i was in 4-h for years... i showed horses & did a lot of riding competitions... loved it...
my grandfather was high up in the 4 h organization, so during the county fair, we got to skip the whole week of school & stay overnite in the horse barns... no grown ups.. all of us 12-16 or so years old...
i think they'd lock you up if you leave kids in a barn like that today!