Bridle Bit Horsemanship is a full-service equine facility. The Bridle Bit team is made up of Amy, Steve, and Ben LeSatz.
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We are passionate about horses and helping the people that own them! We are proud to be family owned and operated. When you deal with us, you can be assured that we take the reputation of the family and the business into all we do. Our mission at Bridle Bit is to provide you with the tools necessary to delevop an amazing partnership with your horse. We are a full-service equine operation with serv
ices that include horsemanship clinics, horsemanship lessons, and finding you your next equine partner. We also support you and your horse with high quality feed and tack. We strive to do all this with honor and integrity in an honest no-nonsense atmosphere. BRIDLE BIT HORSEMANSHIP IS A FULL-SERVICE EQUINE FACILITY!
- Clinics for riders of all skill levels. Our clinics include horsemanship, c**t starting, cow-working, ranch roping, problem solving and trail.
- Private & Group Lessons
- Horse training
- Bridle Bit stocks Double Diamond Halter Products (halters, lead ropes, mecates and lass ropes), Jeremiah Watt Products (bits and spurs) and Wild West Braiding Products (bosals, hangers, hair mecates and rawhide products) high-quality tack.
- We have been dealers for ADM Animal Nutrition feed products for over 20 years and stock many of their equine feeds.
- Facility consultation design & problem solving.
- ...and more! If it has to do with you and your horse, we can help!
It's the Weekend!
FREE LESSON FROM AMY LESATZ - TAIL LIFTING EXERCISE
A helpful piece in any pre-ride check would be to see how a horse is about handling his tail. Amy LeSatz demonstrates how you can assess how tight a horse is and help him relax with a little help.
https://eclectic-horseman.com/equine-weekends/
Had a wonderful time with Jimmy, Autumn and Brenna at J&A Horsemanship! Thanks for having us! Thanks for helping get some pictures of our beef we raise for our new beef web site! And it was Joey’s (the new dog) clinic and she did awesome!
Weekend Blessing: May God reset your perspective today. You’re not called to do everything, be everything, or even see everything. You are called to keep your gaze fixed on God alone. Don’t look at all of your problems all at once; instead, look at ONE of His promises all of the time until you’ve made it your own. God’s Word is living and breathing, active and powerful. God’s Word holds life, wisdom and revelation for you. Search until you find them. It’s time to reset your perspective. God has peace for you here. He has joy for you here. He has provision for you in this place. Look to Him and you’ll find life again. May you spend the rest of your life getting to know the love of God and the promises of God. May you spend every moment seeking the face of God. He deserves your trust. You are tethered to a good God. It’s impossible for Him to fail you.
Hebrews 6:18-19 (NLT) ~ So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.
Cowboy
We’re writing this as the National Day of the Cowboy draws to a close. “Cowboy” is a term that conjures up different images for different people and depending on that perspective, may have a negative or positive connotation. We’ve heard cowboys described as simple laborers too lazy to get off their horse and do real work and we’ve heard them described as masterful, skillful people who work magic with both horse and bovine. Both probably exist but, the folks we’ve spent time with on ranches and in feedlots are dedicated to their profession and are striving to improve their understanding of the animals they work with and the industry they work in.
There is a distinction between cowboy and cattleman just as there is between rider and horseman. There’s a further distinction between working ranch cowboy and rodeo cowboy. Not to say that there aren’t working cowboys that like to rodeo or rodeo cowboys that work ranches. In the top tiers of both classifications, you’ll find less crossover. The rodeo cowboy is an athlete that spends an enormous amount of time, effort, and money perfecting his skills and will make a good living on the circuit. Likewise, the professional ranch cowboy will spend all their time learning the ranch they work and the cattle they care for leaving little time for serious rodeoing.
Cattlemen and horsemen seem to take a bigger picture look at what they do. Where a cowboy is handy horseback and reading cattle, a cattleman may also be dialed in on range management, nutrition, market trends, etc. A rider may get a lot from the horses they ride. A horseman will understand the biomechanics of the horse and how a horse matures, the nutritional needs of the horse at various stages, have a working knowledge of veterinary practices, and understand what they want their horses’ feet to look like.
