Saturday, June 26, 2010

Summer Camp 2010

My friend Lisa and I took Skeeter and Nugget to Jonathan Field's ranch in Merrit, BC to participate in a week long horsemanship camp. It has been a privelege to learn from Jonathan Field. He is an inspiring horseman but also a terrific teacher and that is not always easy to find. He and his family, and staff are gracious hosts and welcome everyone. Everything about the week was fantastic, including the other participants. One of the participants, Jim, summed it up beautifully when he said there wasn't one person attending that you wouldn't want to be friends with. I think it is simply the type of people Jonathan attracts to his life. Jonathan treats each participant and their horse with the utmost respect, no matter what level they are at. He really brings out the best in both the horse person and their horse with delightful humility.

This clinic primarily focused on achieving path, speed, bend and balance; and always in that order. There is no point working on the speed of your horse if you are not maintaining the correct path, and certainly no point in working on bend and balance if you don't have path and speed mastered. I can't tell you how much Jonathan's method of teaching has improved my overall riding experience.

I used to think that I would be a happy person if all I ever did was ground work because that is where I feel confident and competent. For the first time since I started riding, I am truly excited about riding. Don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed trail riding in the mountains but arena work never appealed much to me. I now realize that was because I didn't really know what to do in an arena. My newfound joy of riding has come from knowledge and will only increase through practice.

What this year has taught me, is how important it is to find the right coaches to fully appreciate the equestrian experience.

I can't wait to practice our newly acquired skills and will hopefully have another opportunity to attend Summer Camp 2011.

Enjoy your summer,
Tovie and Lisa and Nugget and Skeeter

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Fun in Las Vegas

You may recall our trip to Redmond, OR to see Clinton Anderson back in April; we enjoyed him so much that we decided to catch his Walkabout Tour in Las Vegas this past weekend. Yes Las Vegas in June is hot. We went down with friends Lisa & Dave, and Sherri & Mark - all very easy folks to travel with as they were game for anything. Lisa had some luck at blackjack and Sherri was lucky at the slots.We all did some pre-Stampede shopping and found some things we haven't seen up here so that was fun.

Originally, Clinton Anderson invited his two mentors from Australia, Ian Francis and Gordon McKinlay to join him in Vegas but only Ian Francis was able to attend. We Canadians had the pleasure of sitting with Ian during the VIP event Saturday evening. He shared some training tips and stories from down under - a real highlight for us all. We Canadians even received an honourable mention the next day. Clinton isn't as well known in Canada because his popularity grew through his series on RFDTV, a satellite station which isn't as commonly received in Canada.

Clinton's message is simple - get two eyes and keep the feet moving front back, left and right. Basically, if you don't have two eyes, your horse isn't paying attention to you. This opens you up to potential injury as he may react to whatever is distracting him with no regard for your personal space. Without having your horse's full attention, he is also unlikely to retain whatever lesson you may be trying to cover that day. By directing your horse's feet in various patterns, you are establishing confident leadership of your horse, thus earning his respect.

One of our excursions took us to Eldorado Canyon, a long abandonded gold mining town that has been purchased by a local family and is now being recreated. It is a short drive from Las Vegas and we thoroughly enjoyed our time there. As you already know, any interaction with horses makes my day, and our visit to Eldorado Canyon provided just that. Along with tours of the resurected gold mine, they also offer horseback tours. While we weren't dressed appropriately for riding, Billy the wrangler, took us up to the corrals to meet the dude string horses. Billy obviously does a terrific job of caring for these horses. They were all in terrific condition and very friendly. Unfortunately that is not always the case with dude string horses and when it isn't, I am amazed that they tolerate "dudes" at all. I have always felt that dude string horses are worth their weight in gold. It was refreshing to see this dude string healthy and happy.

Now we are busy preparing for the next great adventure. Lisa and I are taking Skeeter and Nugget to the Jonathan Field camp in Merrit, BC next week.

Happy June!
Tovie & Gord