This Week on Horse Master

Greetings!

I am home from our quick vacation to the Oregon coast. It was beautiful and relaxing, if not warm and sunny. We took a little side trip to Astoria, the Columbia River Maritime Museum and Cape Disappointment. These waters are known as “the Graveyard of the Pacific.” Having done some boating there in the treacherous northwest waters with my dad and brother, it was fun to show Rich where we had been and to watch the ships, tugs and fishing boats.

I cannot believe summer is virtually over and my travel schedule begins again already! It’s my fault for planning a vacay right before a long business trip but I have to do the two-day shuffle to get ready to leave again. Unpack, laundry, repack, etc. This time, we are headed to Martha’s Vineyard to film five new episodes of the TV show. These shows will air in January and February.

This week on Horse Master is one of my favorite episodes that we have filmed so far. It’s about an Arab trail/endurance horse that we thought had some training issues. In fact, we thought the episode would be about bucking at the canter—and that he did. But it became clear right away as I watched the horse try to canter around the arena that we were dealing with a physical issue. In fact, a very poorly fitted saddle.

The horse was rushing at all gaits, crow hopping and breaking gait at the canter and throwing his head high and travelling in a very inverted frame. She had owned the horse and ridden him in this saddle with these problems for four years. For that reason, I didn’t expect an immediate cure on this horse. I figured even if we got him in a comfortable saddle, we would see some improvement but his memories and habitual behavior would persist.

I put my Circle Y Flex2 Reiner on him, because I thought the flex tree would be just what the doctor ordered for his discomfort. We were all amazed at the transformation when I got on him—he relaxed and rounded his frame beautifully and almost immediately transformed into a different horse. Even the owner was able to ask him to round his frame and slow down and he did. They’ll have a long way to go to get together but the instant change in the horse was remarkable. Much better than I would’ve hoped for.

It was interesting to watch the horse for the next couple days and see him yawn and stretch as we rode him—it was a definite release of tension for him. Ever notice how a dog yawns when you scold him? I think we probably show our release of tension that way too sometimes. It would be awesome if we could make that big a change in a horse with each episode, but usually it’s not that dramatic.

Here’s hoping the episodes we film next week will be even better!

Julie

 

Making Your Job Work for You

Greetings from the Pacific Northwest!

Yesterday, my father and I spent many hours sitting on the balcony of his 17^th story river-front condo, watching the hundreds of boats go by on the Willamette River. Having grown up in Florida in a boating family, boats have always been another passion of mine and if I play my cards right, I hope to retire on a boat one day.

We watched big boats, little boats, “head boats” (full of tourists); everything from canoes and kayaks and jet skis to big yachts, barges and dine-aboard cruisers. Without question, every boat that went by was full of people that were having a damn good time (except maybe on the barges).

As I watched through the binoculars, I saw a curious little red boat that looked like an old-fashioned diner on a mini-barge. As it puttered through the waters and came into sight, I saw that it had banners and flags on the top that said, “Weenies on the Water,” and a menu posted on the side. It was a floating hot dog stand! It anchored right in front of my dad’s condo and we watched as boat after boat pulled up, bought a hot dog or Popsicle and then sped away. I cannot imagine that he could’ve possibly made enough money to pay for his fuel that day, let alone the cost of the customized craft, but I do know he was having a good time on the water and had a great excuse for hanging out on a boat on the river all day.

I thought about how great that would be and how innovative this guy was, even if he wasn’t getting rich. I would trade jobs with him in a heart beat—at least for a few weeks. Like any job, I am sure it has its pros and cons, but at the end of the day, if you have spent it involved in something you love to do and would gladly do for free (or maybe even pay for it), the day has been a success.

I decided very early on in my adult life, that I needed to make my job work for me and that I intended to play for work as much as possible. And for the most part I don’t regret it. Had I chosen a more traditional and lucrative career, I might’ve been able to retire to my fantasy boat a little younger, but I would’ve given up years of fun and fulfilling work in the process.

There’s always a danger in turning your passion into your profession, as Rich and I both know. You risk losing your passion. I have survived several burn-outs in my career and I have found that any passion must be nourished—whether it is passion for a sport or endeavor or for another person.

Each burn-out that I went through was resolved by some serious introspection and specific actions on my part to get back in touch with my passion. Now, with the wisdom that comes with nearly a half-century of life, I think I’ve got a path lined out for myself that is one I can live with. Although I’d love to spend a few weeks on the water flipping weenies, I’d probably be missing the horses pretty soon and come back to my “regular” job with a greater appreciation. And I probably wouldn’t make any more money from weenies on the water than from horses in the dirt. And no doubt, I wouldn’t be thinking about buying a boat in retirement but probably thinking about buying a horse farm instead (wonder how many weenies you’d have to sell to buy a horse property?).