A cattleman isn’t superior to a cowboy. A horseman isn’t superior to a good rider. They are just different. Their personality will play a role in what they focus on, what’s important for them to know. Their physical skill set will also play a role. The people that can handle a horse, a rope, and a cow all at once and be comfortable doing it, may not need anything else to fill their cup. And the person who can get around the tough c**ts and problem horses might not need to know much of the other stuff “out there”. Others may be okay with a lot of the physical tasks but really thrive on finding out how and why some things work, and others don’t. It’s cool that we have both types of folks in our industries!
We’ll leave you with this. Have a great week!
The National Day of the Cowboy
Code of Conduct for Cowboys & Cowgirls©
1. Live each day with honesty and courage.
2. Take pride in your work. Always do your best.
3. Stay curious. Study hard and learn all you can.
4. Do what has to be done and finish what you start.
5. Be tough, but fair.
6. When you make a promise, keep it.
7. Be clean in thought, word, deed, and dress.
8. Practice tolerance and understanding of others.
9. Be willing to stand up for what’s right.
10. Be an excellent steward of the land and its animals.
Thinking of You
We ran across a video clip of a well-known horseman doing a little demonstration with his horse at his clinic. The part of the clip that stuck with us was just how focused his horse was on him. He was thinking only of his rider. Nothing else.
Compare that to a typical ride we have with one of our horses at home. We pull them out of their group, clean them up, get them saddled, check them out on the ground for a moment and then step on to go do our job. Our horse is thinking about their friends, a tidbit of something on the ground to nibble at, the fly buzzing around their head, and, oh yea, us.
So, when we’re riding outside, on the trail or on cattle, what’s the right balance to strike between our horse being focused on us and also on their environment? What can we do to keep them thinking of us and paying attention to the things that are going to keep us both safe. For us, the balance is allowing our horse to use the talents God gave them to navigate the terrain while at the same time listening to what it is we need from them to get the job done.
Our horses live outside. But they don’t live in the mountains, they don’t have to cross water very much, and they don’t get exposed to an abundance of wildlife. They do know how to navigate uneven footing, go around rocks and sagebrush, and move cattle. We want our horses to be thinking about us enough that when they get into an unfamiliar situation, they will ask, “what do we do here?” rather than, “who are you, I’m outta here!” Bottom line for us; we want a horse that is thinking of us because we have a relationship that promotes that.
Even though we’ve moved a couple hours to the north, we’re still thinking of you. Our conversations often turn into wondering how so-and-so is getting along with their horse and we hope to get to see them again and find out. But it’s not all about horses for us either. We think of people that don’t ride anymore. Their horses have retired or passed and they decided to be done rather than start over. We are a community, and these two members of this community are still thinking of all of you. Have a great week!
MORE CLINICS COMING UP IN AUGUST! FULL LIST ON SCHEDULE PAGE AT WWW.BRIDLE-BIT.COM
WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOU THERE!
August 3
Obstacle Clinic at Two Spruce Farms
Contact Jody Marken
[email protected]
Berthoud, CO
Come have some fun!
August 4
Horsemanship Clinic
Pam Pierce Host
Singing Dog Ranch, 5005 East County Rd. 66,Wellington, CO
Beautiful location, wonderful host!
August 10
Obstacle Clinic at Two Spruce Farms
Contact Jody Marken
[email protected]
Berthoud, CO
Expose your horse to something new!
August 11
Horsemanship Clinic
Amy Fellini Host
LaSalle, CO
New location, nice people!
August 17
Horsemanship Clinic
Jimmy Cantwell Host
Colorado Springs, CO
Beautiful location, wonderful host!
August 18
Cow Working Clinic
Jimmy Cantwell Host
Colorado Springs, CO
Beautiful location, wonderful host!
Riding Appreciation
We had a really nice weekend at our Anything and Everything Clinic hosted by Pam Pierce and Singing Dog Ranch. It was fun because we got to talk about all of the things both Amy and I love to talk about when it comes to horses. The icing on the cake was all the wonderful people that attended and all of the great insights and questions that were offered. The double thick dark chocolate icing on the cake was that Amy got to ride for the first time in many, many, many, many months. Really it was only 3 but it felt like a lot longer to her!
