It's Not Always Beautiful

As with everything that we learn, there are struggles as we go through that learning curve.  Despite the front that social media allows us to portray, not everything is beautiful; not everything is rainbows and butterflies.  So often we only see the triumphs instead of the failures leaving us with the sinking feeling of why are we struggling so much on our own journey to do the same thing?  The fact is, that we all have our own struggles, just not many people are willing to share it.

The past year I've started doing a horsemanship and barrel racing clinics.  It's been a great experience being able to help people learn how to communicate a clearer picture to their equine partner and to help share the love of horsemanship to my students all the while helping them succeed in barrel racing. It's been rewarding and something that I love to do. Teaching has become a passion. At my clinics, I start out by doing a demonstration on one of my more solid horses so that I can paint a clear picture to my students what my end goal is. My demo horse has gone through these motions every day that I've saddled her up since she was two (she's now seven). It's easy for her and second nature. A foundation build on willing submission, she makes things look simple when they are not.  Although it's valuable to visualize that end goal the demonstration doesn't show the rocks we climbed to get to that point. I get a lot of looks like "you make that look easy" when in fact in the beginning it wasn't.  It didn't get that way over night and it's not going to stay that way without working at it every-single-day.  We live in a world of instant gratification but the real world doesn't work that way.

I was doing a drill yesterday on my demo horse that should have been easy for her. For what she can do, it really should have been a cake walk but I'd never done this particular drill before on her.  I thought, if only my students could see me now. It wasn't pretty.  However as we chipped away and broke down the barriers of miscommunication, it did become "beautiful".  I wished I could have had a video of that process to show my students that we all struggle, and not everything is piece of cake.

As proud of my mare as I am when we do these demonstrations, showing that we are working together as one and with willing submission; I was even more proud of her yesterday as we found holes in our foundation and we fixed them.  Life isn't like Facebook and Instagram where all that is shown and thrown at us is rainbows and butterflies. If you look past social media you see the blood, the sweat, the tears, and the endless hours of dedication to hone your craft.  You'll see the times that we take two steps back after taking just one step forward.  You'll see those that are not willing to give up just because they had a set back or things didn't go their way.  You'll see those fighting, working, striving to always get better and not always looking for an opportunity to post to their social media page how great life is. Life is hard, but keep working at it. Keep working towards your goal and know that those of us that are in the real world, we're right beside you - working with you, supporting you and here for you the whole way!

DON'T. GIVE. UP.

Destruction Or Destiny?

I don't know where you are but here in Montana, it's COLD! I mean, C.O.L.D. cold! Although we have only just begun the winter season, it feels like a lifetime ago since we've seen even sweatshirt weather.  This winter has been brutal. Brutal on the livestock and the people that care for them.  With near records amounts of snow and cold, it's not an ideal time to be riding for horse or rider, leaving us susceptible for the winter time blues.

It's easy to get in the winter time blues. Just stand out in the cold cutting baling twine on bale after bale until you can't feel your fingers as you're trying to feed cows.  Or see your horse trailer get buried under snow after your husband had just cleared it and the road the day before. Or dealing with frozen water hoses for the umpteenth time.  Or... Or.... Or...The struggles of winter have a way of wearing on a person and in case you haven't noticed already, they've worn on me.

Beating the winter time blues can be easily remedied by going somewhere where it's warmer for the duration; so in Montana, expect to be gone until June.  Unfortunately for me, my life situation doesn't quite allow me to pick up and leave.  As I was wallowing in the blues, I started thinking about things.  It's easy to sit stagnant in the house, wishing you could be somewhere warm, riding, not worrying about frozen water hoses, thawing out your coveralls and if your toes will return back to normal color, etc. Right now the opportunity to ride is slim, but the opportunity to grow, to prepare, and achieve your goals is right at your grasp!  I've decided that since moving to Arizona right now is impossible,  there has to be other ways to beat the winter time blues and be improving myself and my barrel racing game.  I started asking myself with everything I was doing, "Am I walking towards destruction or to destiny?" That time that I'm wasting time and energy wishing that I could be in the saddle, I can be putting to good use to improve my barrel racing game without actually stepping foot out of my warm, toasty, climate controlled house.

