck hauling horses she carved out a unique niche for herself. In the 1990’s she and her husband John moved to Florida and Lydia discovered dressage and polo and also Fox Hunting! She got involved in the Dressage community by scribing for shows. She also got involved exercising polo ponies — “I played a little arena polo but I mostly enjoy just being with the horses and helping to get them fit – – they are such incredible athletes!”

She and John decided to find a summer home in the foothills to escape the Florida heat. Lydia wanted to buy a condo and board her horse as she had always done. “John, on the other hand, saw the Derbyshire community and thought that would be a great place to be in a gated equestrian community“ Lydia said. They bought a beautiful lot overlooking the lake in 2016 and began building a home. After some years Lydia decided self-boarding was not for her and bought a condo in town. “I realized that this city girl is happier being a “townie”.”

They became social members with the Tryon Hounds. She found a barn that leased hunt horses and caps with them on occasion. “The Hunt has been extremely successful over 100 years and continues to thrive because the people here understand and appreciate the value of Riding to Hounds in the countryside – – the Foothills of Western North Carolina are absolutely spectacular! The fields, forest, and farmland are exquisite and of course fall is when everything comes alive in this community.” Lydia said.

By far, her favorite thing about the Tryon Hounds is the Opening Meet. “The meet is open to the public and it’s so fun to have people come and witness the Blessing of the Hounds and see us off on a Hunt! Also afterwards we started a tradition of a pitch-in as a Thanksgiving Day meal, which I find warm and inviting for members who hunted that morning and participated in the Blessing of the Hounds. Even though many of us enjoyed cooking a yummy Thanksgiving meal to nurture our family and friends, it’s also nice to enjoy the camaraderie of our fellow members on this special holiday. “

Mr. and Mrs. Tom Jackson (Vicky)

Tom began riding at the age of 4 on a $35 stockyard pony named Candy. Later, he bred Candy and at the age of 12, on Blue Blazes, an offspring of Candy’s, Tom began riding with the Loudoun Hunt outside of Leesburg, VA. where he grew up. Loudoun’s huntsman, Hunton Atwell, was famous for blowing his cow horn which is now in the Museum of Hunting at Morven Park.

In 1975 he met his future wife, Vicky, who was riding her sister’s Irish hunter for her first time fox hunting. They later married and continued fox hunting together wherever their careers took them.

They well-remembered an opening meet with the Tryon Hounds when Chip Anderson was the huntsman. “He was a wonderful story teller” Tom said, which was quite a compliment since another of the Jacksons’ passions is literature. Tom retired as President of Woodward Academy and Vicky retired as the Director of the College of Computing at Georgia Tech. Tom was asked to be a joint Master of Green Creek Hounds when they retired in 2000 and left Atlanta to move full time to their farm. Tom continued as a Master until 2012.

On one memorable hunt, they had to cross the Green River and climb up a steep muddy embankment. While Vicky’s horse Willow was game to forge ahead many other horses were not. Vicky and Willow helped coax half of the second flight from the river up the steep bank. (See photo).

Several years ago, Tom and Vicky became social members with the Tryon Hounds as they wanted to join their many friends there and their home, a converted grist mill in Gowensville, is in one of Tryon’s hunt territories. In addition to riding and local volunteer service, they are world travelers.

Valle de Bravo, MexicoSome of their best memories are of their numerous international equestrian trips. While on a mounted safari in Kenya they were charged by a bull elephant and had to swim the horses across the Mara River chock full of hippos and crocodiles. Another memorable time was when their guide in Turkey got them lost in the hoodoos of Cappadocia. One of their favorite destinations is an estancia, Los Potreros, outside of Cordoba, Argentina, where they visited for the fourth time and rode in December 2025.

When asked, with so many interests and passions, why were they drawn to foxhunting, Tom replied, “Being in the moment. It combines a love of horses and hounds, and engages all your senses.” Tom paused briefly reflecting, “…you become immersed in a rural world that is disappearing --- like a picture that’s fading.”