Equine Affaire
Feb 07 2010
I don’t normally go to things like this, because the horse expos I’ve attended in the past have been so lame…often literally! It never seems like the creme de la creme of a discipline show up. Instead, it is Suzy BYB, trying desperately to sell breedings by showing off her fabulous horse, who wouldn’t even win at an open show much less in breed or A circuit competition. You see it all – reiners who can’t rein, jumpers who take down a 2 foot vertical, and gaited horses who can’t hold gait. For that reason, I had pretty much figured there was no point attending these things, except to shop, and normally I’m trying not to do too much of that!
But this year, a friend invited me to join her at Equine Affaire in Pomona, and I have to say that it was much better than I expected. First of all, they had Stacy Westfall, known to most of you as the girl who does the bridleless reining. Stacy was funny, accurate and informative and she’s the kind of person you can and will learn something from even if you’re experienced. She’s not just speaking to the wide-eyed “OMG-you-can-ride-without-the-bridle” crowd. I watched her presentation on bridleless training and it was great. She explained how she did it, emphasized the number of riding hours it took to get a horse from unbroke to broke for bridleless reining (800), and very sensibly pointed out that you should not take your bridle off until you know you have real control (that means you can control the hip and shoulder, not just stop and start) with your legs alone. She said that she rides with the bridle most of the time and certainly rides with one on the trail. The bridleless thing is for exhibitions – it’s a cool thing to be able to do and that’s all, but it’ s all based upon actually having control with your seat and your legs, which you should have whether or not you ever take off the bridle. Amen. Oh, and while she believes you can have a special bond with your horse, she does not believe you get that kind of performance without riding those 800 hours. THANK YOU.
I had to giggle at her mare though. Roxy has done this demo a time or two and was listening to what Stacy said, doing things like stopping when she said the word “stop.” She is very, very well trained and appeared relaxed but somewhat bored. :)
Because I wanted to watch Stacy, I did not see most of Richard Winters’ presentation but I really liked what he was saying as I was leaving. He was pointing out that most people expect to get a nice lope on a horse without doing a lot of loping. Ha. So true. How many people do you know who canter twice around the arena and stop? They do not get broke and consistent that way, and it doesn’t matter what your discipline is. They need to actually do the gait for extended periods of time to get fit. You can’t get consistency without fitness. It is not physically possible for the horse. So I’d be interested to see more from Mr. Winters, because he was definitely on target with that, and it’s the sort of thing people need to hear — not “buy my magic stick and develop a special bond with your horse,” because that for a FACT is not going to get your horse to stop loping like a runaway freight train!
In looking for a place to sit and eat terribly unhealthy horse-expo food, we ended up watching a hobbling demonstration. I’m not a trail rider, as I’ve observed many times, but it looked like a lot of work to me when you can buy four panels for about $250 on sale and make a stall wherever it is you might be. *shrug* The mare being used for the demo looked really sick of it.
The people I was with wanted to stay for the Extreme Cowboy Race, so even though I knew that the jumping was going to make me cringe (true in some cases), I hung around to watch it and it did look like fun. It started out with galloping around a bit at Mach 10. Then you had to slow down, pick up a “sword,” and spear a ring. Next you had to pick up a jump pole that was leaning on the wall and walk in a circle all the way around it while holding one end of it, then reverse and do likewise. That looked extremely difficult. The next maneuver was kind of an S-curve with 3 low jumps. All the women did well over the jumps and almost all the men sucked at it (Only one of them looked like he actually knew how to jump). I was trying to figure out how come all the girls could get off the horse’s back and not get left behind even in the western saddle, but the guys were hanging on the horn and getting left behind every time? Wondering if it’s anatomically impossible for a guy to jump properly in a western saddle without pain. ;) Anyway, after that it was stop and do some reining spins both directions, then pick up a full pail of water and walk through one of those things with hanging strips like a car wash and put the pail down on the other side. I think there was more galloping after that and then they had to stop with just their back feet in a pile of packing peanuts. A LOT of horses snorked at that, but they all did it once they realized it wasn’t anything scary. (I may be mixing up the order here, I’m trying to remember) Then you had to drag a “log” through an s-curve between hay bales. Next, jump off, take off your saddle, crawl through a hole cut in hay bales (without your horse but the horse had to ground tie and wait for you – get back on bareback, jump a hay bale and then run like hell around the arena again. Again, it was obvious the girls had a lot easier time of the bareback, though the last guy who went seemed just as comfy up there and wasn’t hanging on.
The one I enjoyed watching the most was Wylene Wilson, who apparently is well known for reforming naughty ponies. She had a black mare there that she got because it kept flipping over. The mare went great for her, although she hit a slick spot during the bareback run, hit the panels and Wylene came off. She stung herself pretty good and was out of breath and had a hell of a time getting back on, but she managed it. I believe she came in fourth. I’d really have wanted to give her first just for getting back on, since you could tell she’d hurt herself even though she denied it.
I was also really impressed with Corinne Lindquist. Her horse isn’t as finished as some of these, but I’d say she was one of the best riders out of the bunch. Her equitation even looked pretty doing this stuff.
They made a big deal out of the third place horse being a grade horse, and that kind of made me laugh because if that horse isn’t 100% Paint horse, I’d be shocked. He is a big old, probably halter bred, Paint horse gelding and I think if he’d had his lead changes, she might have won it. But she said she just had him adjusted and it was obvious he had something mild going on…he was sound but he just couldn’t get a clean change last night. I know she’s won it before and she’ll probably win it again when he’s 100%.
The winner was another woman, Robin Bond, and she absolutely deserved it. She and the aptly-named Jose’s Perfection had the most controlled ride of anyone. Her ride through the s-curve of jumps was beautiful – she hit the 2nd one right in the middle, whereas everybody else was almost losing a knee on the standard.
Very fun thing to watch! I can’t say I love seeing horses have to jump in a western saddle, but other than that, I thought it was a cool event and the horses seemed to be having a blast, particularly when they got to gallop! They apparently have a novice level that is not this difficult, and who knows, if I ever manage to acquire that fun horse for me that I keep talking about – you know, a nice broke teenaged Appendix mare who can do a little gaming, a little chasing cows, a little miscellaneous silly stuff – I may even give it a try.
Other than that, of course I did shop…the Dale Chavez booth sucked me in and now the VLC has a brand new headstall and bosal for the shows. The nice thing about those guys is that they are experts. They can tell you what’s going to be in style this year (apparently the horsehair reins are out and the black thin ones are in), what looks good on what kind of face, etc. They managed to assemble exactly the headstall I wanted, by adding extra silver pieces, for much less than I’d almost paid for it already-assembled online. I also hit the Kensington booth – if you go, they have some amazing deals in there, including those bug-eye fly masks for just $12 and super nice padded hunt seat pads that are normally $44 for $19.99.
Have you gone to Equine Affaire, either here or at its other locations? What did you think? Who were your favorite presenters? Who didn’t you like? I kind of have to like these guys just because I heard they threw Pat Parelli out for that picnic-table-jumping crap and that to me is a big win. They seem like they chose people who really would give good information without teaching beginners just enough to be dangerous and putting crazy ideas in their heads. Your thoughts?
181 comments to “Equine Affaire”
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My brother invited me to this — he was the beet pulp guy there — and it was on too short notice for me to fly free.
Next year he has to give more notice, sounds like it was fun.
I’ve always wanted to go to one of the big ones, maybe next year.
Has anyone ever been to a WEG? The 2010 one is in KY, and I’m thinking of going for a weekend (probably the reining one) and networking/shopping. Is there anything to do beyond watching the competitors?
There are MANY horsey places to go in Lexington, I have a friend who lives there.
If you are able to get to WEG, you should go. It will be an excellent learning experience, but from what I understand, it’s going to be expensive.
Lexington is wonderful, btw. I’m sure they will have parts of the Horse Park open, like the museum and the different barns, and I know there will be a huge traide fair. And while you’re in town, you can tour a farm or two.
I am going, already have tickets and campsite for the 2nd week. If you want to go, you should make plans now. Accomodations and tickets have been going fast. There will be plenty to keep you busy, lots to do onsite, shopping, demo’s etc. Also much to do in the area. Since this is the first time it has ever been held in the US – they are going all out. I fully expect there to be lots of lines and “issues” – but I am pretty good at going with the flow – leaving the husband home and taking a friend – that will help ALOT!!
I REALLY want to go. My school offers a small stipend to go to conferences/events that are connected to your major/job prospects, and it would cover a plane ticket if I get it. I figure the creme de la creme are going to show up, and even if I can’t afford to go to the actual show classes, I think it would be a networking opportunity with some of the bigger trainers/breeders for internships and jobs with the other stuff going on. At least, that’s what my form will say
. The only time I’ve been to KY was for the Nat’l FFA Convention in Louisville, and the only horsey thing we got to do was see the empty racetrack where they were filming Seabiscuit. Naturally, they had just finished a sale and there were no horses on the grounds. How in the heck did I end up in KY for 5 days and not see a *single horse*? I didn’t even know you could do that! Don’t they have TBs coming out of their ears? I won’t have a car, though (not 25 yet, so no rentals), so hopefully I either stay somewhere with a shuttle or Lexington is bus/walking friendly.
Decisions, decisions…
I wouldnt call lexington walker friendly!!! It is so pretty though, and just a horse lover dream. You could spend a week at the horse park alone reading and watching and learning. So many greats have passed through those fields and stayed in the stalls. I love the museum with the horribly stuffed horses, and the saddlebred museum is worth the price too. I would suggest hooking up with someone who is mobile so you arent waiting on transportation and wasting too much time. I wish I could remember all the places we found just cruising around but it was years ago. GO and ENJOY!!
There are NO hotels/motels anywhere near the Horse Park; however, I wonder if they will possibly be running shuttles between the HP and the major hotels. Very logical thing to do, IMHO. Lexington is a wonderful place in general. Marvelous (horse) sculpture park downtown — I believe it’s called TB Park? You could spend at least a couple of days at the Horse Park even without the WEG — visiting the Museum of the Horse, the ASB museum, USEF, the Hall of Champions, doing the carriage ride through the park, and on and on!
Actually they will be building hotels specifically for the World Games. They are also widening some roads. I hopefully will be volunteering…although I’ll be about ready to give birth so who knows!!!
Just a few notes about the WEG since I have been signed up as a volunteer for almost a year now and gotten a lot of emails about it:
1. If you are thinking about volunteering, make sure you check out the terms and conditions:
http://www.alltechfeigames.com/volunteer/default.aspx?id=258&ekmensel=c580fa7b_8_40_btnlink
If you volunteer, you get a general admission ticket for two weeks to get on the Horse Park. This perk does NOT include tickets to the events themselves, which are a separate price (and pricey!).
2. Any hotel within any kind of distance to Lexington is already sold out. This includes many hotels as far away as Cincinnati and Louisville and everything in between. There are RV parks, private homes, maybe some bed/breakfasts, and even housing in churches still available. There may be other creative options but I encourage you to start looking for housing now – it is scarce already.
3. I remember reading somewhere that there will be remote parking with shuttles to the Horse Park. I would imagine that parking at the HP will be impossible.
4. The Horse Park is probably 15 miles from the city center, so no walking to it.
I am really excited about being a part of this – don’t want to sound like Debbie Downer with the above. But I do think that if you are interested in attending, it’s important to realize that the WEG will be on a scale unlike any other horse show and plan accordingly. Get your itinerary and accommodations and tickets now.
IF you can stay downtown, do! While it is far from the KHP, they are going to be having a festival of the horse downtown during the WEG, so lots going on right there!
I really want to go to the WEG! I’m signed up as a volunteer. If you volunteer for a few shifts you get free tickets for the whole two weeks. They’re still taking general volunteers, so it works great for people like me who couldn’t afford to go otherwise.
I love that area of the country and if I knew what I was going to be doing job wise, I’d buy tickets. But too much uncertainty right now in life. It can be very hot down there that time of year. The horsepark is wonderful and will probably be crowded but the inside is air conditioned. I wish I could go….
I would love to go. It’s practically in my back yard, but I can’t afford the tickets. XD
Ah well, but I do plan on hitting the Rolex, I’ve been told that the tickets are cheap, and that you can make a whole fun day out of the Cross Country, going from jump to jump to watch it all.
About 10 years ago I saw a pic of Richard Gere jumping an appy in a western saddle over a good sized log in a hunter pace near his home in Ct. His form was PERFECT! And by that IMean his equitation. From his heels which were down to his hands which were doing a crest release ILdLve been proud of, everything was where it should be (as far as I could see). I had that pic on my fridge for years until it disappeared, because I was already a fan. And if he was in pain it sure didn,t show on his smiling face!
Assuming Richard Gere is anatomically normal, that answers my question.
I’m not expecting equitation here…just please don’t wham down on their back right in front of where I’m sitting. It makes my head hurt.
I always cringe when I see jumping in western saddles – I keep imagining the horn is going to impale the rider. My friend jumps in her western saddle & once when she leaned forward she got the front of her bra caught on the horn. It seems ideally placed to jab right through your sternum.
Haa Haa I had this happen when I was about fifteen, lesson learned there.
I want to hate Stacey Westfall. I really do. But that’s because I’m jealllllllous.
