2 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 3
AN-49f (0113)
FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK
February 2015
Get A Grip People!
F
irst of all, let me be clear. I am against animal cruelty in any shape or form. But I have to say from posts I’ve read on social media, some well meaning activists are just over the top in their demands. I think that puppy mills, true puppy mills where the breed dogs live their lives in tiny filthy cages, with no human love or contact is By Vicki Long deplorable. In fact, several years ago I fostered a Yorkshire Terrier that spent her first five years in those conditions. It was a challenge to teach her people can love, and that she can trust us. After several months of building that trust, and with the help of my Yorkie Scarlett, she learned to be a dog, accept love, and found a forever home that was loving and kind. Yes, we must stop the inhumane breeders who run the deplorable puppy mills. But don’t lump all breeders into this category and call for a ban on all dog breeding that some of you are asking for. That is not fair to them, or to folks who want to add a particular breed to their family. I have bought two Yorkies in my life from people where the parent dogs were part of their family, and not kept in deplorable cages all their lives. I love Yorkies and they were my babies, and my life would not have been complete without them. And don’t judge me for buying a purebred rather than adopting. We do have another dog that we rescued from a shelter. I have a friend that sells purebred dogs. The parent dogs are part of her family. They are wonderful, and the puppies she sells go to good homes, on spay/neuter contracts, and it makes her buyers happy to have the pure bred dog they have always wanted. The Go Daddy Super Bowl Commercial that got pulled got my attention with this issue from the activists wanting to ban all breeders. In the commercial a puppy falls out of the back of a pickup truck, and travels miles to get home, only to find his breeder had sold him on-line and was sending him to a new home. The place did not look like an egregious puppy mill, so the part about him falling out of the back of a truck is what got me, not that he was meant for another family. I hate seeing dogs riding loose in the back of a truck, and when I see a dead dog on a freeway, I can’t help but think they fell out of a truck. That to me is what should be banned. Another reason I did not like the commercial was the fact the woman could still send the pup away after he traveled so far to get back home, but not the fact that she had bred him. If we ban all breeding even from the reputable breeders, after a time might not highly bred but affordable dogs start to disappear? My animals, dogs and horses, are my children. I couldn’t imagine life without one. Yes, adopt from a shelter, get your dogs and cats neutered. But don’t lump good breeders in with the bad, and don’t judge people that want purebreds rather than mixed breeds from shelters. I have both, and they are the light of my life.
On the Cover:
I’ts Rodeo Time!
4 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
Cover Story: 38 The Ride of a Lifetime - Steven Long
Lifestyle & Real Estate: 14 26 34 50 52
The Future of Equine Breeding - Margaret Pirtle Rust and Memories - Ronnie Nordquist Sixteen 805 - Margaret Pirtle Real Estate Roundup Five Star Realtors
Columns: 8 Horse Bites 12 One Step Forward - Linda Parelli 16 Ride-N-Sync™ - Terry Myers 22 Tack Talk - Lew Pewterbaugh 44 Hoof N’ Horse - Jaime Jackson 62 Cowboy Corner - Jim Hubbard
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 5
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6 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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Angleton Feed & Supply Co., LLC Angleton, TX • 979-849-6661
Livingston Feed & Farm Supply Livingston, TX • 936-327-8853
Mummes San Antonio, TX • 830-980-4924
Smith Supply Lockhart, TX • 512-398-3785
D&L Farm & Home - Sanger Sanger, TX • 940-458-0111
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Lone Star Country Store Corpus Christi, TX • 361- 387-2668
Georgetown Farm Supply Georgetown, TX • 512-930-4054
Jakes Feed and Animal Center Longview, TX • 903-663-3139
Tibaldo’s Feed & Supply Santa Fe, TX • 409-925-2735
Adams Feed Arlington, TX • 817-548-8661
Smith General Store Corsicana, TX • 903-874-1372
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American Feed Seagoville, TX • 972-287-5984
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Producers Coop-Seguin Seguin, TX • 830-379-1750
D&L Feed & Home Aubrey, TX • 940-365-3129
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Feeders Dallas, TX • 972-224-5559
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Texoma Feed Sherman, TX • 903-436-1685
Bandera Ranch Store Bandera, TX • 830-796-3342
Pasturas Dallas, TX • 214-563-9875
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Spring Creek Feed Center Magnolia, TX • 281-252-5400 Mansfield Feed Mansfield, TX • 817-473-1137 Watson Feed Store Mart, TX • 254-876-2501 McGregor General Store McGregor, TX • 254-840-3224 D&L AgMart McKinney, TX • 972-562-9995 Adams Feed-Midlothian Midlothian, TX • 972-775-1005 Walden Farm & Ranch Supply - Millsap Millsap, TX • 940-682-4667 Walden Farm & Ranch Supply Mineral Wells Mineral Wells, TX • 940-325-8500
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Engledow Farm & Ranch Supply Palestine, TX • 903-723-3210
Bernardo Farm & Ranch Supply Cat Spring, TX • 979- 732-5161
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Lochte Feed and General Store Fredericksburg, TX • 830-997-2256
McDonnell Feed Keller, TX • 817-431-3551
Reeves County Feed Pecos, TX • 432-447-2149
Boles Feed Center, TX • 936-598-3061
Gulf Coast Equine and Pet Center Friendswood, TX • 281-482-7186
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Wells Bros Plano, TX • 972-424-8516
Silvers Pet & Feed Cibolo, TX • 210-566-8020
William Gin & Grain Frost, TX • 903-682-2611
Kerrville Ranch and Pet Kerrville, TX • 830-895-5800
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Ricks Farm and Home Clarksville, TX • 903-427-3395
Marshall Grain Ft. Worth, TX • 817-536-5636
Hoffpauir’s Ranch & Supply Lampasas, TX • 512-556-5444
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Close Quarters Feed & Pet Supply College Station, TX • 979- 690-3333
D&L Farm & Home - Gainesville Gainesville, TX • 940-612-1210
LaVernia Country Store LaVernia, TX • 830-779-2600
Round Top Farm & Ranch Round Top, TX • 979-249-5666
Conroe Feeders Supply Conroe, TX • 936-441-5549
Ganado Feed & More Ganado, TX • 361-771-2401
Hill Country Feed Leander, TX • 512-259-1658
Eagle Hardward Farm & Ranch Royse City, TX • 972-635-7878
J&D Country Store Conroe, TX • 936-756-7667
Coryell Feed & Supply Gatesville, TX • 254-865-6315
Bear Creek Store Leonard, TX • 903-587-0385
Holt Ranch & Feed Royse City, TX • 972-365-3695
Beran’s Agri-Center Shiner, TX • 361- 594-3395 Somerville Farm & Ranch Somerville, TX • 979-596-2224 Springtown Feed Springtown, TX • 817-220-7656 Allied Ag Stonewall, TX • 830-644-2411 Taylor Feed Taylor, TX • 512-365-9436 Temple Feed & Supply Temple, TX • 254-778-7975 Three Rivers Coop Three Rivers, TX • 361-786-3242 D&D Feed and Supply Tomball, TX • 281-351-7144 Texas Farm Store Uvalde, TX • 830-278-3713
Scott’s Crossing Murchison, TX • 903-469-3122
Northside Ranch, Pet & Garden Victoria, TX • 361-573-5000
Boles Feed Nacogdoches, TX • 936-564-2671
Waco Brazos Feed & Supply Waco, TX • 254-756-6687
Middle G Naples, TX • 903-575-1869
B&S Farm & Home Center Waco, TX • 254-752-0777
