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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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Report from Clinic at Chance Ridge Summer 2006
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Bart and Cindy Smith were wonderful hosts of the clinic at their beautiful facility in Elkhorn, NE. We were so appreciative to be able to hold a clinic in such a first rate place. It was a special clinic for 10 students because they had four teachers to help them learn; Keith my husband, my two horses Dolly and Cisco and myself. Between the four of us we made a positive impact on each individual student and their horses.
On Sat. morning we started with a discussion about BALANCE, which seemed to be a theme throughout the whole weekend.
As the weekend progressed we discovered:
* the balance between right and left brained behaviors;
* the balance of go and whoa;
* the balance of short and long horses;
* the balance of responsiveness and dullness
* the balance of movement and stillness;
* the balance of desensitize and sensitize;
* the balance of softness and firmness;
* the balance of assertiveness and aggression;
* the balance of stubbornness and willingness;
* the balance of energy and calmness;
* the balance of fascination and frustration;
* the balance of confidence and fears;
* the balance of creativity and boredom;
* the balance of dominance and submissiveness;
* the balance of persistence and passivity;
* the balance of consistency and variety;
* the balance of time and repetition;
* the balance of focus and feel;
* the balance of leadership and dictatorship;
* the balance of responsibility and freedom;
* the balance of relationship and partnership.
A GREAT HORSEMAN LEARNS TO HAVE A BALANCE IN EVERYTHING BECAUSE THEY APPLY FOCUS, FEEL AND TIMING TO EACH TASK AND APPROACH EVERYTHING WITH A POSITIVE AND PROGRESSIVE ATTITUDE.
I was certainly happy that Keith and Cisco came along this time, because after the morning session of ground activities, a few people were still not ready to ride their horse in the afternoon, which is always fine with us. We never push people over the edge of a cliff even though we may encourage them to get as close as possible. We know that people need to get out of their comfort zone in order to learn and progress. If they don’t slip out of their comfort zone during a clinic they are simply practicing what they already know how to do. People don’t need to come to a clinic and pay us their hard earned money to practice things they can already do at home.
In the afternoon while I took the majority of the class for riding activities, Keith continued to help several students work through issues with their horses on the ground. A couple of people were also able to ride Cisco to help build their confidence. One person actually brought a 14-month-old horse that of course wasn’t ready to ride. She also was able to ride Cisco. So between Cisco and Keith we were able to meet the needs of each individual to the best of our abilities.
The riders were fairly confident and so we were able to do quite a lot including, one-rein stops, direct reins, indirect reins, backing, side-passing, indirect to direct reins, bow ties, prayer riding on the rail, turning with one finger, transitions with breathing, sitting trots, serpentines, follow the leader, and focus point to point riding. I probably forgot some things we did, as it has already been a month since the clinic, but that is a fairly good overview.
It was a very diverse group of people and horses. We had several breeds of horses and people of very different levels and ages. Each person seemed to help and support each other with patience and encouragement. The only man in the clinic besides Keith had a two-year old colt named Earl. Doug did fantastic on the young horse, but I kept mixing up the name of the man and the horse. All horses should get such a fantastic start as Earl is getting.
At noon Keith and I played at liberty with Cisco and Dolly. It was fun to watch them run around the huge arena playing. Only a horse that feels safe and comfortable can play like that at liberty in a strange environment. It is so nice to have such confident horses. It wasn’t always that way, but they have developed into independent thinkers. Sometimes they keep me on my toes because of this. I like trying to stay a step ahead of them, but never get upset when they out maneuver me.
On Sat. evening Lamp Light Stables brought a group of their 4-H kids for a demonstration. The “Dream Team” entertained them by playing on the ground with obstacles, while I explained some concepts and answered some questions. The “Dream Team” consisted of Michelle Lincoln with her paint gelding “Major”, Kayla Babbit with her Spanish Mustang “Bucky”, Lori Babbit with her paint mare “Summer, and Michelle Julian with her bay gelding “Regal”. Keith and I took turns with Dolly and Cisco. Kayla and I played follow the leader while riding bareback on our two buckskins. I was really proud of the “Dream Team” and want to thank them again for their dedication and performance. Each one of them has come a long way since I first met them.
Sunday morning we put the ground games to purpose with obstacles. They had a really neat bridge, which we used to practice backing off from to simulate trailer unloading; since we had a horse who would not back out of a trailer. It did work, because I have a report that the horse unloaded in 5 minutes at home for the very first time. The students got creative with the obstacles and I remember a couple of pretty tight squeezes and impressive jumps.
During the lunch break I spent some extra time playing with a horse who had some respect issues. I played the half moon game, changing directions on her by moving her forehand, directing her forward and then disengaging her hindquarter, in a repetitive pattern, moving up and down the arena, until there was a change in her responsiveness and suppleness. Then I played some games with her while sitting above her on the bucking shoots to desensitize the space above her.
After riding again in the afternoon with some of the students, each person rode a challenge pattern as their final test and then filled out evaluation forms after a discussion of things we learned. Here are some of the comments about what the students experienced and learned.
I learned:
· That my horse responds to absolutely everything I do.
He is a mirror image of my actions and reactions.
· I have a powerful navel.
· The reasons why I’ve been taught things.
· To push on the saddle horn when doing a one rein stop.
· With the right body language you can cause your horse to do what you want easier.
· How important ground manners are.
· New ways of interacting and teaching my horse.
· How to sensitize and desensitize.