What about you? What choices (or lack thereof) led you to your career? Do you have any regrets? Which is better-- working fewer years in a career that is not necessarily fun or working more years for less money in a career you love? My answer totally depends on when you ask me.

But for the next few days, I intend to enjoy our abbreviated vacation to the fullest and worry about work later.

Enjoy the ride!

Julie

And We're Off!

Greetings!

I’ve only been home two days this week, so I’ve been cramming and jamming to get ready to leave again, this time for 5 days of R&R with Rich on the west coast. We’re headed to Portland to visit my father at his river-front downtown condo, then we’ll head to the Oregon coast for a couple nights at the beach. There probably won’t be a lot of sunning and swimming at the beach—more on the order of sitting by the cozy fireplace and reading and watching the fog roll in. But we’ll enjoy it for sure. It’s a good time to be gone because we are in the middle of a remodel on our house and are living in the bunkhouse.

My riding time with Dually has suffered this week, partly because I’ve been gone so much and partly because he twisted one of his sliders so there was not much serious riding I could do. Thankfully my farrier made time to come fix it last night—just in time for me to be gone again.

I did ride him the two days I was home this week, but since I couldn’t ask too much of him because of his sprung shoe, I decided to ride bareback. It’s a good thing to do every now and then. When was the last time you rode bareback?

Until Dually hurt his back last fall, I probably hadn’t ridden bareback in over 20 years. At least not ridden more than a walk bareback—and it was a real eye-opener for me—I just thought my balance was good! I rode all winter bareback—partly to help Dually heal from his injury. I knew I wouldn’t over-stress his back doing big athletic moves while riding bareback. Also, since we were relegated to the indoor for 5 months and my riding needed the tune-up, it seemed like the right thing to do.

In March, I hauled Dually to Denver for the expo there and that was the first time in five months I rode him in a saddle. I realized, too late, that I should’ve saddled him once before my demo—he was a little froggy! But after a couple crow hops, he was back to his good ole’ self.

The past two days of bareback have been a good reminder that the occasional tweak to my riding that I can get from riding bareback is a good thing. And Dually always enjoys a mellow work out. I think we’ll do that more often. The bonus is you don’t have to huck your saddle! Plus, it has given me an idea for recording some more audios for mounted workouts. With any luck, maybe I can get that done by the end of the year—along with all my other projects!

Enjoy the weekend! There’s not much left of the summer, so you’d better get out and have some summer fun one more time.

Best,

Julie

Time for Change

Good Day!

Today’s episode of Horse Master features a 68 year old man who is competing in Versatility Ranch Horse. Dave also happens to be president of the new National Versatility Ranch Horse Association and Rich and I have known him for years.

I’ve seen Dave’s riding improve steadily through the years—he’s only been doing this for about 5 years. VRH is such a complicated competition; one horse and one rider compete in five different classes: conformation (halter), trail obstacles, ranch riding (pleasure), ranch cutting (cut out a specific cow then pen him) and working ranch horse (reining, boxing, fence work and roping). There’s a lot to master and it’s tough for any horse or rider to excel in all those things.

As I watched Dave ride during the “before footage” of the show, I could see his reining pattern was really rough. The circles were not round and were not meeting in the middle. His lead changes were very rough involving a hard turn so it looked like he was zigzagging in the center of his figure eight. This always causes the horse to change in front and not in back—plus it is not pretty.

You want your horse to change leads smoothly right in the middle of your figure eight, while the horse is as straight as possible. One of the biggest keys to a good lead change is a good preparatory signal. The horse is generally happy to do what you want him to do but he has to know, in advance, what that is. Mostly when I watch people trying to change leads, there is not pre-signal at all and the cue that they do give is not effective and not consistent.

With Dave, we worked on what the pre-signal was, when to apply it, how to apply the cue correctly and what the timing of the whole thing was. He did amazingly well. Once he got better in his riding, the horse performed much better. Isn’t that always the case?

Lead changes is something everyone wants to learn, but, in our instant gratification society, we want it to happen now. But it’s one of the most complicated and advanced cues we ask of our horse and it takes time for the rider to figure out how to cue consistently and for the horse to understand what the rider wants. This can be a very frustrating process for both horse and rider. Have you ever had that experience?

