KP Quarter Horses

03/14/2024

𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐓𝐨 𝐏𝐢𝐧 𝐎𝐧 𝐀 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐉𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐲 𝐉𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝

Our readers loved our recent reshare of the article, 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙅𝙪𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙆𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝘼𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝘽𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙉𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙨: https://www.equinechronicle.com/what-every-judge-wants-you-to-know-about-back-numbers/

So in response, we’ve consulted with Jenny Jordan Frid of Robin Frid Show Horses!

Jenny is highly sought after for her expertise in Showmanship, which reflects the motto of their barn, “Exceeding Your Expectations.” Watch as she demonstrates how to place and fasten a back number for Showmanship, and she provides guidance on the same topic for halter in our EC TV video on our website: 👇👇👇
http://www.equinechronicle.com/how-to-pin-on-a-back-number-for-showmanship-and-halter-with-jenny-jordan-frid/

01/17/2024

It’s one of the most anticipated Showmanship maneuvers to watch and the most stressful to perform–the challenging pivot. The multi-tasking that is involved for exhibitors to execute this technical maneuver correctly can be overwhelming, and it’s equally as demanding for the horses that show in this class.

Three Showmanship trainers share tips about how to fix pivot problems and give us advice about how to keep the right foot grounded–in practice and in the show ring: Clint Ainsworth of Clint Ainsworth Show Horses, Jenny Jordan Frid of Robin Frid Show Horses, and Shannon Gillespie of Gillespie Show Horses.

Read this fabulous article with photos by Writer Laura Boynton Jobson: http://www.equinechronicle.com/the-showmanship-pivot/

01/09/2024

The *more leg* debate

Recently I’ve been seeing a lot of posts talking about instructors telling their students to “use more leg” and that this is wrong or it’s not being done properly, etc. However, not one post then says how to do it properly. They just criticize.

Also it seems that they forget that a lot of people that ride don’t use their legs hardly at all to steer and ride their horse and use just primarily rein aids.

Shouldn’t we be trying to instruct our students to ride more with their seat and leg aids than their reins?

Also most students do not use enough of their lower leg to support or communicate to their horse properly. The use of the leg must be taught through repetition and feel.

Now I get that overuse of the leg will result in a dull horse but sometimes a student truly is not using enough of their lower leg to effectively communicate because they just don’t know how to effectively and correctly use their leg in relationship to what they are requesting their horse to do.

And the message of using too much leg is confusing to new horse riders. It sends the message of telling them to not use their leg at all which causes a whole slew of issues in itself.

I tell my students that their neutral leg on their horse’s sides should be about the same pressure as their arms resting relaxed at their sides. The leg should not engage more unless they want more energy from the horse or for direction and steering purposes. The leg should be like a gentle hug. Reassuring, giving and feeling for feedback at the same time.

The leg should be held with relaxation with only enough pressure in the stirrup to barely hold a dollar bill in between the ball of your foot and the stirrup.

There should be flexibility in the hip, knee and ankle. This allows for movement and feel for cueing purposes. Soft legs allow for flexibility in the seat and lower back which travels up into the shoulders and the arms and hands. In essence, the status of the leg influences the entire body.

Tight and tense legs cause tension in the thighs, hips and lower back which cause the rider to actually move against their horse. If you are bouncing a lot in the saddle, you might be riding with a tight and tense leg. Tight legs cause riders to put too much pressure in their stirrups which causes them to ride stiff up through their hips and lowers back. It also causes the rider to keep their legs off the horse. This causes lack of communication between the horse and rider and also causes the rider to be more unstable.

We must have balance in our legs and seat. We must learn to wait and feel our horse underneath us and then respond accordingly to them after giving them time to respond to the request. A solid and quiet leg takes time to build but keeping your leg completely off your horse only causes more harm than good.

The use of leg in communicating to a horse and for the importance of balance and position in the saddle is one of the most important things to teach. So rather than poopoo-ing the use of leg, encourage correct leg position and contact.

10/30/2023

top of the line horse boarding available. Home of KP Quarter horses. Breeding, lessons and training

10/12/2023

This post speaks volumes! Thank you Moore Horsemanship for the words!

“The best horses are built over years of hauling, hard work, tough times, good times, bad times, big spooks, little spooks, their mistakes, our mistakes and continual love and care.

No, your c**t starter can not turn your young prospect into your old faithful in 30, 60, 90, or even 365 days. It takes years.

I’m plagued with the problem of trying to impress on people how long it truly takes to build that dream partner. There’s not a smooth paved path. Your green horse will embarrass you, frustrate you, and maybe even hurt you. For some of y’all buying a $20,000-$30,000 horse is going to be worth it and SAVE you money. Even that more finished horse will take a year or more to sync up with.

In Texas right now, a cheap rate for horse training is $1,000 a month.
1 year of training: $12,000
2 years of training: $24,000

Many of you won’t believe this but your dream horse is on the other side of two years of training. It’s likely around two years of training and two years of seasoning (hauling them to town). Will that horse still make mistakes? Yes, they all make mistakes until the day they die. But that horses mistakes probably won’t put you in serious danger and that horse will probably pack your grandkids around.

