About Our Team

Rachel Johnson, Owner & Head Trainer

Rachel has been a professional rider and trainer for close to 3 decades. As a junior she trained in the Chicagoland area with Nora Thomas. Rachel has shown widely across the country. For many years she competed in Wellington Florida in the winter, and traveled extensively in the spring and summer from Kentucky to New York and many places in between.

As both a rider and trainer, Rachel has worked for, and with, top professionals and veterinarians in the country. As a trainer she has taught children that became top local professionals, and trained horses that have won national accolades.

Rachel is currently based in her hometown suburbs of Chicago and when she is not traveling to horse shows, she is actively involved in the local horse show circuit.

In her downtime she enjoys gardening, spending time with her family, and spoiling her rotten little terrier named Walter. Rachel also holds a Bachelor of Arts from Northwestern University and a Master of Science in Traditional Oriental Medicine and Acupuncture.

Favorite quotes: “Perfect practice makes perfect.” D.L. Glefke

“Sometimes you’re the windshield. Sometimes you’re the bug.” Mary-Chapin Carpenter

Margaret Clayton, Barn Owner & Assistant to Rachel

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Margaret attended riding camp when she was 6 and fell in love with horses.  Her parents signed her up for riding lessons, and for many years she spent hours and hours at a backyard barn called “Baker’s Acres.”  She and the others would spend all day grooming, riding and listening to stories about horses from their mentor. Over time, Margaret worked hard and earned the respect of her elders; in turn, they rewarded her with the opportunity to help out with the green horses and to mentor the younger students.

Eventually Margaret convinced her parents to let her start riding at a nearby show barn, where there were more opportunities. Eventually, she got her first pony, Sparkle Plenty. At 13, Margaret moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, and began riding at Studio Farms. Under Keiri Kaneps’ tutelage she worked the way up to the junior hunters, where she garnered Minnesota Hunter/Jumper Association (MHJA) year-end titles and won numerous AHSA Zone 6 championships. Her true passion was in the equitation ring, however, where she was extremely successful, qualifying for and riding in the USEF/Dover Hunter Seat Equitation Medal Final at Harrisburg, and the ASPCA Maclay National Championships.

After high school Margaret attended Mount Holyoke College where she focused on academics. She majored in religious studies, graduated cum laude with honors, and continued on to earn a Master’s Degree in Ethics from the University of Chicago. Academia ultimately didn’t seem like the right fit, so Margaret gave corporate America a try, working at a Chicago-based marketing firm where she rose to the ranks of Creative Director at Group II Communications.

Then in 2002, a friend asked Margaret to come help her at a horse show one Saturday. Margaret agreed. The weekend was a huge success. A local trainer took note and asked Margaret to consider giving regular Saturday lessons at his barn. Word got out, Margaret’s lesson schedule booked up, and she was having a blast. Those first years working with the kids gave Margaret great satisfaction; she also found that her passion for psychology came in handy.  Eventually Margaret and long-time friend Stephanie Skrodzki went out on their own and founded Palladia Farm in 2003. Margaret is a SafeSport-trained United States Hunter/Jumper Association Certified Trainer and an American Riding Instructors Association certified trainer.

Throughout the years, the students and horses of Palladia Farm have won numerous championships and awards. Some of these include: USEF Zone V Championships and year-end awards in the green working hunters, regular working hunters, junior hunters, pony hunters, children’s pony hunters, and hunter breeding divisions. We have won local year-end awards and equitation championships, and have also qualified students for and attended Pony Finals, Indoors, and the USEF Medal and ASPCA Maclay Finals.