I’ve been before to the Columbus, OH expo. Mostly for the shopping. My girls are old enough now to actually sit through some of the informative things, so I’m going to take them for their first time. They are very excited! Funny, and slightly OT, I never even realized they had these in other places around the country. The headquarters for Equine Affaire actually is literally 1/2 a mile from my house.
I was excited to see that Stacy Westfall was going to be there, but not sure if we are going to be able to catch her presentation as we can only go for one day. I know they have some youth exhibitions there, so we will try and hit that and maybe something on barrel racing as that is what my oldest daughter will be competing in.
Hey, all those gals are on Facebook.
And those pics illustrate the wide range of jumping positions I saw last night
OK, I just looked up Richard Winters’ web site. He has some great stuff on there. He is right on target about stallion handling: http://www.wintersranch.com/monthlyarticle.html
I wish he wasn’t riding 2 year olds but except for that, I’m happy to see someone like this (and who’s actually GOOD at something, someone who has BEEN World Champion in something) speaking to the masses. Could it be that the snake oil and magic carrot sticks are on their way out? Could it be that the general horsey populace is getting smart and wants to listen to and learn from people who are actual experts, not good talkers who promise an easy way out?
Seriously, this all looks to me like things are going in a MUCH better direction. I didn’t see a damn round pen the whole day. Awesome.
That, and I think that now with the economy the way it is, people are saying “no, I am NOT letting you have carte blanche with my wallet” and feeling comfortable about it. People would rather pay to feed their horses right now than buy a bunch of snake-oil equipment, and maybe the clinicians might be coming to realize this from what people are saying. Maybe they are realizing that bullying or browbeating people into buying junk they can make themselves at home or buy someplace else cheaper isn’t going to cut it anymore.
There really isn’t anything wrong with roundpenning. It has it’s place, it really does. It does help teach a horse where their body should be in relation to you and can be very good exercise when you don’t have time to ride. It does teach respect and it does help an untrusting horse learn to trust and rely on you for guidance. Is all that Pat Parelli stuff necessary??? Not at all. Is it necessary to have a horse on a super short line some of those natural horsemanship people like, getting it to move around at the trot and canter and destroy it’s joints? No. But round penning is very helpful, when used properly. My line lunge is 30′ and my round pen is 60′ so my poor horse isn’t turning super tight circles. I don’t see the point in that, unless I want to destroy her legs!
I agree it does have it’s place. I also currently am not so much enjoying the Belgian X TB cross I just picked up cheap from some Parelli gurus. Very difficult to ground drive a horse who continually wants to turn around and face you.
HAHA I feel your pain!!! What Parelli does isn’t really what i consider “round penning” though…A lot of his stuff is working up to a free horse (no line) and I have enver felt a need to “work my horse up” to moving freely in the roundpen. The thoroughbred babies I work with have done basic round penning just at the walk and THEY are able to figure it out quite well without all the gimmicks, just my body, a crop (which I don’t actually touch them with) and their own natural instincts. Horses are smarter than Parelli gives them credit for. My basic argument against natural horsemanship is that it’s really not any more natural than regular methods and it just seems to confuse horses more. What is natural about a rope halter that puts excess pressure on pressure points when the horse doesn’t give??? And what is natural about a “carrot stick”? I just use my body and maybe a whip to roundpen….it’s not hard.
My husband and I went to the one in Harrisburg, Pa 2 years ago. It was a fun experience. I did have to snicker at all of the 14 year old “horse trainers” walking around with neon colored parelli sticks. They had some nice gaited horses do a presentation and kept gait through the entire 1/2 hour display. (Of course not the same horses continuously.) They had a large animal emergency seminar that provided some good info on what to do if your horse gets injured on a trail ride or different disaster type emergencies such as flooding and extreme cold. AC4H Rescue had a booth set up with lots of cool items for sale to support their group. (I totally admire how much they do for broker owned and auction horses and the number of successes they have for this area.) I didn’t care to see the parelli seminar, so I opted out for the little kids obstacle course. The oddest booth I saw was for sham-wow stuff and the people trying to tell you its hundred uses for horses. “You can clean their feet better!”
Actually, I couldn’t begin to tell you all the things I use Sham-Wows for at the barn- great for cleaning, getting in places a sponge can’t, drying them off after a surprise rainstorm in places a cooler can’t dry, getting the last bit of water out of that water trough that’s cemented itself into the mud so you can’t tip it over, drying my hair after chasing stupid ponies around in the pouring freezing rain, etc. They do come in handy!
I have redwood cabinet egg incubators/hatchers, and the Sham-Wows are great for getting the water out of the humidity tanks after the chicks have hatched so you can clean them without disassembling the tanks. They soak up a lot of water.
They do have their uses, I won’t deny. But the people there weren’t really horsey people and were just making some weird stuff up. My favorite was the in case they urinate on themselves. lol I like them for rubbing my mare down after a workout. I wonder about a sham-wow saddle blanket… Saves half of the rub down after a ride!
I stumbled across Wylene Wilson`s youtube videos a while back and was thoroughly impressed – that girl can ride!
About the hobble training – if you trail ride it`s really essential to have a hobble trained horse, and it`s really not that difficult to do, just start them out in a safe, soft enclosed area. We go on all day rides, and it sure comes in handy to be able to sit down, have lunch (preferrably in a nice grassy spot) and hobble the horses there so they can eat too. Plus, it`s kind of hard to carry four panels around when you`re out on the trail.
OK that makes sense. Like I say, I am so not a trail rider.
Another real value for hobble training: True Story, as related to me by my mom.
When riding out west with a particular unnamed gentleman, my parents and grandmother, along with the man, topped a hill. Going at a canter (the man was the type to go fast) this gentleman and his lovely mare landed in the middle of a loose roll of discarded barbed wire. He yelled whoa, she stopped, and then STOOD until they managed to untangle her and cut her out. Several cuts, but no lasting damage, thanks in large part to the mare’s training that having her legs constricted and confined wasn’t something to panic about.
I’ve never had such a horrid experience, but I did end up tangled in some wild grape vines, which can be just as tough to get out of. My very broke mare stood well until I got her loose. She had never been formally hobble trained, but I figure I just lucked out that she was so quiet and smart– the gelding I used to own would have broken a leg long before I could have released him from the vines.
Anyway, it’s a very narrow training skill, but very useful, and arguably a very good thing to teach all horses.
That is EXACTLY why I think hobble training is a must for any trail horse. I was on my husband’s horse for the first time (experienced trail horse, I’d just never ridden him) and he was abjectly refusing to go over a log. It was incredibly unlike him, but we both thought he was just testing me because he didn’t know me. Well, turned out that a section of fencing was balled up there from the flooding earlier in the year and he stepped right through it and promptly got both front feet *very* stuck. He stood and waited while I slid off and we cut him free. Not a scratch on him.
Sold me on hobble training. And the merits of trusting an experienced and normally bold horse out on the trail when he out of the blue refuses to go somewhere.
Never used hobbles, never will.
Had an exact same thing happen to my step daughters pony, never had hobbles on in her life but, because she had a brain, she stood like a rock until someone cut her free.
A pony with a brain does not need hobbles and, personally, I would not like to ride an animal without a brain, not any more.
There are many ways to teach your horse not to run away without doing something that, were they to really truly spook, say a bear, would end up with them with two broken legs,not to mention the fact that, were they to really need to get away, as with a bear, they could not do so.
Tie them up.
Simples.
It’s not the “don’t run away” that’s important: it’s not panicking when something — anything — is around their legs. And even horses “with a brain” can do that. Heck, *people* can act silly if they get a foot hung in something. Once a horse is trained for hobbles, they will *not* “break two legs.”
And y’know, there are plenty of places to ride where there is nowhere to tie to.
But the hobble training doesn’t have to be used on the trail to be valuable to your horse’s safety.
Hobble training has worked well for me with youngsters who do not want to stand for clipping, especially body clipping. Takes a whole lot longer to clip a moving target.
I totally believe in hobble training. SO many horses panic when they get caught up in something it is stupid to not hobble train your horse.
Perfect example, I was trail riding on my haflinger mare whom I have trained over the last six years to ride , drive and do tricks. On the trail riding in the riverbed we came upon some barbed wire and she was tangled in it before i could see it or stop her. THANK GOd she was hobble trained…for the minute she felt the tension on her legs she stopped and stood still while i dropped her reins and untangled the wire. she walked away with No marks. How many horses do YOU know will stand there when they get hung up in a fence. I tie up my horse legs all the time so they get used to it, starting aS FOALS WHEN I have foals born.
and out on trail, there is not always something to tie horse to so hobble training or ground tying do come in handy and teach the horse disapline.
I missed EA Pomona this year — a friend went yesterday (Saturday) and said she was dodging hail and had to wade through the water in the tunnel under White Avenue (from the parking lot to the Fairplex) and got totally drenched because she’d left her coat in the car on a “drop-off” trip. Didn’t think she’d need it.
All I can say, after this weekend, SOMEONE washed their car because Mother Nature was really ticked.
I’ve been to EA several times. Used to volunteer all day on Wednesday (set-up day) for a free pass to the show for at least two days. Then a couple of years ago the Powers That Be named a new volunteer coordinator. HER attitude is, Everyone is a cheat and a liar. We vols had to sign in every time we turned around, and she was always checking up on us. At the end of the day I asked for my free T-shirt — another “gift” for volunteering — and was told I’d have to come back the next day to get it — and even though we’d worked a full 8 hours, we only qualified for free admission for ONE day. This time I was the one who was really ticked.
Last year I met a friend — I paid the admission price — and we watched Chris Cox start a colt. He is really good, and I bought his book, “Ride The Journey.” The rest of the time I wandered around and looked at stuff I (obviously) could live without. If you’re a Western discipline person, EA is the place for you. There are a few English and/or Dressage booths, but mostly it’s a lot of Tony Lama and Carhartt stuff.
It’s true about Parelli and the picnic table. I was there that year. I thought they were arrogant before the jumping incident. Fairplex policy also forbade the jumping, and the EA folks were following their rules. I don’t think anyone is worse off for Parelli not being part of it anymore.
There was an issue over about the agreement John Lyons wanted EA to sign for his participation — something about his being the only NH permitted. He hasn’t been there for quite a few years, either.
The Extreme Cowboy Race is something I like if I can watch it on television with the sound off. Craig Cameron’s voice makes my hair stand on end. I don’t need someone telling me what I can see perfectly well for myself. I feel the same way about most sports commentators. The difference is, with other sports there is the instant replay and the commentator says AGAIN what I can see for myself. At least with the ECR I only have to miss Craig once. ;o)
Glad you had a good time and got some good bargains.
I have never actually attended an expo, I guess I live in the middle of no where because I have to drive at least 4 hours to the closest one! I always think I will be able to go and then something comes up, figures.
That is really awesome that Stacy Westfall is actually telling people some good stuff. I remember being that big bright eyed little girl who saw bridleless and thought wow, that is amazing. I thought Parelli’s training was so amazing until a few years later I realized I can do all that stuff without paying them hundreds of dollars and you do not have to buy their special kits and equipment to do it. (I am glad I never did waste my money on their stuff, I guess at the time my parents kept me in check, thank goodness for them!) So I do have an article in my blog on bridleless riding, just to share what I have learned with others. Not because I think I am some big shot trainer, I am not! Rather to say it doesn’t happen overnight and do not go and take the bridle off your hot 3 year old.
I just happened to stop by your blog and saw only 6 comments so far and thought I would share my 2 cents
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Totally agree. But with horsemanship like that you just can’t make yourself feel much other than respect.
I rode in a 3 day Clinic with Chris Irwin at the East Coast Equine Affaire a few years ago. I took my 18hh ex-amish belgian. I was very impressed with Chris, whom I wasn’t that familiar with. He made fun of the guru trainers and all their pricey stuff. He said why would you pay $50 for an orange stick when you can push your horse over just as easily with a $5 dressage whip? He also rides english, which I felt allowed me to relate better. There were four other horses in the clinic, and everyone had a good time. The clinic was mostly about helping your horse through training hiccups. My belgian was badly abused, and at the time was afraid of his own shadow. I was very proud of how he did, considering everything going on around him. By the end we were troting over the trap with everyone else. I also respected Chris more when he excused us 10 minutes early on the second day because he didn’t think my horse was ready for the next step. Afterward, he came back to the barn area and worked with us a bit extra.
The downside, because he wasn’t one of the really big name trainers, we weren’t in one of the big arenas. Instead thay had us in a makeshift panel arena set up in the corner of one of the pavillions, with the trade show going on all around us. It was very noisy and there were way too many distractions, including people reaching through the panels to pet the horses DURING the clinic.
Overall though, it was a good experience. I’ve been just to watch a couple times too, but not in the last five years.
I went many, many years ago when it was still Equitana. I got 2 pairs of SMBII’s for under $100.00 and they were in purple, what can I say, I was 12.
I saw John Lyons and that was interesting, but boring at the same time, there was also this Cowboy Preacher who was riding a Paint “reining” Stallion and if you looked close enough you could see bloody spots on the horses flanks where his spurs were hitting.
Sigh, Parelli was there and I have never cared for them at all, especially the wife who pretends she can jump and do dressage.