I hope you’ll watch the show and/or set your DVR to record it. It comes on RFD at 5:30p EST today, then again at 3:30a EST Thursday morning (for all you insomniacs) and again Sunday at 1:30a EST. If you’re setting  your DVR, use one of the mid-night showings because the guide is more correct then (sometimes the guide is wrong on the Wed airing).

Enjoy the ride!

Julie

Today's College Education/ Olympics on TV

Greetings!

I am on my way home from Fort Collins CO, where I have been in meetings for two days with the Colorado State University Equine Science Advisory Board. I really enjoy this annual meeting for a number of reasons. First, it is the only advisory committee I’ve been on where they actually ask the committee for input and then enact what we say. The goal of the committee is to help CSU Equine remain the top 4-year equine program in the country and to turn out students that are not only employable, but who will enjoy great success in the horse industry. I think the program has made some progressive changes in the past few years that will keep it at the top. CSU Equine students can now get a minor in business (boy—I wish I’d had that!) and after graduating they can come back and receive a Masters in business in one year! I really wish that had been around when I was in college—but they barely even had computers then! What would you want out of an equine education?

The other reason I enjoy the committee meeting is because it is made up of some of the most influential people in the horse industry covering a broad range of sectors from Thoroughbred racing to reining to veterinary medicine to some of the top breeders and trainers out there. It’s fun to get to know these people and an honor to be a part of the deal.

I’ll stop by a stables in Parker on the way home today, where I may be doing a fundraising clinic next summer. Then I’ll be home for a couple days before Rich and I take off for the Oregon coast.

We’ve been enjoying watching the Olympics every night, but frankly, I am getting a little tired of swimming and gymnastics. The USET won the gold in team jumping yesterday—you’d think that might have warranted 5 or 10 minutes of coverage! Don’t you think people other than horse people would be interested in that? I mean, I’ve never held or thrown a shot put, but it’s interesting to see sometimes.

Why don’t they show the equestrian events?

It’s the ONLY sport in the Olympics in which animals are involved. You’d think that’d be enough to give it a few minutes of coverage. You can watch the equestrian events on Oxygen during the day—but who’s sitting around the TV then? I guess that's what TiVo and DVRs are for! Is anyone watching equestrian on Oxygen? Or through their DVRs? You can watch some clips at: http://www.nbcolympics.com/equestrian/index.html

I’m on the road home….

Julie

Ignorance is Bliss

Good Day!

We are a family of trucks. Between the two of us, we have three trucks. Thankfully, the big daddy Dodge diesel mostly stays hitched to the trailer sitting in the barn yard. I drive the big momma Chevy half-ton truck—my beloved Avalanche. Luckily Rich has an economical Toyota to drive up and down the mountain every day. For well over a year, the most we have ever paid to fill-up is $75—the maximum allowed to charge gas on credit cards.

They have finally released the ridiculous cap on credit card expenditures for gas and for the first time in a couple years, we now know exactly what it costs to fill the tank. It’s not like we were under the illusion that $75 was actually what it cost to fill-up—we’ve witnessed the steady drop of the needle that $75 would buy, but seeing the numbers spin well past $100 without slowing down was a shocker. $109.85 is what I paid on my last fill-up. Now that I can assign a number to it, it seems more real. It pretty much takes me a whole tank to drive to Denver airport and back—so that is the hard cost of my commute.

My truck is getting up there in mileage at 80K+ and I dread the day that I have to replace it—I love driving it. I know I should look at a more fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly vehicle but what can I use to haul grain, haul my three 70# suitcases that I travel with, not to mention the truck load of tables, product and display stuff we haul to trade shows within driving distance? With some of the hellish winter commutes I have, driving 175 miles through a snow storm and crossing 6 mountain passes, I have learned to appreciate the big 4WD machine. So for now, I’ll stick with what I have and try to conserve as much as possible. How are the gas prices affecting your horse travel? Can you conserve and still drive a truck when you need to do horse chores?

I know I am not supposed to talk about the weather in my blog, but we are sure having some! We almost had to turn on the heat last night. It rained and hailed most of the night and it’s pouring today. We don’t get a lot of rain here in the high mountain desert that we live in but if we get it, this is the time of year. Yesterday it never got much over 60*-- I had to put on the fleece! Everyone grumbles that summer is already over and although I know we’ll have some nice warm—if not hot—weather ahead, it is our subtle reminder that the long winter approaches. We’d better enjoy what’s left of the summer!

