The Lifelong Benefits of Equestrian Summer Camps

Written By: Shya Beth

When thinking of summer camps, your mind might instantly conjure up memories of hot summer days filled with friends, ponies and new experiences. While these summers create memories that last for a lifetime, they also give benefits that range from riding skills and stable management to discipline and confidence, responsibility and so many other valuable assets. Summer camps have always been about learning and escaping day-to-day life, with the first summer camps in the late 1800s giving boys living in urban areas an experience of life on farms and building fires while camping in the woods. With around a hundred summer camps in existence in 1900, just eight years later there were over a thousand. Now, over a hundred years later, there are over 15,000 day and overnight camps attended by over 11 million children and adults annually, as reported by New York Times. It’s no wonder that there are hundreds of equestrian-themed camps, from trail riding to hunter/jumper, polo and pony camps across America.

Saddle Up

For kids attending a horse or pony camp, it can be a dream come true. From rising at dawn to spending all day at the barn, riding different horses, making horsey friends and improving their in the ground skills to getting their first experiences in the saddle, camps are largely the first step for many future riders.

Starting in the morning, most camps teach their students from the ground up: Kids first learn how to greet, brush, tack up and behave

around their horse, leading to knowledge on responsibility before getting to the “fun part” of actually riding. From there, the responsibility of not only taking care of an animal, but working with them and giving them signals to control them brings forward a new level of responsibility that most children may not be accustomed to.

Camps offer a concentrated learning environment for children already familiar with riding and the equestrian way of life. Here, children can enhance their skills by riding every day and learning more about horse care than from a once or twice a week lesson, as well as meeting potential friends whose interest in horses matches their own. From singular lessons to group activities and working together in the barn, teamwork is something that is paramount to life at a horse summer camp.

Kids that get the opportunity to ride at horse shows also can get an added benefit from a riding camp. Everyone who competes would be lying if they said they didn’t get a case of the jitters or “show nerves’’ during at least their first show, and riding during camp is a similar experience. It can be the perfect way to get the feeling of a horse show - before actually attending one. Plus, some camps actually host their own shows, and it could be the perfect way for kids to earn their first ribbon!

Children will realize how to recognize each other’s differences, and how to adapt and work together. Being around horses can teach children that not everything works out the way they think, or the way things are planned, and that an empathetic mindset coupled with resilience and hard work can make their goals a reality.

Something else that is often left out of camp benefits is the physical fitness aspect. From mucking out stalls and groundwork to the actual riding itself, riding demands physical fitness that differs from other sports. Many muscles are stretched and in action - the core, arms, shoulders, legs and hands. After a tiring first day, kids can expect to build endurance, strength and flexibility during camp, and end up in a better place both physically and mentally. Another section of equestrian skills that benefit regular life is the art of focusing - riding requires many commands and body movements that may feel challenging to remember all at once, but as the “muscle memory” is built up, kids will find it easier and easier until it is second nature.

Speaking of nature, camp not only provides an outlet for being around animals, but for being submerged in the natural world as well. Many camps not only teach inside the riding ring, but go for trail rides in the woods and ride throughout the rolling fields, deserts or mountains, depending on where your camp is located.

A Detox From The Day-To-Day Life

Now, perhaps more than in the 1900s when they first started, camps can provide a muchneeded escape from reality while still being a place to learn. With over two years of COVID-19, masks, social distancing and everything else we are all too familiar with, camps can provide a healthy social environment for children to enjoy and learn to thrive. Not online, through an app or website - but by old-fashioned, physical play and communion.

If a child is feeling shy and timid, going to a horse camp can help them find confidence within themselves. In addition to building self-esteem and confidence, children can go through the growth of building character by the hard work that comes with horses and the stable yard. Beyond that, kids also get to know their horses on a deeper level, learning how to build a personal and empathic connection with horses that easily transforms into other areas of their life.

The social aspect of summer camps doesn’t just begin and end with fellow campers. Camp Counselors, usually in their twenties, provide a wonderful role model for kids, both on and off the horse. Essentially an older version of how most kids would love to see themselves — as skilled riders and well-rounded people — they can be a real-world inspiration and influence just as much as the camp activities and the horses themselves.

An Added Benefit For Riding Instructors

Summer Camps also can be beneficial for riding instructors, as they offer a great introduction of potential new students. Parents who are begged relentlessly by their “horse crazy” kids could see a sign for a local horse camp, and if their child enjoys their time at the stable, the instructor could end up with new students who want to continue their riding skills. Even if children only attend for summer, this avenue can provide an extra source of income and give horses more love and attention by horse crazy kids.

All in all, going to an equestrian camp is a life-changing experience that can be a fun memory to recall on, experiences to learn and enhance children’s lives, and just maybe, the eye-opening moment that a child realizes that the horse world is the one they want to reside in.

About the author:

Shya Beth is a rider, artist writer and all around horse lover based in New Jersey, USA. Whether creating horses in art, riding in the fields on her farm or writing about horses, horses are a huge aspect of her life and inspire her every day.