Hallinan's love of horses was cemented at age 12 when her father gave her riding lessons at Far West Farms in Calabasas for Christmas. "I rode at Far West with Nick, Jenny and Kost Karazissis for about seven years and leased a wonderful horse named Kodi."
After the deaths of her father and Kodi, Hallinan took a break to regroup. She studied at Meredith Manor International Equestrian Centre in West Virginia and later signed on as a working student at Hansen Dam Equestrian Center under Kevin McGinn. Two years later she moved to Nina Heller's Summerwood Stables in Shadow Hills, where she completed her barn management and teaching apprenticeship.
"No one is born knowing how to ride or how to behave around a horse. I remember trainers losing their patience with me and stomping out of the lesson like I was failing on purpose. As an instructor, you can never put your own expectation on your riders. It's their lesson, not yours. If they aren't ready for something you want to teach, you have to put your wants behind theirs. A riding lesson always turns into some kind of therapy so you have to really listen to your student's wants and needs."
