It goes without saying that Duke Ellington is right, about most everything. And even horses agree.

But I get ahead of myself. This is how it starts: you’re riding, moving in unison with your horse. You’re fluid, and free-…

I’ve been remembering my first experience in Walk Detention. It was the dark ages and I was a training level rider on a young horse. I was so excited to ride in my first clinic with an Olympian- my enthusiasm sizzled audibly. I handed over a fat check, my horse was spit polished and I was…

“You know what your problem is? You’re too sensitive.” Ouch. Have you heard this? It feels like being accused of throwing like a girl.

It’s dismissive. This definition of sensitive means I’m not dependable, that I’m an emotional liability. When I was younger, hearing this would make me defensive. My mind ran like a rat on a wheel, I choked on my tongue and my heart rate jumped.  I appeared… well… too sensitive.…

It was big news when Moorlands Totalis sold last year. Zenyatta is due to foal soon and the press is waiting. I see Ravel had a big win in Florida recently. Well, I have some really big news for the horse…

Some riders are convinced that their horse has a devious plan for world domination- at their expense. Or that their horse is so lazy that any work from him will require a fight. Some riders just think their horses…

I fell in love with horses all over again this week. Yes, it was a pretty short fall and yes, it does happen every week. And no, it never gets old. Does my enthusiasm make me seem less professional?

It has been also been one of those weeks when most of my clients are having challenges with their horses. Some of the challenges are old ones and some are brand new but regardless of origin or cause- a challenge is an opportunity by another name.…

Has it been one of those weeks? Everything that could go wrong–did? We all know how it feels when gravity gets  heavy-handed and you begin to feel thick and bound by life. It happens.

Maybe you should go to the barn and let yourself be carried a while.

If you have a partnership with a horse then you know that some days you carry them and some days they carry you.

You carry them…

… and Grace gives herself a promotion.

Dressage borrows lots of language from ballet -after all, we are the dancers of the horse world. Pas de Trois is a dance of three. I have commandeered that phrase to describe riding lessons as a conversational dance between horse, rider and instructor. All three participants have to be heard for the dance to succeed.

I am always…

I was being half-mauled by a terrier. I was running an errand in an urban office and the dog’s owner was horrified. She apologized, explaining that her dog never did that.

In the dogs’ defense, I have a very special stink to my feet. I carry with me a cornucopia of delightful smells from several species in my barn. I smell like an exception to the…

It’s generally considered good manners in the barn to graciously take the blame anytime your horse is less than spectacular, and give your horse all the credit after a good ride. But it is more than manners, it is also a rider’s responsibility.…

The head of the herd at Infinity Farm is the kind of horse you might call Grandfather- with reverence. He was a flashy something in his day; what he lacked in confidence he made up for with bravado. We made a pair and a quarter century later, we have both softened and matured with age. He rules the ranch, from the ducks (he shares his grain with them) on up. Not all barns are as…