Food for Thought:

“There is one principle that should never be abandoned, namely, that the rider must learn to control himself before he can control his horse. This is the basic, most important principle to be preserved in equitation.”

- Dressage legend Colonel Alois Podhajsky, The Complete Training of Horse and Rider

Dianna & Dancing Cloud

"I can't tell you how happy we are with our County saddle.   It is so secure and comfortable on the trail.  He gaits much easier in it.  I absolutely love it!"

“A good horse will figure out things on his own.

You can see what’s in his heart. He won’t do one thing while you’re watchin’, and another when you ain’t. He’s all of a piece. When you’ve got a horse to that place you can’t hardly get him to do somethin’ he knows is wrong. He’ll fight you over it. And if you mistreat him it just about kills him. A good horse has justice in his heart.”

- Cormac McCarthy, author of the Texas Trilogy including All the Pretty Horses.

 

Jade & Erica, getting a back tracing.

 

"Natural horsemanship is about pushing your limits, accepting your weaknesses and striving to be part of something that is beyond our immediate comprehension.

Natural horsemanship allows for the person to remember, with the help of the horse, about secrets to harmony with the universe and with ourselves that we humans have forgotten. It is a relationship between a horse and a human in which the roles of teacher and student, leader and follower, are constantly examined, learned from and discarded until perfection is achieved. It’s a way of life.”     - Peggy Smith

Gaited Horse Trainer Liz Graves takes Susan's mare Autumn for a spin.

 

An easy life doesn’t teach us anything.

In the end it’s the learning that matters: what we’ve learned and how we’ve grown.

- Richard Bach

 

Mindfulness in and out of the Saddle

Students must realize that their practice of dressage (or Zen) mirrors their entire lives. It is not an isolated activity, removed from the rest of someone's lifestyle. It calls on the state of a person’s inner life, which in today’s world is often far from stillness....

If we learn to live moment to moment and do less with our thoughts and our bodies, we will express our horsemanship with less struggle and greater artistry. It will simply come through us from the horse, uninterrupted by our “great love” to complicate things.

- Jec Ballou, read the entire Eclectic Horseman article.

 

"Your little finger and your mind can move a 1000-lb horse."

- Classical Dressage expert Dominique Barbier.

 

Taz & Susan

 

When a rider discovers this type of resistance-free partnership is possible, why would they ever again want to resort to force and leverage equipment to make a horse comply?

Saddles That Fit! strives to give owners the knowledge that will enable them to know they have the right saddle; one that fits, and will enable light hands and an independent seat to help them on their path to that ultimate horse-human partnership.

- Susan, Saddles That Fit!

 

(Horsemanship) is a grand passion. It seizes a person whole and, once it has done so, he will have to accept that his life will be radically changed. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

 

Gracie She Graced us with her presence for a short time, to teach us not to mistake the details of life... for life itself.  She lived and loved every minute of hers.		Dam-Glowing Hope Sire-Master Catalyst May 2005 - July 2005 Owner, Craig Williams