Needville Feed and Supply Needville, TX • 979-793-6141 New Braunfels Feed and Supply New Braunfels, TX • 830-625-7250 Berend Brothers-Olney Olney, TX • 940-564-5674
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Bar None Country Store Waco, TX • 254-848-9112 Haney’s Feed and Supply Waller, TX • 936-931-2469 Ark Country Store Waxahachie, TX • 972-937-8860 Walden Farm & Ranch Supply Weatherford Weatherford, TX • 817-598-0043 Wharton Feed & Supply Wharton, TX • 979-532-8533 Berend Brothers-Wichita Falls Wichita Falls, TX • 940-723-2736 Walker’s Farm & Ranch Supply Willis, TX • 936-856-6446 King Feed and Hardware Wimberly, TX • 512-847-2618 Berend Brothers Windthorst, TX • 940-423-6223 Tri County Enterprise Winnsboro, TX • 903-342-3586 Poole Feed Wylie, TX • 469-323-7814 Yoakum Grain, Inc Yoakum, TX • 361-293-3521
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 7
A Magical World By Cathy Strobel FRISCO, Texas -The preview of Cavalia Odysseo was everything we hoped it would be and more. The horses were beautiful, the performers were beyond talented and the illusions created by the imaginative lighting and backdrops transformed the stage into faraway lands where dreams are made. The live music added another dimension to the show that takes you from the desert to an artistic carousel ride like you’ve never seen before and finally ends up in a playground of water. One of the highlights of the show is the liberty segment where several horses are running freely around the arena until they are magically summoned to gather around a single woman who clearly is a horse whisperer. The show, which has now been extended for two more weeks, is one worth traveling to see. If you have the good fortune to see it, you will never forget the beauty of the horses
8 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
Oak, Erin Ivy and Jeffrey Yates, served as event co-chairs. Greater Houston “Horse Bites is compiled from Press Releases sent to Horseback Gun Club member Ben Wescott served as honorary chair. Magazine. Original reporting is Pin Oak Sporting Clays done as circumstances warrant. sponsors included: Alamo Resources, Content is edited for length & style.” AIMS International, Walsh & Albert, AquaTerra Outfitters, Chamber-View, and the horsemanship, the incredible Ragin Cajun, Saint Arnold Brewing performers or the magic of the artCo. and Whole Foods. istry! For Tickets go to: www.cavalia. About The Pin Oak Charnet ity Horse Show: The 70th Pin Oak Charity Horse Show will be held March 17-29, 2015, at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in the It was Guns Up For A Great Cause on Houston suburb of Katy. The Pin Oak Jan. 19 At the Second Annual Pin Oak Charity Horse Show was founded in Sporting Clays Classic Houston in 1945 and is recognized as one of the oldest and most prestiHOUSTON, Texas– Under picture perfect skies and optimal temperatures, gious horse shows in the country. As one of Houston’s most unique social The Pin Oak Club hosted its Second and fundraising events, The Pin Oak Annual Pin Oak Sporting Clays ClasCharity Horse Show has raised nearly sic, “Guns and Roses”, on Monday, $6 million for its designated charities: Jan. 19. The event was held at the Texas Children’s Hospital, Ronald Greater Houston Gun Club. A total of McDonald Family Rooms at Texas 10 corporate-sponsored teams raised nearly $20,000 for its charity beneficia- Children’s Hospital and Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Family Alliance. ries—Texas Children’s Hospital, RonPin Oak holds the distinction of being ald McDonald Family Rooms at Texas Children’s Hospital and Candlelighters the first donor to Texas Children’s Hospital, a legacy of giving that began Childhood Cancer Family Alliance. in 1947 to plan and build the hospiAt this year’s Sporting Clays tal. For more information on show Classic, the teams of four participated sponsorship, volunteering, or securing in High Point Team and High Point general admission tickets, please visit Individual competitions including www.pinoak.org or call the Pin Oak flurries and complete with mulligans. office at 713-621-6290. Team Pelletier & Alamo Resources, LLC won the High Point Team competition. Winning team members are Tony Pelletier, Trent Pelletier, David MOTE BACK ON TOP IN Burrows and Greg Moredock. MoredDENVER AFTER 12-YEAR WAIT ock was “the ringer,” as the High Point Individual shooter of the day. Prizes for DENVER, CO. – After a long drought, winners included a Redhead Softshell bareback rider Bobby Mote returned Shotgun Case, a Pin Oak Clay Shoot Logo Hat, and an AquaTerra Outfitters to the throne at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo Jan. 25. Guide Shirt. Horsebites - Con’t. on pg. 10 Young Professionals of Pin
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 9
Horsebites - Con’t. from pg. 8
The four-time world champion won his first title in the Mile High City since 2003 with a 249-point score on three head before a near-capacity crowd at the Denver Coliseum. Mote clinched the average crown with an electric finals-winning 89-point ride on C5 Rodeo’s Virgil. “It feels good, and that was a great horse,” said Mote, who finished fourth last season in the Windham Weaponry High Performance PRCA World Standings. “That’s the best horse I’ve been on in a long time. I was happy to be able to do my job.” Although Mote has won countless rodeos in his decorated career, he still knows how critical it is to capture winter rodeo victories. “It’s really important for my season to get started off strong,” Mote said. “I feel like this is the first big winter rodeo of the season and it’s important to get a good start here. It’s a hard place to win; I won this rodeo (in 2003) and I’ve come every year since, so obviously it is not easy to win.” Mote, a native of Culver, Ore., held off Tim O’Connell and Steven Dent – they tied for second with 247 points – for the Denver win. Mote collected $8,063 for his performance – $7,564 for snaring the average and finals victories. “I thought I would,” said Mote when asked if he thought he was going to register a great score on Virgil. “It was one of those (rides) that was really nip and tuck and I didn’t know if I was going to be there when the whistle blew. A lot of times, if you’re doing your job right and the horse is bucking that hard, then it should be a good score. I was consistent in the first couple of rounds and it allowed me to come back for the finals and, thank God, I had a good horse in the short round, which allowed me to make up some ground.” According to Mote, this was his first time competing since the 2014 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo ended Dec. 13 in Las Vegas. “I took a month off, which isn’t much time, and I’m in good shape, but actually you probably get sorer when you start back because your body is not in riding shape,” Mote said. Other winners at the $474,801 rodeo were all-around cowboy Dent ($11,403, bareback riding and saddle bronc riding), steer wrestler Beau Clark (12.1 seconds on three head), team ropers Riley Minor and Brady
