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Hi! Sorry for being so quiet lately! Guess what I’ve been doing? Riding horses and chasing cows! I’m been having so much fun. You know, chasing cows is a lot like longing horses, putting pressure on the hip speeds then up and pressure on the head slows them down. Piece of cake right? Pffft!

I don’t have a bunch of time to write because I’m behind on everything, but heres the quick summary:

• Turns out Leo is super supple and I’ve done “a great job” there
• I “get” the cows. Does that mean I’m cowy?
• Leo and I are horrible at turn-arounds, which means, it’s really me thats horrible at turn-arounds.
• We did our first flying lead change. Woooooooooo!!!! It was ugly, but we did it!!!
• I have a riding instructor/amazing horse trainer that is a total keeper
• Leo is going to his first team-roping this weekend. This is a pass or fail for him so keep your fingers crossed.
• Best news of all! Leo is coming home after the roping next week. (Of course, if he does horribly at the roping, he’ll probably only be home for a short time, but I’ll worry about that if it happens.)

I hope everyone is having a great summer so far! Hows training going? How are the horses? Whats going on?

It’s already been two weeks since my first Les Vogt clinic and I haven’t even given you guys my report. But it’s summer! I love summer! Horses and dust and sun and horses!

The clinic was 2 days. The first few hours of the first day, I was terrified. I normally ride alone or with one or two other riders, but mostly I’m alone. If I am with other riders, they’re riding English (unless it’s Jim). So, to be surrounded by other Western riders, in a huge arena, was SUPER intimidating. They had such beauuuutiful well-trained horses. And they could all ride so well. I felt really lucky though because there was a lady there who was at the last clinic (the one I watched) who recognized me and kinda took me under her wing. She kept checking on me and offering words of encouragement.

Since I’m normally alone, well, so is Leo. So I wondered how he would behave around all the other horses. He was an absolute angel for the entire clinic. It was almost as if he knew how important it was to me.

By the second day, I was filled with confidence and ready to try anything. I think that’s the best part about learning from Les; he has a way of making you focus on all the cool stuff you can learn instead of worrying about all the stuff you might do wrong. It’s ok to make mistakes in front of him because he shows you how to learn from it and do it correctly.

Biggest challenge for me was the turn-arounds. I really paid attention when watching the other riders. One rider had a horse that was turning like a top. It looked amazing and perfect to me, but Les and some of the other riders could see the mistake. It was the way the horse was placing one of it’s back hoofs at the start of the turn. He was stepping outside and not under himself. One wrong step! Continue Reading »

As soon as we arrived at the ranch today, I jumped out of the car and starting searching through paddock after paddock for Leo. Jim whistled for him. We didn’t know where he was. Jim went to chat with the owner, and I headed for the stalls. Since the sun was so high outside, it seemed very dark in the halls. “Leo?” “Leo?” I peered into stall after stall, until finally there he was! LEOOOOOO!!! He poked his little nose out at me and I couldn’t have been happier.

He looks a little thinner, but beefy, like he’s been working. The trainer saddled him up to show Jim how he’s doing after two weeks. After a short warm up, they ran some steer. First I watched Leo, how still he was in the box, and how well he rated the steer when he came out. Then I watched the broad smile spread across Jim’s face. HE IS NOT SELLING LEO!!! Haaaaaahaaaaaaaaa!!!! YAY!!!
This trainer is pretty wonderful. Leo looked so easy and relaxed under him. I wanted to hug him when he was telling us how bad it is to jerk or kick a horse around. He has a lot to teach and a nice way of teaching it.
I had a lesson with Leo that went so well. I learned a lot that I want to talk about and will in the coming weeks.

Main things though:

• Leo was signed up for another month of training
• I’ve signed up for lessons with Leo and the trainer for every weekend
• The trainer is extremely familiar with Les Vogt’s 5 easy pieces (he’s been to 10 of his clinics) and weaves them into his own lifelong experience

When I put Leo up and said my goodbyes, I told him with a huge grin on my face and watery eyes, what a good boy he is, how smart he is, and thanked him for all the hard work. I kissed his fuzzy nose, gave him way too many treats, and just about danced back to my car. It was a good day.

Wow what a week! We have a “little” Norwegian parade in my neighborhood on the 17th of May (Syttende Mai) each year. It’s to celebrate Norway’s Constitution Day. This neighborhood has always been known as the Scandinavian area of Seattle and our Syttende Mai parade is the biggest one outside of Norway.

I’m part of a committee that organizes a group of Norwegian Fjord Horses to participate in the parade. It’s so much fun to see the kids interacting with the ponies. Some of them have never met a horse in real life. Oh! And we got a first prize trophy for the 2nd year in a row! Woo! Woo! Heres a good little video of the parade, we’re in there somewhere: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWi7Pa1Hfx0

About Leo. guess WHAT!!! He’s doing great! One of the trainers called Jim and said, “Well, you know, your horse has a temper….” We got a pretty big chuckle out of that. But the good news is that they don’t think there is anything seriously wrong with Leo. They think he’s got all the tools and will make a great rope horse. The only thing is getting past his temper.