Here's a couple things I've found to help me beat the winter time blues:

• GOAL SETTING - I'm not a big goal setter, you know the "2017 is a whole new year - whole new life" kind of person. But when it comes to my horses, I need to know and focus on where I'm going with each individual, what is my ultimate goal and where I do I need them to be by a certain time, etc.  If I don't have that in mind, I won't know if I'm behind or on schedule.  Because I ride mostly colts that I hope to futurity, this is an important factor for me. 

• DIET AND EXERCISE - yeah I know, we're coming off the holidays and we've been packing on a couple extra pounds, now is the time to take careful watch over what you eat and start working out on those six pack abs (they've gotta be in there somewhere right?) 
• So at first glance I realize this doesn't sound all that fun, but once you get into the habit, the feel good feeling you get after completing a work out, you'll be seeing what I mean about beating the blues. 

• MAKE A GAME PLAN - Get out  a yearly calendar and write down the races that have been scheduled.  Some you may make and some you may not, but focus on the ones that you're wanting to make. Refer to your Goal Setting to know what will be most beneficial to you, your horse, and your ultimate goal. 

• IMPROVING THE MENTAL GAME - The mental aspect of barrel racing is vital.  You may have the horse and you may have the ability but if your mind isn't in the game, your ship has sunk.  I listen to a lot of motivational speeches or read up on mental toughness. My favorite book is Mind Gym by Gary Mack but there are several out there that I've enjoyed and revisited through the years. 

• RESEARCH - Instead of scrolling through Facebook seeing all the videos and pictures of your friends riding in t shirts in Texas or Arizona, spend some time researching a topic that would be beneficial to you and your horses.  For instance, if you have a bleeder, learn more about EIPH, what is it? what does it do? how to prevent it? how to treat? you get the picture.  Have a problem last fall with a horse, watch barrel racing or horsemanship videos. Study, take notes, and be prepared to use it when you saddle up. Knowledge is power and here's a chance to educate yourself. 

• CLEAN & DECLUTTER - Get your equipment ready to use. Now's a great time to clean those saddles, check chicago screws, make repairs as needed, etc.  Get everything in order and ready to go so that when the day comes to ride, all you have to do is saddle up! 

• CATCH UP - For me being a mom of three boys, trying to help my husband with the cattle, my horses, all the while managing the house, I realize that now is a great time to be catching up on things in the house so that when it's nice outside, I can utilize that sunshine.  Spring cleaning starts now (it may be 8 years late but better late then never right?), meal planning and making freezer meals, doing things now that will make my life and my family's lives easier come spring. 

In thinking of ways to help improve my barrel racing game as well as life in general; I was amazed at all that I could do and work on from the comforts of home.  There's so much more that you can do, maybe you do this already, maybe you do some of it. Regardless I hope that this helps those that are in the same position as me and needing to beat those winter time blues.   Ask yourself, are you on the road for destruction (wasting time when you could be doing something to benefit yourself and your family) or are you on the road to your destiny (taking meaningful steps that will improve and help you reach your ultimate goals). Make your your actions meaningful!  

Hold strong my friends, there's light at the end of the tunnel!  I see 20s and even 30s in the 10 day forecast!

Humbleness Of A Champion

There are people out there that you'd never guess that they won some big event, were incredibly talented or had the rightfully earned bragging list a mile long. They walk humbly, ready to give a lending hand at any moment's notice. These people are quick to bring up your accomplishments and slow to tell their own. I've been around some that walk humbly, but there is one man that I've been blessed to know that really embodies the word humble.

Growing up in a non horse family, I had to rely on others to learn all I could. Many kids have their parents to teach them, be their coach, and provide them the horse power they need to succeed, mine took me to the best people they could find to nurture my love for horses and rodeo. It might have been a blessing in disguise that I had to rely on others because in doing so, I had the opportunity to learn from some of whom I consider to this day - the best. As I entered high school rodeos my freshman year, I had always wanted to breakaway rope. It was then that Lowell Faris took me under his wing. Lowell, who is a very accomplished calf roper and trainer has more titles to his name than some can count, but you'd never know it by talking to him.