· To be assertive and friendly my horse more.
· How to be more effective with my cues.
· To understand what my horse is telling me.
· That my horse has been bossing me around.
· Better leg control.
· How to move my horse forward, away from me and over things.
· Better body movements and my horse started showing better trust in me.
· A bunch more about myself and I what I need to change and fix.
· More confidence.
· How to overcome my fears using the tools and games.
· My horse is a good horse the more confident I get the more she respects me.
· The importance of focus and timing.
· Not to nag, go through the phases, and reward the slightest try.
· I worry less when we have a “job” to do.
· How to communicate with my horse better.
· It is mostly my problems not the horse.
· I have no patience.
· How to adjust to fit the situation.
· How to see what part is stuck and change for more success.
· How to reinforce leads with the belly button.
· To think more like a horse.
· Control, patience, and the proper way to do things.
· The rider causes most problems.
· How to make my horse supple.
· My horse is more supple while I’m riding.
The best part was:
· The test at the end.
· Working with the obstacles.
· Building confidence and trust in my horse. He is a good guy!
· It was all great!
· It was the longest I’ve trotted on my horse and I survived.
· When I would “get it” and see improvement with my horse and I as a team.
· All of it, Sherry was very observant and helped make corrections.
· Understanding my horse better.
· Riding in a rope halter.
· Getting better control and understanding.
· Watching Sherry get “big”.
· The hows and whys.
· Direct and indirect reining.
· Getting back on my horse for the first time in months. I can’t believe how good it felt to get back in the saddle.
· Sherry’s genuine love of teaching and horses.
The worst part was:
· When my horse challenged me, it brought back all my fears again and I had to work through it again.
· Have more clinics in the area.
· My frustration level was high at times.
· I found out I was a whimp.
· My headache!
· Not enough time spent on the games, and less time riding.
· Not trusting my horse on a loose rein while trotting, soreness from sitting the trot.
· My lack of patience.
· When I got frustrated with my horse, but it was me!
· Not enough practice time to try things out on our part.
· I wasn’t doing the bending right, so my horse wouldn’t bend.
On both Sat. and Sun. night after the class I did a trailer loading session. It went much better on Sat. night with Gus a cute little Norwegian Fiord. I pointed my finger and he walked into the trailer in less than 15 seconds, but then he backed out, so I let him. We repeated this procedure about 5 or 6 times then he decided to stay put. Couldn’t have been easier. It took less than 5 minutes.
On Sun. it took an hour and a half to load a very sulky mare. The problem wasn’t really the trailer as much as it was forward movement. You can’t load a horse you can’t get to move forward. I don’t think she was afraid of getting in the trailer but afraid of getting out of the trailer. She is the one they have to pull out the middle divider and let her turn around to unload her. So why would you want to get into something that you don’t believe that you can get out of?
After some time and a lot of sweating, I took her back in the arena to play some circling game to get her to canter and moving forward with more freedom. It was not an easy task to get a canter, but finally I got one circle. Afterwards the owner told me that nobody has ever got the horse to canter. Now we know that she can canter, she is not crippled. It is just that she would not do it in the presence of a human being, especially if being asked to. It wasn’t long after I got her feet freed up by cantering a bit that she finally loaded.
I felt a little bad about how sweaty she got through the whole process, but I guess it was worth it because she got out in 5 minutes at home, without taking out the center divider. I have to say that it the longest it has ever taken me to get a horse in the trailer since beginning natural horsemanship. Even though it took longer, the process worked. I should have changed up the game more often with her and went to play with other obstacles throughout the process. It is always better to properly prepare by practicing trailer loading and simulation games at home before you go somewhere and have the pressure of I have to load the horse tonight. Remember prior and proper preparation prevents P… poor performance.
I am happy to report that Bart and Cindy would like me to return to Chance Ridge for more clinics. So we will be setting dates on a more regular basis for those who live in the area.
Thanks to all those who attended and trusted me with instruction and encouragement for their horsemanship journey.
Happy Trails,
Sherry
STUDENT TESTIMONIAL
"First I want to thank you for helping Mary Jane and I so much this weekend. I don't think we would have shown as much improvement if were not for all the extra time you gave us. Second she was out of the trailer in like 5 minutes!! I was so excited. I did the yo yo game first and she went w/ one foot out and then jumped back in the trailer and then I did the driving game with the lead rope, I did have to go to phase 4 but when she exited it was nice and smooth not a bolt out of the back of the trailer.
Last night I woke up at 2 in the morning and was unable to go back to sleep because I was anxious about how today would go at the clinic. I also started to think that maybe I was doing Mary Jane and myself an injustice because we are both green so to speak and I thought she could be better served by a more experienced horse person and I by a less challenging first horse. I have since changed my mind because I believe again as I first did when I bought her that with dedication, knowledge and persistence that we will both achieve our goals. I just need to have faith in myself and confidence in myself. (I have much more of both now thanks to all I learned over the weekend)
I used to think that if I was assertive with her that she would not like me and or I would hurt her, I now know that I can be assertive without being mean and I will end getting us both hurt if I am not assertive with her and establish myself as a confident leader.
I know I have a long road ahead but I feel refreshed and optimistic and I am excited about working with Mary Jane and achieving my goals. With each challenge and goal we accomplish I know I will become a better horse person.
I think the light bulb has finally clicked on or I have had my “ah ha” moment. I’m looking forward to the next clinic."
Kristie and Mary Jane
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