Minor (16.1 seconds on three head), saddle bronc rider Cody DeMoss (249 points on three head), tie-down roper Adam Gray (25.5 seconds on three head), barrel racer Meghan Johnson (45.95 seconds on three runs) and bull rider Zeb Lanham (248 points on three head). • Tonasket, Wash., bull rider Zack Oakes, a four-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifier, is back on the rodeo road after a two-year hiatus and looking like he may be ready for a strong comeback run. Oakes won both PRCA rodeos in Florida over the weekend, sharing the win in Homestead with Jimmy Lathero (85 points each) and winning outright in Homestead by being the only contestant to ride both of his bulls. Oakes, 31, qualified for the WNFR in 2004-05 and 2008-09, and cut back his schedule sharply after that last Las Vegas appearance before sitting out while recovering from injuries in 2013-14. SIRE THERAPEUTIC RIDING AND SAM HOUSTON RACE PARK HOUSTON, Texas -A brilliant blue sky and friendly hosts greeted two dozen riders from SIRE, their families, and SIRE volunteers at the Sam Houston Race Park on MLK Day. SIRE is a non-profit changing the lives of people with special needs through therapeutic horsemanship in three locations around Houston. So the SIRE visitors already adore horses and eagerly accepted the Race Park’s invitation to
10 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
compare race horses and jockeys to their own therapy horses and riders. As the afternoon proceeded another happy coincidence revealed itself. It really seemed liked family day. Many of the SIRE visitors came with family and were met by speakers who had grown up in horse-racing families. First up and accompanied by oohs and aahs, racehorse PicturePerfectCat (PPC) walked calmly into the winner’s circle with her handler Sarah Davidson. In addition to owning PPC, Sarah’s mother and father had owned the horse’s dam (mother) and sire (father). Including PPC, they are training 27 horses this season at the Sam Houston Race Park, their favorite track. The audience asked many questions about pretty PPC including her age (5), breed (thoroughbred), specialty (turf sprinter), and record (15 starts 3 wins, 3 places, 3 shows). Then SIRE clients crowded in close for the chance to pet her. Jockey Lindey Wade was the next to enter the winner’s circle, Both Lindey’s mother and father were jockeys. Questions came fast for Lindey, with visitors asking how he was assigned horses, his strategies, his attire and so on. As for that last question, SIRE rider Ainsley Alley was eager to compare her riding attire with Lindey’s. After Q and A time, many of the SIRE visitors took the opportunity of the warm weather and Sam Houston Race Park’s gracious offer to stay for a day at the races. About SIRE Horsebites - Con’t. on pg. 18 www.horsebackmagazine.com
“What’s Good for the Goose is Good for the Gander!” T There’s an old proverb “What’s good for the “ goose is good for the gander” and Back on o Track customers ccouldn’t agree more. Many have discovered M the benefits of Back on Track not only for their horses but for the themselves too. the
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 11
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back By Linda Parelli
D
oes the title phrase above bother you? If it does, your emotional fitness needs a little exercise! “Emotional Fitness” is a term my husband, Pat Parelli, started using way back in the 1980s. He talked about how we exercise the body and get our horses physically fit, but we tend to ignore their minds and emotions. So here’s the question for this article: How are you helping your horse to become more emotionally fit? A horse’s lack of emotional fitness shows itself in behaviors like fear, tension, confusion, and worry. As a consequence, horses react in ways that bother or scare us, or affect training results. Things like spooking, inability to stand still, distraction, tension, get-
ting fizzy, rearing, bucking, running backwards, stopping, shutting down, bolting – these are all signs that your horse needs greater emotional fitness. How does it show up in humans? Emotions and reactions like fear, frustration, anger, anxiety, self-anger, selfcriticism, feelings of unworthiness, and hopelessness are pretty good signs that your emotional fitness isn’t quite where you want it to be. Everyone experiences these emotions at different times, but it becomes a problem when they become a regular occurrence, or when they escalate in intensity. When you are emotionally fit, these kinds of emotions are reduced dramatically, both in frequency and intensity. So what is emotional fitness? My definition is this: “The ability to be left-brained in a right-brain situation. It means being the calm inside the storm and not letting your horse, others, or even your own negative self-talk undermine your ability to stay functional!” Just rolls off the tongue, right? Tony Robbins says “A person’s emotional fitness is measured by the
12 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
level of uncertainty they can handle.” Dr. Jenny Susser (with whom I am doing a series of Emotional Fitness Super Clinics this year) defines it as “The ability to rise to meet the situation by calling upon current or growing emotional capacities, without compromising ethical or character beliefs. It is an ever-increasing tolerance for enduring emotional stress and being able to perform, regardless of the situation. You have to MAKE yourself aware of your emotional self at all times.” Let’s get back to the title of this article: “Two Steps Forward, One Step Back.” This is almost invariably the experience of training horses, and of learning in general. But it’s more of a feeling than a fact. Just because you feel like you’ve taken a step back doesn’t mean you have. I’ve often heard our students say things like “When I got to Level 3 in the Parelli Program, I had to go back and fix all the holes in my Level 1.” But that’s actually not true. There were no holes in your Level 1, because that’s where you were back then; it’s just the first level. By Level 3, you see what needs to improve,
photo by Jerome Lovewww.horsebackmagazine.com
but that’s what Level 3 is all about! The worst thing you can do is stay in Level 1 until it’s perfect; that’s like saying “I’m not going to graduate from kindergarten until I get that perfect.” Learning is a step-by-step process of gradual, yet never-ending, improvement. The more
you learn, the more you know – but you cannot blame yourself for not knowing it in the beginning. Respecting yourself as a learner is so important. You need to allow yourself to feel the accomplishments, and you also need to acknowledge that learning is not a straight line going ever upwards. There will be plateaus and dips along the way; that’s just how it is. Understanding this is going to help you avoid feeling demoralized when your horse acts up a little, or seems to • No more dumping be more resistant and scrubbing tanks today, or shows a moment of his • Safe & chemical-free old, past behav• Keeps tanks clean & iors. You just drinking water palatable look it and say, up to 2 months “How interesting! There’s one ZZZ VWRFNWDQNVHFUHW FRP of those apparent © 2009 Turtle Creek Farm, Springfield, NE 68059
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dips on my learning curve!” Here’s how I think of it: I always expect to make progress, and I know that as long as I’m out there and trying and doing, I will. There will be puzzles to solve along the way, things that challenge my ability to say ‘Oh boy!” instead of “Oh no!” But as a trainer and a teacher, I have enough experience to know that even the worst “Oh no” ends up as an “Oh boy!”… in time. They end up being the most valuable learning experiences you can have, because it’s only when a muscle is stressed that it grows. So bring it on! Let’s celebrate those one-step-back moments as if we were experiencing the present, looking back from ten years out!
To learn more about the concept of emotional fitness, join Linda Parelli and Dr. Jenny Susser at one of their 2015 Emotional Fitness Super Clinics. Additional clinic information (along with dates, locations, and tickets) can be found at www.parelli.com.
