MH Equine Summer Camp

MH Equine Summer Camp includes daily private riding lessons with 25 minutes of one-on-one riding time with an instructor and riding instruction in the English Riding style with a focus on equitation and proper use of hands, legs, and body position. Campers groom horses every day, learn safe handling of horses, and learn horse care, including feeding, grooming, tacking, and horse terminology such as colors, heights, markings, body parts, and riding styles. They also play games, take part in contests, make horse-related arts and crafts, paint and bathe horses, watch professional riders train, ride, and jump horses, and participate in a horse show at the end of the week, followed by an End-of-Week Party and receiving a T-shirt.

• Ages: 5–12 years old
• Schedule: Monday through Thursday, 9:00 am–1:00 pm per four-day session
• Price: $550 per session

MH Equine Summer Camp is part of a broader program that also offers Summer Camps, Winter Camps, Horse-Themed Birthday Parties, a Saturday beginner Jump Start Program, and Pony Rides. The program uses a variety of horses and ponies that are used to working with children, and Hayden Riding School operates with a variety of horses and ponies available for lessons and for lease, with participating riders experiencing trickle down benefits from higher level programs. As sessions fill up, families may request to be placed on a waiting list.

The camp is led by a team that includes Mickey Hayden (Owner and Head Trainer, winning trainer for over 30 years), April Watson (Manager/Bookkeeper), Estella Lindsey (Trainer/Instructor), Cameron Young (Instructor/Camp Lead Supervisor), Isabel Jagerman (Riding Instructor), Brook Pineda (Camp Instructor), and Lane Clarke (Grand Prix Rider, Trainer, and Instructor). Mickey Hayden has been Head Trainer since 1979 and has over three decades as a top winning trainer, and the barn has operated as a full-service show barn for over three decades. Lane Clarke is a Grand Prix and World Cup ranked rider and a trainer and instructor.

Mickey Hayden’s riders and horses have earned numerous championships and honors, including multiple Grand Prix wins such as the $30,000 Markel 1.40M Blenheim Grand Prix (2014), the $40,000 Los Gatos Luxury Cars Grand Prix (2014), the $55,000 Del Mar World Cup Qualifier (2012), and the $30,000 Blenheim June Classic I Grand Prix (2011), as well as high jump wins like the 6'9" High Jump at Del Mar Nationals (2010). Additional results include team medals such as Team Silver at the North American Junior Championships and U.S. National Junior Championships in Lexington, KY (2010), Team Bronze at the North American Young Rider 1.50M (2012), and regional and year-end championships including the 2013 PCHA Low Adult Amateur Year-End Champion and Regional Champion and Team Gold in USHJA 1.10M Jumpers (2013).

The stated mission of the program is that it is “more than a business” and is described as a place for horsemen and their families to come together, excel, and create a fulfilling lifestyle, with an emphasis that while excellence is always sought in the sport, it is the people and the horses that matter, and that the program is fortunate to be surrounded by good people and good staff who make a difference. Hayden Clarke Sport Horses partners with the Nellie Gail Equestrian Center each year to share their passion for horses with over 175 new camp students.

Last updated March 14, 2026.