Some interesting breeds were there that I had never seen like the Cleveland Bay (gorgeous!) and some very nice looking and healthy happy Friesians.
I got some great deals shopping and enjoyed the finale on the last night, but otherwise if it ever comes close to me again, I will probably go for the shopping as my children always need new things.
Oh and the carrot stick does help for horses who don’t respect your space, only time I need it and actually I have only had to use it once..
He seems to be a good horse trainer, but I just can’t go to a Richard Winters clinic since I read that he gave his Road to the Horse winnings to Focus on the Family. No matter how good a trainer he is, I won’t have my money go indirectly to a hate group like that.
Aficat, there’s supposed to be lots of stuff going on during WEG, including a big trade show, demonstrations, etc. Plus, Lexington and the surrounding areas are hosting various festivities to try to bank off the WEG a bit. Even if it’s only half of what they’re marketing it as right now, it’ll still be a pretty good vacation for the horse-inclined, I think. There’s some info on the trade show and stuff on WEG’s website: http://www.alltechfeigames.com/tradeequine/default.aspx?id=348
So glad to hear I’m not the only one against hate groups. More often than not it seems like I am.
Focus on the Family is a “hate” group? Now I HAVE heard everything!
Focus on the Family is the epitome of hate groups. Get an education, for gods’ sake.
I have an education. I’ve seen and read a very large range of their stuff. I’ve never seen them be hateful. Unabashedly conservative and not afraid to state their beliefs, yes. But I’ve never heard them suggest that the people they disagree with should be treated with anything less than dignity and kindness. I dare you to find an example of it. I know Dr. Dobson gets lumped in with Jerry Falwell and his ilk (whom I think should be wiped off the face of the Earth), but they’re really nothing alike.
I can’t help myself and I don’t mean to open a can of worms. I’m not even saying I’m for or against Focus on the Family but it absolutely bugs the crap out of me when two people have a difference of opinion and one person’s answer or assumption is that the other person must be stupid or uneducated. I’m sure they will TOTALLY want to change their opinion now that their stupidity has been pointed out to them. I wonder if this is how “hate groups” get started in the first place… their opinion is the only right one and everyone else is either stupid, ignorant or just plain evil. It would be so much more productive to simply state why you believe what you believe or point the person in the direction of information that you feel backs up your reasoning. Even this blog, with all the “snarky” remarks, is backed up with reasons and examples and tons of information. Of course this is completely off topic and I don’t want to start a debate; I just want to point out that if you start out with name calling the only people who are going to listen to you are those that already agree with you. And honestly, I don’t really mean any offense it’s just one of those pet peeves of mine that is hard to let go.
“FOF regularly asserts the idea that there is a “homosexual agenda” and associates homosexuals with pedophilia and recruitment of children as sex partners.” Source: http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/focus-family
Gee, it certainly sounds like a hateful thing to say to me.
Yeah, but consider the source. It’s like listening to Michael Moore for an opinion on Republicans – you’re not GOING to get an un-biased opinion. Does that make Michael Moore a one-man hate group against Republicans? (Probably, LOL)
Everyone is entitled to an OPINION in America. That’s one of the fine things about AMERICA. People are ENTITLED to be a part of any religion they want or no religion at all. Merely because someone disagrees with you does not necessarily make them stupid. I support the right to gay marriage, and I’m a Republican. I simply think opposing it goes AGAINST what most Republicans believe (i.e. as little government as possible). And I don’t think you can come up with a convincing contract law argument against it. But do I think everybody who is Christian and does not believe that way is a hater? No. I just think their religion tells them it’s wrong, and in many cases they genuinely believe homosexuals are going to hell and don’t want to see anyone suffer that fate. Not everybody who disagrees with your lifestyle or practices or religion or politics is a “hate group.” The KKK is a hate group. Let’s not overuse the term to the point where it means nothing.
And not all christians are necessarily against gay/lesbians. The Catholic Church asks that they practice chastity and celibacy. In fact, the Catholic Church asks us to reach out to them. I know that not all Christians ( and Catholics) feel that way but hey, they’re allowed. Some of my mom and dad’s friends are gay. And they are some of the nicest people ever! Personally, I think that gay/lesbianism is a bad thing, but I’m not going to pretend that certain people are going to hell because they don’t agree with me or act the way I’d like them to.
I agree with what FHOTD is saying here…I’m not for FoF either. And further, here in America it’s a person’s right to hate anybody or anything they like…that’s freedom. What they DO with that hate is another story, whether it is lawful or not. I am getting pretty damned sick of society telling everyone what and who they have to accept, live with, talk to, etc. If someone doesn’t like someone or their way of living and wants to talk about it, that doesn’t make them a hate group. Has anyone considered that there are a lot of hateful things done towards “hate groups” themselves?
Thankyou. I will state first off that I dont agree with homosexuality. BUT I am not harsh or mean to anyone that is. For goodness sake my sister is a lesbian and I love her and allow her to be around my kids as much as she likes. That and some of my best friends have been gay (boy are they FUN to shop with lol). Im not sure where I stand on the gay marriage thing, And as for Focus on the Family I dont believe they are a hate group. They have beliefs and they follow them. Have you ever heard of them lynching someone? Killing someone? Condoning violence? No.
I am a pastors wife and have been raised very conservative. I have no issues being around homosexuals as long as they act like heterosexual couples are expected to: IE not consistently all over each other (for goodness sake if my husband and I get too cuddly in public wherever we are we are told to “get a room) If they want the same rights as Married couples STOP acting like they are so special and so different.
And as to not supporting someone because they support a non-profit group. Really? If hes a good trainer and as long as he is not sending proceeds to like the kkk or something of like, then why not listen? I dont agree with some non-profits but if the trainer that supports them is good I would still buy their materials.
And just because I disagree with the OP it DOESN’T mean im uneducated. It means I have a differing opinion from you. Which I’m (and everyone) is allowed to do.
Rather than getting your view of Focus on the Family from their enemies, how about reading what they have to say for themselves?
What should be the attitude of Christians towards those who are gay?
What is the responsibility of the Christian who struggles with same-sex attraction?
Interview on Larry King Live (This is how Dr. Dobson speaks to an audience that doesn’t agree with him. Look about three quarters of the way down the page for a discussion of gay marriage.)
Marriage on the Ropes (This is how Dr. Dobson writes to his constituency, whom already agree with him. He’s also arguably fundraising here.)
I believe this covers his most outspoken statements against gay marriage gaining legal recognition, and also covers his attitude towards gay people as individuals. Please do read all four, none of them individually give a good overview.
Disclaimer: Please note that I don’t personally agree with his position on gay marriage, and there are other areas where I disagree with Dr. Dobson as well. I don’t consider any of what he says hateful, though.
Okay, back to the horses.
Whoops, second link didn’t work right. It should be this one:
http://family.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/family.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1224
If they want the same rights as Married couples STOP acting like they are so special and so different.
Wow that statement got to me. I don’t know who you have been around. But the gay people I know and me being one of them do not act like we are so special or different. I have been with my partner for over 20 years. ( which is a lot longer than a lot of married people)
We are just like anyone else. We own our own business, we pay taxes have a cute home have our animals and just live our life.
Hmmmm wonder what I am doing that makes me so special and different????
In response to PotionsMage’s comment (which didn’t have a reply button by it, for some reason?)
“I am getting pretty damned sick of society telling everyone what and who they have to accept, live with, talk to, etc. If someone doesn’t like someone or their way of living and wants to talk about it, that doesn’t make them a hate group. Has anyone considered that there are a lot of hateful things done towards “hate groups” themselves?”
That all makes sense, and I can’t do anything about it if people want to believe that homosexuality is immoral, nor should I be able to do anything about it. But FoF is a political action group. The reality is that this isn’t a case of “society” telling FoF members who they have to accept, it’s that FoF is a very wealthy organization that pushes for legislation that not only denies marriage to homosexuals, but denies them even more basic rights like the right to not be fired or evicted for their sexual orientation. They’re allowed to think and feel however they want, but the organization’s goal is to make its worldview become the law. They’re the ones trying to tell the rest of us how to think, feel and live, not the other way around.
“I just think their religion tells them it’s wrong, and in many cases they genuinely believe homosexuals are going to hell and don’t want to see anyone suffer that fate.”
Just because you believe something is right doesn’t make it right (must…refrain…from Hitler argument).
I think you’re right that in some cases Christians are simply concerned for the eternal soul of their gay neighbors, but the idea of an eternal soul is religious in nature and therefore has no place in legislation. Therein lies my beef with FoF (or at least part of it…I also am pretty disgusted with their stance on feminism, abortion, sex ed…pretty much everything they have a stance on.)
In any case, what it all boils down to is everyone gets to vote with their dollar in a capitalism, and since Richard Winters publicly, financially supports an organization that actively works against my every ideal, it would be immoral for me to financially support him. Not a commentary on him as a person or a horse trainer, just me standing up for my beliefs. I wouldn’t expect him to patronize my business if I openly contributed to Planned Parenthood, you know?
I suggest you do a google search on Margaret Sanger the founder of Planned Parenthood. Read about her views and the reasons why Planned Parenthood was founded. Then ask yourself again about “hate groups.”
OT rant – sorry…
“…the idea of an eternal soul is religious in nature and therefore has no place in legislation.”
Why not?
Faith is not some construct that can be laid aside in the voting booth. It is not, so to speak, mental clothing that can be taken off and/or changed at will. I can’t compromise with evil.
Your definition of good and evil, and mine, may differ. We both have the legal right to express those ideas – in in and out of the voting booth.
We may offend each other. But you may not call me intolerant, and claim that your side is the tolerant one. Especially when I express my opinion within the bounds of good manners, and you express yours by defecating on my church steps.
Our government is founded on freedom of religion. Some people seem to think that means freedom *from* religion. It doesn’t.
End of rant. Back to horses.
Ruthie
Stacey Westfall came to the Alabama State Horse Fair last February. She did not perform the bridleless exhibition, but she gave a clinic which was, like you all said, very informative, she taught spins by trotting small circles. I don’t ride western or do spins, but what she was teaching made a lot of sense. She was very interesting.
We used to go every year when we lived in PA, as it was in Columbus- 3 hours from home. Even brought some of our Minis for the breed exhibitions. We had fun. But since most of the clinic were dedicated to riding events, we didn’t go to many of the clinics. Haven’t been to an EA in over six years now.
We DID go to the Fantasia in the evening, and that was incredible! The lady Roman Riding AND driving a FOUR in hand before her over jumps- incredible! Another fellow had a four in hand of Freisians and was doing doughnuts in the arena…. easily. There was a dressage/reining pas de deux exhibition that was breathtaking. And the Icelandics brought the crowd to their feet…. they were FLYING!
I went to EA Pomona on Friday. Wasn’t really crowded so that was nice. Managed to get out of there without spending a million bucks too, which is also nice. Although I did get suckered into the $12 cheeseburger stand.
We stayed for the Extreme Cowboy Race as well, I think Friday was the second round. There was a girl who rode her Halflinger and picked up its long tail for the backing through the panels. It was super cute. The jumping was a site to see for sure and some horses even just plowed through the last hay jump. I would have like to have gone this weekend and see who won.
Rosie9, that was me on my haflinger mare, native Rosie. We did the race last year too and so far I think she is the only haflinger competing in the cowboy races
For those of you who didn’t see it hr e is my video of me on my mare, this is my second compitition ever in my life and my horses, still working on getting my nerves under control. lol. Considering I went against PRO trainers and cowboy racers, i feEL i did the haflinger breed good, which was my goal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5jhCMjPkkg
Tommy Garland was also there and he used my mustang as his demo horse. That was a really good clinic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQc10SzBIu8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5pOqWrF35k
Oh I am so jealous. I really wanted to go this weekend. I wanted to go see Tommy Garland! I even took the weekend off and my Mother in Law lives in So. California and is a horse person, so I was all set. But unfortunatly my husband hurt his knee and finances were short.
Did you see Tommy work horses at all? It sounded like it was a great event. Darn!! Oh well there is always next year.
You can check out the videos my sister took of my mustang gelding being used in tommy Garland’s clinic. see related videos under enapay25
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQc10SzBIu8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5pOqWrF35k
I went to the EA in Massachusetts in the fall and had a great time. Even my non-horsey husband enjoyed it. Friday was really good; the crowds on Saturday were so thick (and it was wicked cold, so people weren’t hanging around outside the expo halls) that we left early. I hung out with the Morgan folks in the breed barn and met my mare’s near-cousin, who’s doing quite well in lower level dressage and beating the WBs in sporthorse breeding classes. He’s one of those who deserves to keep his equipment. I saw the Morgan presentation, which was a great way to show people all the things Morgans can do (though they could have had better jumpers). They want me to bring my mare to EA next year, just because she is so gorgeous, but I think she may be a bit too spooky. (I’d bring her niece, if I could — this horse had her first “big” off the farm experience as a demo horse for Julie Goodnight at the Equine Expo in Maryland a couple of weeks ago, and took to the chaos quite well… including TRAINS passing by 15 feet away. She is not yet 6. If I could have two…) Watched a few demos, of mixed quality, and some fairly big name trainers excellently manage people and horses who were overwhelmed by the environment. Did lots of shopping and saw some things for my wishlist.