If you’re trying to decide between a $3,500 prospect or a $15,000 proven horse. My advice is to do an internal inventory and figure out what you want. Buying that prospect is like the first roll on the Jumanji board. You’re entered up, get ready for a journey of ups and downs (possibly quite literally!) If you’re buying that finished horse decide what you really want, get ready for a lot of shopping and painfully overpriced sh💩tters. Take a friend or a trainer on this journey with you and try to double your budget (that’s right, 30k). Be smart and buy something OVER 8 years old. Don’t buy that pretty 5 year old they only want 20k for. He isn’t old enough to be proven for you. Lots of horse traders are trying to flip horses, anything under 8 is likely twice as green as he looks in the video. Maturity, both mental and physical will be key when looking for a safe horse.

If you want a project and a challenge I’m not hating, that’s what I want in a horse too, so I buy young ones. If you need a safe one, bring lots of money and quit thinking you need a 6 year old. You probably don’t have what it takes to mentally support that 6 year old through new situations.

The biggest reason I bring this up is because as folks retire their old faithful they are so far removed from when that horse was green and did dumb stuff. They forgot how tough those two years were back when he was 4-6. They only remember the amazing horse he was when he matured. The 3 year old they just bought is YEARS from filling that horses shoes when it comes to training level and safety level. I see people hate on trainers because the trainer couldn’t make their young horse, “finished” in 90 days. It’s honestly the biggest reason I like taking c**ts for 30 or 60 days. The expectation is shockingly lower than when I take one for 90 days. It’s weird what people expect from a 90 day start. Most people should commit to sending their young horse out for a full year. Two years would be even better.

Green horses do green horse things, don’t blame others for the challenge you bought yourself. Accept the challenge or pay the price for one further along. No matter which path you choose with horses, it’s going to cost you.”

Borrowed from Moore Horsemanship.

09/25/2023

Things your riding instructor wants you to know:

1. This sport is hard. You don't get to bypass the hard…..every good rider has gone through it. You make progress, then you don't, and then you make progress again. Your riding instructor can coach you through it, but they cannot make it easy.

2. You're going to ride horses you don't want to ride. If you're teachable, you will learn from every horse you ride. Each horse in the barn can teach you if you let them. IF YOU LET THEM. Which leads me to…

3. You MUST be teachable to succeed in this sport. You must be teachable to succeed at anything, but that is another conversation. Being teachable often means going back to basics time and time and time again. If you find basics boring, then your not looking at them as an opportunity to learn. Which brings me to…..

4. This sport is a COMMITMENT. Read that, then read it again. Every sport is a commitment, but in this sport your teammate weighs 1200 lbs and speaks a different language. Good riders don't get good by riding every once in awhile….they improve because they make riding a priority and give themsevles opportunity to practice.

5. EVERY RIDE IS AN OPPORTUNITY. Even the walk ones. Even the hard ones. Every. Single. Ride. Remember when you just wished someone would lead you around on a horse? Find the happiness in just being able to RIDE. If you make every ride about what your AREN'T doing, you take the fun out of the experience for yourself, your horse, and your instructor. Just enjoy the process. Which brings me to...

6. Riding should be fun. It is work. and work isn't always fun.....but if you (or your rider) are consistently choosing other activities or find yourself not looking forward to lessons, it's time to take a break. The horses already know you don't want to be here, and you set yourself up for failure if you are already dreading the lesson before you get here.

7. You'll learn more about horses from the ground than you ever will while riding. That's why ground lessons are important, too. If you're skipping ground lessons (or the part of your lesson that takes place on the ground), you're missing out on the most important parts of the lesson. You spend far more time on the ground with horses than you do in the saddle.

8. Ask questions and communicate. If you're wondering why your coach is having you ride a particular horse or do an exercise, ask them. Then listen to their answer and refer to #3 above.

9. We are human beings. We make decisions (some of them life and death ones) every day. We balance learning for students with workloads for horses and carry the bulk of this business on our shoulders. A little courtesy goes a long way.

Of all the sports your child will try through their school years, riding is one of 3 that they may continue regularly as adults (golf and skiing are the others). People who coach riding spend the better part of their free time and much of their disposable income trying to improve their own riding and caring for the horses who help teach your child. They love this sport and teaching others…..but they all have their limits. Not all good riders are good coaches, but all good coaches will tell you that the process to get good is not an easy one.

*thank you to whoever wrote this! Not my words, but certainly a shared sentiment!

09/01/2023

“Eyes up! Shoulders back! Chest Out!” We’ve all heard this…the question is, just how many times in one lesson? Old habits die hard and we live in a digital age, which has caused people to spend a substantial amount of time sitting hunched over a phone or computer. This position is the opposi...

08/17/2023