Last Day
Today was kinda sad to be honest..... It was our last day and a short day at that, because of the weather. We took the horses out on another trail ride, and it started raining on us. It gave me the last chance to ask Dawn any last questions
Lessons
Wednesday
Today was a day full of Dawn giving riding lessons. So in turn for me that means a lot of sitting and watching but learning as well. It's still crazy to me how good of an eye Dawn has for watching people ride. Example of this would be when she will give someone a lesson she will be giving them directing on things to work on or change, bake sure to pull your hands more this way or move your legs this way to get the horse to collect their body in this way. All very subtle changes that I can't see from watching but Dawn can. I am getting to the point that I can feel a lot of these subtle changes though. I did get some good riding in as well with some good pointers from Dawn today.
Today was a day full of Dawn giving riding lessons. So in turn for me that means a lot of sitting and watching but learning as well. It's still crazy to me how good of an eye Dawn has for watching people ride. Example of this would be when she will give someone a lesson she will be giving them directing on things to work on or change, bake sure to pull your hands more this way or move your legs this way to get the horse to collect their body in this way. All very subtle changes that I can't see from watching but Dawn can. I am getting to the point that I can feel a lot of these subtle changes though. I did get some good riding in as well with some good pointers from Dawn today.
Trail Riding
Tuesday
Today we finally got to get the horses out and on the trail. We haven't been able to do this for the last 2 weeks bacuase it has been too wet. We each rode a horse and ponied another behind, this way we can get twice as many horses out as well maybe give the colts more exposure to new things.
Today we finally got to get the horses out and on the trail. We haven't been able to do this for the last 2 weeks bacuase it has been too wet. We each rode a horse and ponied another behind, this way we can get twice as many horses out as well maybe give the colts more exposure to new things.
Lunging
Monday
Today we didn't have time to ride all the horses so we lunged them instead. This is when you run them in a circle but we do it will lunge lines. These are 2 straps, one attached from the bridal to their inside side of the horse and the other from their bridal down between their legs which pulls their nose down. Both of these straps are attached to a big since, I cant remember the name, but all it is is a big band that you attach on the horse that goes over their back and around their belly behind their from legs that has rings attached to it like in the picture. (this is not my picture, just using it to help explain). This helps to teach the horse to bend their body, tuck their head and pull their belly's up to give that nice collected look. Lunching them in this way helps keep specific muscles in shape. |
Zoe's Visit
Friday 3/14/15
Today we worked in the arena again and I mainly focused on calm collected loping with this one horses in particular. It was a little tricky because I'm still having troubles getting the right feel for this as well the horse I was on was learning this at the same time making it twice as hard. When you have an amateur horse and an amateur rider it can be tricky at times and just increases the chances of not succeeding and properly doing the task which was the case most the time but I worked though it with Dawns help.
Today Zoe my mentor came by to check in and see how I was doing. It was kinda cool to get to show Zoe a handful of the things I've been learning as well as let her meet Dawn. I knew Zoe wasn't the horse person coming in but I hope she enjoyed it and maybe learned a little something at the same time.
Today we worked in the arena again and I mainly focused on calm collected loping with this one horses in particular. It was a little tricky because I'm still having troubles getting the right feel for this as well the horse I was on was learning this at the same time making it twice as hard. When you have an amateur horse and an amateur rider it can be tricky at times and just increases the chances of not succeeding and properly doing the task which was the case most the time but I worked though it with Dawns help.
Today Zoe my mentor came by to check in and see how I was doing. It was kinda cool to get to show Zoe a handful of the things I've been learning as well as let her meet Dawn. I knew Zoe wasn't the horse person coming in but I hope she enjoyed it and maybe learned a little something at the same time.
Mentor Interview
Thursday 3/12/15
Today we did some nice work in the arena at Dawns house as well I got a good portion of my project done and the mentor interview. I'm afraid the audio will not be loud enough to hear but we will see. Her web sight is coming along pretty great I think and Dawn is happy with it so that's a plus!
It was really interesting to be able to sit down and listen to Dawn answer my questions. I feel it was a good time for her to reflect and look forward as well for me to learn even more about Dawns past and how she got to the place she is today. We went through my questions faster then I predicted which made me wish I had to ask but all and all the interview went very well. I did learn that her brother is a horse trainer currently as well up by Denver and later she showed me a video of him showing a horse he had trained which was really interesting to me because it was very different in many ways then what Dawn trains. Dawn trains show, barrel and trial and her brother trains raining horses for a big ranch. We also later talked about how when she went to college at the fort she brought her horses with her to race barrels as well just to have. This just showed me how in lots of ways the times have changed to a degree. Like how many college kids to you see at the fort that have horses with them... not many at all I'm guessing. This horse town has evolved its self into a biker town over the years.