Lowell invited me to his and his wife Jan's home and we spent countless evenings in his arena roping calves. He helped me not only learn how to rope but to work with the horses that I was riding. With his quiet demeanor, I always thought he was a master at teaching these horses to do their job but to love it as well. I loved getting to opportunity to watch him work with a young horse and seeing those young calf horses grow in confidence with each run. When I would be struggling with something, we would go to the loft of his barn and rope the bale. Over and over, Lowell would critique each swing, the throw and the catch. I was never a natural and many would have given up trying to teach me. However, Lowell would stay and work with me as long as I needed, many times until long after the sun had went down.

The horse I started roping on, although a nice horse, did some things that were making me develop some bad habits. One night in the practice pen, Lowell offered to let me rope off his trusty backup, Duster. For once I didn't have to worry about my horse doing his job and I could focus solely on my roping. Never asking for anything, Lowell just said take him home and ride him. It was a gesture that I will never forget and allowed me to gain so much confidence in my roping game. Later when I was college rodeoing for Montana State University I called Lowell after my first rodeo and told him about the trouble I had that weekend in the roping with my horse. His response was come and get his good calf horse Doc; who would have anyone drooling and jumping at the chance to ride. He never thought twice about sending a horse that he could have sold time and again to NFR calf ropers with some piddly college girl that just hoped she could make the short go at a college rodeo. He just wanted to help and knew Doc would be the answer to my trouble. I was just one of the many kids that he helped over the years.

Lowell always looked out for the kids that he helped. I don't know how many times he came to my rescue in changing a tire or fixing lights on my trailer or even making sure that I made it safely home. In high school I got the itch to rodeo at the amateur rodeos. My parents with 4 other kids and businesses of their own, weren't always able to take me or be gone for the weekend so once again, Lowell took me under his wing and let me travel with him, his daughter Ali and son-in-law Chad to the rodeos. The time spent traveling with Lowell and his family, I was able to see even more into what an amazing man he is. He was always there to pick you up after a bad run. Telling you to shake it off and giving you the encouragement for the next run. He'd make a run to lead the rodeo and turn around and be quick to aide anyone else that needed a helping hand as others congratulated him on a good run. He'd say a quick "Thank you." and continue helping whoever was in need. You never knew by his demeanor that he just won the rodeo. I always admired his humbleness. A true champion in every sense of the word, you'd never guess with his humble and gracious manner.

Lowell has been such a huge mentor in my life. He taught me many lessons inside the arena and out and became a second father to me. I will never forget my time spent at his place roping and his teachings beyond the arena. He took me in as one of his own and for that I'll always be thankful. He taught me a true champion is humble and ready to give the next person a leg up to become a champion themselves. It's one of the many lessons from Lowell that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. I hope that I am able to give someone else that leg up that he so graciously gave me!

Soft As A Post

A few years ago I had the great fortune and pleasure to attend a horsemanship clinic with Doug Jordan.  I had a horse at the time that when I was running, I had a hard time picking up the shoulder and moving over.  There was always a hesitation, a resistance if you will.  I remember telling Doug my issue.  He watched me ride my horse who really was well broke and you could place him anywhere doing slow work.  It was the fast work that I would get in trouble with.  I was expecting some sort of high powered drill.  Something that involved a lot more pressure mentally and physically than what I received.  Instead, I received a post.  Yes a post.... 

 Doug had me position my horse at an angle to this post (about a 45 degree angle) that when I put pressure on my leg that the horse could go forward (avoiding the pressure) or turning into the post (giving into the pressure).  Doug put me and my horse in position next to the post (and fence) and told me to put a little pressure (and by little, I mean slight, barely readable) as if you set a post right there, and just leave that pressure on until my horse responded.  You didn't increase the pressure, you just left it the same. Then he left me! Like, literally left me to make his rounds to the rest of the clinic participants.  I thought, well what in the world am I to do now?  There is no way that this horse knows I'm asking it to do something with this little of pressure.  

