Are you sitting on the fence of horse clinic participation? Don't let your fear of failure or looking stupid in front of others let you miss out on success with your horse!
If you are anything like I used to be, you heard about an upcoming horsemanship clinic and you got all excited about it. You put the flyer in your pocket and were determined that this time you were going to actually participate. The deadline for payment draws near and you psyched yourself out.
*You start thinking about not being as good as others in the class.
*You worry that your horse's behavior will make you look stupid or embarrass you.
*You worry about your riding skills and how you bounce too much in the saddle.
*Perhaps you are carrying a couple extra pounds and you don't want the younger thinner ladies in the class to make you feel inadequate because you don't like how you look.
*You're afraid you won't "get it" or that you won't be able to keep up with the class. All these things are real feelings. All of them are natural. All of them are self sabotaging. But all of them can be changed!
There are a couple of really important things to remember here. First of all, even the best horsemanship clinicians had to start somewhere. You can bet that they have wrapped a few ropes around their own heads, tripped or whacked themselves a time or two while learning. You can bet they've been bucked off,
bitten, pushed or perhaps even been stepped on or run over by a horse. Now, they may have started earlier in their horsemanship and learning than we did. But by no means has anyone fallen out of bed and were just 'good' with horses.
Way too much needs to be learned. Second, horses are unpredictable. The best trained horse can do something out of character. I've seen the quietest horses in my experience, all the sudden react to something that we would have bet the farm they wouldn't have a problem with. Third, riding horses is not easy. Anyone who says they are 'natural' in my opinion has a faulty sense of self. Perhaps they have natural balance which makes them a little more athletic. But that's about it.
Look around, anyone that rides horses has things to work on. Whether it is body softness, understanding the dynamics of movement and balance, rein positions, feel, energy... the list goes on. Just because a person can sit on a horse, doesn't mean they understand them either. Remember that the really good ones didn't just get that way. It just means that by the time you crossed paths with them, they were at a higher level in their learning, is all. Forth, even the beautiful people have problems. That is why they are in the clinic. Finally, any good horsemanship clinician will recognize what the individual participants need most and do whatever necessary to make sure they get that ingredient important for their personal progression before the end of the clinic.
One of my biggest inspirations was a woman in her late 50s. She was in a horsemanship clinic with me years ago. She was overweight, thought she was too old, and to add to that, she had fallen from her horse and broke her back a few years before I had met her. She loved her horses dearly, but she had all these factors against her. This lady and I had participated in clinics a couple of times. She never quit. She kept coming back. And the day she finally cantered her horse for the first time since her accident, there wasn't a dry eye in the place. Since then, she's had two hip replacements, bought a couple of young horses and rides them in organized trail rides. She's dropped all sorts of weight and continues to put herself out there to learn and become better for her horses.
Don't be a victim of "stink'n think'n." You deserve and owe it to yourself and to your horse to get out there and learn. Books and videos are great, but nothing compares to hands on face to face with a horsemanship clinician. It's never to late. So put your anxieties aside, climb over the fence and go
find out how much fun it is to be in a clinic where learning and progressing in horsemanship happens!
Terri Jordan a native of Wisconsin currently living in central MA is moving to The Natural Gait, located in Harpers Ferry, Iowa in April 2011. There Terri will become the resident trainer, clinician and instructor for TNG's Equine Facility.
Terri's Get Back To Basics teachings are designed to help owners understand their horses based on where the horse is at in his foundation development. http://www.thenaturalgait.com/
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