Today we did some nice work in the arena at Dawns house as well I got a good portion of my project done and the mentor interview. I'm afraid the audio will not be loud enough to hear but we will see. Her web sight is coming along pretty great I think and Dawn is happy with it so that's a plus!
It was really interesting to be able to sit down and listen to Dawn answer my questions. I feel it was a good time for her to reflect and look forward as well for me to learn even more about Dawns past and how she got to the place she is today. We went through my questions faster then I predicted which made me wish I had to ask but all and all the interview went very well. I did learn that her brother is a horse trainer currently as well up by Denver and later she showed me a video of him showing a horse he had trained which was really interesting to me because it was very different in many ways then what Dawn trains. Dawn trains show, barrel and trial and her brother trains raining horses for a big ranch. We also later talked about how when she went to college at the fort she brought her horses with her to race barrels as well just to have. This just showed me how in lots of ways the times have changed to a degree. Like how many college kids to you see at the fort that have horses with them... not many at all I'm guessing. This horse town has evolved its self into a biker town over the years.
Staying Sharp
Wednesday 3/11/15
Today was an off day for me you could say. I couldn't quite get the horses to do what I was asking like usual, and at first I thought it was just the horses, but then I realized it was me. I hadn't gotten the sleep that I should of the night before and the horses and Dawn could tell and called me out on it. I wasn't paying the close attention to all my leg, hand and body ques like I should of and in turn I was getting sloppy. And when I get sloppy I give mixed signals and don't stay consistent in turn letting them get away with some things . But because of this I found out how impotent it is for the rider to always be mentally focused when training and working with horses. And sometimes that may just be realizing your having an off day and sticking to more basic tasks the horse is already comfortable with. What I've begone to realize though is it doesn't matter how well trained or how much information a horse knows it's only as good as its rider, this is why Dawns horses respond better and excel much faster with Dawn then me.
Today was an off day for me you could say. I couldn't quite get the horses to do what I was asking like usual, and at first I thought it was just the horses, but then I realized it was me. I hadn't gotten the sleep that I should of the night before and the horses and Dawn could tell and called me out on it. I wasn't paying the close attention to all my leg, hand and body ques like I should of and in turn I was getting sloppy. And when I get sloppy I give mixed signals and don't stay consistent in turn letting them get away with some things . But because of this I found out how impotent it is for the rider to always be mentally focused when training and working with horses. And sometimes that may just be realizing your having an off day and sticking to more basic tasks the horse is already comfortable with. What I've begone to realize though is it doesn't matter how well trained or how much information a horse knows it's only as good as its rider, this is why Dawns horses respond better and excel much faster with Dawn then me.
Flying Leads
Tuesday 3/10/15
Today we did the same thing as yesterday but I got to ride her finished barrel horse Clair which was so much different then the horses I'm used too. I did learn how to do hindquarter bends as well as flying lead changes today. Flying lead changes are what they sound like. You will be loping on lets say the right lead, so leading with the right foot which is for turning right, then you give a simple command to ask them to change leads while still at a run in preparation for a turn in the other direction. When they do this they are "flying" between leads, same thing you do when you skip. You change from right foot forward to the left foot forward. Many horses don't know how to do this on command, but a good barrel or show horses does because they have to when running barrel patterns and its required in many horse show patterns. This took me a while to give her horse the right ques but with Dawns help I started to get it. When shes teaching me new things I can really see her past experience in teaching coming through and making it easier and clearer for me to learn and understand. All and all it was a pretty great day, nice and sunny, getting to ride horses and learn new things! No complaints. |
Start of Week 2
3/9/15
Today I started with working on updating her webpage then ponying several horses, We took them out to a little spot that we could work them considering her arena still is not dry. We mainly focused on working with Bandit, the most "green" colt Dawn has. She was having problems with forword motion with her so she decided that having me pony her around at a lope for a while would one tire her out a little as well as help her with that forward motion. After a while of that Dawn got on Bandit and worked her as I rode some of the other horses but mainly just watched and she explained to me what it was she was working on. I really enjoy just listening to Dawn and trying to take in as much information and knowledge as I can in the short time I have with her.
Today I started with working on updating her webpage then ponying several horses, We took them out to a little spot that we could work them considering her arena still is not dry. We mainly focused on working with Bandit, the most "green" colt Dawn has. She was having problems with forword motion with her so she decided that having me pony her around at a lope for a while would one tire her out a little as well as help her with that forward motion. After a while of that Dawn got on Bandit and worked her as I rode some of the other horses but mainly just watched and she explained to me what it was she was working on. I really enjoy just listening to Dawn and trying to take in as much information and knowledge as I can in the short time I have with her.