Unfortunately, what seemed like my long stretch at home has dwindled to only four days I’ll be home in the next 3-4 weeks. I head to Fort Collins for an annual meeting at CO State University. I am pleased to be a part of their Equine Science Advisory Board and we meet annually to review the curriculum and brainstorm on programs and ideas. Then I am home for two days before Rich and I head to the west coast for a few days of R&R, then we are off to Martha’s Vineyard Labor Day Weekend for the TV shoot. But today, I’ll enjoy this rainy day at home. I think I’ll bake some muffins…

Julie

Shopping Western Style

Greetings!

That’s the name of the TV show I helped tape this week. It’s a new show on RFD and will begin airing September 5^th, with the first episode featuring yours truly as the “celebrity guest host.” The regular host is Justin McKee, the slick and sexy “voice” of the PBR.

The show is a Western Lifestyle/home shopping show. It is sponsored by PFI Western Town, PFIWestern.com, in Springfield MO. PFI a complex of stores including the main store—with all the greatest Western apparel for men, women and kids, home furnishings and literally thousands of pairs of boots (including some very hot Ariat fashion boots made exclusively for PFI); next door is PFI’s Saddle City and Diamond Ridge Wine & Cheeses.

The tack store is one of the largest and most complete tack stores I have been in for ages. I get tired of the “McTack” stores that are so prevalent today—chain stores with a token selection of “canned” stuff. I LOVE to go into real tack stores—owned and operated by knowledgeable individuals who buy and stock the stuff that horse trainers need and want. The best tack stores are often near race tracks or in areas where there are many high-level training operations.

My favorite thing to do in a tack store is peruse every item in the store, large and small, and see if I can find any widgets that I don’t know what it’s for. If there is something, usually the tag will tell me what it is and I can figure out how it’s used. I’ve learned about some really interesting gadgets that way. The McTack stores never have any unusual stuff.

It was really fun wandering around Saddle City at PFI Western while they were taping segments of the show that didn’t involve me. It’s a HUGE store and has everything you could possibly need from bronc rider’s gloves to pack saddles to lariats to breeches and show clothes-- and hundreds of saddles, including both of the Circle Y saddles I ride in (the Flex2 Reiner and the Ranch Cutter). Although I found a few new products I hadn’t seen before, there wasn’t much that stumped me—but I sure had fun looking. And I found a couple little things I’ve been needing for some time and got some straps for my new pair of fancy spurs that Rich bought me off Ebay.

I also had time to wander through the apparel store. I thought we had a good Western/casual store here in Salida, but it’s nothing compared to PFI Western Town. I bought a couple shirts for myself (like I need more shirts!) and two really nice shirts for Rich. I love the Ryan Michael shirts, but they are hard to find a very expensive—but I found a gorgeous pale green one on sale for Rich. Clothes shopping isn’t nearly as much fun as tack shopping to me because I hate trying things on.

“Shopping Western Style” is a half hour show that starts with an interview with the celebrity guest host, then has segments on tack, fashion and cooking. I did a cooking segment, which was fun. I love to cook, so I was a natural for that segment. I did two segments on saddles and two apparel segments on jeans and accessories. I know a lot about what I want in riding jeans, so that segment was easy. Not being a huge accessories collector (I only own one purse), I was probably not at my best for that segment-- but we got it done.

I taped two shows for ‘Shopping Western Style’ and they will air Friday, September 5^th at 9:30p EST and Friday September 19^th at 9:30p EST. I hope you can watch it or set your DVR and let me know what you think. I’ll be in Martha’s Vineyard for a Horse Master shoot during that time, so I may miss it!

I am home now for a few days before I have to leave again. So far, my idea of spending all of August at home is turning out to be an illusion or a delusion. I have to leave town again for a few days for a business meeting on Sunday, then Rich and I will head to Oregon for a fun little get-away the last week of the month, then I head to Martha’s Vineyard for the TV shoot on Labor Day weekend. Man does summer go fast!

Enjoy the ride!

Julie

Recipe for a Workout

Good Day!

A Sunday off, at home—it doesn’t get any better than that! Sunrise in the hot tub, reading, Meet the Press, workout, breakfast. Oh yeah, and the blog.

I have to make an unplanned business trip tomorrow morning to Springfield MO for a TV show taping. It’s for a cool new show on RFD sponsored by PFI Western Store and will be a Western lifestyle/home shopping show. I’ll be the “celebrity host” in the first two shows and Leon Harrel, of cutting horse fame, will do two shows as well. I think it will be a lot of fun. At the very least, I am looking forward to being in a huge tack store because there are a few things I need. I may be doing some ‘home shopping’ on the road.