I can’t wait to see him. I just really want to check on him and make sure he’s doing ok; you know, give him a hug and let him know we haven’t abandoned him. It’s going to take me about 3 hours to drive out. Long drive for a lesson eh? I can’t waaaaait to see him though!
I’m feeling really good about having a lesson too. Even though my last lesson was such a bad experience, I have a good feeling about the trainer. Also, I’ll be with Leo, not some horse I don’t know. I feel a lot more secure with him, temper or no, he’s my pal.

Well, it’s either summer camp or the auction block. I’ll find out in a week. Yesterday, Leo’s owner told me that it was time to have Leo assessed and that assessment would start today, May 10. The trainer will have him for a week, rope off of him, and let Jim know if he’ll be a good “jackpot” rope horse. If the trainer gives it a thumbs down, than Leo will be sold. SOLD!

I drove out to the barn yesterday, wanting to spend some time with Leo, and had a long talk with him. I told him to be on his best behavior and do everything the trainer says. Jim later admitted that he’d had a similar conversation with Leo and told him to pay attention in class.

I rode over to Yakima with Jim to drop Leo off. On the way over, Jim noticed my furrowed brow and general look of concern, so he ASSURED me that the trainer was not going to hurt Leo at all. He said he was a wonderful trainer and very good to horses. I know he’s right because I’ve heard good things about the trainer before. But I still worry. Maybe I’m just really going to miss little Leo.

On the way to Yakima, Jim stopped at the ranch in Ellensburg where he ropes. He wanted to let me work with Leo one more time in my favorite outdoor arena. It was the best ride. Leo just did everything I asked with gusto. He even stopped well. Jim was smiling. He got on him for a few also (He had decided last winter not to ride him while I was working with him, so Leo wouldn’t get confused with possibly different signals).

With Jim up there, I said, “Try to steer with just your legs.” He did and I got a big smile from him. Leo is really rockin’ now.

Leaving Leo in Yakima was hard. Super hard. I gave him a kiss on the nose and told him to be a good boy. Now I just have to wait and see. This week will decide his future. He’ll either be staying for a month or two or he’ll come home to be sold. Either way, looks like I’m without him for awhile or forever. I wonder how he’s doing…

I had a great weekend. It was opening day of the Summer Series at the ranch–let the team roping commence! Even though Leo isn’t trained for roping yet, Jim likes to take him out there so he can get used to all the activity.

I was hoping Leo would be on his best behavior, and he was! Although, he had a hard time concentrating because of the new setting. We worked in the arena before most of the ropers got there, but there were plenty of steer, horses, and strange newness everywhere to keep his ears perked up the whole time.

My friend Monica took that picture of us. He was just as good as he could be. Last month Leo was getting really ornery with the snaffle I was using (D-ring, slow-twist). So when I went to the Les Vogt clinic, I picked up an Elevator bit. It’s a strange looking bit to be sure, but so far, a wonderful training bit. It’s cool because it also kind of acts like a full-cheek snaffle, which seems to help with training in lateral movements. Les says that you give a horse a new bit when he asks for one. I think it finally sank in that Leo was asking for one. He was getting pretty brave with his rearing up and being generally disrespectful.

Last week, first day in the new bit, like clockwork, he had a tantrum and came off the ground with both front hoofs. When he was on his way up to classic Trigger position, I bopped him once (quick jerk on the bit with one rein), he grunted in surprise (and no small amount of discomfort I’m sure) and replanted both hoofs firmly on the ground. I’m not sure if that was the right thing to do, but for the rest of the ride, he was a perfect gentleman. We had two more arguments like that in the days followed, and then he just quit behaving badly. There are no ornery tantrums.

SO! This is what we have so far in terms on the “five easy pieces.” Leo knows how to independently move his head, his shoulders, and his hips on both sides (Yay! Finally turning on the forehand in both directions). He’s great two-tracking to the left, but falls apart on the right, so that’s what we’re working on now.

Back to Saturday at the roping; it was great! Leo was so good. I didn’t work with him long because he was behaving so well and trying so hard. So we hung up the gear, he had a carrot, I had a Cliff bar, and we kicked back and watched Jim catch!

Everyone has an idol. When it comes to horse training, mine is Les Vogt. Even though I’d never met him, I had this idea about the kind of person he was. He just seemed like such a nice person, and a natural born teacher with a sincere interest in helping people improve their horsemanship skills. I’ve been watching those training videos of his for months now.

Then again, do you really want to ever meet your idol in real life? What if he isn’t what you thought? What if he’s just a dude looking to make a buck; someone who doesn’t really care at all? I’ve heard stories about people meeting their idols before, stories of football heroes that wouldn’t give a kid an autograph; or a famous authors who talk down to their fans; stories about idol meetings that were devastatingly disappointing.

BUT THAT’S NOT MY STORY! LES VOGT WAS THE BEST!!! I got to attend one of his clinics this weekend (just watch; not with my horse). My brain is so full from everything I learned and my grin still hasn’t gone away.

He is the nicest person! And an amazing instructor–he tells you how to do it, shows you how to do it, and then has you show him how to do it. Everyone was having so much fun. My favorite moment was when one young woman, (after Les spent about 5 to 10 minutes with her), got her horse to do the most amazing slide. She couldn’t believe it! No one could. We all clapped and cheered like she’d won the gold.