Our appreciation for the ability to ride has greatly increased. Amy’s back trouble along with our move has really lessened the amount of time either of us has spent in the saddle. This weekend heightened our appreciation for how wonderful these horses are to allow us to climb on their backs and just let a lot of the outside world go. There’s a line in Dave Stamey’s song, Come Ride With Me, where he talks about the world waiting far below the mountains they’ve just ridden into. We don’t have to go very far horseback to understand that feeling! The world can just disappear when we’re horseback!
The other really neat thing about this weekends subjects was just how much the basics matter, no matter the kind of riding we want to do. Whether we were talking about horsemanship for the arena rider, trail rider, or cattle worker, we still had to have a relationship with our horse and a mutual respect for the part of the job each of us do. We still have to have a horse that moves with feel and balance, and we have to be the rider that rides with feel and balance. We still need to know where our horse’s feet are and ask for movements in timing with those feet. And, we have to understand our horses’ idiosyncrasies and support them when they’re just not sure about what we’re asking them to do.
It's our responsibility to know the job we’re doing and to teach our horse how to learn to do it. We have to think our way through the job as our horse would and then break it down or set it up so they can find the answers. Letting them search and find builds trust and confidence, no matter the job.
So, thanks to everyone who came to spend time with us. It made the weekend great. And, a special thanks to Pam and Jim Pierce for their kindness and hospitality.
Start of 2nd day of the Anything and Everthing clinic, Trail section. Another group of great riders and horses. Weather is perfect!
We still have a few openings in each class! And weather looks great!
"New Home Syndrome"🤓
I am coining this term to bring recognition, respect, and understanding to what happens to horses when they move homes. This situation involves removing them from an environment and set of routines they have become familiar with, and placing them somewhere completely different with new people and different ways of doing things.
Why call it a syndrome?
Well, really it is! A syndrome is a term used to describe a set of symptoms that consistently occur together and can be tied to certain factors such as infections, genetic predispositions, conditions, or environmental influences. It is also used when the exact cause of the symptoms is not fully understood or when it is not connected with a well-defined disease. In this case, "New Home Syndrome" is connected to a horse being placed in a new home where its entire world changes, leading to psychological and physiological impacts. While it might be transient, the ramifications can be significant for both the horse and anyone handling or riding it.
Let me explain...
Think about how good it feels to get home after a busy day. How comfortable your favourite clothes are, how well you sleep in your own bed compared to a strange bed, and how you can really relax at home. This is because home is safe and familiar. At home, the part of you that keeps an eye out for potential danger turns down to a low setting. It does this because home is your safe place (and if it is not, this blog will also explain why a lack of a safe place is detrimental).
Therefore, the first symptom of horses experiencing "New Home Syndrome" is being unsettled, prone to anxiety, or difficult behaviour. If you have owned them before you moved them, you struggle to recognise your horse, feeling as if your horse has been replaced by a frustrating version. If the horse is new to you, you might wonder if you were conned, if the horse was drugged when you rode it, or if you were lied to about the horse's true nature.
A horse with "New Home Syndrome" will be a stressed version of itself, on high alert, with a drastically reduced ability to cope. Horses don't handle change like humans do. If you appreciate the comfort of your own home and how you can relax there, you should be able to understand what the horse is experiencing.
Respecting that horses interpret and process their environments differently from us helps in understanding why your horse is being frustrating and recognising that there is a good chance you were not lied to or that the horse was not drugged.
Horses have survived through evolution by being highly aware of their environments. Change is a significant challenge for them because they notice the slightest differences, not just visually but also through sound, smell, feel, and other senses. Humans generalise and categorise, making it easy for us to navigate familiar environments like shopping centres. Horses do not generalise in the same way; everything new is different to them, and they need proof of safety before they can habituate and feel secure. When their entire world changes, it is deeply stressful.
They struggle to sleep until they feel safe, leading to sleep deprivation and increased difficulty.
But there is more...
Not only do you find comfort in your home environment and your nervous system downregulates, but you also find comfort in routines. Routines are habits, and habits are easy. When a routine changes or something has to be navigated differently, things get difficult. For example, my local supermarket is undergoing renovations. After four years of shopping there, it is extremely frustrating to have to work out where everything is now. Every day it gets moved due to the store being refitted section by section. This annoyance is shared by other shoppers and even the staff.