People who’ve been going for years say it’s not as good as it used to be (the economy is a big factor). I’d never gone before, so it was all new and shiny to me. I’d go back.
Been to the Columbus Ohio Equine Affaire and Stacy Westfall is by far the best clinician! She is down to earth and very humble. She does not sugar coat things and will straight up tell you that what she is able to accomplish is because of the hard work and hours she put into it. My favorite thing I ever heard Stacy say was that she saw reining for the first time and thought..I wonder if I could do that bridless? She said she had never even rode a reining horse before. This shows that this lady has dreams and the determination to get it done! I saw her bridleless/saddleless performance at the freestyle reining show and it was phenomenal!
I love watching a trainer who is humble, honest and has a true love for their horse! Now I did attend the Pfizer Fantasia show at Equine Affaire and was not impressed for how much I paid for tickets.
I have never been to EA, but we have been to the Midwest Horse Fair in WI. We are planning to go again this year. They are having a show jumping competition one night – something we have never seen in person (well other than the local stuff, not the “real” stuff). We have seen some very informative demonstrations, part of one on barrel racing by Charmayne James. I am not a barrel racer, but I did like what she was telling the girls in the demo – they had their own horses there for work – most of which was centered riding, balanced seat and, like you stated, “it takes lots of hours in the saddle to perfect the run”. For each girl she gave them their positives and the things they needed to work on and made it clear that it would take lots of work.
A long time back we saw Buck Brannaman. Though he used lots of round pen and pushed the horse through the demo, he also made it clear that “If I had to, like I really had to have a horse to go to a ropin’, I could take this one. But folks, make no mistake, it would be ugly!” He went on and made it clear that hours in the saddle make a good horse….not 30 days in a round pen. We have also experienced Richard Shrake and Chris Cox….both of whom reminded me a great deal of used car salesmen, and spent more time hawking their tapes than teaching.
My very dear friend had a very wonderful gray arab mare that was broke broke broke – safe for anyone type for sure. She got that way because after my friend finished the mare’s initial training, she handed her over to a teenage girl who spent most of her waking minutes with the horse. After the mare passed, my friend said, “I’ll never have another like her, because I don’t have another teenager to put the miles on her for me. I don’t have that kind of time, and if I did, my body would kill me.” When I think back she’s right….the best horses we ever had, had odometers that had flipped more than once.
Really though, we too go for the shopping and have gotten some very good deals. Last year my daughter got a matching heavy weight blanket and hood, insulated western saddle bag with separate girth bag, insulated english saddle bag, and insulated bridle bag for $150 total! All in her favorite color – bright pink (ugh).
The Midwest Horse Fair has a huge turnout and they bring in some big names. It’s always a fun 3-day event with plenty of clinicians and shopping. My OTTB has been invited to be in one of the Liberty presentations this year. I adopted him from a rescue and am going to express the need to look at rescues for finding horses in his presentation.
I’ve done a clinic with Richard Winters, and then he did a sort of residence at my school, so I got the chance to see him in action a lot. I don’t agree with every single thing he does (but then, when do you ever agree with every thing a trainer does?), but he has some really good ways of teaching things. He was extremely helpful for a friend who was riding a totally out-of-her-mind (because she was started way too early and run too hard) ex-barrel horse. But then he was also able to give me some good tips that I was able to use with my dressage-trained Warmblood.
And he’s a fabulous farrier, when he has time to do it. There were three other farriers in the area that regularly came to our campus, and all of them tried to shoe my Warmblood and my TB mare (who had extremely difficult feet and later had a mild foundering issue). He was far better than any of them, and I always requested that he shoe my horses when he was able to do any shoeing.
It does disappoint me that he donated money to Focus on the Family, but it doesn’t really surprise me. I always got the sense that he was pretty conservative and religious, not that he ever talked about it, really. And, of course, I wish that he didn’t ride 2 year olds. But I saw him handling an extremely difficult young stallion along with many other problem horses, and I really admired the way he dealt with every situation. And he never pulled all of the “buy my expensive carrot stick” crap that you see from some other clinicians. He was all about using the tools at hand to safely train your horse. And I still hear his voice in my head saying “make the right thing easy and the wrong thing hard” when I get into a tight spot.
I don’t understand why donating to FOF is wrong. It’s his money. He made it. We should be free to donate to any group we want to. Our taxes go to fund Planned Parenthood and we don’t have any choice about that. C’mon. I don’t want anyone telling me who I can donate to or not donate to. I would be very upset if I was told that I couldn’t donate to any special group. Years ago I worked for an insurance company and they demanded that I donate to United Way, which I did not want to do. Totally on principle, even though I disagree with those they help fund (some of them). anyhow, I was basically told I’d be fired if I didn’t donate to them so they would have 100% compliance. It wasn’t illegal to say or do that, but morally it was just wrong to require that. I needed my job so United Way got a measly dollar a month from me. I could tell they weren’t happy. And I never advanced in the organization, either.
That’s exactly the point- he can donate to any group he wants to. And I as a consumer can choose not to give him my money in case it helps him contribute to what is essentially a hate group. I don’t say that lightly- FotF has actively spread misinformation about gays and lesbians as well as promoted the idea that you can become an “ex-gay”, things that are condemned by legitimate organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association and seen as contributing to the suicides of teenagers whose parents listen to this drek and disown them.
Money given by the government to organizations such as Planned Parenthood is separated out- no tax money goes to fund abortions. It’s actually illegal per the Hyde Amendment. The money instead goes to community services such as contraception, STI prevention and treatment, and health care for both men and women. Same as any other non-profit medical group. Abortion funding is through private donation and the costs incurred by patients.
I don’t agree with that whole UW thing, because of the high pressure tactics by employers (and their dropping of PP as one of their charities) I refuse to give any money through them. I donate my time where I can to PP and animal rescue.
Long winded post just to say- he most certainly can choose how to spend his own money. I just choose not to give people MY money who support causes I am very strongly against. It’s choice all the way around.
I completely agree with what you are saying. It should be the individuals choice to support or not support a person or entity because of what they believe or support. And I am sure there are a lot of organizations out there that lobby to see their “agenda” or ideals put into legislature. I think it is human nature to want everyone to think and feel the same. I remember when I was in high school we had a teacher’s strike that went on for about a week. At the end of it part of the agreement was that in order to be a teacher at this particular school district you had to be a member of the teacher’s union. I lost my favorite teacher because of that strike. He was forced into early retirement because he refused to become a member and support an organization that pretty much went against everything he believed. That really opened my eyes. I may not agree with the homosexual lifestyle but unless someone is trying to force me to actually practice it why should I care what others choose to do? I know it isn’t always as black and white as that but the world is getting smaller and smaller all the time and I sure hope we figure out how to live together without blowing each other up and that goes for the radical few of all sides of all different political/religious/social groups.
You go girl:)
I worked for a company that promoted United Way — but they also allowed you to choose which UW organizations you wanted your donation to go to, and that worked for me. If I’d been forced to do the general donation, I would have had the same response you did.
I said that I am personally disappointed that he donated to FoF, because I disagree with their stance on many issues. I also said that I was not surprised, and his conservative views did not stop me from working with him. I never said it was wrong, or said that he shouldn’t be allowed to do it. Just that I personally would prefer if he did not.
I plan on going to the PA Horse World Expo in a couple of weeks. I went a couple of years ago and was so pissed at what Parelli was doing in the warmup arena that I didn’t bother to go back last year (he was being such a jerk and if someone didn’t move out of his way he’d ram his horse into them, he’d go the opposite direction as everyone else but was on the same track as them, he yelled at some little girl on her super cute pony that her pony was going to kill everyone in there- I’m not joking- because it stopped on the outside rail to pee and pinned its ears at his horse when he practically rode up on the pony’s back). I wrote a letter to the event organizers, but never heard back and obviously money talks more than letters (which was a very professional letter I might add).
But I really want to see Stacy, she has a few presentations over the course of the weekend.
And (here’s some amazing news)… I might be bringing a TB mare home with me within the next six months! So I definitely want to make it to Steuart Pittman’s “What Racehorses Know and How You Can Build on It” seeing as she’s 11 years old and still doesn’t know how to go slow and was kicked out of a lesson program despite months of training. But I know her very well and have fallen in love *sigh*.
Oh yeah, and they also have the Wind Rider Competition where they do a not-too-hard course with a tiny jump and sword-ring-thingy and backing through barrels, etc. NONE of the western riders were able to get their horses over the jump the first time, and some just flat-out refused. Seriously, the jump was smaller than the first crossrail I ever went over. They looked sooo embarrassed when the teenager riding English kicked their butts. Oh yeah, and the annoying thing about the competition was that gaited horses placed even though the rules specifically stated that they needed to CANTER down the long side and none of them did. Gaited horses CAN canter, seriously folks.
Sounds like you went to the same one as I did. And if I recall, they did a side saddle exhibition? I remember watching one and I think it was there. They had ladies jumping in side saddles and focused a lot on balance. Really cool to watch.
I actually am hoping to make it to the local Hoosier Horse Expo this spring. The Ohio Equine Affaire is a fun place to go, but to be honest, after walking for MILES and running to catch 30 minutes of this clinician and 45 minutes of THAT trainer, I reached the point where I was seeing the value of a video. It’s a great place, don’t get me wrong.. just perhaps a bit large and spread out for a one or two day event.
As for specific memories of clinicians: Stacey Westfall gets my vote– she’s genuine, she clearly cares about her horses, and to top it all off… her horses’ tails aren’t killed. You mean show horses are supposed to swish?! :O! seriously though, she’s great. Also seems down to earth and friendly– she shows up at her booth in between times, and takes time to really listen and talk to people.
Years ago I saw Buck Branaman work with an unweaned (yes, really.) weanling. He was impressive, and very good at explaining exactly what he was trying to get the colt to do. He also wasn’t big into a bunch of gimmicks, at least at that demo. I took his methods home, worked with the yearlings fresh in from pasture, and the methods worked. They still work today, even with full grown ‘problem’ horses.
Monty Roberts. Yea I know, many hate him, but what I DID like about his demo was that he wasn’t afraid to get into a horse, and he also was very clear about exactly what he wanted from his horses, and why he did what he did. So at least I could make an informed decision about what I wanted to use from him, and what I didn’t think would work for me.
Some big zeros: Some English lady, who wanted to ‘unlock’ the hind legs of a nervous TB who spent the entire hour kicking backwards while being handled from the ground. I don’t remember her name, but I do remember wondering why the HELL she spent an hour feeling sorry for a horse whose response to tension was to cow kick and kick out HARD just because it was tense.
John Lyons. Lots of smoke and mirrors, and then I watched him actually CLAIM that what he had given for a cue caused the horse he was working with to turn in instead of out while free lunging in a circle. Either he was flat lying, or he wasn’t aware that his body language and the way he had stepped when asking for the reverse was the real cause of the turn to the inside. Either way, I was disgusted. I’m not convinced that ‘running a horse around’ until it figures out what you want constitutes horse training– let alone natural horsemanship.
Parelli : Those free hand obstacle courses. EVERY horse had its ears pinned. Why is this a good thing?
Anyway, I love going to big expos, because you see a lot at one time, but I also hate the crowds, the messy sound systems, and the walking. Did I mention I don’t like the walking?!
Charm, I’m LOL at what you said about John Lyons…I couldn’t get through his whole set of tapes without snoring, so in no way would I pay to see a demo of his! Plus his whole Godly thing in all of his books was always a real turn-off for me…why can’t we just let The Horse be about The Horse without taking it to the theological level or trying to convert people’s religious beliefs while we’re at it? Isn’t horse training in and of itself a worthy enough goal?
I have to say, I like John Lyons. He’s far more common sense than Parelli, and his methods can actually be used with horses that are being shown. I don’t use them though, and I’ll admit, he’s boring and beats the God-drum a little too much. I do enjoy Monty Roberts, as well. My horse does Clinton Anderson round penning and a version of Monty ROberts Join- up, but the rest of the natural horsemanship stuff I really don’t buy into.
“I watched him actually CLAIM that what he had given for a cue caused the horse he was working with to turn in instead of out while free lunging in a circle. Either he was flat lying, or he wasn’t aware that his body language and the way he had stepped when asking for the reverse was the real cause of the turn to the inside.”
I’ll vote for “not aware.” I showed a dog to her Companion Dog title without ever realizing that me saying “heel” meant nothing to her. I thought I was giving her a cue, but she was cuing off my shoulder. And in my obedience classes, I have seen hundreds of dogs whose owners thought they were responding to “sit,” when the real cue was seeing the cookie.
We verbal animals don’t realize that the rest of them respond to body language first, tone second, and words last.
Ruthie
I was there thursday and met stacy in her booth and then watched her demo on groundwork in a stall. She talked to us for a long time. Nice lady, nice husband, etc. She’s somebody I’d sure listen to over Parelli and any of those guys. Presentation was very informative as well. Anyway, got lots of freebies. hee hee. Avoided eating there though.
I go to the Mass one every year with friends. It’s about 1 hour 30 mins from me and worth the trip. I don’t usually buy anything except tickets and food. They get some nice demos. I usually stay for the Fantasia afterward. It’s pretty corny some years but some times I see something cool.
