Clara Mikovec, Assistant Trainer

Clara Mikovec joined Via Nova in Fall 2024 as an Assistant Trainer. She brings curiosity, creativity, and a thoughtful approach to working with horses. Originally from Ames, Iowa, Clara came to horses through childhood lessons before pursuing more hands-on experience caring for horses during and after college.

Several years of childhood lessons fostered Clara’s love for horses. While double-majoring at Iowa State University, Clara began developing her horsemanship skills, gaining experience through chores and lessons at a local barn. After graduation, she lived overseas working as a groom in Europe before arriving in Santa Fe in the fall of 2022. Prior to Via Nova, Clara was a working student at a local barn.

Clara’s interest in Positive Reinforcement grew from her desire to understand how animals learn to train compassionately. She is especially drawn to building motivation, curiosity, and partnership in training, and loves how R+ enables her to do that.

She is interested in answering the question that drives much of Via Nova’s work: how do horses learn, and how can riders use this knowledge to communicate more clearly with them?

At Via Nova, Clara works closely with the training team to expand her skills in R+ training and support our Priority to Positive program to traditional equestrians. She is also developing her own young horse, Poe, a Dutch Warmblood, with Positive Reinforcement both on the ground and in the saddle.

Outside the barn, Clara enjoys making art, attending friends’ music shows, and exploring New Mexico.