He is riding at the basic level in a Working Equitation class which is composed of three phases of competition. The three phases are a dressage test,ease of handling on the obstacle course and a speed test on the obstacle course.This was Tango’s first show ever and they had a blast!  Jack also rode Koda, a Nokota horse, in the same class. Please click here if you would like to see the video of his ride on Koda. 

These classes were sponsored by Haras Dos Cavaleiros and we want to thank them for introducing this sport to our area.

This is the last day of a 4 day clinic working with Nokota Horses who have not been handled, saddled or sat upon before. They come directly from the North Dakota Nokota herd.
On the 3rd day only one horse out of ten had a saddle on it. The last day we had seven horses with  saddles on and six horses were mounted. It was a great group to work with. Thanks everyone.

 This is a short video of Jack showing Alecia how to halter her horse.Jack gets him haltered and is able to lead him out the round pen.Alecia works on getting him to accept her in his space.

Yesterday was a great day. All the participants did very well. The horses came along nicely. These horse have never been handled before so the first thing we worked on was bringing the horses into the arena and getting them to relax. It got to the point where everyone walked thorough the herd one at a time multiple times. Then we moved three horses at a time into the round pen  and continued working them and building their confidence to the point of getting a rope on them. Once the rope was on we started teaching them  how to follow a feel. That turns into leading and by the end of the day we had two horses being halter lead  outside the round pen. Most of the others got to where they could be rubbed with a stick and knew how to follow a feel with the rope.The horses all ended in a good spot. Today will be another exciting day. Great job every one!

This is a short video of Jack working in the round pen with Julian and one of the  Nokota Horses on learning how to follow a feel.

Gypsy Horse World Show Fort Worth Texas Stock Show 2012

Jack and Sophie of Riverstone Ranch

Reserve Grand Champion Halter Class Mares 2 and older

This was my second year to go the Gypsy Horse World Show in Fort Worth with the horses from Riverstone Ranch. I had a great time working and showing  with the other trainers Heidi and Donna. Sarah and I learned a lot and thank Melinda for giving us the opportunity to show  these beautiful horses. The gypsy horses are an intelligent and easygoing horse which makes them a pleasure to show. One thing I came away with from this show was the realization that showing  is about emotional fitness and learning to stay relaxed and focused on the task at hand. When up against judges and competitors your mind may play tricks but you have to learn to overcome the negative talk in your head and go do what you need to do and be the best you can be.