I’ll be doing a section on saddles, saddle fit for you and the horse, position in the saddle and other topics. My part will be easy, particularly since it is stuff I do all the time in demos. All the hard part will be done by the crew. The first show airs September 5^th, so I think they’ll be editing the shows right there on site for an 11^th hour push.

I finally rode Dually on Friday evening in the wet and freshly groomed arena. To me that is as good as a fresh powder day on the mountain. After five days off, grazing green grass on top of his regularly power-packed concentrate ration, I suspected Dually might be a little fresh. To my surprise, he was pretty mellow, but I could feel a slight coil to his body so I knew we’d have to make some tracks and let him blow his lungs out a little.

I do not like to work a horse hard—mentally-- on his first day back after a brief lay-off or even after the weekend off. To me, the work week on a horse has a pattern. Let’s say he’s following the M-F workweek... Monday will be a “get back to work day and we’ll get the cob webs out. On Monday, I hope to start the training session at the same place I left him the Friday before. Tuesday will be more of the same—reviewing what we do well and a little more physical work. On Wednesday, we’ll progress his training, ask a little more, be more demanding, teach him something new. Thursday will be a day to review the old and new stuff, ask for a couple hard things—practice our weakest skills. Friday is TGIF! On Fridays, I try to have a mellow ride and do something different—pleasure ride out in the field, go on a trail ride, challenge the obstacle course. On Fridays, I make darn sure I leave the horse in the state of mind I want him to start with next Monday—happy, alert, feeling good about himself.

In an effort to produce more riding workouts on audio, I’ve been developing a workout routine for various types of rides like the fresh horse, the forward horse, the disobedient horse, the lazy horse, etc. Here’s my recipe for a workout for the fresh horse--- that’s the one I get the most practice at.

Begin tracking right at a walk on a very loose rein, letting the horse stretch his neck and back.

Go two times around and reverse directions.

Go two times around tracking left, then slowly gather horse up into a low but slightly collected frame.

At the next corner, make at least three very small circles at the walk (about 12” or 3-4 meters), paying very close attention to the arc of the horse and the correctness of the bend.

Once the horse makes a nice circle, let him go straight down the rail to the next corner.

Repeat circles in the next three corners so the horse has gone all the way around the arena, making multiple circles in each corner.

Reverse and repeat circles all the way around the arena tracking right.

Trot on a loose rein, tracking right at a medium speed a few times around or about five minutes.

Reverse across the diagonal and long-trot for about five minutes to the left.

Transition to the medium-slow, slightly collected sitting trot and at the next corner, make three small trot circles to the left (about 20’) focusing on bend and obedience on the circle.

Make multiple circles to the left at each corner all the way around the arena. After three circles, only release the horse to straightness down the rail when he has made a very correct circle.

Trot to the middle of the next short side of the arena, turn left and proceed straight down the centerline, tracking right at the trot at the other end.

Sitting trot all the way around the arena making multiple right circles at each corner.

Continue down the rail tracking right and walk, letting horse catch breath (if needed) for canter. Gather up horse in prep for canter.

Medium canter right lead around the rail or for 5-7 minutes.

Go down the rail, past the short side of the arena, then turn right and come across the diagonal—to the opposite corner; changing leads at center and tracking left at the corner.

Slower canter around the rail tracking left for 5-7 minutes.

Circle left 5 times at least 20 meters or the full width of the arena.

Go past the next short side and reverse across the diagonal and change to right lead, tracking right.

Circle right 5 times at least 20 meters or full width of the arena.

Go straight down the rail and find the perfect spot to ask your horse to halt (away from the gate, horse nice and straight).

Let him stand for a couple minutes to catch his breath, then walk. The horse is thoroughly warmed up!

After 5-10 minutes of walking, gather horse up in preparation for a cue.

Ask the horse for simple but accurate transitions at markers on the rail placed around your arena: slow trot, extended trot, slow trot, walk, trot, extend, halt, slow trot, slow canter, fast canter, slow canter, etc.

Reverse and repeat an equal number of transitions in the other direction.

Cool him out and put him away.

That’s my Monday morning workout. Give it a try! I am glad to get it down on “paper” so I can work toward getting it recorded. This is a long blog and I apologize! I’ll try to write while I am on the road the next few days. It should be a good trip!

Enjoy the day!

Julie

Good morning!