I have a lot more to say about the clinic, but for now, I’ll just say, if you ever get the chance, go to his clinic. You won’t regret it.

I love this photo of Leo. Look at that angry little fella. I just love him.

So, he’s been snarky with me all week. He was rearing up again today. Not with any real height or anything, just front hoofs leaving the dirt and whipping his head back and forth angrily.

I should add that I’ve been riding in a covered arena lately. It’s nice to be dry, but horses get a little tense in there because of the high walls and the fact that there are horses just on the other side—including a couple of stallions—right on the other side to be specific. Leo is always a little on edge in there; most horses are.

Leo’s owner came in to ride with me today on his other horse, Shadow. Leo and I were working on our communications skills and both feeling a little tense. Well, Shadow spooked right behind Leo. Boy I tell you, Leo’s head shot straight up and his back end dropped about two feet. He LAUNCHED forward from zero to scary in a blink. I could hear his back hoofs hitting dirt, ::::wham! wham! wham!::::::

He lost his footing around the corner and I was sure I was a goner. But somehow, I stayed on. I tried to pay attention to what he was charging towards because there is a lot of trail course stuff in the center. We went one full lap and when I realized I wasn’t dead yet and coherent thought entered my head, I began using steady, alternating, pulls on the reins and saying in my most calming tone (considering) “whoooooa Leo…whooooooa buddy.”

And guess what! He didn’t buck or crash or lose his mind! He actually came to a stop! Jim said he was watching me, silently praying that Leo wouldn’t start bucking. Thanks Jim!

So ya, what ARE you supposed to do when a horse bolts in an arena? What if there were other riders there? Do you just pray, hang on, and try to avoid crashing? I know they say the one-reined stop is good, but in an arena full of stuff? And snaffles? No stopping power there.

By the way, HE IS SO FAST AND THAT WAS SO FUN! I can’t wait til we get good enough to go that fast in a…very…controlled….manner. Someday we’ll be cool like Elvis, but just now, well, we’re kinda the spazo’s.

Somewhere in Les Vogt’s foundation level of Cowhorse U. program, he says, “Don’t make a big deal out of anything you don’t want to be a big deal.” Well, I didn’t heed the warning, and I think I may now be suffering the consequences.

Les also says that you basically have two horses to train, the right side of the horse and the left side. This is how the big deal started—I only trained one horse.

First I noticed that, ya, Leo was doing a turn-on-the-forehand to the left. But then I realized that somewhere along the line, he totally forgot how to do it to the right (my fault for sure – practice both sides consistently goof!). I also realized the I DIDN’T HAVE THE NECK!!! ACH! I realized that even on his good side, his head was up in the air and pulling hard on the bit all the way around. Yikes!

Solution, I thought = get annoying with the bit. Alternate pulls until he drops his head and gets off the bit. That worked pretty good on his good side. I have the neck…in one direction.

I kept trying for the turn-on-the-forehand on his bad side. He would back up, go sideways, and almost always try to go forward. He would push through the bit and walk on. When he did that I would get more aggressive with the bit, not a dead pull, but obnoxious alternate tugs. If he even made a step in the right direction, I would release and tell him what a good boy he was. BUT, I think I tried too many times, for too long, two days in a row. He finally, out of frustration, brought his front two hoofs off the ground. Continue Reading »

Ok, I haven’t posted in awhile because I’ve been super busy with work, but also because my confidence got kicked into the dirt a little. No one’s fault really, but it made me realize that when you pick a trainer, you really need to do your homework first.

I had my first reining lesson about three weeks ago on a school horse. Long story short, I ended up getting off the horse, in tears, and walking out of the arena. I was completely convinced that I’m too thinned-skinned for riding lessons. Now that I’ve had a chance to calm down about it, I know that’s not true, but it will be awhile before I go hunting for a coach again.

I don’t know about riding instructors, but I’ve spent enough time in school to know that each teacher has his/her own style of teaching. I, naturally, learned the most with teachers that taught in a style that is best suited the way I learn. So, while the reining instructor that I had is probably extremely effective with other types of learners, with me the results were pretty upsetting (for both of us). I feel pretty bad about the way things ended up; the poor instructor probably didn’t know what happened to make me flee the arena.

I didn’t feel like riding for a week. I was walkin’ around with droopy shoulders and a “can’t do” attitude for days and days. You can only sulk around for so long though, I mean, there ARE horses to ride after all. So, one rainy afternoon, I pulled on my most cheerful pair of funny socks and marched out into the gray, the rain, and the mud and saddled up that “angry” horse that I love so much. After a few rides (and some Les Vogt DVD watching), all my self-confidence came back and I knoooow I can learn this stuff!

You know what would be great is if I could find an instructor that has also learned from Les Vogt, and teaches in a similar manner. Too much to ask? There must be one out there somewhere (hopefully in Washington State).

Yes…those are English riding boots. They’re comfortable okay! And anyway, it’s too muddy out to wear my new boots. Jeeeeeeeez!