So, consider the horse. Not only are they confronted with the challenge of figuring out whether they are safe in all aspects of their new home while being sleep deprived, but every single routine and encounter is different. Then, their owner or new owner starts getting critical and concerned because the horse suddenly seems untrained or difficult. The horse they thought they owned or bought is not meeting their expectations, leading to conflict, resistance, explosiveness, hypersensitivity, and frustration.
The horse acts as if it knows little because it is stressed and because the routines and habits it has learned have disappeared. If you are a new human for the horse, you feel, move, and communicate differently from what it is used to. The way you hold the reins, your body movements in the saddle, the position of your leg – every single routine of communication between horse and person is now different. I explain to people that when you get a new horse, you have to imprint yourself and your way of communicating onto the horse. You have to introduce yourself and take the time to spell out your cues so that they get to know you.
Therefore, when you move a horse to a new home or get a new horse, your horse will go through a phase called "New Home Syndrome," and it will be significant for them. Appreciating this helps them get through it because they are incredible and can succeed. The more you understand and help the horse learn it is safe in its new environment and navigate the new routines and habits you introduce, the faster "New Home Syndrome" will pass.
"New Home Syndrome" will be prevalent in a horse’s life until they have learned to trust the safety of the environment (and all that entails) and the humans they meet and interact with. With strategic and understanding approaches, this may take weeks, and their nervous systems will start downgrading their high alert status. However, for some horses, it can take a couple of years to fully feel at ease in their new home.
So, next time you move your horse or acquire a new horse and it starts behaving erratically or being difficult, it is not being "stupid", you might not have been lied to or the horse "drugged" - your horse is just experiencing an episode of understandable "New Home Syndrome." And you can help this.❤
I would be grateful if you could please share, this reality for horses needs to be better appreciated ❤
‼️When I say SHARE that does not mean plagiarise my work…it is seriously not cool to copy and paste these words and make out you have written it yourself‼️
"...we must never forget, every time we sit on a horse, what an extraordinary privilege it is: to be able to unite one's body with that of another sentient being, one that is stronger, faster and more agile by far than we are, and at the same time, brave, generous, and uncommonly forgiving." --William Steinkraus, Olympic Equestrian
Branding went really well yesterday due to all our great help!
Welcome to the family girls!
We will be on the front range of CO the weekend of June 22-23 And July 6 and 13. Offering private lessons on these afternoons! If you would like to get on the lesson schedule those dates, email us at [email protected] or text or call Amy at 970-978-9724.
Look forward to seeing you soon!
June 22 (CORRECT DATE)
Refining Our Horsemanship Clinic
Roger and Anne Bates Host
6025 Otero Avenue,Loveland, CO
Sign up! www.bridle-bit.com
July 6 & 13
Obstacle Clinics - Guest Clinicians
Jody Marken
3714 CR 2, Berthoud, CO
Sign up! [email protected]
July 20-21
Anything and Everything Clinic
Groundwork, Horsemanship, Trial, & Cow Working
Pam Pierce Host
Singing Dog Ranch, 5005 East County Rd. 66,,Wellington, CO
Sign up! www.bridle-bit.com
Helping Riders Help HorsesServing Colorado, Wyoming and Beyond Since 1989 Welcome to Bridle Bit Horsemanship: We are horsemen helping other horsemen through a variety of clinics, lessons, and training. We have the knowledge, experience, and ability to help you meet your goals with your horse. Ou...
We Wish
Summertime is full of people having birthdays. Both Steve and our daughter Liz are summer babies. A tradition we’ve practiced is to make a wish before we blow out the candles on the cake. Those wishes might be as simple as not burning the house down with all the candles on the cake, in Steve’s case, or more complex in the case of someone wanting to save the planet. Either way, the wish is sincere and has meaning to the person making the wish.
We got to thinking about if we were a horse, what would our wishes be? Green pastures, cool clear water, shelter from the worst weather, no flies? Maybe a human that understands how we think, saddles that fit just right, and a job that fits our personality and ability? Those are just guesses based on watching horses and how they behave for many years but, your guess is just as good as ours!
Teachers often have wishes for their students. Steve remembers his parents, who both taught in public and private schools, having students that really touched their hearts. Maybe it was someone who really struggled with reading, or with math, or with memorization. Amy has sisters who spent years in the classroom. They still talk about the creative things they did to try and reach their students. In all cases, these good and caring teachers wished for and worked at finding ways to make their students’ lives a little easier.