February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 13
The Future of Equine Breeding By Margaret Pirtle
A
rtificial insemination for equine breeding has a long history and has had a profound impact in the horse industry. The natural order of breeding between a mare and stallion is not always possible due to availability or the suitability of the pair. In either case, artificial insemination has proven to be a
great benefit to the breeding process. But once the mare has been artificially inseminated, it has then been left to nature to determine the sex of the foal. That is until now. Situated in Navasota, Texas, Sexting Technology has for the first time, developed a sorting process for sperm that is an effective means of altering the
14 HHORSEBACK ORSEBACKM MAGAZINE AGAZINE• •February February2015 2015 14
sex ratio of offspring. This process has been successfully used in bovines for years, but is now being offered for equine breeding. With a ninety percent chance of gender accuracy, breeders may now choose the sex of a foal. With a equine facility on site, breeders may bring their stallions to Navasota for collection, or semen extenders ( which expands the viability of semen for up to twenty hours) and are available for breeders who prefer to collect the semen themselves and send it to Sexting Technologies for sorting. Once the semen is sorted, it is frozen and ready for insemination The economic benefits of sexed semen will be different for every breeder, but the opportunity to greatly enhance the sex of a foal can be beneficial in most breeds. To discuss this process with the professionals who can help you discover how your breeding program can benefit from sexting, please contact Sexting Technologies 22575 Highway 6 South, Navasota, Texas 77868 Office: 936.870.3960 or contact them via email at: info@sexingtechnologies.com www.horsebackmagazine.com www.horsebackmagazine.com
Male or Female? Now you have the choice The semen sorting process that revolutionized cattle breeding is now available for sex sorting equine semen.
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For more information contact: Vanessa Lima (936) 870-3960 vlima@sexingtechnologies.com www.SexingTechnologies.com www.horsebackmagazine.com
February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 15
The Push/Pull Instinct!
L
ast month we talked about the similarity of human and horse instincts. Fear can be one of our biggest obstacles to succeeding with our horses because of the reactions fear causes. Our ability to apply reason marks the difference between human and horse fear reactions. When we work to improve our horsemanship knowledge, we control our fear instincts and have much better chance at successful results with our horses. The instinctive reaction I’d like to talk about in this article is in regard to pressure, and how the horse and human reaction is the same. If you go up to your horse and push on their shoulder with your hand, with solid pressure, chances are that your horse will brace against that pressure. They may brace to the point that when you take your hand away, your horse will actually move back toward you. Do that same thing with a friend. The instant you start applying solid pressure, your friend will brace against that pressure to avoid moving. If you suddenly release the pressure, your friend will move toward you. The same instincts apply
when you are riding. Put solid pressure on the reins and your horse will lay on the bridle rein in your hand. The more you pull, the more your horse will brace or even pull back. People will have a similar reaction. Take a hold of a friend’s hand. Start to pull and you will feel them stiffen and brace against your pulling. Your horse does the same thing when you pull on the reins. With continually pulling on your horses’ mouth, your
16 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
horse braces against your pulling, they stiffen their jaw, neck, shoulder and possibly ribcage, taking away any ability for lateral flexion. Without lateral flexion, you cannot have collection. In addition, a horse which stiffens their neck and shoulder can also bolt, rear and buck. Get the picture? The same theory can be applied to leg pressure. Squeeze with your legs and instead of yielding to the pressure, your horse will likely brace in its side against the pres-
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sure. Also, when you squeeze with your legs, you stiffen your legs and lock your hips (I call this locking down your “seat bone”). With this type of rider body position, your horse can’t pick up their back to push off and move forward. When riders don’t get what they want from their horse, they apply more pressure. Horse doesn’t slow down when you pull on the reins, you pull harder. Am I right? The solution is a give and take approach with a “less is more” philosophy. Instead of solid rein pressure, bounce the rein with your fingers. Take out the slack just until you feel resistance, then bounce your rein by wiggling your fingers. That is NOT a jerk, but a gentle bump. When you feel a change, let go and reward your horse. Same applies to your legs. One of the most time consuming training issues I deal with are horses who have been jerked on
so much, that they have absolutely no lateral (side to side) bend or flexibility. Yes, the horse may be moving with their head down and neck level, but they have been pulled on so much that they are stiff, to the point of rigid, from their throat latch all the way through their ribs, and very forehand heavy in their movements. Think about it, if I punch you in the mouth enough, not only will you hate me, but you stiffen your jaw, neck and back. By the way, just because a horse moves with their head low, does not mean they are collected, but that is a subject for another article. Bottom line… wiggle and bump fingers instead of pulling on the reins and bump with your legs instead of squeezing. As soon as you get a change from your horse, no matter how small, release the pressure. And as I always say… Don’t Pull!
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Next month we will start talking about the hows and whys of body position. You can have great hands, but if your body is telling your horse something different than your hands, you will not get your desired results. Learn to ride your horse with your entire body and you will get better results and a more willing equine partner Questions about this or any of our articles can be emailed to us at myers5000@aol.com.
Terry Myers is a national clinician and champion horse trainer with a depth of knowledge developed from over 45 years in the horse industry. Myers has been a popular clinician at multiple expos in the U.S. and Canada. To learn more about Myers’ Ride-InSync methods as well as clinic and training services/products available, visit his website at www.tmtrainingcenter.com and joint him on Facebook.
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 17
+RUVHELWHV HorsAebites - Con’t. from pg. 10
The MISSION of SIRE is to improve the quality of life for people with special needs through therapeutic horsemanship activities and therapies, and educational outreach. SIRE is a Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International premier accredited center serving nearly 400 riders a year with three sites in the greater Houston area: Hockley, Richmond, and Spring. SIRE is a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation and donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Information regarding enrollment, volunteering, and donations can be found at www.sirehouston.org.
