Fall is my favorite time of year to go horseback riding. I am partial to summer, since I was born in August (my mother has a theory that the season you were born in is the one you like best; for instance, I like being hot, and don’t mind sweating; I hate the cold, and winter is my least favorite season), but summer is often so busy with gardening, vacations, kid’s activities, and things that can only be done in summer. I just never have time to ride in the summer, and so when fall arrives it is such a relief.
My friend JoAnn and I went riding yesterday. I wanted to ride my buckskin mare Penny, because (I hate to admit it) she had not been ridden since April, when she spooked at the barn cat and bucked me off! So here it was five months later, and I was determined that she would get ridden this weekend. When my friend texted me, I was ready to go.
We went to the Pierce Creek Equestrian Trails because we wanted a longer ride that was in more open country and wouldn’t have muddy trails. We saw an abundance of wildlife…a baby deer and it’s mother (thank you, Penny, for not spooking!), a tame goose on the edge of the lake, a bunny, two blue herons, and a nice sized fish being pulled out of the water at the end of an angler’s line. It was absolutely perfect riding weather…warm sun, cool air, no wind, beautiful sunset over the lake…it couldn’t have been any nicer out. My friend rode her chestnut Morgan mare Ruby, and we rode for a couple of hours. I wanted to get in some good riding time on Penny just to get her warmed up for this coming weekend. 
I have signed up for a horsemanship clinic at a local training barn called LaRiata Ranch. The trainer’s name is Kip Fladland, and he is a natural horsemanship trainer who worked alongside Buck Brannaman for several years, and now gives clinics and trains horses following the teaching of the Dorrance brothers, Ray Hunt, and Buck Brannaman. I had found his website, LaRiataRanch.com, with a Google search, and was so surprised to find a horseman of his experience a mere 10 miles away.
The clinic calendar on their website listed two upcoming clinics at their ranch, so I emailed to see if I could bring a horse. I was thinking of bringing Bluebird or Cletus, since they both need started, and also am interested in sending Bluebird to him to be trained. Kip wrote back saying that the clinics were just for horses that were already well-started, but that I should come to the clinic and we could discuss getting Bluebird started in training with him. So I decided to go ahead and take one of my mares, and Penny and I are going to spend next Saturday at a training clinic!
I am excited, to say the least. I have never been to an actual horse training clinic before, and could not find a whole lot online about Kip Fladland. There is a youtube video of him working a sorrel Arabian gelding at his place, and you can hear from the dialogue that the owners sent the horse there for training and this video is after the first 30 days’ riding that Kip put on the gelding. The owners seemed happy with the results, and commented through the video that “he seems like a different horse!” And the horse performs well, being put through a variety of tests under saddle. So I am excited to see what Penny and I can learn in one day.
The morning is going to be all groundwork (this right here is a good one for me—I know myself all too well, and if there’s anything I avoid, it’s groundwork! I can work a horse a little in the round pen, but after that, all I want to do is get on and ride!), so I’m looking forward to learning more things to do on the ground, and learn to better prepare my horse for riding. Then the afternoon is a horsemanship class, which is a little scary for me as well. I am not the world’s best rider; I’ve never had a riding lesson in my life; and I just hope to be able to learn but not be a spectacle! 
Penny is an eleven year old registered Quarter Horse. If someone asked me what my goals are for Penny, and what I wanted to be able to do with her, I would say:
- I would like her to be gentle enough for my husband and kids to ride.
- I would like her to neck rein and have a lower head carriage.
- I would like her to be easier to catch and more relaxed around me as I work with her.
This is a wonderful opportunity to build on the things I already know, expand my groundwork techniques (they are sadly lacking!), and spend some quality time with a horse that might turn out to be my most favorite one yet. I’ll keep you updated on how it goes!
Meanwhile, I hope you’re enjoying your own horseback activities in fall!
