MANE’s Mission

To provide safe and effective therapeutic horseback riding opportunities to children and adults in the Tri-County region.

MANE’s Story

Watch the short video below to learn more about MANE.

MANE’s Facilities

MANE is located on 44 beautiful acres on Wallahatchie Road in East Montgomery. The facilities include:

  • Large and small outdoor riding arena
  • 15-stall barn with indoor riding arena and mechanical lift
  • Indoor, outdoor and patio viewing areas
  • 3-acre state-of-the-art sensory integration trail
  • Enclosed round pen
  • Indoor classroom, meeting room, and office building

MANE’s facilities were specifically designed with therapeutic programs in mind to accommodate riders with all types of disabilities, as well as families and large school groups.

Meet the Team

Tiffany Atkinson – Director & Instructor

Tiffany Atkinson is a life-long equine enthusiast with over 15 years of Marketing and Management experience and a resident of Central Alabama. She graduated from Alabama Christian Academy (1996) and obtained her Bachelor Degree in Marketing from Auburn University of Montgomery (2001), while helping to manage a premier Quarter Horse show barn and breeding facility. After graduation, Tiffany served as the Marketing Coordinator for Knology, creating local marketing and public relation campaigns that helped to grow and strengthen Knology’s community relations as well as their phone, cable and internet sales in both the Montgomery and Prattville areas. After 3 years with Knology, Tiffany founded AA Advertising, where she purchased and created advertising campaigns for Ben Atkinson Motors a Ford, Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep dealership located in Tallassee Alabama.

Although Atkinson has lived her entire life within a twenty-mile radius of Pike Road, she has traveled all over the USA showing and competing in equestrian events. She has enjoyed a successful show career with many Regional and World titles through the Arabian Horse Association, the Palomino Horse Breeders Association, and the American Quarter Horse Association. In 2005, she began competing in United States Team Roping Association events all over the Southeast and Texas. Tiffany received her PATH Intl. Instructor certification in June of 2016 and enjoys teaching MANE’s youngest riders the joys of horseback riding.

Abby Claybrook – Associate Director & Instructor

Abby Houchin graduated from Virginia Tech in May of 2014 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Development and a minor in Equine Science. To supplement her education, Abby interned at a large therapeutic riding program, Healing Strides of Virginia, under the guidance of Carol Young. Abby then obtained her PATH Intl. instructor certification after graduation. She rode for Virginia Tech’s IHSA Hunt Seat team as well as being an NCAA collegiate swimmer.

In 2014, Abby was crowned the Virginia Quarter Horse Congress Queen, and went to Congress to compete against young ladies from other state associations for the All-American Quarter Horse Congress Queen title in October of 2014, placing in the Top Ten. Her platform in this endeavor has allowed her to share her passion for working with people and horses with her community as well as to increase awareness of the benefits of therapeutic riding. Abby has competed all over the Eastern US in western all-around, hunt seat, dressage, 3-day eventing, and ranch riding with her Quarter Horse mares.

Abby joined MANE’s team in February of 2015 as the Volunteer Coordinator, bringing this passion with her. As MANE’s current Associate Director, she is in the perfect place to continue her love of working with people and horses. Abby resides in South Montgomery County with her husband, Colin, dogs and horses.

Jessica McWhorter – Volunteer Coordinator

Jessica McWhorter began loving horses at an early age. She learned most of her equine knowledge from her mother, a former barrel racer, and surrounding neighbors who were quarter horse breeders and equine enthusiasts in Montgomery County where she was born and raised.

In 2006, Jessica began working at Vaughn Road Veterinary Clinic as a veterinary technician, increasing her knowledge and interest in the veterinary medicine field. In 2016 she began teaching at her children’s preschool part-time and quickly found a passion for teaching young children while still maintaining the care of the animals on their small hobby farm.

In 2019 Jessica, her husband, Patrick and two children, Audrey and Colton, moved to Pike Road to start a family farm of their own, landing them just a few doors down from the MANE facility. Her family, including her mother Janet, have become avid MANE volunteers and supporters. Jessica is the newest member to join the MANE team in 2022 as volunteer coordinator, and is excited to pair her love of equines and children together as she sets her goal to become a PATH Intl. Certified Instructor.

Brittany Queiroz – Instructor

Brittany Queiroz is from Baton Rouge, LA. Not long after she came to Montgomery on a soccer scholarship to Faulkner University, Brittany began volunteering at MANE. Her passion for therapeutic riding grew during her four academic years at Faulkner, where she graduated Magna Cum Lauda with a Bachelor of Science in General Clinical Psychology. Brittany has earned her PATH Int’l instructor certification and recently achieved her master’s degree in Applied Behavior Analysis. She and her husband Gabriel live in Montgomery with their two daughters.