I’ve never been to Equine Affaire because, while it sounds like fun and I get their brochure every year, there’s something about me paying to come in and shop that makes me say “forget it”. The people pay to come in and sell their wares and the clinicians likely pay something too, because they are trying to get you to buy their services, so I personally am not about to pay to get in there to patronize them. I’d have to know there was something in there at a really discounted price that I was after buying before I would consider it.
I had to laugh at what you said about Parelli: one other well-known clinician, who shall remain nameless but who I contacted for help with a specific behavior problem I had with a horse, deserves to pay whatever they charge him to demonstrate at these things, if they do. Anyway, the bottom line is, he gets people to call him for services and products by demonstrating at these things, and when I called about a 1 hour consultation, his person on the phone told me he started at over $3000/hour for a private consultation with my horse. Now I have been around the block with his methods, have worked through first level and taken months of lessons with one of his “authorized” trainers. I knew what I wanted when I called and I was very specific about the fact that I wanted HIM to work with this horse on this ONE problem…nothing else, just this, and this was the answer I got. First they tried to sell me on a lesson package, which was NOT what I wanted, and then they told me this. I have gotten some good results with the methods myself and some of the equipment, but have been jaded enough with the amount of money spent to not go further all the way through all the levels with every horse. So you can see why I have no intention of paying to have somebody try to sell me. I went far enough with one horse that I could actually do a bridleless jumping demostration with him myself, and did so at a show once, but I came to the point where enough was just enough already. I told them point blank that NOBODY on the face of the planet was worth $3000/hour to me, I didn’t care if he could have the mare doing handstand jumping jacks in an hour.
THREE GRAND? And you know he would not ask if he was not getting that from people.
There is a sucker born every minute. Hey, if you paid some trainer three grand for one session with your horse, come on over here with that bountiful wallet and I’ll introduce you to some rescue horses. We can get FIVE MONTHS of training on one of them for that, and they’d really appreciate it!
No, I sure didn’t pay that. I told her the horse would be pushing up daisies before they’d see that kind of money from me for any amount of time after I heard that. Of course she tried to continue on with her yadda-yadda-yadda and I said no thanks and hung up the phone. I got the problem with the horse solved well enough I suppose, though I would have preferred it to be done with natural horsemanship methods. The fact remains that they were too grabby when it would have benefitted everyone for them to be realistic. I can clean my house myself too, but if I can get a maid at a reasonable price and at a time when it would benefit me, sometimes I pay for help. They obviously had want confused with need here. These people really think they are a need and not a service based on disposable income and want of the person paying them.
I am sure they get suckers born any minute if she thought she would get me in for that amount of money and for the problem that I had. I was just an anonymous person calling on the phone and not someone who had gone to this person for service before, so it wasn’t like we had any repoire established yet. What really killed me was, they were fairly close to me at the time and this was something that could literally have been solved in an afternoon. But they were too damned greedy, so now instead of me telling every person who will stop to listen how wonderful they are, and likely convincing more people to go there, I am saying this instead.
Think about it; if they’re really good, and well known, and charging prices you and I could afford, they’d have appointments scheduled every day until they died. Charging enough to make the majority of folks refrain from scheduling keeps their schedules reasonable. That’s called “supply and demand.”
… Not that I think they’re all innocent of the desire to line their pockets. Mm hmm. No “carrot sticks” for me, thanks.
Ruthie
I went to EA back when it was at a small convention center in Dayton, OH. Mostly we shopped and checked out different breeds of horses.
I went to Equitana in Louisville once – it was pretty cool but the person I was with had an asthma attack, so the only Famous Trainer I got to see was GaWaNi Ponyboy, who successfully distracted me with his magnificent sixpack and amazing hair. He was really kind of a run of the mill don’t-beat-your-horse trainer with a flair for showbiz.
Last year I finally made it to Hoosier Horse Fair, and really enjoyed all the different breeds. There were the most FABULOUS Welsh ponies, and Cleveland Bays, and Morgans, and a barely-broke seeming Curly stallion that was supposed to be some kind of hot shot because he did well at some dressage shows, and a saintly Halflinger ridden over jumps by an Amish boy who knew NOTHING. The multiple buildings of shopping was cool, as were booths dealing with various issues. Friends of Ferdinand was there, and they are a very classy organization. Mr. Mylar was there with his bits, but I didn’t get a chance to talk with him.
UGH. Focus on the Family. UGH. Just read up on their poisonous comments against gay people and you will see how nasty a group they are, with far too much sway in Washington.
I have no idea if jumping in a western saddle is painful for men, haha!
I know I was forced to jump in a western saddle once before though. I was trail riding and there was this MASSIVE storm coming up on us, and we had to get back up to the barn before that thing hit. I took a short cut that I knew very well, but did not realize a tree had fallen over the path. The woods are pretty thick, and the tree was thick and long, and there was no way around. Too big for my horse to step or hop over.
We went back down the trail and picked up a canter and bounced right over it. It felt awkward, but thinking back, I don’t think my crotch got smacked down on the saddle. Given I was trying extra hard not to slam down when we landed. I can only assume if a male rider was also careful not to slam down upon his horse, his crotch wouldn’t hit either?
But I think Stacey Westfall is AWESOME. She’s a talented rider, who actually has sense about what she does and doesn’t buy into the whole “we have a bond so we can just go out and do it, no training” crap.
Well, my husband can’t even go at a trot without complaining… I would love to have a video of him riding our 18 year old ex-barrel pony. She still just wants to go and is just cynical with him. I can make her do anything I ask with a light rein and leg cues and she has never given me a problem. (But then again I like a little spunk over a dead head.) Put him on her and she just turns into a hot headed “let’s go” type of pony and thinks she should race everyone and act the spoiled pony reputation. For the first time in both of our lives, we rode a TWH mare that gaits like a dream and he is in love. (Might I say a “free” horse that took 6 month before she gained enough weight to even fit a saddle to.) It’s hard getting him to ride, but he would go anytime I asked if I got her out for him. With the hot headed OTTB that I was getting used to trails over the summer, he would have probably divorced me if we took the ex-barrel pony.
I guess some things you can’t guess until you experience them! I, however, appreciate my femalehood. Haha!
My boyfriend isn’t a rider, he’s actually scared of horses (even my little bity 14.1hh pony…go figure!), but I did convince him to go on a guided trail ride in the Tennessee mountains last year. I just asked him and he said he wasn’t hurt. And the horse he was riding actually “bolted” with him. More like trotted off about 10 feet. Maybe it’s different for different guys…
It’s funny though. He swears he “meant” to make the horse go faster. He says “I wanted him to gallop!”
Cracks me up every time. Poor old horse barely broke into the trot…I suppose for the inexperienced rider, trotting feels like you’re galloping though. His ego won’t allow him to admit the horse took off with him though, LMAO!
I go to the Horse Expo in Maryland pretty regularly – I really like Julie Goodnight – she is down to earth and makes a lot of sense. The one person I will never ever support or watch again was Tommy Turvey the “trick rider”. He was nasty to both the horses and the people working for him, he made excuses whenever anything went wrong, and he yelled at the audience if anyone dared walk away from all this. I sent a letter to the organizers, but they had him back the next year (I did not attend). This year he was gone, and Julie Goodnight was back so I was a happy camper.
That has never been my experience with Tommy Turvey. I have seen him perform a handleful of time in Jacksonville, and the DC area and his show has always been a lot of fun. He seems to really care about his horses, he seems really friendly and approachable and if something goes wrong he doesn’t make a big deal out of it. His show is really entertaining and to me his horses seem happy, healthy and sane.
Maybe you caught his show on a rare off day? We all have those.
Have you ever seen Tommy Turvey rehearse his horses before a show? Those two paints get shot with a bb gun if they don’t run right to him when they are let loose in the arena. And I think I heard it once during a show too.
I’ve never seen that, or heard about it.
Well, believe what you want then I guess. I know what I saw.
I went to the one in Columbus last year. I saw both of Mark Rashid’ demonstrations and had several “lightbulb” moments. I’m sad that he’s not there this year. I met him afterwards and asked a question about my horse and he gave me a couple ideas, mentioning it was hard to say without actually seeing it, but he was spot on.
I saw Tommy Garland but I wasn’t impressed with how he tied the horse’s head to the saddle to teach lateral flexion.
I can’t remember who it was, but one of the big name guys, the one with the really raspy voice, I think, caused a bit of a stir by working the hell out of a horse and then for some reason it ended up on the ground. I walked in on the very end of that one and saw the arena dirt all over the horse, and the horse looked totally exhausted.
It was a lot of fun though. I did a little shopping, and one of the booths had a replica of a horse skeleton that was really interesting to look at. And of course there were plenty of horse people to gab with. Oh, and I found out that a nice little STB that I’d considered adopting before I found my Arab, was adopted and learning dressage, so that was nice!
We’re tentatively planning on going this year. I really want to see Stacy Westfall, and I want to watch the Cowboy Race as well.
mbr, I believe that was Craig Cameron. I walked in towards the end, watched in horror, and had to leave before I made a scene. I did make a scene about the TWH breed demo. They had yearlings in there that were dead lame. The one kept tripping as they were walking it around the arena…disgusting!
Other than that, I love going to EA (Columbus). This will be my third year. I always make time to see the breed demos for the Friesians and Andalusions. The shopping is great IF you know what to look for. Most of the leather goods can be bought cheaper at my local saddlemaker (gotta love living near Amish country), but you can find great deals on things that are typically way overpriced at your local tack shop – whips, lead ropes/longelines, buckets, brush caddies. And I can’t help myself – I always have to stop at the Breyer horse booth! And stop to admire the art that I will never be able to afford.
Fantasia is always a good time. Some of the acts are kinda silly or stupid; however, last year they had a guy that came into the arena cantering on two Paints (a foot on each). I was already impressed, and then he started swinging his rope. He let the rope out to the point where it encircled both horses – still at a canter!
Ugh. That was definitely Craig Cameron. He used to come to our local expo every year, but I noticed he’s not this time around – praise the Lord. I’m all for trainers who aren’t afraid to work a horse or use a bit of force (when necessary) but I’ve never seen the man leave an arena without a horse lathered and wound up. Half of what he says is an advertisement, and the other half of the time he’s bragging about himself and how he can ride any horse in under an hour. I don’t consider that something to be proud of – some horses aren’t going to be ready for that in a hour, why screw them up?
Clinton Anderson was at an expo about 5 years ago or so, and I thought he was good. He was fair with the horse at least. I’ve also seen Richard Shrake and thought he was *boring* as all get out. Mostly I like going to ours for the seminars the CSU vets give – I’ve found those the most useful out of everything I’ve seen. Some of the locals are pretty good too, though.
Tying the head around is the standard way to teach lateral flexion… at least for Arab trainers. We use it to teach a horse how to give to rein pressure before introducing two side reins in the breaking process, as the horse has an easy “out” and does not feel trapped. We also use it to introduce the curb bit. We use this for all disciplines and all horses. NO arab trainer would feel that it is responsible or fair to simply attach two reins or to just climb on when starting a baby or introducing something new. That would be a good way to get someone hurt.. horse or human.
I’m so excited that I got to go to this. I went with the foundation that I volunteer with (Serenity Oaks in Ramona) and we stayed at the suite across from the fairplex from Friday to Sunday evening. We just arrived home.
Stacy Westfall has always been one of my favorites. I’ve always looked up to her and I think she’s pretty much awesome. She’s really down to earth, it’s hilarious. I was cracking up at some of the things she had to say about the TAP TAP backing game. I’m incredibly happy that my friend surprised me with the hat I wanted AND got it signed by her. I’m a lucky ducky!
I always scheduled it, but then the week of the Equine Affaire would come by and somehow I’d miss it!
This was my first time going.
The people I went with, had to see every booth, and there were alot of discounts, so we only had time to see one clinic.
My trainer said we have to see THIS one, and I was impressed. The trainer was all about the basics, made it simple, and it brought back memories of my own lessons. Then she took off the bridle and did the music, and that’s when I realized I was seeing Stacy Westfall!!! Who I am so jealous of, and saw on YouTube many times.
That made my day.
We didn’t stay for the Extreme Cowboy Race. (But we ogled the many Extremely Cute ones around!)
I’m glad you emphasized the time it takes IN THE SADDLE to develop a horse like that. And that’s a nice horse, too.
Re: The WEG – there is plenty to do in Lexington and the surrounding areas. WEG will be held at the Kentucky Horse Park which has horse museums, pony rides, and the Secretariat Center where retired race horses can be tried out and adopted. Lexington is a large city with a very small town feel. Safe and pretty. Horse farm tours (or you can even just drive arount the roads near the WEG site and see historical homes and horse farms from the street, several colleges, public and private for those also squeezing in a college visit, a fantastic children’s museum, art events such as professional visual arts, ballet and orchestra being offered during WEG at low cost, scenic trips to nearby Red River Gorge, hiking, biking, the state capitol is gorgeous and close (less than half an hour away), nearby small towns with great arts and crafts shows, including Berea, where there is always handmade furniture, pottery, and textiles, Shakertown, where there was a Shaker community for years and there are tours, restaurants, and even a place that offers gaited horse tours of the hills and surrounding area for beginners on up. Come see Kentucky, which is particularly lovely in the fall!
