Training Through Grace

09/22/2024

What next?

Our great teachers are aging, and with them is slipping away centuries of knowledge.

We are lucky enough to have classical texts, cavalry manuals, books and thoughts laid out by their teachers before. But these manuals and texts don’t come with years of feel taught - it’s pretty hard to read the words and enact them without a masterful hand to shape you along with it.

Karl Mikolka wrote in a letter once that in the span of 44 years he had acquired and kept five serious students that he considered “torch bearers.”

Many of these people, these best students of masters, have quiet lives. No website, little presence. You hear about them from those who knew them and can confirm their presence in the SRS, or Neindorff’s school and so on - but a google search turns up practically nothing.

What happens in a few more decades?

In reading these texts, my lessons come full circle, and concepts come to life for me. But I really don’t know how one could navigate the texts without a hand saying softly here, sit over there, straighten here- release, release, release.

Who will give the next generation these lessons of centuries old information?

This is something that bothers me considerably as I consider my own opportunities : my teacher spent decades under a master, and years in a school hall. Where are our school halls? Who has horses capable of high collection for students to learn and feel on? And how can we produce these without examples not just to see but to feel and experience and absorb as part of our being? How can we teach two dimensional text without that third dimension of experience and feel?

I don’t have any answers-
Just concerns, and some curiosity for the future

09/21/2024

I just got done talking about this in a lesson. There is an art in not being agenda or activity motivated, but finding fun in the process. It makes ALL the difference in the world and is a study in of itself.

"You have to enjoy doing this. This has to bring you joy. Whether it’s your horse is operating good or not so good, it has to be something that you just love to do. So, all this stuff I have you working at, I do want you to work at but have fun while you’re working at it and when you get a little something accomplished, it might not be perfect but, enjoy it. Appreciate the horse. " Buck Brannaman, Horseman

09/19/2024

We are selling our big trailer if you know anyone looking!
https://www.facebook.com/share/Js4RSAo9WmNPAXdu/?mibextid=WC7FNe

09/19/2024

I’m horrible at sharing what I do and lately I really haven’t posted much other than sharing other people’s content. I get stuck in the idea that content has to be grand or perfect in order for it to be worthy, and since I rarely do anything that feels grand I have gotten in the habit of not sharing. But relevancy and connection matter in this gig so I’m challenging myself to share something every day no matter how simple or small. This feels like one way I can fight my “all or nothing” way of thinking 🤦‍♀️
I really love my students so bragging on them more feels like a damn good start 😍
Here’s the wonderful Emily working on angles and helping Dahlia find a united circle. Balanced (front to back and side to side) , fluid and connected being the top goals. Studying hand and body angles, the horse moving forward and through, staying connected to the handler mentally, what responsive vs. reactive look like;
All things that can be more challenging than one might think, but Emily’s always game for nuance and why all the little things matter and Dahlia really enjoys her kind thoughtful vibe.

09/19/2024

09/18/2024

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“It’s just like learning how to dance with another human being. You might think you’re really getting something done when you’ve both mastered the hokey-pokey, but depending on how much you want to dance and your passion for dancing, you’re probably going to work your way through the hokey-pokey and move on to something else.” Buck Brannaman, Horseman

09/18/2024

"Live in the moment. You don’t know if you even have a future, so you better live in the moment. Horses only live in the moment. Buck Brannaman, Horseman

Buck and Boozy

09/17/2024

♥️

09/10/2024

To replace a good horse!
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 breaker 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 you, 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.

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. In reality, 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 colts 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.

(I didn’t write this one I’m not sure who did, however every word of it rings true)

Edit, author Craig Moore

09/10/2024

😂🤫

Me making jokes in lessons so my students don’t murder me 😬😂

09/09/2024

I really love when Amy puts it all into writing 👌👌👌

How to train a horse to bolt:

1- regularly lead him with a tight grip, especially on the same side. Resistance to the lead rope on a regular basis will make him feel both confined and worried, and also learn to use it for leverage to seek escape.

2- drive while the hand or lead line or lunge line is closed. This will ensure the horse goes forward into a block, and is forced to go up and away. It’s a very effective way to confuse a horse and bring up the fight or flight in him, and if you’re very effective, he’ll leave in a hurry

3- expose him to something he wasn’t prepared for, or ask him to do something from a place of mental worry, without giving him the skills to understand or accomplish it. Continue applying pressure, or not alleviating it, for best bolting effect.

4- work around or near folks who are not guiding their horse well, with horses who are disregulated. This will give your horse a worried energy to feed off of, and help create energy building to a bolt. Choosing not to support your horse but fighting his energy just to get along with the group will really seal the deal.

5- regularly be unaware of your own energy, your own handling of your tools and have conflicting aids between leg, seat and rein.

It’s not that hard to teach a horse to bolt, any body can do it ! Just follow a few simple steps and you’ll be well on your way to a confirmed bolter- with practice, they can choose it as their default behavior, and you won’t even have to try to create it. Practice makes perfect!

Coming soon:

How to teach a horse to buck
To drag on the lead rope
To not get in a trailer
And many more!

09/07/2024

IT'S THE WEEKEND!

Get a handle on Buck Brannaman's checklist before you head out to ride. I'll be taking it into the saddle with me when I ride today!

Enjoy. Subscribe. Ride. 🐴

https://eclectic-horseman.com/equine-weekends/

09/05/2024

09/03/2024

Slim got the PERFECT home! 😍
He gets to live the ranch life in Pendleton with folks who understand green horses and are excited to bring him along!

09/03/2024

Bursting, literally bursting with pride over this horsewoman, and Sooo very grateful for our community who have loved, supported and cheered her on!
♥️♥️♥️

08/31/2024

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08/31/2024

Im so grateful Tory Kelly with Equine Video Productions is capturing all of this for us! Its just so amazing!

08/31/2024

Sooo true

Working with young horses is tough.

And not just in the "hold on and hope you stay in the saddle" kind of way.

No one warns you how challenging it truly is. How often you'll doubt yourself, wondering: Am I doing this right? Am I moving too fast? Too slow? Is this too much? Not enough? You'll constantly be questioning your approach, trying to figure out the best way forward while tuning out the opinions of the trainer down the road or the livery next door, who throws judgmental glances every time you do groundwork.

No one tells you how, on some days, you'll feel like you're failing. You'll question if this horse would be better off with someone else, convincing yourself you're either wasting their potential or outright ruining them. After all, there are four-year-olds excelling in young horse classes while yours is still struggling to trot in a straight line.

No one tells you how attached you'll become. This horse is your baby, maybe one you helped bring into the world. Every setback feels personal, like a wound to your heart. You care so deeply about their well-being that it physically hurts when things go wrong. You’ll also become fiercely protective—God help anyone who dares to criticize your horse.

No one tells you how humbling, even brutal, these horses can be. They'll expose every weakness you have and practically shout it from the rooftops. While they are forgiving, they have a way of knocking you down a peg, reminding you there's always more work to be done.

No one tells you how these horses will change you. They'll force you to look inwards, to question everything you thought you knew. If you thought you had everything figured out, this horse will quickly show you that you don't. But they'll also ignite in you a fierce determination to prove everyone wrong and show them what you saw in this horse from the very beginning.

No one quite tells you how difficult young horses can be, but anyone who's been through it knows...

As tough as they are, they’re absolutely worth it.

08/31/2024