It’s very wet and foggy here—it looks like we’re in Maine! It’s 55º and dreary; it was cloudy and rainy all day yesterday—again, highly unusual here in Salida where we have 340 days of sunshine every year. It’s a pleasant change and the moisture is always welcomed!

I’ve been busy getting caught up in the office and making plans for next year. We hope to have my clinic schedule completed by the end of this month and the expo schedule will be growing too. It’s challenging to manage your schedule more than a year in advance, but that’s the way I have to do it. In the meantime, if something comes up that I’d love to do but I already have the weekend booked, well, I am SOL.

I’ve been riding Doc this week and he’s a fun little turbo-charged ride. He’s a smaller horse—perfect size for a reiner or cutter-- very quick and agile. He can spin like a top and get back over his hocks in a hurry! We are making a lot of progress in just getting him to be more correct and relaxed. I am missing riding Dually and plan to get back to it today—if it’s not raining.

I’ve had fun this week playing with my newest toy—my Blackberry Curve. It’s a really slick device and will make sure I am always in touch. This one device replaces my phone, PDA and GPS unit—all in one. It’s been a challenge to learn how to use it and get it set up, but I think I’ve got it now. The guys at tech support know me by name now.

I just got a call yesterday about filming a TV show in Springfield MO next week. A bit of a last-minute deal, but my schedule is open next week so I may as well do it! I’ll leave Monday, we’ll film Tuesday and I’ll be home on Wednesday. A quickie! Hopefully my black eye will be gone by then (did I mention that?). With any luck, I’ll have time to stop and look at a nice little horse in Denver I’m thinking about buying.

Tonight the Olympics start! We plan to have some friends over for a few games of pool and to watch the opening ceremonies. As usual, to find broadcast of the equestrian events will be like looking for a needle in a haystack. If you find any—let me know!

I am looking forward to a relaxing weekend at home! I have big plans to clean out and reorganize my tack room. I’ve got all new tack racks from Equi-Racks and I am excited about the ‘house-cleaning’ that will occur. I just wish I could bring myself to get rid of all the old stuff I don’t use anymore. While I have no problem whatsoever about throwing out old clothes, getting rid of old tack is hard. I worked so hard to get every piece of it. I still have the first pair of clippers I bought after I went into business for myself 25 years ago. They have a cracked case and don’t work, but for some reason, I keep them hanging around. But now I have a full line of Wahl clippers that are awesome, so I think I’ll be able to let the old stuff go. Maybe I’ll pile up all my old stuff and let my friends pick through it in case they could use something. That way I’ll know it will have a good home.

Enjoy the weekend!

Julie

Today's Episode of Horse Master--Pony Power

Good Day!

Today’s show is the second episode filmed here at my home place near Salida CO back in June. You’d think mid June would be nice summer weather but we froze our tails off—still frosting at night—and fought gale force winds for two of the three days of the shoot. Of course, the following week, it turned summer, but we scheduled the shoot as late as we could and still make the editing deadlines for the shows to air this month.

Leadership and authority are the subjects of today’s show, “Pony Power.” Starring Zeke and his naughty pony Frost, you’ll see an amazing transformation from an obnoxious, spoiled pony who walks all over Zeke, head buts him and drags him to the grass. Turns out the pony knows exactly how to be a perfect citizen, she’s only lacking a reason to do so.

I knew within seconds of taking hold of the pony that she knew how to act in the presence of authority. With only brief reminders of her manners, she morphed into a perfect angel. So the main goal would be to teach Zeke how to take charge—the pony knew how to act. Fortunately, that turned out to be easy for two reasons.

First, Zeke totally understood what I explained to him about authority and leadership in the horse herd and he was eager and coordinated enough to do exactly as I said. For a 10 y/o boy, he was incredible! Of course, anytime you give a young boy permission to “smack” an opponent, he’s happy to comply. After only one or two “spankings” from Zeke, Frost looked upon him with new eyes.

The second reason we had so much success with Zeke and his pony was that my dear friend, Twyla Walker, who trained with me for years was here to supervise the riders and horses through their practice sessions. With supervised practice, it insured that they practiced correctly and Twyla was able to continue the coaching so the rider’s understanding increased with their skill. I wish I could take Twyla with me to every shoot! It made a huge difference in all 5 episodes that we filmed here.

Speaking of shoots, it’s hard to believe that our first 09 episodes will be filmed in a few weeks. Yikes! We’ll be headed to Martha’s Vineyard Labor Day weekend for a shoot the following week.