Lessons on Bending
3/6/15
Today was a pretty chill day which meant Dawn had a little more time to help and teach me. I did the usual warming up and cooling down of the horses but today she let me do most of the lesson for one of the horses. I really enjoyed this and getting to learn more of the training aspect of it all. As well I love seeing how Dawns trust in me keeps increasing as she teaches me more and more. She will start teaching me a lesson or skill on a horse that has already learned it, like counter bending or 2 tracking for instance. Once I learn the proper way and feeling comfortable she then moves me onto a horse that is in the process of learning this and gives me a chance to put what I've learned to work. And of course the horses all respond better with Dawn then me because shes so good at what she does but it motivates me to keep pushing me self and leaning more.
Looking back on this week and seeing where I started and where I feel I am already is making me even more excited for whats in store next week. I believe a big factor in this chance has been my relationship with Dawn, we have really been getting along great and been able to work together with ease and has allowed me to learn even faster because of my growing trust and respect for her.
Today was a pretty chill day which meant Dawn had a little more time to help and teach me. I did the usual warming up and cooling down of the horses but today she let me do most of the lesson for one of the horses. I really enjoyed this and getting to learn more of the training aspect of it all. As well I love seeing how Dawns trust in me keeps increasing as she teaches me more and more. She will start teaching me a lesson or skill on a horse that has already learned it, like counter bending or 2 tracking for instance. Once I learn the proper way and feeling comfortable she then moves me onto a horse that is in the process of learning this and gives me a chance to put what I've learned to work. And of course the horses all respond better with Dawn then me because shes so good at what she does but it motivates me to keep pushing me self and leaning more.
Looking back on this week and seeing where I started and where I feel I am already is making me even more excited for whats in store next week. I believe a big factor in this chance has been my relationship with Dawn, we have really been getting along great and been able to work together with ease and has allowed me to learn even faster because of my growing trust and respect for her.
Barrel Day
3/5/15
Today we tailored the horses to Ignacio for a lesson and then Farmington to train and get her barrel horse used to the deeper dirt for the barrel race this weekend. Today was the first day that we got back to the normal routine. I was responsible in warming up the horses with what Dawn has already taught me. Working on the horses to bend, tuck their heads and lift their stomach to give a nice calm and collected look, as well doing this helps them develop strong back muscles that allows them to hold them selves together nicer and cut/ turn sharper. I also work on transitions from a sitting trot to posting trot as well as loping on the correct lead.
Today was the first day that Dawn let me ride one of colts named Rango and her barrel horses. It was cool to see her trust in me increase as well as my skill level. I was a little unsure at first but I knew that if she trusted me to ride these horses that it would all be good if I just really focused on my self and giving clear commands. The most interesting part to me was seeing how different every horse was and how differently I had to ride every horses one because of their skill level and their personality. I say this because some horses are more easy going or "softer". If you are ruff and forceful with a soft horse you can get yourself into a situation less then desirable. This is how Dawns barrel horse is, just the smallest of movements and pressure on my part she will go and do pretty much anything I want.
Today we tailored the horses to Ignacio for a lesson and then Farmington to train and get her barrel horse used to the deeper dirt for the barrel race this weekend. Today was the first day that we got back to the normal routine. I was responsible in warming up the horses with what Dawn has already taught me. Working on the horses to bend, tuck their heads and lift their stomach to give a nice calm and collected look, as well doing this helps them develop strong back muscles that allows them to hold them selves together nicer and cut/ turn sharper. I also work on transitions from a sitting trot to posting trot as well as loping on the correct lead.
Today was the first day that Dawn let me ride one of colts named Rango and her barrel horses. It was cool to see her trust in me increase as well as my skill level. I was a little unsure at first but I knew that if she trusted me to ride these horses that it would all be good if I just really focused on my self and giving clear commands. The most interesting part to me was seeing how different every horse was and how differently I had to ride every horses one because of their skill level and their personality. I say this because some horses are more easy going or "softer". If you are ruff and forceful with a soft horse you can get yourself into a situation less then desirable. This is how Dawns barrel horse is, just the smallest of movements and pressure on my part she will go and do pretty much anything I want.
Ponying
3/4/15
Today I started on my internship project of helping Dawn update her webpage. She gave me a list of all the things she wanted done as well she gave me full rein to change or edit anything I saw fit. I noticed when doing this my past experience with my DP and Digital Arts class really helped me out.