Horsemanship is a combination of knowledge, experience, feel, timing, and balance. Students of the horse spend hours in search of the right combination needed to create the kind of bond they are seeking with their horse while at the same time creating a feel that the horse will seek. Some horses make it easy, others, not so much. As teachers, we are searching for the right words, or exercises, or experiences to help you find what you and your horse are looking for. Because above all else, we wish for you, the ability to see, feel, and hear what your horse is trying to offer you. Hopefully, we can play a small role in helping you find that. Now we’ll blow out the candles.
Ever wanted to get that last little nagging issue with your horse resolved. Here's your chance! Ever want to find the path to that next level with your horse. This is the place! We are excited to be teaching at this new location!
June 1
Problem Solving & Advancing Horsemanship
Clinicians - Steve and Amy LeSatz
Hosted by Nell Howe [email protected]
Fort Collins, CO
A new and beautiful location!
Sign up! www.bridle-bit.com
Give your horse a little job. Get those starts and stops a little more crisp. Give your horse a reason to turn the way you've always wanted. Poly Cowtrac can help!
June 2
Clinicians - Steve and Amy LeSatz
Horsemanship for Working Cattle with CowtracII
Hosted by Nell Howe [email protected]
Fort Collins, CO
A new and beautiful location!
Sign up! www.bridle-bit.com
June 9
Horsemanship for Working Cattle with CowtracII
Clinicians - Steve and Amy LeSatz
Roger and Anne Bates
6025 Otero Avenue,Loveland, CO
Sign up! www.bridle-bit.com
June 22
Refining Our Horsemanship Clinic
Clinicians - Steve and Amy LeSatz
Hosted by Hosted by Roger and Anne Bates
6025 Otero Avenue,Loveland, CO
Sign up! www.bridle-bit.com
An Anniversary
Anniversaries mark special dates worthy of commemoration. They are milestones marking progress on our journey through life. Today, we are celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary. It’s a milestone to be sure and one that marks a good bit of progress in our march through this life together.
If you’d asked us 40 years ago if we were going to travel the path we’ve taken, we would have said NO. We were in love, we were best friends, and we both loved many of the same things, but this roller-coaster ride of a life wasn’t something we planned. But what a ride! It’s wonderful when you can grab ahold of your partner and just say WHEEEEEE!
We reflect on the past but at the same time, keep looking forward. What’s up ahead, just over the next hill, out there on the horizon. How does what we’ve experienced up to this point influence how we look at the things coming down the road? We think that one of the hardest things about surviving this long is that we still think like we are in our 30’s or 40’s but our bodies keep reminding us that it just ain’t so! We have to learn to do what we love in a way that allows us to be able to move the next day!
At our clinics, we often begin with introductions. In those introductions people talk about how long they’ve had their horse and what they’ve done together. They talk about how they’ve improved as partners and what they are still working on. Anniversaries help us reflect on how far we’ve come with our horses. It takes time to create a bond and time to really get to know each other. Celebrating the anniversary of our horse coming into our life helps us see those positive improvements and helps us make goals for our journey forward together.
Summer is a time when many folks got married. It just seemed to work out that way. So for those of you celebrating a wedding anniversary this summer, congratulations! We hope it marks one of the most special days of your life. And for those of us keeping track of the day and year our horse came into our lives, we hope that memory causes you to celebrate and reflect on the good things you’ve accomplished and the really good things to come.
Photo drop from our day fixing fence on the Laramie plains.
Fun day doing the obstacle clinic at Two Spruce Farm. Thanks for having us as guest clinicians Jody!
1599 East Country Road 82
Wellington, CO
80549
| Monday | 8am - 6pm |
| Tuesday | 8am - 6pm |
| Wednesday | 8am - 6pm |
| Thursday | 8am - 6pm |
| Friday | 8am - 6pm |
| Saturday | 9am - 6pm |
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Love working with young people that are passionate about their horses and horsemanship. Some pretty nice horses and handy riders in the Legends of Ranching colt class at CSU. Thanks to their instructor, Alex Parsaye, for inviting us to share some of our colt starting experience with them!