So I kept the pressure the same as when he left and watched him as he made his round to the rest of the clinic. Probably 5 minutes later my horse finally moved.  He didn't move just to move, he moved away from that pressure and turned into the post, giving to pressure.  I let him basically do a walking roll back and walk out.  Bringing him back to our original position I thought he was bored and that's why he did what he did.  Heck, by that point I was bored myself! I was prepared to sit there again for awhile.  Much to my surprise as soon as I put that slight pressure on my leg, he turn and gave way to the pressure.  I'm talking as light of a pressure as a fly would put on him if it landed there.  So slight I didn't know if I was putting pressure there or not. Doug didn't care how long it took to get a results, that's why he left me and gave me but most importantly my horse time to get uncomfortable with that pressure and move away from it.  I needed time, patience, and a steady pressure.  As Doug said, I was like a post.  

Sometimes we can get in a hurry.  We think we have patience but really we expect results right away when we ask a horse to do something.  We don't give the horse time to figure out the answer by itself. I've found that if we give the horse the option and opportunity to put the pieces of the puzzle together by itself, that that lessons sticks much better than if we force it.  We make the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy but not always do we give the horse the time to make that decision for itself.  

My husband is an excellent horseman and his forte is starting colts.  The colts he starts have a confidence about them that is undeniable.  They are soft in the mouth and their sides and they have little if any resistance, working under willing submission. He can have those colts trotting backwards on a loose rein.  Something that I am NOT good at doing.  I have a tendency of getting my colts stuck.  When they get sticky in their feet, it's easy to start pulling on them, even ever so slightly.  As I'm riding a colt by Philip and struggling to get this colt to back the way I want, he reminds me of the lesson that Doug had showed me before.  Leaving my hands still and giving those colts time to figure it out, it took nothing before my colt who was sticky in her feet started driving from her hindend, picking up her feet and backing up on a loose rein. 

September seems to be the month of weaning colts and of course halter breaking them.  Every year we bring the colts home from the ranch and go through the process of gentling them down, halter breaking , picking up their feet and getting them accustomed to life without their dams.  Some take it harder than others, but most are halter broke within the day.  One critical item I use in halter breaking training is a tie post.  A regular sturdy post buried into the ground with nothing else is invaluable to me.   Much like the lessons mentioned above, the post gives those colts the opportunity to sort things out themselves.  The post never takes slack away from the colt if it pulls back, it's pressure stays steady, the same.  Sometimes that post can be the best teacher in halter breaking a colt as it learns for itself that when it gives to pressure, it gets a reward, a release.  

I think often to how much the lesson Doug and Philip gave me has helped in my riding and everyday working with a horse. When people have fairly soft hands but have a tendency to pull on one as we all can get, I think of being soft as a post.  There is a pressure there that doesn't change.  It doesn't pull harder, it doesn't snatch or take a horse by surprise.  It literally gives the horse two options - give to pressure or pull against pressure.  There is only one release and that's when they fully give themselves into the pressure. They can't lean and get the release. They are not pressured to give the release.  The post gives them the time to figure it out for themselves. They learn the right thing is to give to pressure, and they crave that release, that reward.  Sometimes to get the best response you don't need to pull harder or put more pressure on them; you just need to be as soft as a post.

Champions Don't Always Wear Gold Buckles

On my daily scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed I came across a post that caught my eye.  It read something to the extent that thanks to Facebook and social media that anyone can make themselves a world champion and trainer.  This person mentioned that they missed the days of having to prove yourself with a gold buckle to show your worth.  I'm of course paraphrasing but that was the jist that I received from it.  I agree - to a point.  

Today the people that you can interact with and "follow" thanks to social media is astounding!  Getting to know these people through the net we get the opportunity to see into their lives.  The people we have access to range from the next door neighbor to the world champion barrel racer, celebrities, and well beyond.  There's a thing about social media though that many over look.  Many who post their lives on social media only post (or mostly post at least) about the good in their lives.  We don't see those that have fallen and gotten back up.  We can't see those that are riding the high under false pretenses.  It's a take what you see with a grain of salt kind of world on the net.  You don't see those with all the talent of the world but choose to stay home for various reasons, are injured, etc. You need to be the judge of who is worthy of "following". 