ACTHA GOES NON PROFIT SPICEWOOD, Texas -To bring in the New Year the American Competitive Trail Horse Association, ACTHA, a Texas Limited Liability Company, has announced that it has filed for nonprofit status. “The 501(c)(3) status has been filed and ACTHA will commence as a Texas nonprofit corporation in 2015.” So states Carrie Scrima, the originator
of the popular format giving recognition to all trail horses. It’s hard to believe that in just short of 7 years ACTHA has emerged as one of the largest holder of equine competitions in the world. What started as Carrie and some of her friends totting materials and obstacles to and from everywhere to support various charities, has evolved into an international phenomenon. Fun trail horse activities are taking place every single weekend across America in virtually every state and now in every province of Canada events will be offered. “With the ultimate goal being to help as many unwanted horses as possible by creating a huge secondary market for their absorption into the work place, we had to ask ourselves… can this goal be achieved faster and more efficiently as a nonprofit. The answer became clear...yes. We believe the net cost of becoming an ACTHA member and doing business in general with ACTHA will be enhanced and therefore help our quest for higher and higher volume. With that volume we get closer to accomplishing our ultimate mission... 100% equine employment once again in the history of the United
18 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
States. We are humbled by the overwhelming support we have received from the trail rider community and the equine industry at large. (And now even sources outside the industry from companies like True Value Hardware and some new automotive and financial concerns about to be announced). “We hope this move will make doing business with ACTHA even more attractive and successful for all.” Editor’s Note... All the traditional charitable contribution efforts of ACTHA will continue, such as gifting 20 percent of ACTHA’s gross share of member rider’s income rescues, therapeutic riding centers and eligible charities of all kinds. Those individual charities as always being chosen by the host of the individual events. The charitable giving will actually amplify as ACTHA continues its success and assumes the eventual role of a foundation issuing funding to causes like scholarships, other organizations who wish to accelerate the absorption of unwanted horses via “their” special programs and in general to many worthwhile methods to protect and employ the horse. ACTHA’s Mission
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+RUVHELWHV • To create an enjoyable venue showcasing the wonderful attributes of the great American trail horse and granting them the recognition they so richly deserve. • To create a registry open to all breeds and a point designation system which will stay with each horse for its lifetime, thereby adding to their value and distinction. • To create and enable humane treatment and employment options for horses in need. To learn more about ACTHA see www.actha.us
USPEA REMEMBERS NATHAN ASBY PORTLAND, OREGON - NATHAN “NATE” ASBY UNEXPECTEDLY PASSED AWAY JAN. 11, 2015 He was born in San Gabriel, Calif., September 25, 1967. He moved to Lake Oswego with his family in 1974. He graduated from Lake Oswego High School in 1986, attended College of the Siskiyous in Weed, Calif. for two years and received an AA degree in electronics engineering from ITT Technical Institute in 1991. He worked for Pinnacle Workforce Logistics. Even though Nathan was born with mild cerebral palsy, he did not let that interfere with any physical activity. Starting at a young age he enjoyed skiing with his family on Mt. Hood and cycling throughout the area. Family ski trips included trips to Canada and Switzerland. He also enjoyed karate and received his black belt in 2013. He enjoyed riding his horse Benny and traveled on several equestrian holidays in Spain, Northern Arizona and Costa Rica. Nathan comHorsAebites - Con’t. on pg. 21
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 19
20 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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+RUVHELWHV
HorsAebites - Con’t. from pg. 19
Bette Asby of peted and earned Westminster, multiple accolades Colo. and in the Arabian horse, Benny. Horse AssociaA tion horse shows. celebration of Recently he was Nate’s life will getting ready for be Saturday, his first national Feb. 14, para-dressage 2015 at the competition. Multnomah Nathan Athletic received his AdClub, 1849 vanced Amateur SW Salmon Radio License St., Portland, while in high Ore. from 1 school and ento 4 p.m. All joyed communiare welcome cating with other to come and NATHAN “NATE” ASBY hams around the share any speworld. cial memories Nathan was a member of the of Nate. Multnomah Athletic Club, Arabian Memorial contributions in Horse Association, Oregon Dressage Nate’s name can be made to the United Society and the Yudanskai (black belt States Para-Equestrian Association group) of the Japanese Karate Federa(www.uspea.org) or the Challenged tion. He was a volunteer instructor at Athletes Foundation (www.challengeHappy Trails Horse Therapy Center in dathletes.org). West Linn, Ore. Nathan is survived by his mother, Sarah Asby, father, Dennis DAN JAMES RETURNS TO KENTUCKY REINING Asby, sister Carrie Asby, grandmother CUP TO DEFEND WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP www.horsebackmagazine.com
FREESTYLE REINING TITLE SPECIAL INSIDER ACCESS TICKET AVAILABLE FOR FANS Lexington, KY –One of the mostly widely viewed equestrian performances of the 2014 competition year, clinician and entertainer Dan James of Double Dan Horsemanship stole the attention of the horse community with his powerful and imaginative program at the 2014 World Championship Freestyle Reining, taking home a World Champion title, and the People’s Choice Award. Since then, more than 300,000 people have watched the video of his incredible performance online at USEFNetwork.com and on the USEF YouTube page. Dan announces today that he will return to the Kentucky Reining Cup to defend his World Champion Freestyle Reiner title with a new exclusive program. Taking the task seriously, James knows that the bar has been raised and the field of highquality Freestyle Reining competitors are out to take the title away from him in 2015. “Just as you would suspect, there are a lot of really great performers at the World Championship level for
February 2015 •
Horsebites - Con’t. on pg. 25
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 21
*HQHUDO
February by the Fire
Horseback Magazine’s Saddle & Tack Editor
A
lmost the end of January, and it was 70 degrees today, so I saddled up my shaggy horse and rode for about 2 hours. The hunters are gone so the whole ranch is open to ride on again. I saw 5 deer, 1 bunny rabbit, and 1 big old black hog. Fortunately, my dog Tucker, didn’t see the hog. Pat is always busy talking, so I don’t think she saw any of it. When I ride by myself, I usually see a
lot more wildlife, but just getting on a horse makes it a good day. I sat by the fire a few weeks ago and cleaned my favorite bridle. It was way overdue. One of the problems with trying to condition a bridle with hitched horse hair trim is that you can’t get the leather under the horse hair conditioned. I did put “Kali” leather conditioner on the hair, hoping it would migrate through the hair. I love my fancy bridle, made with Hermann Oak leather, hitched horse hair ferrules, and horse hair tassels. The keepers are all braided rawhide, and it is now about 30 years old. I got it when I had a saddle shop in Tennessee. The reins have been replaced once, not because they needed to be, but because someone swapped
22 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
in a set of ¾” harness leather reins that were over ½” thick, and I like the feel of them. I still need to bring my 1923 Heiser Form Fitter saddle in, tear it down, and give it a thorough cleaning, oiling, and conditioning. I will start by putting some oil (pure neatsfoot, warmed to body temp) on the strings, where they are laced together. This will help keep them from breaking when I take a pair of needle nosed pliers to them to take the laces apart. Next, I’ll take the screws out at the base of the swell. After the laces are undone and the screws are out, I can lift the front of the seat jockey, and do a good job of cleaning and oiling the front rigging. I lift the seat jockey carefully so I don’t wrinkle it.
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Old saddles like mine have lace up stirrup leathers, so I will put a little oil over the laces so I can remove them without breaking them. This is much easier if you have quick change buckles. I pull my fenders and stirrup leathers all the way out, but sometimes it’s a major pain to get them back in. For the average tack cleaner at home, I would not recommend pulling the stirrup leathers all the way out. Just pull them around far enough to get the entire stirrup leather oiled. My Heiser had to have the stirrup leathers replaced about 8 years ago. That would have had the originals lasting for about 73 years. On old saddles that have been oiled often, they generally get real dark. Washing them with a good cleaner, I’ve been using “Mean Green” lately, takes some of the old oil out and leaves the leather a little lighter in color. If you want to keep some color in an older saddle, you may not want to use neatsfoot oil, as it always seems to darken older leather. When I’m www.horsebackmagazine.com
conditioning an old saddle, trying to keep a lighter color, I use “Kali” leather conditioner. It’s not cheap, and it’s a lot like Lexol, but has a higher temperature tolerance before it starts leaching out of the leather. The beauty of Kali is that it will darken the leather when first applied, but lightens as it dries. After cleaning every part I can reach, then either oiling or applying Kali, often several coats, I let it sit overnight, then apply Blackrock Leather-N-Rich, and buff like Hell! I recently had a collector tell me he did not want me to use Blackrock because he did not want the saddle to be sticky. I used Blackrock, but I added my secret ingredient, elbow grease. Elbow grease is the secret that makes Blackrock work for me. If your finish is hazy after applying Blackrock, work a smaller area, put the Blackrock on, rub it on, then immediately buff it. If you do it right, you can actually get a mirror shine, that will turn water, dirt, and anything else. Because it’s natural,
and what you are really doing is final cleaning and buffing the wax. It’s a lot like waxing your car, which of course, no one does with the new finishes, but waxing your car repelled water, made bug juice not stick, and if you are an old racer like me, know that a slick car slips through the air stream faster than a dirty one. I believe it was Mercedes that used to race cars with no paint, just a waxed metal body, because the imperfections in the paint interrupted the slip stream of air going past the vehicle. An old U.S. Army manual on maintaining leather (I’ve quoted this before) said to wash the leather with castile soap, apply several light coats of pure neatsfoot oil, and then apply a coat of wax (they actually used shoe and boot polish), and buff it. For me, things haven’t changed much. The determining factor is whether or not you are trying to keep your saddle light in color, lighten the color of an old saddle, or just trying to maintain your saddle in the best possible condition. The criteria for oiling was, apply a light coat of oil, wait 10 to 12 seconds. If the oil absorbs in, apply another light coat. Continue until the oil starts to lay on the leather longer than 10 to 12 seconds. You then wipe off the excess, and let the leather rest overnight. Then put your top coat on and you are good until the next time you swim a river or are caught out in an all day rain. When putting my saddle back together, I just reverse everything I did. When putting the strings back together, I always bring the bottom string through the top hole first, then the bottom is on the top, and you bring the bottom string through, which put the top string back on top. I hope that makes sense. If you follow the same procedure every time, your strings will have a nice uniform appearance. If you get stuck, just call or email me. I will try to talk you through getting everything back together. Stay warm, it’s only a few weeks until spring. Bandera’s Lew Pewterbaugh has been called the most knowledgeable saddle and tack authority in the Southwest. For private fitting consultation call (830) 328-0321 or (830) 522-6613 or email: saddlerlew@gmail.com.
