Hidden Creek Equestrian Center, LLC

08/02/2024

Like I've said in the past.......

Shhhhhhhhh....... 😉

07/31/2024

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we continue to experience extreme heat, and poor air quality due to wildfire smoke. This may cause disruptions to the lesson schedule. We will be sure to let our clients know in a timely manner if lessons will be canceled. With limited cooler hours during the day our priority is always the care of the horses, and it is not always possible to schedule lessons earlier, or later, in the day.

My personal heat tolerance is not what it was 10, or even 5 years ago. Please continue to be considerate towards us if we need to take a break, for the sake of our health.

Our thoughts are with all the people in Jefferson County (and all over the Western USA and Canada, and worldwide) who are in the path of wildfires, wishing safety for them, their pets and livestock, and their property.

07/23/2024

Today's lessons canceled due to unhealthy levels of wildfire smoke. Please contact us if you want to reschedule.

07/18/2024

Always have realistic expectations

07/13/2024

Due to the extreme heat, for Camp to proceed as scheduled today we HAD to have alternative activities that
A) did not include our horses
B) kept our Campers cooler

So, we started with a horse drawing competition in the barn, then a field trip to the local tack consignment store Equiline where Kerry showed the campers what to look for when shopping for saddles. One of our campers found some awesome zebra stripe cowboy boots in the Free bin 😃. And did Kerry buy a saddle? Of course she did 😆. Then, after lunch, we had some fun with the sprinkler pool and sq**rt guns to finish the week.

All campers went home today with their How to Draw Horse Breeds books, their worksheets, drawings, and other educational material, and a cute western themed necklace.

Thanks to our Campers for understanding that the horses needed a break, they don't get the chance to escape the heat like we do.

I totally failed at getting many photos today, because it was too hot for my phone 😆

07/12/2024

This.....I tell people this ALL the time.

Yes, there may be exceptions, especially if a rider/handler is young, CONFIDENT, skilled and has a good amount of experience. But for most horse-human relationships, it takes a LOT of time to build a solid partnership.

07/12/2024

Lessons this coming weekend are canceled due to heat advisory for temperatures reaching 97-105 Fahrenheit

07/11/2024

Hot! But our Campers are doing well. Carefully planned activities today to give both horses and riders lots of breaks. We did some games in the cool(er) indoor arena, then horses were hosed off to help cool them down. The afternoon was spent painting unicorns in the barn (thank you, Amazon Prime, for simplifying my life) and then learning how horses are measured. We measured the height of our Campers using our aged wooden measuring stick and they were pleased to see that they had grown since last summer's camps 😆

07/10/2024

This morning started with p**p scooping for our Campers 😃, then after getting horses ready to ride we enjoyed the shade of the indoor arena for some work on essential basics, and then a fun but challenging equitation pattern. Ribbons were awarded for their equitation placings, and Campers received their Hidden Creek Equestrian Center, LLC insulated coolers today. After lunch they headed out on a field trip to Big R with Ms. Kerry. Little do they know that they will have to help unload sacks of grain and bedding when they return 😉💪

07/10/2024

Day 1 of our 2nd Camp started with a brief talk about heat stress and heat exhaustion. This is going to be a very hot week with potentially record breaking heat, and we need to be careful to keep everyone (horse and human) as healthy as possible. Horse assignments were followed by grooming, tacking up and working as a ride in the outdoor arena. Then a trail pattern, which all riders made great improvements on. After lunch a scavenger hunt for beautiful, huge ribbons, then we discussed different types of horse shoes, and their uses.

07/10/2024

The good people from Kingdom Builders Family Life Center visited our ranch again last week, with their 2nd group of Summer Camp participants.

A visiting Pronghorn added some interest, they are very common here.

A slightly different tour of the facility this time, and then our quiet, reliable Patsy was our choice for everyone to say hi, and have the opportunity to groom, and lead.

For city dwellers, we should always remember that a trip to an equine facility may give them first-time experiences. For some may have never touched or interacted with a horse before.

Finishing with a hay ride, and feeding the horses, is always a favourite activity.

07/07/2024

06/30/2024

🤭

06/28/2024

Games with horses in the indoor arena included 'egg' and spoon, speed walking and walking backwards race. After such a hot few days we elected to do ground instead of ridden games for our amazing horses sakes. This afternoon was spent winding down with more ribbons awarded for the horse drawing competition and the games, and then sprinkler pool time for some, while others practiced their barn tools balancing. All campers went home this week with a Hidden Creek Equestrian Center, LLC insulated cooler, a 'How to draw horse breeds' book, their complete worksheets, lots of ribbons and a cute western themed necklace as a 'thank you' for attending our camp.

Many, many thanks to our volunteers for helping to make this camp possible ❤️❤️

06/28/2024

Fry-day. Yeah, we're all fried from a week of heat.

Started today's Camp with a test on parts of the saddle. Then a team scavenger hunt to win a HUGE ribbon 😁😁😁. Then a draw a horse competition. Now we are grooming horses prior to games in the indoor arena. Packing a lot into our final morning!

06/27/2024

Today was hotter than it was supposed to be (🤔) and some of our Campers are wilting a little from consecutive days in fresh air, heat and sun, but very few complained.