Here's what rubbed me a little off on that post.  That the only true champions and ones worth paying attention to are those with the buckles to prove it.  Let me be the first to tell you, if you think that only those that are worthy of learning from or listening to are those with a "gold" buckle adorning their belt, then you are sorely missing out.  Having had the opportunity to ride and train with many who have not won the gold and a few that have, I have learned far more from those missing that bragging right than those that have it.  A champion doesn't always wear the buckle to prove they are a champion.   

A champion can be many things.  I know many who have just as much talent as anyone around that instead of chasing those lines on the road are busy tending to a ranch, getting a college degree, taking care of their children, running the family business, etc.  Their priorities weren't on the gold buckle and the bragging right that comes with it although they could give those going down the road a run for their money on any given day. If a "champion" is the only one worthy of learning from then a champion to me is someone who works hard, has a level of grit and determination, a master at their craft, humble, and always willing to lend a helping hand among other things. 

If we judge someone by their accomplishments and not by their talent, we are missing out on a huge opportunity to learn and better ourselves.  I've always said that you can always learn something from everyone; whether it's something to do or something not to do.  You see the real champions don't always wear gold buckles.  They could be your parents in the stand, your spouse, your grandparents, a family friend, someone that showed you the ropes and took you under their wing; each one helping, supporting and rooting you on as you work to reach your full potential. If you feel that only a champion with a gold buckle to prove it is worthy of learning from, your losing out on a huge education and opportunity. 

I'm so thankful for the "champions" that have been involved in my life and journey.  I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for them! 

Musical Bits

We've all played the game "musical chairs" when we were younger.  You never know when the music stops what chair you're going to get.  You need to be prepared for when that music stops that you have a chair within your reach.  I never put much thought of how this would relate with horses until I was warming up at a rodeo.

I had just came back to my trailer, to boot up and stretch.  There were about 20 girls left before I was to go and two tractor drags so I "thought" I'd have plenty of time. In fact, I thought it would be about perfect timing for my mare who was also a little gate sour but would walk into the gate at the first pass (at this point in her situation, going by the gate beyond pass 1, you were in for a fight but that's a whole new blog post). Being lazy, I left the bridle on while I threw the halter over top of it to tie up my horse while I retrieved the leg boots from the trailer.  My normally non-itchy mare decided the skin below her eye was being attacked by ants as she inched over to the ledge on the trailer and proceeded to relieve her itch like a mad woman.  However, with her itch relieved and all well with her world she realized that she had gotten the edge of the chicago screw stuck on the trailer.  I saw it all in slow motion as she threw up her head, breaking the headstall beyond repair.  

By this time I only had about 10 girls left to go and the tractor had already drug once.  I was in a panic.  I couldn't do anything in a pinch to fix the headstall.  Although I had other bridles in the trailer, I wasn't comfortable riding her in any of them because she only had "her" bit and it'd been a struggle to find a bit that you could call "hers" in the first place. In a fury I ripped apart a headstall to put on her "Highness'" bit.  I made it to the gate just as they were saying last call.  

I don't remember much about that run.  I remember it wasn't good.  After that I vowed that I would ride that mare and any horse in any and every bit that I had and I'd be comfortable throwing anything on them.  It would have been easier for me if  I'd been able to throw on a spare bridle on my mare and continue on our merry way.  As it was, my mare was panicked as we loped from our trailer to the gate and I sure didn't have my mind where it needed to be after that fiasco.

There will be bits better suited for each individual horse but most of all the riders hands.  However, it's really important, as I learned on that July day that it's best not to just stick to ONE bit.   Being the bitoholic that I am, I have a lot of variety to chose from in the bit department. Although I have my favorites, I still change things up almost every ride.  I've heard the argument that you're to never ride you horse in your competition bit.  I don't necessarily agree with that, but I do believe that you need to keep them fresh; keep them guessing.  They need to learn how to "pack" different styles of bits but also they need to learn to rely more on YOU than a given bit.

