We had an Introduction to Driving clinic at Infinity Farm last weekend. It was a fun group ready for a new experience. Our schoolmaster/donkey-boys taught the clinic, along with me and Lisa.

Participants asked my favorite question about driving. “What do you do if you have a runaway?” The traditional answer, passed down from generations of teamsters, is enjoy the ride.

I had a decent runaway when Ernest and I were still green. There was an explosion of sound behind us,…

Henk writes:

Fellow equines, I don't have to tell you how important it is to keep your human madly, passionately in love with you. Human devotion gets you the best treats, accommodation in the nicest stable, and a rider who is forgiving on those days when you really don't feel like working hard. To help you keep that human eating out of your hand (or, more to the point, feeding you out of hers), I've compiled a top-10 list of…

TC Youth is proud to announce Sophie Dean-Potter, age 13, as our second recipient of the TC Youth in the Spotlight Award, sponsored by Equestrian Factory Outlet! Sophie has been riding and taking lessons since she was five years old. Both her parents are…

The Running Horse





A Bi-monthly Newsletter from Horse Play



Special…

Phew, what a challenging lesson again! I was getting frustrated again but not as much as before and things are getting better. I still forgot to try the leg cues while using the elastics on the stirrups, was too busy trying to get shoulder and speed control.

I was having such a hard time controlling Cooper, he just wanted to go go go and I just wanted slow slow slow!!

His poor mouth, I had so much contact almost the whole lesson!! My prosthetic leg was sore and rubbing again…

     After eleven days in Kentucky for the 2011 FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships, I’m finally home! I had such an amazing time and I can’t wait to share my experience with you. This was my third time at the NAJYRC, but the fun and excitement just grows each year! My NAJYRC experience started on Tuesday, July 19th when my horse was picked up at…

Although I have in the past discussed tree points in detail especially in regard to tree point angle and tree point width, I want today to address really one additional key issue with tree points – and that is direction.



Tree points can be forward-facing, straight (more or less perpendicular to the ground) or rear-facing. Forward facing tree points have been proven to be extremely detrimental to horse health in that MRIs and fibre optic cameras have shown the chipping of cartilage…

This past Sunday 14 year old Grace Pilkington walked through fire to rescue her best friend, a 13 year old Thoroughbred named Hershey.  She and her mom were driving through Nashua, New Hampshire, when they noticed smoke coming from the trailer window.  They pulled over, and rushed back to find steam from a ruptured water cooler that ad caught fire.



Despite the flames, Pilkington immediately ran into the trailer, and as her mom lowered the gate on the trailer,  led her…

We had an excellent night together at the barn. I put the natural rope hackamore on and we did some ground work in the indoor arena before I got on and rode him for about 20 minutes inside. He hasn't forgot anything, responded so well, an excellent whoa and back up with the rope hackamore.

I then put the bridle and bit on him and we went outdoors to practice lesson 3 patterns. I could not for the life of me remember how the pattern was!! But we did some great circles in every corner,…

This week I changed things with my tack yet again.  I wanted to see how the mares did in the jumping cavesson bridle without the running martingle after all those weeks using the Spirit Bridle.  When I got to the stable on Wednesday it was already hot at 8:00 AM, and I got even hotter trimming Mia's toes.  With the hot weather Mia's hooves are growing really fast, and since I cut back my riding on Fridays because of the heat I had a lot of rasping to do! …

We have to have some bad nights and this was one of them. 

I could not grasp any of the lesson that was being taught. Circles in both corners at one end of the arena in something like a figure 8 pattern.

We weren't out there maybe 15 minutes then the mosquitos came out. I have big bites on my face, arms and neck. 

Cooper was trying to stay close to other horses, going too fast as usual. I was bouncing too much, couldn't get my legs relaxed, hands were all over and…

I enjoyed my brief time working as a groom at Hastings Park Racetrack here in Vancouver BC. Apart from getting yelled at for not shoveling fast enough or putting foreign race tack on incorrectly.. overall very good learning experience. I learned some pretty great phrases while I was there too, as well as how to truly 'do it yourself'.

It was a real reality check for me. I had come from pretty pretty princess hunter world where my tack was polished, my horse was polished and I…

There were a few dark years (between leaving home and having enough income to support a horse) that I was earthbound with only house pets. I survived it. Barely.

During that horse-less time, a box arrived. It was a surprise parrot -from a friend in Panama. I’m not saying it was a great idea to catch a bird and ship her, I’m just saying that she…

Here is my 2nd Blog and continues where my happy mouth blog left off.  My Micklem bridle arrived today.  I had 1 1/2 hours from the time I got home to open the box, put it together, size it on my gelding and then trailer off for my Jumper lesson.  I read about other people having trouble putting the bridle together so I read up on how to and was ready.  At first the Bit straps threw me off so I popped the CD that comes with the bridle in to the pc and did a quick review.  Once I heard that…

July 17 to 21st did not go out to see Cooper or practice at all because of the heat. The Thursday night lesson was cancelled, thank goodness!! I probably would have passed out from having to wear that helmet in that heat.

I went on Friday to try an english saddle on him that a friend was selling. I didn't even ride, I was so hot, sweating and not feeling well.  My stump was hurting from a sweaty prosthetic sock and the other foot was all swollen and bruised from an injury a long time…

Wow, if you'd told me on Day One that I'd ever be ready to go home, I'd have laughed at you.  Be that as it may, Day Five of HITS-on-the-Hot-As-Hades-Hudson IV saw me ready to head south on I-87.  However, before I did there was that small matter of Short Stirrup Hunter classes we needed to attend to. 



Thankfully they Horse Show gods decided to move the classes up from early afternoon to just before 11.  In my …

Beautifully turned out and positioned, long legged equitation riders head up the placings at top shows this summer. Lessons spent without stirrups and in two point position pay dividends in the show ring. But have you ever considered the line between poise and pose? Dignity, calm and confidence stemming from an unmistakable wisdom describe a rider with poise.…

Occasionally people will be fortunate enough to find a good used Schleese saddle on ebay or second hand or hand-me-downs from somewhere else – but the reality of it is that sometimes despite being fitted as closely as possible they may not actually be the best choice for both a specific horse and rider. Over the years we have changed our designs as our knowledge of equine anatomy and biomechanic requirements increases, so that older models may not be as ‘horse-friendly’ as the newer saddles…

Hot, humid, bad air quality, smog.  Yep, that says it all about the weather in the summertime in the sunny, sunny South.  At least WE are used to this type of weather, I feel so, so sorry for you people further North who are discovering what people living in the South have known all along.  Summers can be as brutal as winters. 

Last week both mares told me that I was not…