February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 23
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24 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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+RUVHELWHV
Horsebites - Con’t. from pg. 21
Freestyle Reining, James said. These competitors are excellent horsemen and horsewomen and are specialists in the freestyle division of the sport of Reining. It will be a challenge to defend the title against such a wide pool of talent, but I look forward to the opportunity.” Additionally, the event has established an Insider Access Ticket for the super fans of Freestyle Reining and of Dan himself. Insider Access Tickets include: - Gold Buckle seat at the World Championship Freestyle Reining. Gold Buckle seats are a section of premier seats in the venue that offer the same view as the judges and on a level that is closest to the action. Gold Buckle seats are still general admission seating within the designated section and are far and away the most desired seats at the event. - Invitation to attend an exclusive and intimate meet-and-greet session with Dan James, 2014 World Champion Freestyle Reiner as he prepares to defend his World Championship title later in the evening. The event will include a beverage at the bar, photo backdrop for any “selfies” with Dan who will be signing autographs www.horsebackmagazine.com
and much more. The event will start approximately one hour prior to the start of the competition and attendees will be directed to the meet-and-greet by way of a special VIP access elevator. - Dan James Insider Access Ticket holders will be entered for a prize drawing, with the following prizes: - First Prize: In-person participation at a future Dan James clinic, using your, or one of the Double Dan Horsemanship horses for you and one additional guest. - Second Prize: Double Dan Horsemanship DVD Complete Set - Third Prize: Double Dan Horsemanship Logo Merchandise/Gear - Dan James Insider Access Ticket holders are granted a special discount on gear and merchandise offered in the Double Dan Horsemanship trade show booth at the Kentucky Reining Cup. The full-scale western trade show is located on the concourse immediately adjacent to the event and is very easy to find. Just present your special Dan James Insider Access Ticket to receive your discount. Celebrating its fifth year, the Kentucky Reining Cup returns to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington,
KY, April 24-25, and is once again the place to be on Friday and Saturday night on the Rolex Kentucky ThreeDay Event weekend. Featuring not only the World Championship Freestyle Reining on Saturday, but also the FEI Concours de Reining International and Kentucky Reining Cup Team Challenge on Friday night, drawing the world’s best riders and Reining horses, including members of the gold medal and World Champion US Reining team. For more information or to order tickets for the 2015 Kentucky Reining Cup, please visit www.KentuckyReining.com. 2014 TEXAS CHAMPIONS NAMED AUSTIN, (Texas Thoroughbred Association) – The Texas Thoroughbred Association has announced the 2014 Texas Champions and named Fiftyshadesofgold as the Texas Horse of the Year as well as Texas Champion 3-Year-Old Filly. The winners were determined by a points system based on performances in stakes races and will be honored by the TTA on June 20
February 2015 •
Horsebites - Con’t. on pg. 30
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 25
Rust & Memories Capture
Beauty of Grand Old Trucks
D
By: Ronnie Nordquist
rive down any country road in Texas and you can see fragments of rust and color from behind tall lanky weeds or old wooden barns. Look a little closer and this pile of scrap metal becomes a old truck which has driven it’s last mile and has been left behind as a new generation deems them unimportant. To Nancy “Weezy” Forman, one of the nation’s premier photographers, these trucks are not just scrap metal discarded by a new generation, but a look into the heart and soul of the Ameri-
can West. They are the trucks that caught the sweet summer breeze, blowing hair across the face; they are the trucks who’s back bed always smells of new cut hay mingled with left over fly powder for the cows. They are the trucks that our grandparents drove and where as kids we were always in the back and holding on tight as we bumped our way over corrugated dirt roads. These trucks are our memories of a slower America, a time and place that Weezy has captured with her lens. Weezy’s artful eye is paramount in her ability to look at the surroundings and see what most of
26 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
us dismiss, and where nature and function come together. She has the ability to recognize and capture the grace in old trucks, who’s flat tires and time worn bumpers all hold our greatest stories. Weezy’s photographs are fine art in their own way. As beautiful as any oil painting and by touching the soul of the viewer, she has taken the old rusted truck and made it new, alive and given it a place in our heritage. You can view and order Weezy’s photography at: juniperwinddesigns.com
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February February2015 2015 • •H HORSEBACK ORSEBACKM MAGAZINE AGAZINE
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HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 29
+RUVHELWHV Horsebites - Con’t. from pg. 25
at Lone Star Park. Bred by the late Clarence Scharbauer Jr. and owned by his son Douglas, Fiftyshadesofgold was one of the top fillies in the country last year after taking the Texas Champion 2-Year-Old Filly title in 2013. The Bret Calhoun trainee kicked off her 2014 campaign in the Clarence Scharbauer Jr. Texas Stallion Stakes Series, which was renamed to honor Scharbauer’s contributions to the Texas racing and breeding industry. Fiftyshadesofgold took the Two Altazano division with ease, and then moved into open company where she finished second to eventual Eclipse Award winner Untapable in the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks. The Texas-bred went on to capture the Grade 3 Eight Belles Stakes at Churchill Downs and ran a good fourth in two Grade 1 races, the Test Stakes at Saratoga and the TVG Acorn Stakes at Belmont Park. She earned $322,731 for the year and retired from racing in September with a career bankroll of $420,521. She will begin her career as a broodmare with a visit to leading sire Tapit. Fiftyshadesofgold’s sire is My Golden Song, who stands at Valor Farm, a longtime leading stallion station near Pilot
