I miss the West

What a spring break it was! So much horse education went on in that week! It was intended to be a week of riding, but it turned out there was plenty to see both on and off a horse. I started my trip in Kentucky and was able to go to the Kentucky Horse Park and Keeneland Racetrack. It was incredible to see such a vast history of the horse at Keeneland, and to see just how many different breeds and sports are involved in the equine industry at the park. There are also pretty great places to shop around there.

The next part of my journey was to Colorado. After a 5 am flight out I arrived nice and early to Denver. The first day at the Ranch was just chores as Sunday is everyone's day off (from riding). I did walk in on a sheep giving birth to two lambs, which was a pretty incredible sight. I had never seen anything being born before, and was awestruck at just how incredible it was.

The second day I had a lesson with Mindy on Butters.  Butters is a draft cross in training at the Ranch. He was sent here when he was first broke and is back again for some training. It's pretty clear no one has done a lot with him since he was last here. I started out doing some groundwork. Mindy, the owner of the ranch, came out and gave me a lesson on him. She gave me some really helpful tips on ground work. Instead of driving with the outside hand I need to use more leading hand and have them going off of feel. Also, I stop moving my feet after I get the hind end and need to continue to ask for the front and keep moving to the hip. After the ground work I got on and really worked on getting the reins connected to the feet so that they mean something. Butters is the kind of horse that you can get to go really nicely if you know how to ride him, but if you don't have it all together he is kind of a mess. He is sensitive, but only when you have him with you. Mindy said fewer horses have frustrated her more than Butters... and I understand why. He has a bit of a thick skull and it takes him awhile to get the message across. It was even more challenging to me when my timing was not spot on. When you ask him to trot he can get so heavy and barrel around, so it is really important to get his hind end over. However, he is really not all that interested in work, so keeping him steady is another thing in itself. Honestly, I learned a lot in that lesson, but I can't recall most of it. It was all feel and watching for little things.

Right after that my trainer Terry and I decided to go on a road trip all around the West! We started Monday by going to Buck Brannaman's house in Wyoming and stayed there for the night. It was a great experience to see his farm, how they operate it, and get to talk with his family. He was on the road but his wife and working student were there. After that we went to the famous King's Saddlery (well famous in my head anyway) and went to the museum with all of the old Indian saddles and Mexican saddles. It was crazy that stuff they used to ride in. Your eyes could never look at all of the things that museum held. After Kings we headed north to Montana. Our first stop in Montana was to the Montana State University colt starting class, taught by Reata Brannaman. There we got to see them doing a herd bound exercise where they took off their bridles (if they chose) and got their colts to go to the other end of the arena by choice. It was unbelievable to see how simply blocking the wrong thing (staying with their friends at the other end of the ring) and rewarding the correct thing (going to the end without the other horses) could result in the horses really learning. There was no force involved, just giving the clues they needed to make the right choice. That is why I love this kind of horsemanship. It digs into what the horse really thinks of as second nature.

On Wednesday we looked around Bozeman Montana for the first half of the day and then went to the University of Montana Western in Dillion. I got to see their horsemanship program and how they start colts. Both schools are founded on natural horsemanship, but they each follow different paths. Since Reata has been a student at MSU they have been doing a lot more of the Buck, Ray, and Tom style, while MSU Western takes in ideas from Parelli and other leaders. We picked up our friend who goes to that school and then proceeded to pick up some horses t bring back to the ranch in Colorado. The other working student at the ranch was boarding her horses in Montana and wanted us to bring them back with us. What was supposed to be a nice easy trip to pick up the horses got a little confusing. After we finally got there in the dark, and backed up what seemed like the mile long driveway, we got more horse education than we bargained for. My friend and I went to get the horses out of their paddock only to find they had lice... and hadn't been touched in a good year. They haltered well, but trailer loading was another story. I had the 17 hand thoroughbred who needed to go in first... and lets just say he wasn't planning on getting in that trailer. Terry coached me through getting him in the trailer and I proceeded, even though I was pretty convinced he was going to hop right in my lap when he finally did decide to load. Luckily they both got on and all was well :)

On our way back we went through Jackson Hole and some mountain passes, which was an unbelievable sight, and found tons of little tack stores along the way! Quite an adventures 4 day trek!