BTW- I’ve finally got copies of my videos from the reined cowhorse show a couple weeks ago and with any luck at all, I’ll be able to figure out how to upload it to YouTube—so check back on that. Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube account and you can get notices when we upload a new video.

Enjoy!

Julie

Freshness is Good in Produce, Not Horses

Greetings!

I decided to give Dually a break yesterday and ride a horse of mine, one of our sales horses, Doc. He’s a very cute little dun horse (QH); a turbo-charged cutter. It’s been a while since I’ve ridden him and we had a great time, well, perhaps me more than him, even though he was a little fresh.

It’s good for me to ride the sale horses every now and then and get to know them, so I know who the perfect buyer for this horse will be, and so I can do a decent job of showing the horses to the buyers. I love buying and selling horses, but I only deal in pretty high quality stock—that’s what makes it really fun. Sometimes the horses have temperaments so transparent—so solid and uncomplicated, that I feel like I know them well, even after only a couple rides. Others are more complicated and I need more time to understand them and match the perfect buyer. From dealing with thousands of horses over my career, it is fairly easy for me to type-cast different horses, their breeding and temperaments, a horse trainer’s form of profiling, if you will.

Doc is a little more complicated, which is why we’ve kept him for a while. He’s a sensitive horse—one that is highly sensitive to environmental stimuli—that’s what makes him a good cutter. That’s all stimuli—sounds, touch, movement. Dually is highly sensitive too-- that’s what makes him a highly complicated horse to ride (and high maintenance, I might add). But there is a blissful side to riding a sensitive horse—the slightest thought you have about riding, the sensitive and well-trained horse will respond; he’ll respond to your slightest shift in weight.

That’s what is fun about riding Doc. First, I love his size. If Dually were that short, he’d be my true dream horse. Secondly, his gaits are glass-smooth plus he moves off the slightest cue. That’s what makes sensitive horses not a good match for novice riders—they either give the wrong cues or are constantly cueing the wrong thing without even knowing it.

Now, sensitive horses are often smart horses too—at least you hope. So they are easy to train and easily desensitized. One of my favorite horse behavior trivia is that horses are the most sensitive and flighty domesticated animal, but the most easily desensitized. Seemingly contradictions, but these two traits actually go together. If they didn’t, horses would perish in a constant state of flight.

I could go on in the subject of horse behavior for hours, and often do—at expos and clinics. But today I have a list of tasks a mile long to get accomplished. But first I’ll try to find a picture of Doc to post.

So until next time,

Julie

An All-American Day

Greetings!

It's great to be home on a Sunday, with nothing pressing to do other than read the paper and maybe cook a big breakfast to eat out on the deck. I have to make the most out of every weekend at home, because in the course of the year, I don't get many.

Yesterday was our big day at the Chaffee County fair, here in our home town of Salida CO. It started first thing in the morning with the cutting show, in which Rich and Diggs were entered. We took Dually and Tucker too—to use as turnback horses. Each rider in a cutting uses two "herd holders" who stand in the corners back with the cows and try to keep them in one place; and two "turnback" riders who ride opposite the contestant, mirroring his moves to keep the cow from running off away from the cutter.

There were a record breaking number of entries, with 41 horses, which is pretty good for a small county fair in the middle of nowhere—and it's only the second year for this show. Rich rode in the non-pro class and, as usual, drew the number one spot. That means he goes first in his class on a new set of cattle, so the cattle can be a little unsettled and you don't have the advantage of watching a few riders go to see how the cows are going to act. Nonetheless, Rich and Diggs did well. In the two minutes allotted, he cut out two cows and made some very nice turns. He had a couple small mistakes that cost him some penalties, so it was not enough to make the top three in his class of 10-12 riders. But that's okay, because his main goal at this show was to learn a little more about riding and showing his new horse. Given that he's only had this horse for a few weeks, I think they did great together!

I enjoyed being at the show and not showing—it's a lot more relaxed that way! I rode Dually and we helped several people with their turnback and herd holding. It was so good to get Dually in a show environment without showing. Hopefully he'll learn that he doesn't have to get psyched-up every time he is in the show ring. We were home by noon and had the rest of the afternoon to relax and putz around the house. If only all horse showing were that mellow!

Late in the afternoon, we met our good friends for dinner, then went back to the fair for the rodeo and dance. It was a beautiful Colorado evening, cool but comfortable, gorgeous sunset and the outdoor rodeo was pretty good. Actually, the rough-stock events were great (bareback bronc, saddle broncs and bull riding—the main parts of a rodeo everyone comes to see) but the rest of it was mediocre. But it was great to watch and cheer and visit with neighbors and community members you may only see once a year at the fair.