Point, Texas, started by the elder Scharbauer. Hadif Cat, a daughter of former Valor Farm stallion Hadif and the dam of Fiftyshadesofgold, will be honored as the Texas Champion Broodmare, and the Estate of Clarence Scharbauer Jr. will get the award as the leading accredited Texas-bred money earner. Progeny of Valor Farm stallions also swept the juvenile category as Promise Me Silver, by Silver City, was named Texas Champion 2-Year-Old Filly, and W V Jetsetter, by Jet Phone, was named Texas Champion 2-Year-Old Colt/Gelding. Promise Me Silver, bred and owned by Myrna and Robert Luttrell and also trained by Calhoun, was undefeated in four starts last year, including wins in the Debutante Stakes at Churchill Downs, Darby’s Daughter division of the Clarence Scharbauer Jr. Texas Stallion Stakes at Retama Park and the Letellier Memorial Stakes at Fair Grounds. She kicked off her 3-yearold campaign with another stakes win in the Dixie Belle Stakes on January 15 at Oaklawn Park. W V Jetsetter won the TTA Sales Futurity at Lone Star Park and My Dandy division of the Clarence Scharbauer Jr. Texas Stallion Stakes at Retama and also finished third in the Grade
30 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
2 Toyota Saratoga Special Stakes at Saratoga. Bred by Clarence Scharbauer Jr., the colt first ran for owner Wesley Melcher and trainer Bret Calhoun and then for R.A. Hill Stable and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and trainer George Weaver. Texas Champion 3-Year-Old Colt/Gelding honors went to Johnny Evans and Terry Eoff ’s F J Uncle Vic. The son of Uncle Abbie of Key Ranch near Salado, Texas, won the Allen’s Landing Stakes against open company at Sam Houston by nearly 10 lengths to start the year and went on to finish second in two editions of the Clarence Scharbauer Jr. Texas Stallion Stakes. The colt, who is trained by co-owner Eoff, also finished third in the Grade 3 Lone Star Park Handicap. He kicked off his 4-year-old season with a win in the Star of Texas Stakes at Sam Houston on January 17. The awards for older horses featured a repeat winner in each category, as Lasting Bubbles defended her crown as Texas Champion Older Filly/Mare and Ol Winedrinker Who earned the title of Texas Champion Older Horse. Lasting Bubbles, bred and owned by Judy Peek and trained by her son Kevin Peek, won five races and was Horsebites - Con’t. on pg. 58
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ooking for a venue that has a rustic ambiance? Somewhere you can kick off your shoes, float in a lazy river pool, listen to a band under the stars and just completely enjoy yourself all within the confines of the Houston metroplex? Then what you are looking for is Sixteen 850 Rustic charm meets city life in Cypress, as Sixteen 805 opens it’s doors for meetings, parties, weddings and more this spring. Nestled off Steinhagen Rd, owner Kiley Sims, has taken his love of rustic country charm and simplicity and turned it into a cozy haven for fun. The lazy river pool is the perfect spot for kids and adults to spend a summer afternoon partying with friends, and when night falls, country music flows on warm breezes from the stage. The indoor space is perfect for a company or club meeting, and continues the charm with antique screen doors, exposed beams and a complete kitchen for catering. Everyone needs a little country, and Sixteen 805 delivers. Take your friends, family or co-workers out for a day of relaxing fun just for the heck of it, or plan your kids birthday party where there is room for everyone to run loose. Contact Kiley Sims for reservation information: 281357-5000
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36 36 H HORSEBACK ORSEBACK M MAGAZINE AGAZINE • • February February 2015 2015
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February February 2015 2015 • •H HORSEBACK ORSEBACK M MAGAZINE AGAZINE
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Remembering a Cowboy Named Freckles Horseback Honors the Memory of Freckles Brown By Steven Long
T
ornado was the rankest bull in Oklahoma that night, or any other night for that matter. But a Texas cowboy with the a moniker as far removed from typical rodeo names like Buck, Boots, or Ty, stood on the ramp behind the chutes and looked at that bull named Tornado, all 1,600 pounds of him. Bull riders are diminutive in stature, and tough as he was, little Freckles Brown, world champion and all, didn’t stand much of a chance against the Brahman/Herford crossbred filled with the meanness of hell, peppered with Tabasco on the butt, and sporting a burr in his groin for added ferocity. Before rodeo cowboys and cowgirls made the desert trek to Las Vegas to ride, rope, buck, and just as often eat dirt in the National Finals Rodeo, they faced the inevitable, expected, comeuppance in the arena at a more prosaic venue, Oklahoma City. It was there in the 9,000 seat State Fair Arena that a capacity crowd gripped bags of popcorn, cups of Coke, and an occasional hidden flask of whiskey smuggled in among the God fearing rodeo crowd. They had come to see greatness, and at the moment, it was parked snorting and angry behind chute No.2 The great bull, Tornado was about to face another legend after a parade of them had tried and failed to stay on his back. Dilutive former world champion Freckles Brown was determined to be better than the bull. After all, he was his own legend.
Not a cowboy on earth had bested that Brahman/Herford cross. At 1,600 pounds he was hell on earth, and bad as he was when a cowboy was on his back, he was even worse after the poor soul found himself unceremoniously dismounted and eating the dirt of the arena floor. With the indignity of sand and manure between his teeth was added a well placed hoof on a body part not built to receive it. Whole books have been written about the hard scrabble upbringing of cowboys like Warren Granger Brown. He was the youngest of a house filled with “younguns” who lived on a Wyoming ranch a couple of miles north of the North Platte River. . When Freckles Brown mounted the well worn boards behind the Oklahoma City chutes his boots were scuffed with the marks of scores of stirrups. He was ready to face the best, be they either bull, or cowboy, that the Okie rodeo could throw at him. His draw, the bull Tornado felt the same way. By the time Freckles Brown faced him, the count for the confident bovine was 220 cowboys to date. They had tried to stay on for the PRCA’s mandatory eight seconds for a successful ride. The bull was called unrideable by the most formidable cowboys in rodeo, none the least of whom was his owner, rodeo’s legendary multiple world champion, Jim Shoulders of tiny Henryetta.