Don’t forget the Bourbon Trail! (I hate bourbon, but the drive to the different distilleries is really pretty!)
Lexington is one of my favorite places.
I’d also like to mention that the WEG is still looking for volunteers. I’m one and am really looking forward to it. The only hangup is housing, but we’ve figured that out.
Lol, you sound like a tourist commercial, but I have to agree with you, I’ve always enjoyed going to Lexington. My Mom took my sister and I to the Horse Park several times when we were younger and I still remember seeing John Henry when he first arrived. I also love seeing the Man O’ War monument and the markers they use to show how long his stride was compared to other horses, it was unbelievable. We have also gone to the Rolex several years and I already have tickets to the WEG. It is a lot of fun.
Oh, don’t forget to book a tour at Old Friends, home to many retirned TB stallions. MARVELOUS place! They have a limit on the number of people on each tour, and during the WEG they will probably fill up FAST. This is a super “specialty” rescue — they’ve even been able to bring back stallions from Japan. Tour is free, goodies to buy in the (small) gift shop.
We go to the Equine Affaire in Columbus almost every year. It’s a “girls day out” for me, my horsey sisters, and our horsey niece. We always have a good time – we like George Williams for dressage and Julie Goodnight for general riding. We just happened to take a rest during a jumping clinic by some British guy whose name I can’t remember and ended up just about paralyzed by laughter – he had a typical dry British sense of humor and one participant was having a terrible time with her horse. I swear she didn’t know the basics of riding, much less jumping. I’m sure the people around us thought we were lunatics. But what else can you do but laugh when the guy told the rider that her horse looked like an aircraft spotter for the Taliban (head up in the air)? We were rolling.
Equine Affaire was started here locally in Dayton. The woman who is the big cheese for it bought my palomino half Arab many many moons ago and used to show the Arab A circuit. I gotta give her credit – she took a basic idea and made quite the business out of it. I don’t think she shows any more.
I remember going when it was in Dayton. I bought a print of a pencil drawing of a white Arab-type horse head by Pam Simmons. It is still one of my favorite pieces of art work. It was so small back then, too, you could easily see all the booths in one day without killing yourself. Nowadays it is so large and crowded it is nearly impossible to see everything but I still enjoy going and if you go towards the end you really can find some amazing deals. Oh and I also remember watching Shary B. Akers making a statue (of clay, I think, it was a while ago) and it was pretty amazing to watch and last year there was some guy who was using a chain saw to do wood carvings that were pretty impressive.
I’ve been to the EA in Ohio and the Horse Expo in Pennsylvania several times – usually because my sister wants to go for the shopping. Parelli was at the very first EA that I went to in Ohio – I think he was the big draw that year. Everyone was really excited to see him so we ended up watching his demonstration. As a new horse owner, here’s what I learned from Parelli – NOTHING! He just talks and talks but never says or fully explains anything. I found John Lyons to be the same way. It’s all about money for those guys – hey, buy my dvd’s and you’ll have a perfect horse. By the way, I’m sure many of you have seen Ga Wa Ne – the Pony Boy – I don’t have the words to explain that one!
Equine Affaire is fantastic. I went to college with one of the organizers and her professionalism and love for horses is obviously reflected by the kind of ehibit they put together. They truly do an excellent job of lining up qualified clinicians in a wide variety of disciplines. They also do a great job of making sure there is a wide variety of vendors and not just the same thing over and over again. I go every year to the Equine Affaire in Columbus, Oh, and hope to one day ride my up and coming filly with a dressage clinician there.
Stacy Westfall also went to the college I went to, although she was in a different major and I never had the pleasure of meeting her there. I have, however, seen her ride and speak on a number of occasions, and she is truly an excellent horsewoman. That kind of horsemanship is universal, and I personally believe that people of all disciplines can learn from her.
Stacey Westfall has to be my favorite horseperson of all time!!! Thanks for this post
And it’s VERY good to hear Mr. Imgoingtodrainyourpocketbookbecauseyouhavetohavemygadgetstoformabondwithyourhorseandyouneverwillifyoudontspend200dollarsonmystick has been kicked off of the Equine Affaire Program 
Kudos to them!!
Mr. PonyBoy REALLY loves himself and is pretty good at shameless self-promotion.
I SO SO SO want to attend some events at the WEG. The KHP is about 4 hours from me, and a top-notch facility. Well, whaddya expect, with the Rolex & all…. It would be awesome to see the dressage, X Country stuff, maybe some vaulting, etc. And the SHOPPING.
The nearest tack shop with a good non-Western selection is an hour and a half from me, and a little pricey, so I love to go to Expos & Congress to get good deals on stuff, or at least see it in person.
Ha. There should be Fugly booths at all these expos, or at least designated meeting places for folks to gather before going en masse to Natural Horsemanship charlatans’ clinics to ask difficult questions out loud…..
OMG that’s hilarious.
All of my friends went last year. To the one in Massachusetts, and all had a great time. It’s a hike, but I definitely want to go next year….
OMG, I can’t believe they kicked Parelli out, that’s too funny. I have to admit I saw them at a horse convention here in Jacksonville and I was kinda impressed with all the things they could do with their horses. And then when their son came out and they talked about his learning problems and what not I couldn’t help but tear up a bit.
However slick their presentation is though, I think their games are ridiculous and I can’t believe people pay $50 for a carrot stick (orange crop). Most of what they advocate to me seems silly, and you would probably get the same results with just spending time with your horse and making it fun. I play with my horse in addition to riding her and I believe this is partly why we have such a good relationship. They other part is just the length of time I’ve had her.
Sounds like fun.
I love Stacy Westfall.
I’m going to the Midwest Horse Fair in April. They always have good stuff there. Including vendors as far as the eye can see. And Rothrock Andalusians. *drools*
I was at the Equine Affaire in Pomona when Parelli was there. They didn’t throw him out, but they did tell him to stop the unsafe stuff. They came up with a compromise to include a major disclaimer at the beginning of his performances. Can’t say they were clinics.
The scariest part was how his cult members were all completing his sentences.
If you could get past the “I’m awesome and my way is the only way to deal with a horse” crap, he had some a few decent things to say, but that is true of most clinicians. Seeing him once was enough for me for the rest of my life.
ooooooh, dale chavez !!!! my favorite! not one person in my area knows about dale chavez products. sometimes, i really miss living in a “horse-y” place, rather than a “cow-y” place. but by the end of summer we will have moved and i will be midtexmorganlady, and perhaps those folks will share some of my favorites.
I know this is late and OT, but I wanted to get your opinion about something please. There is a very famous event rider selling horses. Part of the sale included free jumping. There was a beautiful mare that jumped at least 4′ – they had her listed in foal. Selling with or without her foal. That made me think she might be due in the not to distant future.
I was a little taken aback. Your thoughts?
Depends on how far along she really was. Pregnant mares are ridden, jumped and shown routinely with no ill effects – as with humans, some exercise is a good thing. If she was huge and showing, then I would question it.
Thank you. I’ve ridden a friends pregnant mare, but nothing too taxing. I did find out the sale mare is due to foal 8/15/10. So I guess the 4′ fence is no problem.
Most vets will actually tell you that it’s better to keep your pregnant mare in a regular exercise program, and can ride them up until the last trimester. My trainer’s vet recommended very light longing (walk/trot only with not equipment) and hand walking for the last trimester. Keeping a mare in shape makes the birthing process easier and does not hurt the mare in foal. That said, if she’s in the last part of her second trimester or her third trimester, jumping 4 ft with or without a rider is probably a bit excessive.
I’ve always been told to listen to the mare. Rule of thumb is normal work until the last 3 months — which is when she should be gaining the weight of the foal — but if she starts getting grouchy when saddled even earlier, time to go to longeing or ponying or otherwise. And, of course, normal works means what she’s already *used* to doing — no fair expecting her to move up from 3′ jumpers to 4′ while she’s preggers, or deciding to turn her into a speed event horse when she’s just been doing pleasure or riding the trail, or going 20 miles when she’s been doing 2 or 3.
Equine Affaire in Columbus, Ohio is usually pretty good. CANTER did an amazing demo with exracers. Two OTTBs in full racing gear tore around the arena with actual jockeys, pulled up in the center of the ring and did a tack change then morphed into a hunter/jumper and western pleasure mount. The jockeys were really cool women who are not only excellent riders, but care deeply about what happens to the horses after they’re done racing.
The thing about EA is that you have to be selective. Darin Chiacchia did a fabulous jumping clinic and Leslie Desmond demonstrated how natural horsemanship was done before it became big business. Monty Roberts got 10 minutes of my time that I’ll never get back…nothing like having an “expert” tell you that you can “fix” 3 problem horses in 45 minutes. That’s barely enough time for me to groom, tack, and warm up, I guess that’s why I’m not making the big bucks.
RE the hobbles: A guy from Hocking Technical College’s Backcountry Horsemanship Program said they do a lot of presentations on hobbling. He said horses that have been taught to be hobbled tend not to freak out if something wraps around it’s legs.
I remember seeing Parelli when I was a lot younger, and he said, “Don’t chase after your horse yelling like a German person. NINE BLACH BLECKBLAEK PLOOK” and nonsense like that. I’m sure it was supposed to be a joke but all the German people I was with at the time didn’t find it hilarious at all.
While I can’t stand Parelli, I think Gawani Ponyboy is the biggest pile of horsesh*t. Did you know he started his own “University” in which you can earn your bachelors in equine something or other. You just pay $275 per online course, if you take 6 courses you can be a regional advisor! His training focuses on the spiritual relationship between horse and ride – as much a I love my horse and believe there is a deeper relationshiip there, even this is too much ethereal BS. Why do people get sucked into this crap? Is Gawani Ponyboy even truly Native American? Just for kicks I suggest you check out ponyboys site and “university”, LMAO
Years ago I read an article about the NH stuff and the author cited Ga Wa Ni Ponyboy’s “book” as “Horse Pull My Finger.”
I almost fell off the chair. Every time I see the book or read about the guy, I think of that “title.” Awhile back Ponyboy was at Equine Affaire Pomona, but I could not go to his booth because I could not stop laughing.
Monty Roberts: I watched his “join up” demo at EA several years ago — three round pens, three people, three “whirling horses.” I was home later with my OTTB who was also zipping around the pen. Got talking with the neighbor over the fence. Pretty soon I noticed the horse wasn’t running anymore and I turned around. He had “joined up” behind me, all by himself. ;o)
My experience with horses from the beginning was always a bit of common sense coupled with some understanding of herd behavior and observation. For the most part, all the gimmicks, sticks, games and nonsense in the world will not make you a horse person or make your horse broke or safe and fun to ride. As Stacy Westfall says, it takes HOURS and HOURS (or “plenty of wet saddle pads”) to get that job done. No shortcuts — unless you want to deal with the unsolved problems later on.
I don’t know if he is really Native American but I have a stupid little story about him.
One of the horses at my barn was selected to be used for one of his bit-less bridle demonstrations. The horse in question is a TB type Appaloosa Gelding with an attitude who is a multiple World Champion in Hunter. The horse decided to be a pill and wasn’t doing as Gawani wanted. Gawani was laughing off how poorly the demo was going and to make small talk he asked the gelding’s handler what the horse’s name was. She replied “Indian Hunter”. Gawani’s facial expression on hearing the gelding’s name was priceless. It was pretty funny.
Changed my mind and chose not to snark about the ponyboy.
ha, hobbles are great until you have a wicked athletic smart pony who can flat out gallop in them, bouncing around…. I agree with what someone else said- I’d rather have a horse with a brain and has been trained to use it, and will not struggle when caught in something.
I saw Road to the Horse- I think it was 2007??? like chris cox, quiet, had good methods, craig cameron I think, if I remember correctly, worked his horse into the ground. Stacey Westfall had excellent points, and I’ve always had a lot of respect for her, but picked a jumpy horse and was obviously nervous about it. It was almost painful to watch- I would have liked to have seen her to do it w/out being in a competition and have more time.
Went to EA in Columbus a few years ago and it was excellent. Been to VA horse expo, very boring, but was hoping to get to the Maryland World Horse Expo this year and didn’t make it.
I love Equine Affaire, and have been selected for the last two years to ‘Ride with the Best’ in Columbus, Ohio. The first year was Elizabeth Graves and last year was Nicole Carswell. They were gaited clinics where my boy was the only Paso Fino. For me it was a great experience to get out there, learn from someone new and have some fun. I don’t believe I’ll apply this year, my boy is 22 now and last year was *suppose* to be his last year showing and going to clinics.
In all, I’ve been attending Equine Affaire, every year, since 2002. I saw Pat Parelli one year and was thoroughly disgusted. It was like a rock concert with no real information on how to do something. Just “Buy my product”, no mention of having the basics or safety. And they did jump a picnic table, which had my heart in my throat. Later, as I was walking through their booth, I saw just how expensive their crap was — talk about inflation! I find that to be the scariest thing, too, people can’t afford it, but it looked so easy. Fast-forward a few months, add a few beers and some moron is going to have his buddies sitting at a picnic table as ole’ Spot jumps it.
Another one was Dennis Reis. He did the whole bridleless jumping, but had people lying on the other side of the barrels as he jumped them! Talk about a lawsuit.
