Riding School

Group lessons are currently available from Monday to Friday from 6:00pm until 9:00pm and Saturday and Sunday mornings.  For those interested in starting lessons at Havencrest, please email our office through the "contact" page to set up an appointment for an Assessment lesson.  This lesson is offered to new students to assess their riding abilities and includes registration, a barn tour, orientation, an overview of procedures and protocols, grooming and tacking up lesson, and a lesson designed  to assess each rider’s current level.  Each student will be allocated to an appropriate group for future lessons.  For more information on Lesson Prices please click HERE.

Students will learn to tack up, ride, put away their horses and clean their tack during every lesson.  As safety is of utmost importance at Havencrest, we ask that each student and parent carefully read our rules and barn protocols before the first lesson.  Riders must wear approved ASTM riding helmets and shoes or boots with a hard sole and a heel, and breeches or chaps.  Hair should be neatly hidden under riding hat with clips and a hair net.   For more information on Policies at Havencrest please click HERE.

Assessment Lessons & Regular Lesson Program Enrolment 

Those wishing to have an assessment lesson or to enroll in our regular lesson programs are required to fill out a Registration Form and a Waiver.  These forms are to be submitted to the Havencrest office prior to the student’s first lesson.  Riding helmets are available for the first few lessons and then students will be required to purchase their own.  For more information on purchasing the proper riding equipment please go to www.bahrsaddlery.com .

Equine Canada Rider Level Program 

Havencrest Riding Academy adheres to the Equine Canada (EC) system for Riding and Stable Management, however, we modified it somewhat by adding many of the fundamentals of Chris’ unique riding system.  We have found that although the EC rider level program covers a lot of material and gives students a well-structured baseline to follow, it does not cover a number of core riding principles that are essential to master advanced skills.  The main goal of our program is to produce well-rounded and confident riders who can go on to enjoy any level of the sport, whether it be pleasure riding or eventually high level competitive riding

This system involves up to 10 Rider levels and official testing takes place periodically throughout the year.  The official test results are sent to Equine Canada and each student who passes is granted official EC certification for his or her designated level.  This system will give our students a good idea of their current riding abilities and will give them plenty of incentive to advance to higher levels.  Many of our riders who become certified at the higher levels will be eligible for certain riding and working opportunities.

For more information on the EC Rider levels and to order handbooks please go to http://www.horse.on.ca/programs/rider_level/new_english_rider_program.html.