Empire Equestrian is situated on six acres in Castle Hayne, NC within minutes of Wilmington. Since we are a smaller facility, we are capable of having more individualized programs for our students & horses/ponies. Each stall has its own attached paddock to give horses/ponies the option of being inside or out. We only feed the highest quality of grain & hay available. We also have a 100' x 190' gra
ss riding arena conveniently located right outside of the barn. Owner/trainer Mackenzie Ring lives onsite & oversees the daily care of the horses/ponies as well as the lesson & training programs. While she is one of the younger trainers & barn owners in the area, she is very knowledgeable. She has almost 10 years of experience working in boarding facilities & caring for everything from OTTBs, show horses/ponies, to retirees. She has been riding since she was very young, but has always had a love for the hunter ring. While in middle school, she rode with Anne Sibson in Massachusetts. With Anne, she developed a solid foundation in proper equitation. When she moved to NC in high school, she began riding & working for Wonderland Farm. In the 7 years there, she became a more effective rider & began riding the green horses/ponies & tuning up lesson & sale horses. She also furthered her knowledge in the care & keeping of horses & developed her teaching skills. After her time at Wonderland, she went on to ride for O'shea Stables for a year. In that time, she continued to work with green horses/ponies, sale horses, & tune up lesson horses. She also took on two of her own projects. In the past two years, Mackenzie has successfully ran her own boarding & lesson facility. She is known for providing excellent care for both boarders & her own horses. Her lesson program caters to all levels of riders whether they wish to ride for pleasure or compete. Her show team has been successful in the local hunter shows & will be pursuing larger shows this fall.