I do like Monty Roberts and will always make a point to see his demos. Do I go out and buy his products? No, I actually only have one thing and that’s his book “From My Hands to Yours”, which is very interesting. In the past I’ve watched George Morris, Captain Mark Phillips, Darren Chiacchia, Steffen Peters, George Williams, etc.
I highly recommend going to those who never have. It’s a four day event with plenty of shopping, great sales (I bought a trailer one year), demos, clinics, there’s people to meet, things to try, and in the evening Fantasia.
re: hobbles
Hobble training DOES come in handy for teaching a horse to stand calmly and wait for help if it gets stuck or tangled. It is also a good way to keep a horse local if you are in the backcountry and away from your trailer or panels–and especially above the tree line where there’s nothing to which your horse can safely be tied! Hobbled horses CAN still canter away from danger (like a bear). I don’t want a horse to stand still when a bear is charging–not if it’s hobbled in a mountain meadow or on the trail with me in the saddle.
re: panels
I wouldn’t put my horse into a set of $250 panels. They are too flimsy. A horse can break cheap panels, creating a razor-sharp edge, or bend them to create a splendid place to trap a leg. The lighter, cheaper panels can be knocked down, or picked up by the horse’s head. All disasters waiting to happen. I do use panels, but they were hand-built out of square aluminum tubing and heavily reinforced (they look like bridge trusses). They will not bend, break, or rust. They are 5′ tall, so confined horses aren’t tempted to jump over. Each piece weighs 30 pounds so I can move them around comfortably but they aren’t flimsy. They weren’t cheap, but they will be still strong and useable when I’m old and stuck in a rocking chair.
I use hobble training, I like to confine one foot at a time with a neck rope, but I have never personally left them on and used them for a length of time without me being right there just in case.
Getting stuck in wire is one example. Several others are you desensitize your horse for the farrier and they don’t get panicky about a foot in the air or “caught up”
Also I know of a few fatal trailer accidents and it was the horses that didn’t panick that survived the crash, others thrashed themselves to the point of having to be euthed.
I cannot jump on bareback, so I am teaching my horse to kneel down for me, and I hobble one leg to start with, now whenever I walk up on her left she immediately picks up her leg which the farrier adores.
Another thing I like to do is leave a drag rope on my yearlings when I’m done messing with them in the round pen, they walk around and step on the rope and learn to give into the pressure and not flip out. DONT LET THEM ALONE UNSUPERVISED OR WITH OTHER HORSES while doing it though. This makes leading and tying a snap.
I guess the point is even if you don’t hobble your horse, it’s still a training tool that can be used for other purposes.
Only been to one around here. Not very good.
OT- This is sad, but there is a part of me that wished this happened more often. It does stop them neglecting horses in the future….
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/os-suicide-animal-cruelty-charges-20100206,0,2475550.story
A copy of the original abuse article:
2 Charged With 28 Counts Of Animal Abuse
Sheriff’s Office Says Month-Long Investigation Led To Arrests
POSTED: Monday, September 28, 2009
UPDATED: 5:09 pm EDT September 28, 2009
Union County Sheriff’s Office booking photos of Jeannette Brown and Tina Vetterlein
UNION COUNTY, Fla. — Two people have been arrested and charged with 28 counts of animal abuse and cruelty, according to the Union County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said the arrests stem from a month-long investigation by the Union County Sheriff’s Office and the Department of Agriculture Law Enforcement after allegations were received concerning severe animal cruelty.
Jeannette Brown, 52, and Tina Vetterlein, 38, each of Lake Butler, were arrested Monday.
Deputies said the investigation began after they were called to the farm on Sept. 7 alleging that one of the horses had been shot. They said their investigation revealed that the horse had been dead for possibly days.
Deputies said another horse carcass was also found, leading them to conduct a thorough inspection of the property.
The next day, deputies said they met with Department of Agriculture investigators and learned that numerous animals were in severe danger from malnutrition and lack of any water.
Department of Agriculture investigators and sheriff’s deputies said they seized the remaining animals and delivered them to a Gainesville veterinarian for immediate medical treatment. Ten horses, a donkey, a goat, a bull and two dogs were seized.
Union County Sheriff Jerry Whitehead said the autopsy of at least one of the horses showed that it had around 30 pounds of sand in its stomach. He said that the lack of water or food for so long caused that to happen.
Whitehead said the surviving animals will probably be put up for adoption.
It is my understanding that Ponyboy is a jewish kid from either New York City (the Bronx) or New Jersey I have heard both.
carney 01, you may not like Tommie Turvey’s personality, he can be a bit much, but he is an excellent trainer and his horses receive the best of care and treatment. I know this from living near him and being able to watch his operation on a daily basis.
I’m glad to hear that others have had positive experiences with Tommy Turvey. When I saw him his behavior was erratic and angry and it was embarrassing to be in the audience. I sent an e mail to his website but did not receive a reply. Hopefully it was simply a bad day, however I hope he understands that his behavior has consequences and that several of the people in the audience that day will carry a permanent negative image of him. His presentation was the talk of my barn for several days afterwards, and that’s a lot of bad publicity.
Everyone, including Tommie have their off days. He is a perfectionist and expects a lot from his help. But he also gives them some good training. One woman who worked for him for several years has now moved on to professional movie stunt work. I have spent a good deal of time around him and am good friends with his sisters. They also run a wide open barn. Anyone is allowed to walk in and watch their training.
One of the best kept secrets on the east coast……
http://www.middleburgonline.com/equestrian.asp
They have a stable tour every year in may that is so much fun and really educational. Our 4-h group did it and I can honestly say it was one of the best trips I have ever taken. We saw hydro therapy and a breeding barn, dressage and drill riding, jumpers and polo competitions, the owner of the redskins opened his barn of walking horses who where all decked out in team colors. Its just a fun, pretty cheap, travel vacation!
Another place near Lexington worth a visit: http://www.oldfriendsequine.org/
Sorry to shout, but I CAN”T RECOMMEND A VISIT TO OLD FRIENDS HIGHLY ENOUGH! It is a WONDERFUL place and going there is truly balm to any horse lover’s soul. Michael and his staff (mostly volunteers) are fabulous raconteurs, and will tour you around greeting their amusing cast of characters, i.e. TB retirees (mostly stallions, which hardly anyone else will take). They know fascinating facts about all their horses and care deeply about each and every one of them. I laughed, cried, and generally had the time of my life. Put it this way – my one and only charitable contribution of the year was made to Old Friends, and I wish it could have been more. The tours are FREE, by the way, but I dare anyone to leave there without adding to the “carrot fund.” I treasure my memories of Old Friends and look forward to a return trip if I make it to the WEG. It is truly the epitome of a “good rescue.”
For what it’s worth, I attended Equitana in Louisville ca. 1996. Loved every minute of it. I hope to get to Equine Affaire in OH one of these years.
I am so happy that the pros are advocating how much time it takes in the saddle to get a really good connection going with a horse. I am training my friend’s mare, and I have her going BEAUTIFULLY in training level dressage, and my friend, who wants to show her this month, rides about once a week and can barely ride her own horse. I don’t even know how to begin teaching her how to sit the canter properly (I am NOT a riding instructor). I also think that 99% of her issues would go away if she came out to the barn more than twice a week and simply started riding more often. She is not a bad rider. She just doesn’t “get” her own horse.
Go every year to EA, this was our 3rd one at Pomona vs previous years at Springfield. Gotta say I much prefer MA or CA although the weather adds a few credit points to Poimona- LOL! Not impressed this year but then again I prefer the dressage and H/J clinics which is lacking on the west coast vs. east coast. But I do have to laugh regarding the “weed lady” as we call her. The youth pavillion (bdg 9 w/ trailers) was next to the small demo arena. On Sat there was a presentation by a woman on herbs and such. Since I had the kids and they love the crafts- couldn’t help but hear some of the demo. YIKES- she suggested walking around a horse with some smoking herb like 18 times??? WTF- I hope nobody believes this crap? Anyone can buy a booth to sell their whatnots but they’ve really got to step up the event a notch and bring some credible demonstrators to the table.
Almost forgot…the best part of Equine Affaire is the shopping….samples, coupons, discounts galore! We start our EA shopping list in January.
I always thought this was a free country. You really need to get a life other than complaining about the horse world cause they dont fit in your box. Pls
Been going to the Northwest Equine expo for years, and will be there again with the Andalusian horse club. Most of their clinicians are good. They had John Lyons for years who is boooring. He tries to make common sense a new training method. I also really wanted him to work with something like say an Arab or a Thoroughbred, or something that looked alive.
I must say the jumping and Dressage clinicians are almost always excellent, and I have definitely come away with some good education. There demo riders are normally very good. There were better shopping deals the first few years, but you can still find some decent prices. I always buy my favorite leather product the Bee Natural leather amore there. Love the stuff and it smells divine. Last year they had the Cowboy race. I loved watching the nineteen year old on the grade pony who kicked tail. Talk about creating a fan club! I also loved watching the elderly lady on her twenty something beautiful Arabian stallion. Not the fastest but they did an excellent job on the obstacles, and what a nice team, she could be my grandma any day!
My there should have been a their. Also I was a little disappointed in the Mustang Makeover. The winner deserved it, I knew him, and he is a hand with a horse. I was out in the warm up arena with some of the others. One was was hammering the sides of her poor horse trying to get it to spin when she had no idea how to ask it. Another was chasing her horse on a line back and forth across the backside of the arena making it turn directions. She did this while other people where trying to ride, and her horse every time it turned pinned it’s ears and looked like it wanted to charge her. I was just curious what kind of training method that was, and what it was meant to accomplish other then having a very pissed off horse, who looks like it wants to turn into Jaws and eat the trainer.
must have been quite an experience to watch stacy westfall live…I am going to an equine affaire in april – can’t wait!
FOF is the EPITOME of a hate group????? I never heard of them until today. I would have thought thought islamic radicals that want to KILL all ‘non believers’ (especially gays/lesbians) would qualify more than a group of people that – at worst – want to talk your ear off to be on ‘their’ side of religion. And trust me, Barnkitty, I am POSITIVE that I have more education than you. I may not agree with FOF, but I do know that they won’t try to kill me (and themselves) for it. Want proof? If given a choice between flying with a group from FOF or a group of radical islamists, which one would you choose? I know what an educated person would choose.
We have the Western States Horse Expo here in northern California in Sacramento. It started in 1982, well before most of the others, and advertises itself as the largest and most comprehensive horse expo in north America. This year it will be June 11-13 and I won’t miss it.
I”ll never forget 1983 when I got to see Ray Hunt work horses for many sessions. Watching Ray Hunt watching horses. Heaven on earth. I was there every day because my gelding was one of the performers for the AHA showcasing the Versatile Arabian. But, even that sweet, sweet horse got a bit unhappy by the last day after doing his reining, jumping and trail horse demo several times each day. The irritant that finally got to him was the hundreds of strange hands all over him – the kids couldn’t stop touching him. By the last afternoon, I saw him pin his ears at a child for the first time ever. I was glad to load him up and get him home, and never did that to him again.
Each year over 70,000 people attend the Western States Expo at the California state fair grounds. There are 15 acres of just horse trailers at Rigs and Digs – the largest display in the country. Many multi-level buildings full of exhibitor’s booths – over 600 last year. Clinicians in 2009 were Stacy Westfall, Tommy Garland, John Lyons, Stephen Bradley, Richard Winters, and Ken McNabb – they haven’t listed the ones for this year yet. My favorite annual events are the Mustang Challenge, the Magnificent 7 Reining Event, the Driving Darby, and the amazing art show. This year the The UC Davis Veterinary Emergency Response Team (VERT) put on some incredible demos, as did the U.S. Forest Service mule team. It’s just three days of fun and sore feet!
Unfortunately, Tommy Garland hands and timing were just plain awful. To see him constantly jerking on the reins for a head set – arrrgggghhhhh!! John Lyons: boring. Stacy was just plain wonderful. Thank goodness Parelli and his clones weren’t there.
Can’t wait ’til this year!
FYI. Tommy is one of the top 3 western trainers in the country. He is much better with a bosal horse than a bridle horse, but still. You may not like the technique used to train a National level Arabian Western Pleasure horse (I am personally not a fan of Wester either), but to say that Tommy has bad timing is just silly. His timing is impeccable. He is only doing the clinic, DVD thing because it is such a huge money maker and he he has a family and three kids to put through college. His barn is FULL of National champions. AND as far as Arbian western trainers go, he is pretty darn fair to his horses.
Fugly, this has nothing to do with your current post, but . . . I just found your blog via SCR’s website, and read your stuff on Hercules and his last owner. I am now your forever fan, and will make sure that I read your reports daily– Thank you for having the guts to tell it like it is!
It’s been my pleasure.
Herc is doing well – you can find him on Facebook if you haven’t already by searching for Hercules The Horse.
I have been going to the MD Equine Affair for years. Some years I just go for the shopping, some years there are clinics I am interested in. This year there was a Gaited horse who I really enjoyed. Was teaching balanced horsemanship and common sense with a lot of audience participation and humor. He ragged on the chair seat, ridiculous bits and riding horses too young. Too bad most gaited show people don’t want to hear this info. Can’t remember his name, but he will be at the PA one too, I may go just to see him.
