reinersblog.com

There are only a few days left of my two-week vacation. I still haven’t seen any live horses in Denmark (but I have tell you, Copenhagen is probably the equestrian statue capital of the world). My sister thinks I’m a little obsessed with learning reining. I can’t blame her since she’s been watching me ride an invisible horse around her apartment for the last week (trying to get the 5 easy pieces sequence memorized).

As you know, since I don’t have an instructor, I’m learning from DVD’s. The program that I’m following is Les Vogt’s Cowhorse U. I think it’s a great program because it’s teaching me the fundamentals of body control. Not having an instructor though, it’s hard to know if I’m doing everything the way Mr. Vogt shows in his DVD’s. When I watch the DVD’s, I pay attention to where he has his hands, his feet, how he’s shifting his weight etc. However, I just can see myself to know if I’m doing what he’s doing.

A few weeks ago, Leo’s owner, Jim, wanted to film me riding Leo. He wants some before and after footage (he’s been pleased with Leo’s progress). When I watched the videos he took, I saw everything that I was doing wrong. My hands! Oh my gosh! My hands are so high up in the air that the reins are hanging down like puppet strings! Continue Reading »

I ride at a predominantly English barn, so I don’t have really anyone there to turn to for reining advice. I also don’t have the money for a reining instructor right now even if I could find one in this dressage soaked area (no offense to haute ecole; I’m a fan). However, I’ve never let lack of resources stop me from pursuing a goal (have you ever noticed that people who are used to not having resources become very resourceful?), and after all those years in college there are a few things that I am now very good at. Aside from the standard skills one acquires in college (drinking and shooting pool), I am now very good at research and learning. I know that all I need is a great course, and it has to be on DVD because learning about horse training only from books simply won’t do.

I have my heart set on beginning with the training series that that horseman told me about (see last blog). He and his horse were proof enough to me that those videos he watched worked. So, I made a dedicated search on the Internet and found the name of the trainer/instructor. It is Les Vogt. I was so excited. Finally a little guidance! A man with a plan!

On the site there is a 20-minute sample video of the training DVDs. My eyes were glued to the monitor. Les not only appears to be a gifted speaker and teacher, he is instantly endearing. His laugh is contagious. There is nothing pretentious or intimidating about him; he seems to be a person genuinely interested in and thrilled about teaching horsemanship. After I was finish reading about his accomplishments, I ordered the foundation training DVDs from what is called CowHorse U: Independent Study Program for Performance Horses.

The next morning I had a few questions about my order, so called the number on the site. The number was for Linda, who I found out is the technical/marketing half of CowHorse U. She answered all of my questions and sounded like an incredibly knowledgeable and experienced horse trainer. It was also really nice to speak with someone who is able to work in the equestrian industry. Very cool. We chatted for nearly an hour. By the time I got off the phone, I felt like I had my own mini reining support group and that if I ever needed anything I could call her or Les.

So here’s my big experiment/goal. I’m going to do every single thing that those training DVDs tell me to do — I’ll follow the course exactly. Can a person learn enough from DVD’s to teach a horse to rein? We’ll see!