After lunch we took four of the horses out for a ride. Dawn riding Clair ponying twister, Me riding Maverick ponying Bandit. This was our way of being able to get more horses out at once. This is something I've done quite a bit and is a really helpful thing to know how to do.
On these trail rides its been cool getting to know Dawn and ask any questions that I have. The more questions I ask and the more time I spend with Dawn i'm staring to realize how much knowledge and advice she has to offer me. And shes always so willing to explain and teach me new things while not making me feel stupid for not knowing. All and all I'm really starting to enjoy my internship.
For reference here's all the horses I'll be working with throughout my internship.
Dawn's horses
Today I started on my internship project of helping Dawn update her webpage. She gave me a list of all the things she wanted done as well she gave me full rein to change or edit anything I saw fit. I noticed when doing this my past experience with my DP and Digital Arts class really helped me out.
After lunch we took four of the horses out for a ride. Dawn riding Clair ponying twister, Me riding Maverick ponying Bandit. This was our way of being able to get more horses out at once. This is something I've done quite a bit and is a really helpful thing to know how to do.
On these trail rides its been cool getting to know Dawn and ask any questions that I have. The more questions I ask and the more time I spend with Dawn i'm staring to realize how much knowledge and advice she has to offer me. And shes always so willing to explain and teach me new things while not making me feel stupid for not knowing. All and all I'm really starting to enjoy my internship.
For reference here's all the horses I'll be working with throughout my internship.
Dawn's horses
Client Horses
Farrier
3/3/15
Today was a little cold to say the least. Blowing and snowing made for great riding weather so Dawn and I decided. We just went on a small ride around the place, with Sugar and Rango because we didn't have much time after the farrier spent most of late morning putting shoes on several of the horses. It was interesting being able to talk to this older gentleman that was the farrier and being able to ask him about his trade and the "corrective shoeing" that he was doing on one of Dawns barrel horses. Corrective shoeing can mean many different things. It could be just correcting the direction the hoof sits. Example of this would be when a horse is "Pidgin Toed" meaning their hoof angles in, you can do corrective shoeing to correct this. As well this is used most of the time to deal or help correct past injuries, this was the case for Dawn horses. You could kinda call the farrier like the little horse chiropractor, they help correct and prevent injuries and prior conditions as well giving the horse the proper support. |
First Day
3/2/15
Well what can I say it was a crazy first day. If it was the waking up 10 min before I was supposed to leave, which was extremely rare of me to sleep in, or the crazy amount of information I've already learned. So I got to the Durango Fair Grounds just on time with 5 minutes to spare, and left my lights on on my car which I would later found out and have to get jumped, but back on track. Dawn fills me in on the day and we start riding. (Background info I've never been the type to take riding lessons but more of a pack trips, and riding on trails in the mountains person). We start riding, Dawn on her 4 year old buckskin and me on a horse named Sugar (a little girl named her if you couldn't tell). Dawn is training Sugar to be a Gymkhana horse. Gymkhanas are rodeos but more of just games on horses. Dawn jumped in and started giving me all these tips and helping me find the proper positioning of body depending on the exercises we were doing. Immediately I noticed a big difference. Then we started working with Sugar to learn to transition from walk, slow and fast trot or canter, then lope with me mainly using voice commands and the shifting of my weight. We then worked on side stepping and learning to change her lead when in a lope. Lead is the driving or leading front hoof. This is very important with barrel horses in particular as well as many other rodeo events. Then Later in the evening Dawn did two personal riding lessons.
Well what can I say it was a crazy first day. If it was the waking up 10 min before I was supposed to leave, which was extremely rare of me to sleep in, or the crazy amount of information I've already learned. So I got to the Durango Fair Grounds just on time with 5 minutes to spare, and left my lights on on my car which I would later found out and have to get jumped, but back on track. Dawn fills me in on the day and we start riding. (Background info I've never been the type to take riding lessons but more of a pack trips, and riding on trails in the mountains person). We start riding, Dawn on her 4 year old buckskin and me on a horse named Sugar (a little girl named her if you couldn't tell). Dawn is training Sugar to be a Gymkhana horse. Gymkhanas are rodeos but more of just games on horses. Dawn jumped in and started giving me all these tips and helping me find the proper positioning of body depending on the exercises we were doing. Immediately I noticed a big difference. Then we started working with Sugar to learn to transition from walk, slow and fast trot or canter, then lope with me mainly using voice commands and the shifting of my weight. We then worked on side stepping and learning to change her lead when in a lope. Lead is the driving or leading front hoof. This is very important with barrel horses in particular as well as many other rodeo events. Then Later in the evening Dawn did two personal riding lessons.