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Diary of Trail Ride on March 20th, 2005 at Cottonwood Creek Stables
Diary of Wakefield Workshop April 30th, 2005
Diary of American Legacy Workshop Aug. 27-28, 2005
Diary of American Legacy Workshop June 10-12, 2005
Diary of Lincoln Workshop June 13-14, 2005
Diary of Cottonwood Creek Stable Class Sept. 24, 2005
Diary of Madison Clinic November, 2005
Diary of High View Farms Workshop, September 10-11, 2005
Lessons Learned at Madison Jan. 2006
Diary of American Legacy Workshop Jan. 21-22, 2006
Diary of Holstein May 2006
Diary of Weeping Water and BKT Arena Spring 2006
Diary of Sioux City 2006
Diary of Chance Ridge 2006
Diary of Private Lesson Days Summer 2006
Diary of Calamus Women's Camp 2006
Diary of Calamus Youth Camp 2006
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Ahappy girl with a new horse. |
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Learning to ride bareback with Sherry. |
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Diary of Youth Camp at Calamus Outfitters Ranch Summer of 2006
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Kids Camp Report 2006
Two lovely young ladies and their Mom attended the third kids camp this summer. They were real troopers working and playing hard in the heat. Every parent dreams of having a kids horse to keep their children safe and having fun. These little girls had the perfect kids horses. I have never worked with a better pair.
Their names were "Roper" a palomino gelding and "Smokey" a gray gelding. They were both under 10 years old. They were despooked to nearly everything. So I would call them nearly bombproof. I don't believe there is such a thing as a 100% bombproof horse, because we can all get startled from time to time, and that is only natural. It is the reaction to the scary thing that is important.
I have worked with a lot of so called "kid horses". Most of them are very dull, pushy, resistant, and sometimes disrespectful. These two horses stood out above all the rest, because they were not only calm but fairly sensitive as well. The combination of self-confidence yet respect was apparent in these two horses, indeed a rare combination for a "kids horse". I don't know how much they purchased these horses for, but they were very valuable in my eyes.
Both girls were able to play six of the seven games quite successfully by the second day. On the third day they were playing them with creativity using obstacles. (Like the circle and yo yo game while sitting in a chair, squeeze over a tarp, etc). We didn't even try the sideways game yet, because I wanted them to win the driving game of both the front-end and hindquarters before moving on, to prevent any frustrations. The girls were very surprised at how light their horses turned and stopped while riding in a halter. It was such a blessing to see the girls building their confidence and horses that were being so willing. We even got them to jump the barrels on the second day in less than 10 minutes.
We went on three trail rides. The first one was filled with games using bushes, trees, and wild flowers for direction and stopping, buddy sour circles, and serpentines to practice our direct reins.
The second trail ride was about an hour for relaxation, as we went with the ranch dude string and guests. We hung out at the back of the string as I was the official gate closer. The third trail ride was about 2 hours and we challenged the riders with a few bigger hills. The views were great and we took some pictures.
Since it was so hot, we spent plenty of time swimming in the lake. That's where I got the sunburn. We had fun trying to catch minnows, tadpoles, and baby frogs. The fish were sure jumping and it was sometimes kind of freaky when they jumped so close to us. We saw a pelican and a bald eagle, plus some turtles peaking our of the water at us from time to time. Of course we build sand castles on the beach.
I took a young horse on her first trail rides during the camp and let the Mom ride my horse Dolly. I can't tell you all how proud I was of "Sorry", she was the leader and acted like she had been trail riding her whole life. I had to mount and dismount several times as I was the gate opener and closer. She acted like a professional ranch horse. At times like these, I remember how frustrated I used to get with stuff like that, before I taught my horses the seven games. They sure come in handy. They are more than just games. They are a means of communicating so that we can both be safe. Because of the driving and porcupine game, I was able to keep her out of the wire gates at all times. Thank goodness, I have learned this stuff and put it to good use. However, I did tear one of my favorite pair of pants on the wire while trying to fix a gate that had a broken wire.
The participants loved the ranch and are looking forward to coming back to enjoy the beautiful views in the sandhills and riding in the open country. I just hope the next time they come it is a little cooler. We talked about going tubing or tanking the next time they come. I can't wait to see them again, I know they are going to be doing amazing things with their horses, because they were such good students and they have such nice horses. These girls are going to grow up to be great horsewomen as they have a huge head and are getting started in the best way possible. What a gift their parents have given them! And what luck to find the perfect horses for their journey.
As I came home last night sweating, sun-burned, with cracked lips, I never felt such fulfillment and joy even though my body was aching all over. It was a very good week!
Happy Trails,
Sherry Jarvis
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