Right after the rodeo, there is the annual rodeo dance. We danced and danced to the music of a great country band and if you weren't dancing, it was great to just sit back and watch this little slice of American pie. Of course, there were local people of all ages and station there—little girls running through the dance floor, fathers dancing with daughters, teenage girls line dancing, the serious married couples who clearly practiced their dance moves and took them very seriously, the teenage/young adult crowd intent on impressing members of the opposite sex and those of us just kicking up our heels and having a good time. You can learn a lot about people by watching them dance—I don't know if any of it is true, but it is fun to imagine!

Today the fair continues with a ranch rodeo in the morning and another pro-rodeo in the afternoon. But I think we've had enough fun at the county fair for one year. Instead, a nice ride on my horse, some work in the garden and maybe some time to read a good book will top the agenda of my day. I hope you are enjoying yours!

Julie

Compromise-- Never!

Good Day!

I spent half the day yesterday working on articles with the editor of a magazine and she had an idea for an article, which I thought was fantastic—what to do when riding a strange horse for the first time. As we talked about the issue and outlined the article, I started thinking about compromising with horses. Although compromise may be a positive attribute for mediators, politicians and car dealers, it is rarely a good idea with horses.

As I've said on many occasions, there is really only one way to start a conversation with a horse and it goes like this, "Horse, this is your Captain speaking. And everything else that follows is a direct order from me to you. My job, as Captain, is to make all the decisions, chart the course and watch out for the greater good of my crew and the universe. Your job, as my horse, it is be first mate; to carry out my orders exactly as stated, to wait patiently and attentively for the next directive and to be quiet and content in the umbrella of my leadership."

I won't give away the details of the article on riding strange horses; you'll be able to read it in about 6 months in America's Horse. But I thought about this subject of compromise all day yesterday, as we rode. Horses are SO keen to your level of awareness and intention—way keener than most humans will ever be. Any time you interact with a horse, whether a known horse or a new one, on the ground or in the saddle, you are establishing a relationship with him and he is forming an opinion of you—whether you are dominate or he is, whether or not you are a capable leader and whether or not he has to be obedient or if compromise is an option.

If , in the first few minutes of my ride, when my horse is forming this critical first impression of me, I direct my horse to the rail, and he says, "I'd really rather make a little circle here in the middle," and I say, "No, I want to you be next to the rail," and then we compromise on a path that is neither on the rail or in the middle—I've just taught my horse that I am not the Captain and he can argue or negotiate with my decisions. What would Captain Kirk think? Here's the thing most people miss: your horse knows when you are compromising-- you may think you're fooling him, but you're not.

If I tell my horse to go on this specific path at this particular speed, he does not have the option to alter course in any way. If I find my self constantly telling him to speed up or slow down, he is disobedient and needs correction—usually a spanking will do. I shouldn't be constantly cueing him to do something—once I tell him to do it, he should keep doing it until I tell him to stop. If he doesn't, he's making an unauthorized decision , to slow down or speed up; one unauthorized decision that goes uncorrected, will lead to others. One harsh correction is worth a thousand nags.

The main difference between a pro and nonpro rider is in leadership (authority), timing and correction. The pro rider doesn't even have to think about it—if the horse varies off course even with only one little part of his body (say he's not bent correctly) or if there is the slightest change in rhythm or speed, he gets an instant and meaningful correction. I have to do this frequently with Dually but most observers wouldn't see me do it.

Enough said; I think you get the picture! Try to ride your horse with authority and give him the responsibility to do the right thing—correct him if he doesn't. Don't get co-dependent with him and feel like you have to carry him around and constantly tell him over and over again that he should really be doing what you asked of him.

Today is Friday. Man did this week go fast! Once I finish up my end-of-the-month writing obligations, I'll head down to the barn to wash, clip and spiff up Diggs for the cutting show tomorrow. It's supposed to be realyl hot today, so a cool bath will feel good for both of us. Maybe I'll get to tan my white legs (occupational hazard). Rich didn't ask me to wash his horse (but I know he'll appreciate it) and yes, I could ask one of my staff to do it, but I actually enjoy making horses look pretty. Besides, no one else does it precisely the way I like to, so I'd just as soon do it myself! Tomorrow is a big day here in Chaffee County-- we have the cutting show in the morning then we'll head to the county fair to support the 4H livestock auction, then the rodeo and dance. Yehaw!

Enjoy the weekend!

Julie