I realized that most of my posts of our summer programming are of the riders doing non-riding events. And, with Jacki's amazing leadership, we are certainly doing lots of great non-riding activities. However, it is the riding that is the real attraction.
In one short year I am proud of Chuck, Linda and Krissy -- they have really developed the vision of having well-taken care of horses who are well-suited to instilling in young riders the joy of horseback riding. There are so many aspects to riding that are positive for kids: balance, needing to focus and take direction. The self confidence that the riders gain being able to control something so much bigger than themselves is its own reward.
For the first time riders, they get our calmest, most dependable horses: Dixie, Hercules, Sweet Pea, Mr. Tee and Buck. All of these horse vary a great deal in size from Hercules who is only about 13 hands to Sweet Pea who is 16 and a half! New riders each have a leader, and in some cases a side walker. They learn balance, positioning, and just get a feel for the horse. To keep it interesting, Linda has them do a bunch of different things on the horse: around the world, posting at the walk with hands on hips. Alot of that is what you see here.
Once students are comfortable they get off the lead line but still have a leader near the horses head in case they get in trouble.
It is so interesting to see the riders different personalities on and off the horse. Children who are really tentative on the ground sometimes meld with the horses in short order, whereas kids who are completely confident on the ground sometimes take a little longer to develop confidence on the back of the horse.
It is an art and Linda is phenomenal at picking up on each horse's daily disposition and each riders' emotions. The result is meeting the goal of having everyone get off their horse with a smile on his or her face!
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