We 'rode for ribbons' today, with groundwork over obstacles and then riding over obstacles, and ribbons were awarded to all Campers.

Our afternoon session was 'paint a unicorn' and observing our farrier hot-shoeing one of our horses.

Tomorrow, more fun with horses; competitions and probably some tack cleaning too 😉

06/26/2024

Today was hot, but not quite as hot as yesterday. The riding session included individual work over obstacles, and learning about herd behavior and why horses do what they do.

Afternoon activities included stock tank cleaning and a nature walk in the main pasture.

All campers started working on their worksheets; stable management and barn safety.

They also made paper planes 😆

06/25/2024

First day of our June camp was blistering hot, so care had to be taken to keep both horses and humans well and healthy. Thanks to our volunteers and to our special guest who provided the expertise and materials for our afternoon craft project. Today was ' get to know the horses groundwork' in the indoor arena, and we were so thankful for the shade and breeze and to be out of direct sun.

06/12/2024

Today, something a little different happened at Hidden Creek Equestrian Center, LLC. We were the proud to be the venue for a field trip for Kingdom Builders Family Life Center summer campers. We talked about ranch life and daily routine, stable management, pasture management, horses personalities and behaviors, and showed the campers and the staff what it takes to take care of a ranch, and horses. There was a display of barefoot farrier work, a demonstration on loading and unloading horses onto a trailer, grooming our angelic Patsy, and learning how to lead a horse. Culminating in a chance to help feed horses in the pastures, a great time was had by all, on a VERY hot day. All campers went home with a Hidden Creek cooler, some horsey stickers, educational material and worksheets.

Thank you, KBLFC, for choosing Hidden Creek Equestrian Center for your Equestrian Day!

06/05/2024

It's been a while.

We haven't done very well at posting on a regular basis; many things changed for us this year both personally and professionally, and finding time and interest for social media has not been our priority.

However, we are still here, still going strong, and still doing our best to educate people, and take care of all the wonderful horses who call Hidden Creek Equestrian Center, LLC their home.

Summer is here now, and we are busy planning for Camps, and other events, including our own virtual show for Hidden Creek riders. Lessons continue on our recently implemented monthly tuition basis.

More than ever I am grateful for still being here, still able to do my job, and still able to take care of horses.

Health is both precious, and fragile. Good health is not guaranteed for any of us.

Thanks again to everyone who has supported us during the last 6 months; we truly appreciate you all ❤️

05/18/2024

😍 Abby & Winnie 😍

04/30/2024

We live a life of highs and lows, heartbreak and joy, smooth, easy roads and hills too steep to climb. Hearts filled with gladness, and hearts filled with sadness. Challenges we can, or cannot, overcome. In between the top and the bottom of that impossible to predict rollercoaster ride that we know as life, are those rare, even paced, relatively calm days, or even just moments, when our spirits and emotions are not troubled, our troubles don't drown our ability to function in the way we prefer, and we enjoy the joyful moments to the absolute best of our abilities.

However, we should never expect those joyful moments to last for long, as without the hardships which punctuate our peace on a far too regular basis, how could we appreciate those moments enough, to know how special and treasured they really are?

Whatever brings you peace and joy, pursue that ideal with all the passion that you can muster. And it will serve you well, as life tries to tear you apart.

Sue B.

04/27/2024

Because we don't have this equipment for our beloved lesson horses, there will be no lessons today.

Colorado doing it's springtime thing!

Want rain? Got rain! All of it, all on one day....... 😬

04/24/2024

Are you stuck in a riding rut? Doing the same thing, practicing basics, over and over again?

Are you dreaming of riding high level movements but your instructor advises that you and/or your horse aren't ready yet?

Are you bored with spending so much of your lesson/s walking, or focusing on biomechanics and your horse's relaxation and obedience?

Do you sigh, or have 'po face' when your instructor states that it's a groundwork lesson?

Do you want to go faster, climb the levels ladder more quickly, or be able to brag on your social media posts about all that you have achieved in such a short amount of time?

Are you searching for a new barn, new programme, new instructor, new method, new 'cure all' gadget, newest internet horse training fad or 'next best thing' promises that fix all horse issues?

Then I have the answer for you!

DON'T COME HERE!

We are not that place, we are not those instructors or trainers, we are not going to compromise on basics, fundamentals, and the proper education of horse and rider/handler.

And, although we will always do our best to help you learn and make reasonable progress, we will never, ever, compromise the wellbeing of our lesson horses, mentally or physically, to fast track you reaching your goals.

If you have an instructor/trainer who stresses the importance of the fundamentals of riding and training for horse AND rider then consider yourself fortunate, and in good hands. For so much is done too fast, too carelessly, and without consideration for the mental and physical ability of both horse and rider.

Each horse is an individual and should be treated accordingly.

Each rider/handler is an individual and should be treated accordingly.

And remember, the very best riders out there, they practice the basics, every time they ride. For they know and understand how important the basics are.

Do you?

04/23/2024

That's the thing with horses, and riding.

It's hard.

But the ground is harder.

Do your groundwork.

Work with the horse you have on the day.

Treat every horse as an individual.

Don't listen to dummies.

Don't be a dummy.

Especially during Springtime 😉

04/13/2024

Beautiful weather the last couple days!