It had been a couple of years since Brian and I attended an entire horsemanship clinic. We’ve been watching videos, reading, and continuing to grow in other ways, but the immersive experience of thinking about nothing but horses for several days running it definitely a special kind of boost. When we saw Buck was going… Read more »
Buck Brannaman
Texas and Buck Brannaman and Springtime
Last Saturday, Brian and I drove to Texas. His parents have moved to the Dallas area, and it was high time we got down there to visit. While this did mean we were away from our horses for a while, happily Buck was nearby. On Monday, we kidnapped Brian’s mother and all of us audited… Read more »
More Bear Time
Heading out to the barn this morning I wasn’t sure who to ride. Normally we get into a rhythm where we alternate between our own horse and Laredo, but with the time off, we both could have ridden Laredo. We decided that Robin would ride Steen if he came to her, if not, she’d ride… Read more »
Softness and Life
These strike me as two of the most important elements in horsemanship. Over the past couple of years I have been working hard on coming to understand softness. I know I can keep getting softer (probably a LOT softer), but Bear and I have come so far in this area. What I often lack is… Read more »
And a Few More
The weather has continued to keep us confined to the indoor arena. While I am very grateful to have access to such a facility, it definitely limits our riding options. This time of year it often seems we start to struggle to come up with things to do and work on. When that happens, it… Read more »
Hearing Buck In My Head
We continue to watch the 7 Clinics DVDs, and they continue to be wonderful. It is great that we can latch onto an exercise, see multiple different moments of Buck talking about it along with many people working on it, and then go out and try it ourselves. Today I spent a while warming Bear… Read more »
Making It Happen, And Staying Soft
When I first saw Buck in Decorah last September, there were a number of things that stood out to me, but one of the big ones was the idea that you always give the horse a good deal (with less pressure than you think it will take), and if that doesn’t work, you make it… Read more »
A Long Weekend Report
I took Friday off because my parents were in town. They have not visited for about a year, so it was fun for us to hang out and spend a lot of time at the barn. Friday was cold and windy. We woke up to a damp day and then it just got wetter. It… Read more »
Steen the Accomplished
I was a little engrossed in my work today when Brian got home, and when I get engrossed it can be hard for me to switch gears. It was a beautiful day, and I worked for twelve hours straight yesterday. I knew I could benefit from a break. Still, it took a little bit of… Read more »
Playing Cow
We got to the barn fairly early to meet a friend for a trail ride. It was really cool out, and we were looking forward to a long day of riding. Unfortunately our friend never made it out. We tacked up and started riding on the strip thinking they would show, but no. So we… Read more »