When we returned to the ranch on Friday the riding continued. We only got to ride once as it was getting dark and stormy, but it was good ride at that. I rode Concho. He is a quarter horse who is pretty much the most amazing QH I have ever sat on. When people think of quarter horses they think of these horses who are built downhill and can not do anything. They are so wrong. Quarter horses kick butt. This horse can pick up so well, and do a better leg yield than half of the warmbloods I've ridden. I warmed up a little bit in the ring and then headed out on the trail. In my warm up I got his hind and his front, and did some w/t/c. After that we headed out on a trail ride through the prairie. We worked on some counter canter and shoulder in on the trail. He had a lot of energy and needed to put it to good use. We did a look around the cattle and made sure all of the fences were up. Pretty good ride over all, and I'm very glad I got to ride this guy!

The last day at the Ranch was my first full taste of what it's all about out there. It's about, work, work, some more work, and a lot of fun along the way. After waking up at 6:30 and doing chores for about 40 horses you ride as many horses as you can fit in before night chores. I'm not kidding when I say these people work horses... they don't even eat lunch. They stop togo to the bathroom and get more water - once. I don't even remember how many horses I road in that day, but I'll recap the rides I remember. Concho was first. We road out on the prairie and did a loop. They have an old river bed with sand better than you find at any beach. It's perfect for the young horse with energy, as they can run to their heart's content. Concho however is not young, and certainly ran to his heart's content in about two minutes. But the rest of the way we got to work on fun stuff like counter canter, so I was more than okay with not galloping. 

After Concho was my boy Butters. Butters and I had a much better ride than the first time. We worked on getting the hind and the front, which really was my skills needing refining. I get frustrated with Duncan because I can't do it right. It's not that it wouldn't work if done correctly, because I've seen it work plenty, it's that I haven't done it enough to really know how to fix the holes. She told me to keep my inside rein steady and to open and bump to get the front. She also told me I shouldn't have to rely on the outside rein, because after all in the groundwork we don't use an outside rein. Also, she told me that to get Duncan to the other end of the arena I should take my flag and block every area but forward. This works similar to the colt starting exercise mentioned above, where you make the right choice easy and the wrong one difficult. Lastly, she told me to stop pulling on my reins, which I have gotten in the habit of with Duncan. Instead she told me to widen them in order to get them straight, and to pick up a soft feel (when I apply pressure release when he gives to it). We did this with Butters by getting him to give to the pick up the soft feel and go round, and directly after he did I gave him his head and asked him to go forward. This made him willing to go round and eventually he started to do so more and more. 

Lastly I road an older horse named Tripper. He was Mindy's bridle horse in his day, and was a treat to get on. He is responsive and easy off the aids. I went out on a trail ride with Terry and we did the whole look around the Ranch. We checked all of the cattle, and Terry let me work a few of the young ones. She just had me get them to the point that they were submissive and would allow me to steer them, and then we let them go off. She explained how to do it correctly, and not to crowd the calf, but to sit back and wait for them, but still apply pressure so they will go. This keeps them out of stress. Tripper certainly knew his way around a cow and was more than happy to play around a little. I think the old man was happy to be back in work for a little bit. 

God was certainly at work through all of this as well. I was upset after leaving Colorado as I really did not want to come back to Houghton after a spring break like that. I was sad to leave my friend and really unsure of what the next step in my life should be. I have struggled with homesickness since being at school, and this break seemed to bring me back to those first few days in September when it was all I could do to get through a day of classes without crying. This time was different though. God has been showing me so many things in this past year, and His love is only the beginning. God showed that it is indeed alright to cry, and be sad, but to know that He is holding me though it all. I cried in Jesus' arms that night, and have been fine since. I think just knowing that it is okay to be sad, but also knowing that God loves me more than anyone on Earth ever could made it all okay. I felt secure. This brought me back to a section of Walter Zettl's book where he was talking about the spooking horse. He recommended a shoulder in so that the horse was angled to get away if need be, but also advise letting the horse know he is okay. The love, and security horses need from us is the same thing we crave from Jesus. As humans we need to know it is okay to be upset, but that Jesus will protect us, and for horses they need to know they can get away, but trust that we will protect them. As that is something Duncan and I have struggled with time and time again, it is amazing to know that my God will protect both Duncan and I, holding us in His arms. 

All in all my horse education was well rounded over the trip and I am so thankful for all of the opportunities God gave me through Terry to expand my horizons and knowledge.