Stueart Pittman goes to both too. He gives an excellent demo, and is a person who practices what he preaches. He has made recycling TB off the track a focus of his life. He is an excellent teacher and trainer, and works in the real world. His stallion is fabulous too, excellent bone, conformation, and works for a living.
Oh, FYI Jose’s Perfection is a TWH.
that’s Gaited Horse Clinician…
Not according to this article, and I think they announced him as AQHA. Error?
http://news.horsetrader.com/2009/12/03/extreme-cowboy-competition-has-inaugural-world-championships/
AQHA gelding, born 3/28/97. Just looked him up on AQHA.
My mistake, I was thinking of the extreme cowboy challenge that a TWH won.
We have a Jose bloodline in TWH too.
We get the equine affair every year in April or so in Columbus, OH. We are a more hunt seat area so they have more hunt seat type clinics in it. This year I know there is a dressage clinic and a jumping clinic amongst the other western clinics they do, I’m not sure who they’re with I haven’t look them up yet. There’s always a breed show and other various demonstrations like cart horses of different types. Last year Jeff Cook did a great clinic with four riders who were all in the 4′ jumping level and that was fun to watch. The shopping is excellent although ironically more western focused than hunt seat. If one comes through your area go to shop on the last day, everything is marked half off. I had to hold myself back from buying one of those obnoxiously sparkly belt (the only bling hunt seat people can really get away with) that had been marked from $130 to $70. But the last day they’re looking to unload as much as possible so it’s all CHEAP. They’re lots of fun. Try the fried reeses peanut butter cup, it’s coated in delicious and fried and covered in powdered sugar. Holy. Cow. Then go home and ride it off. For like five hours.
New Jersey also gets the Festival of Champions at the USET headquarters and THAT is AWESOME. I used to live in NJ and we went every year. All the big name prix riders were there, the junior riders had several days, they had driving competitions of different types, reining, dressage, and everyone was a high level professional at the top of their game. And you can get really close up to them like on the prix days you can lean on the schooling ring and watch them school and walk by them as they go to the show ring. We asked Margie Engle how big her horse was when she walked by the rail and she politely stopped, let us pet his nose and said 17.2. I think he looked even bigger because she’s tiny. The shopping at that is also INCREDIBLE, hands down the best you can probably get anywhere. I don’t remember the western stuff as much…but it was Northern New Jersey. And I was 16 so I was heavily distracted by obnoxiously colored saddle pads for my equally obnoxiously colored pony. My trainer was thrilled. The freestyle reining was a blast to watch. One guy rode in backwards pretending to be drunk and got himself turned back around at some point. If you want to just see awesome riding by the best in the country, that’s the festival to go to.
I don’t go to the expps either, same reason. toomuch crap, not enough “meat”. But i’ve seeN Stacy before, yup, she’s pretty cool and totally knows her stuff.
FYI, Smith5213, the festival of Champions at the Team isn’t like tht any more. they’ve thinned it down to just a dressage finals of some manner. The old shingdig is GONE. It’s a shame. It have alot to do with date conflicts for other rated shows.
I actually read all the replies before writing this. Interesting, to say the least. I went to EA in Ohio the last year it was in Dayton, and I’ve been going to Columbus every single year since. It’s my annual vacation LOL. I go all 4 days, and it’s a 5 hrs drive for me. They have an eventing trainer there only every other year, and usually on the Th/Fri only, so the crowds are smaller. The dressage trainers have usually always been top notch. New person this year, and unknown to me, but I’ll go watch. No top people for jumping this year. And 6 NH trainers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I guess they have to go w/what people want, but this is ridiculous. I’ll go see Chris Cox, because I really liked him at RTTH. Stacey Westfall will be doing reining clinics so I may skip her. I go to a lot of the smaller clinics on medical info. and such.
I take copious notes every year and go back to them regularly. I can always add little tidbits of good info. to my training/teaching business. I think you can learn stuff from all horse people, even if it’s only what not to do
I once loudly applauded Julie Goodnight on a comment she made, in the big coliseum too LOL.
I agree that Craig Cameron can be a bit abrasive, but I do enjoy the extreme cowboy race. He goes to a barn near the IN/MI boarder a few times a year, Steve Landvitt’s place. I’ve audited him there multiple times. I ended up bringing my crazy TB to Steve for a week of private training/lessons. Very reasonably prices and I got a ton out of it.
I enjoy the shopping, but I go w/a list of needed items and know the prices I can get in the catalogs, so I go w/bargaining power, especially on the last day. I do renew most of my magazines ’cause the deals are the best. I go to the shopping area on the Th. when it’s quieter and make a list of what I find, then go back on the last day for all my purchases. If I find good books I want, I make a list and buy then on line when I return, for a lot less.
I usually go alone every year, so I can go to all the clinics I want on my own time. I never have down time, too much to see and hear. This year, 3 of my students are coming, 1 adult and 2 teenagers. Interesting to see how it will pan out.
I carry a very comfortable backpack, and bring all my own food, and definitely wear very comfortable walking shoes.
I go to Fantazia every year for the entertainment value.
I hate leaving every year, can’t wait for April 2010 LOL
Fugly – did you by any chance catch the ASB exhibit?
We were at Equine Affairs in Springfield this past November (by we, I mean the far I work for) and apparently Fantasia wasn’t that great… a lot of people were complaining about it
I didn’t get a chance to go to a lot of demonstrations or talks, but the program looked pretty generic to me when I glanced over it. We’ll be at the OH one too this spring with out (hopefully approved by then!) Friesian stallion… maybe I’ll see some of you there! I can’t remember if Stacy will be at this shindig too or not; I wanted to go watch her!
Whats wrong with jumping picnic tables? I do it all the time.
Well if you don’t like your horses’ joints I suppose it’s fine!
I think that if someone doesn’t want to supprt someone for their politcial views , whatever they may be, that’s their given right and while others may not agree, they should still remember that its her right not to supprt him just as its his right to support FOF
I personally don’t give a shit what you support so long as you’re good to your horses. My trainers a radical republican and I’m a die hard Democrat, but we both want the same thing for my horse. I don’t give a shit if she’s in the KKK so long as she treats my horse right. Anyway, how about let’s focus on horses, not who has more education than who and who is against homosexuality, blahblahblah…that is so not what we’re here for.
Just thought id give you a bit of hope,… your ideal horse, describes my mare to a tee.
. she is the type of horse you can just hop on and do whatever with. although she is a little hot.. hehe
she is 13, appendix, has done gaming and cutting, she has the best manners ever, very sweet and forgiving.. currently being a little jumper
I would probably love her! I like them a little hot, in a non-lethal way
You are a lucky woman to have her.
Oh and I’m going to have to out my ignorance now!! I was thinking the WEG were in the late SPRING bc I keep getting it confused with ROLEX (when I said I’d be close to giving birth then) which is totally idiotic but they are both at the same place and i live in the area…we also have IHSA nationals going on at that time. I also was under the impression that they’re building hotels near the horse park. Am I wrong about that? If so sorry for the misinformation!!!
I would love to take my daughter to the WEG. My mom lives there (I grew up in Lexington) and we could flop at her place.
I was there the year they opened the Ky Horse Park and got to see the Rolex steeplechase in person, or whatever it was called. It was their first 3-day event. It was very exciting!
My parents had promised me a pony when we moved there, but the closest I ever got to horses was working as a waitress at the Fasig-Tipton horse sales one year. And occasionally renting a horse for an hour that would run back to the barn every chance it got.
I love going to conventions. But the first horsey one we ever went to was the Women and Horses thing here in Missouri. My daughter’s horse colicked at the event and died the next day. Let’s just say it wasn’t a happy memory.
The worst thing was that it happened in the evening (of course) and we couldn’t find anyone in charge ANYWHERE to ask directions to an emergency vet. Thank God some horse people who were still there helped us…ran a banamine IV, loaned us blankets, and told us where to take him. Otherwise I don’t know what we would have done.
They also scheduled the performances at the same time as the classes, and people didn’t know that the performances were going on, so there was almost no audience when our girls were performing their hearts out.
Just something to think about…the event organizers REALLY need to have their emergency procedures in place, and have that information on hand in case a horse has an emergency!!
Oh, and speaking of 13-year-old Appendix’s, that is exactly what Taz was…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21996415@N08/3254228650/
I LOVE the EA. the past two years I have been a part of it competing in the cowboy races and this year having my mustang in Tommy Garland’s clinic as the demo horse, and riding my haflinger mare in the haflinger breed demo, and of course the shopping and samples, it is a blast!! Being a part of THE EA and not just a spectator is tons of fun. i plan on bringing my horses to the horse expo in sacramentoin june also.
Cathy, I thought I posted this a couple of days ago but it doesn’t appear. If you haven’t put it on I will try again. I must have pushed the wrong button.
My daughter Denise went to the Equine Affaire last Saturday and she agrees with everything you said about it. She said she cried when she watched Stacy Westfall.
She did notice less “natural horsemanship” this year and she said she was grateful for that. She did not realize that Pat Parelli was asked not to return, then she shouted “yay” and did a double back flip. She did start to watch a demonstration that upset her however. It was by a mounted police horse trainer and was supposed to show how to overcome riders/horses fears. She did notice a rope halter with pressure point knots on the horse however. The trainer was standing directly behind his horse and was running the lead rope underneath the dock of the tail and in front of the horses back legs at his sheath! He was standing directly behind his horse! He said “This exercise will save your life”. She pulled her friend away and told her “You are not watching this crap. You are just gullible enough to try it with your horse and he would kill you.” She did not argue.
You pushed the wrong button. It never showed up on my end
I have gone to equine affaire in mass twice horse world expo in Maryland once and horseworld expo in pa three times. I have had a great time at all of them. Stacy without a doubt is the best. I have met her at equine affaire twice on 2006 and 2007 and must say she is so nice and also informative. I went to the pa horseworld expo over the weekend and saw four clinics by her an must say I still learned alot even tho I own all her DVDs. I also met ur a breyerfest in Lexington last yr. She was great there too. I also saw a clinic by gary lane a gaited horse trainer for a client who owns a missiouri fox trotter. He was some what boring and kept saying may your heart not be troubled which I tried not to laugh at everytime he said it. I did learn how to keep gaited horses gaiting which was good. Tommie turvey was also there. I met Tommie both at pa in 2007, Maryland in 2009, and Breyerfest in 2009. He was very nice at his booth and I even got a picture with him and he signed my pokerjoe model and answered several questions I asked. During the pa expo over the weekend he was very cautious about his horses health. The area footing was horrible and hr made a note of it several times. During his liberty demo on Sunday he said that he wasn’t going to run his full connection act cuz the area had too many holes and he wasn’t going to risk the injury on his horses. I found that admirable. His methods are not like that of other trainers but you can’t forget he trains movies for films. All of his horses that are fully trained love to be around him an you can see it. He had a beautiful Andalusian stallion named devante that he was training for the weg that was amazing. He also had a wild oldenburg colt which gave him a run for his money. He did get snippy towards one of his helpers but I could see why. She went to pet the horse he had in the arena and he said please don’t touch my horse. He did say the reason why he doesn’t like that. He had the assistant go to leave and the horse went to follow her. He said he is the only person who he wants the horse to focus on while he’s training it which I agree with. He later did apologize for. I must say before this yrs expo I never saw Richard shrake but heard about him. After hearing two of his clincs I have become a fan. He had everyone in the stands participate. His methods are great and I am I fan of his now. I teach both English and western lessons and have found that using his and Stacys methods together made my students ride better. I love stacys cloverleaf pattern and Richards straightness using a set of two poles and making the with smaller and smaller. I have seen a drastic improvement in my riders and horses and there thought process. Besides the clinics I did have some great bargains I got $230 boots for $70 spurs and spur straps for $50 and a new show shirt for $30. I also got a studded horse hair belt half price not bad. Theatre equus horseworlds expo of fantasia was pretty good but the footing was bad so Stacy had to cut out the full on sliding stops. Tommie also didn’t rum
his horses the way he normally does. His horses also didn’t jump the fire. They plowed through it. My sis got a video and u can see them run through it. It was prob due to the footing. He got them back stage then tried to jumpnof and slid off. He ran them to their stalls to make sure they were ok. After he plowed through the jump you could see him yelling to his help and seeing that nobody knew what to do. Big horse productions did there vaulting routine which was kinda boring and they did have some spills. Matt mclaughlin was great and had a freestyle to contempory music, a la garcha act, and his famous save a horse ride a cowboy and sing sing sing act. It was funny cuz the anouncer dropped the hat Matt was to wear. So he gave Matt his hat and they both busted each others chops about it. That was basically the show. If Tommie and Matt weren’t there the show would have sucked. Stacy’s act would have been soo much better if she could have done her stops. I love expos and must say both pa and equine affaire mass are great. I love having them do spread out one in begining of the yr an one at the end.
Exactly. FEEL any way you like, but you don’t get to bash someone’s head in about it.
I agree with you. I do not see any desire for special rights…I see a desire for the same rights. They aren’t asking to get into Harvard with a C average. They’re just asking to have the same romantic partnership rights as straight people, including the right to see their loved one in the hospital.