That particular day was the start of a different journey for me and the gray mare you've heard me talk so often about, Holly.  We'd already been on a wild roller coaster journey previously, but this was the start of something special.  We learned to work together.  Our partnership wasn't based on tack in the end, it was based on just that - each other.  

Because of that important lesson back at that rodeo years ago, I learned how "musical chairs" played into horses but also just how important horsemanship is to achieving success as well! 

Mae Holly Fire returned to that same rodeo that this fiasco took place several years later to redeem ourselves by placing with a tough group of horses.
Photo by Tina Graham.

Slow And Steady Wins The Race

For the first time in a very long time, I'm sitting at home without a horse ready to run.  After selling my rodeo horse this fall and my futurity colt being injured earlier, I'm left with plenty of horses to ride but nothing to run.  Thankfully it's the middle of winter and there's not much to go to as far as jackpots or rodeos in our area.  However, watching the NFR will get anyone's blood pumping and wanting to hit the road.  

Although you could call me "horse poor" in the riding department, (there's plenty of colts here that need to be rode), I've decided to focus my attention on my 4 year old. Since the Futurity Holiday of December 1st has past, she's also officially my new futurity colt as well.  As everyone was posting on Facebook about how excited they were to run for their 2016 futurity hopefuls that week, I was thinking to myself, "Well, I'm excited that we just started to lope the pattern!" Needless to say, we're a little ways off the mark to make any sort of futurity or jackpot debut. 

This filly is maybe one of the most talented colts I've ever rode. With that comes some challenges. She has a big big engine and she's starting to figure out the gas pedal on her own.  My husband when he first started her said that we'd have to keep her pretty slow for awhile. I knew what he was saying but it wasn't until I rode her myself that I really understood his point.  She was almost on the lazy side for most of her two and three year old year.  But she was quiet and she was sure of herself. Confidence will decrease as we speed things up, so it's important to remember the foundation and have it pretty well set.

Last week as I was working her on the barrels here at home I let her pick her pace.  Which may I remind you we have only slow loped at this point.  Loping to the 1st barrel (which has been her nemesis), everything was coming together. She listened to me and allowed me to shape her, the timing just right, she wrapped around it and pushed out like a finished horse heading to 2nd.  I couldn't help myself and although I didnt' let her gain speed, I let her carry that momentum to 2nd. The 2nd and 3rd were such a rush that I can't say that I remember much about them.   Coming home I could feel her wanting to step on the gas pedal even more.   

It would be easy to keep up this pace. Keep letting her cruise through like she did. She's broke enough that she could probably handle it - for awhile.  However, as her trainer I need to recognize what she's ready for.  She has a good foundation but the foundation hasn't been allowed to "set" enough for her to fall back on if things start to crumble.  She needs time. Her in particular, is going to need a lot of it! 

It's a challenge when a colt is all you have and you're wanting to run, to not just let them go. Significantly more so after you've felt the talent behind them. It's easy to get caught up on what big barrel race is coming up and needing to get ready for it.  It's especially easy to get caught up on the futurity trail hype and think about how far behind your colt is and the need to speed up this process.  However, this isn't a cookie cutter process.  Each horse is different. This particular mare hasn't had the time on her like most of my horses do at this point. She's also one that is going need a lot of time letting the foundation "set" aka keeping it slow.  

I have to look at the big picture.  Do I want a futurity horse or do I want a horse for the future? Of course my answer is for the future. I'm reminded of the story of the tortoise and the hare. We all know how that story played out. I could let this mare roll as she's shown me that she's capable of doing, or I'm reminded of the tortoise - slow and steady wins the race!  I don't know if we will make it to the futurities, and that's OK by me.  For now, we'll be keep it slow, gaining confidence and trying to make every experience a good one!  

PA Ivyafrenchiepie checking cows. She'll spend the rest of the year seeing as much saddle time behind cows as possible as well as getting her fair share of "barrel" time.