38 38 HHORSEBACK ORSEBACKM MAGAZINE AGAZINE• •February February2015 2015
Oklahoma rodeo audiences are the most knowledgeable in the nation. They know Brown by his potent reputation as a solid cowboy who could pretty much stay on anything he mounted, including the rankest of bulls. Yet 46 is old for any athlete, much less in the pounding sport of rodeo where broken bones are as commonplace as a new pair of boots, and come about as often. They knew that Brown was too old to be mounting the fuming, snarling anger of a Brahman bull, and he had taken that pounding for 30 years. Insanity!. He first won a bull riding championship in ’62 and only broke his neck once during a respectable career Most rough stock riders are smallish men, and Brown was no exception, standing 5 feet, 7 inches in his stocking feet. But small as he was, the little cowboy was rawhide tough, highly respected among his peers, and well worth following by savvy rodeo fans. Despite his small size, he had enough muscle to handle any animal put in front of him, whether there was a rope attached to it or not. But tough as Brown was, 140 pounds vs. 1,600 was a mismatch in anybody’s book. Smart money said Tornado was going to win, and the smallish man was likely to be eating dirt long before the 8 second buzzer sounded. Photographer Ron Jackson Jr, who was covering the rodeo at the time commented in an article in the Oklahoman newspaper saying “Everybody thought Freckles was ‘gonna Freckles - Con’t. on pg. 42 www.horsebackmagazine.com www.horsebackmagazine.com
Jim Charles riding Tornado at the 1966 National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City. Photo by Ferrell Butler also part of the Dickinson Research Library. www.horsebackmagazine.com www.horsebackmagazine.com
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“The Ride” with Freckles Brown on Tornado at the 1967 National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City. Photo by Ferrell Butler also part of the Dickinson Research Center. Freckles - Con’t. from pg. 38
get bucked, and Tornado wouldn’t just buck you. If you didn’t get out of there, he’d camp onto you something fierce, then he’d go wipe out the barrel. We were all just scared.” A full 220 cowboys had met the fate of eating arena dirt behind the relentless hooves of Tornado. Typically, a cowboy standing in the arena held a rope attached to the gate of the chute. On signal, he pulled the heavy wooden boards open and Tornado and Brown flew out in a blaze of bovine fury. Most often, Brown was successful, which was no surprise. The little cowboy was experienced. He rode his first bull, like many boys today, at an age when kids want to show their toughness, their manhood, their daring do. He was 16. It was at one of those small town rodeos that dot America, this one in Wilcox, a small town east of Tucson where he first rode. He went home with a trophy. Brown quickly became a ranch hand, chased down strays,
fixed the broken barb wire of fences, and mounted the un-broke rough stock that was the naturally ornery wild horse. Old timers say that rodeo flowed in Brown’s veins, and that he would jump on a rank bull risking life and limb for the sheer love of it at five dollars a ride. As America was about to plunge headlong into World War II, the bull rider won a trophy before Pearl Harbor changed every life in the country. The rodeo was in Cody, and Brown gathered the best horse he could find and rode it 50 miles for the opportunity to show other cowboys what he was made of. He won, got kicked by a bull in the process, and rode home a bona fide rodeo cowboy with scars to prove it. Soon after, America was at war and Brown was back in Cody enlisting in the Army. He found himself in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the nation’s spy agency where he spent time in Chi-
42 42 H HORSEBACK ORSEBACK M MAGAZINE AGAZINE • • February February 2015 2015
na, and even performed in a 1946 rodeo there using pack mules. Back home after the war, the cowboy’s career began in earnest, and he began collecting trophies and prize money, winning the all-around in Omaha in 1948 and 1959, and even won a wild horse race in New York in 1950. He just missed a world championship at the 1959 NFR. In his career Brown sported ten broken legs, surgeries on his shoulders (both of them), broke his neck, broke ribs, and smashed fingers. To the day of his death he carried a metal pin in his shoulder, a screw in his ankle, and often called himself a walking hardware store. By 1962 he was ahead in the standings as the nation’s leading bull rider, this at the venerable age of 41. And then Brown encountered a rank bull named Black Smoke who bucked him motionless on the dirt floor of a Portland, Oregon arena. The payday was www.horsebackmagazine.com www.horsebackmagazine.com
$406 and a lifetime of pain from a broken neck. He was conscious as he flew through the air and as he lay in the arena, he couldn’t move. Freckles Brown had ended his lucky streak. Yet he was conscious saying later, “I knew what was going on.” He was placed in a full cast after doctors fused a piece of his hip bone to his neck. He flew to the NFR. Watching from a bleacher seat, he won the all around besting the nearest competitor by a little less than $5,000. Shortly after that, the rodeo press began calling the cowboy the “Unsinkable Mr. Brown.” “I know I was going to ride again,” he told the press later. On July 10, 1962, Brown did a double header, riding two bulls in a Coleman, Texas rodeo. He managed to stay on one of them for the required eight seconds. He was back. Brown’s reputation was by now stout, a fearsome competitor who would face down any tough animal put before him. One such was Tornado. The two, animal and cowboy, were brought together by fate and the luck of the draw at a rodeo in Soper, Oklahoma. He said later that, “I was wantin’ him. I’d watched that bull for years… Every time anybody jumped out there, anytime anybody had Tornado ‘drawed, I was up there watching, looking over the chute.” The bull was impossible, and sometimes there wasn’t a cowboy alive who could stay on him. “He was an honest bull. He always fought the clowns real good, and he hardly stepped on anybody.” About the ride, Brown told Sports Illustrated in a 1987 story, “The bull understood what was happening. After I got on him, and just before the chute was about to open, his hide went as hard as this tabletop. He knew what he was supposed to do…He was an athlete. He loved the contest. He was tense with anticipation – ready for the gate to crash open.” Brown was on 2,000 pounds of twisting, spinning, mussel on the back of a bull that couldn’t be ridden. As the animal violentwww.horsebackmagazine.com www.horsebackmagazine.com
ly bucked left, then right, then stopped and then bucked again the rider counted down the seconds as he was pitched from one side to the other, the thousands seated in the bleachers watching, insignificant to a man simply trying to hang on and remain alive at the buzzer. Tens of thousands of rides have bucked their way to immortality, yet Freckles Browns’ is the one still known today as “The Ride.” Epilogue: Tornado was retired to a pasture at Jim Shoulder’s
ranch in Henryetta, Texas. He had been successfully ridden five times, two of them by Freckles Brown. The bull died in the spring of 1972 retired to the green grass of the ranch. Brown outlived the bull by 15 years dying of cancer at his ranch in 1987.
Freckles Brown in 1962 and it was taken by Devere Helfrich and is part of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s Dickinson Research Center.
February February 2015 2015 • •H HORSEBACK ORSEBACK M MAGAZINE AGAZINE
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+RRI +HDOWK
I
have talked about issues such as bull-nosing of the outer wall in the past but want to turn my attention to the bottom of the hoof, where actual weight-bearing forces occur. I have to say that ‘excessive wear,’ per se, is not a problem – unless the hoof is ‘over-trimmed’ to begin with. I have seen horses with unnatural wear patterns but I have never once seen a hoof that was ‘too worn.’ Insufficient wear may be a more accurate characterization. For example, a toe wall that appears to be wearing more heavily than the heels, or more to one side than the other, may simply mean the hoof wall is in need of trimming. Most of the time, the entire hoof bearing surface (including the bars, sole and frog) needs to be trimmed, with some parts requiring more trimming than others due to the uneven (unnatural) wear patterns.
Club Foot & Wry Foot The frog is often an object of much concern when it comes to wear. In its natural state, it lies passively between the heel buttresses and the bars, eventually integrating more or less level with the sole near its apex (point of frog). I use this conformation as the template or guideline for trimming the frog. When the frog grows beyond these parameters, due to insufficient wear, I simply trim back to where it belongs. The presence of any asymmetric “left foot” to “right foot” wear patterns in either a shod or barefoot hoof would concern me. But hooves trimmed unnaturally and how they obstruct the horse’s natural gaits goes well beyond the scope of this discussion. I will mention two examples though, as they are relatively commonplace, poorly understand and, in my judgment, trimmed harmfully in contraindication of the principles of biodynamic hoof balance. These are the “club foot” and
This cadaver hoof depicts a wry formation.
“wry foot.” But what is a club foot and what contributes to its development? The unborn young of all equines assume fetal positions that bend the longitudinal axis of the torso from side to side. In the wild, this crooked conformation is ‘straightened’ soon after birth by the gymnasticizing influences of a rigorous, natural lifestyle. Because Equus ferus caballus is a prey type herd animal, he instinctively lives with an innate fear of predators, endowing him with the survivalist habit of looking constantly to his left and to his right for intruders that may prey on him. An athlete ever on the move, he uses his natural gait complex to its fullest in order to survive. His grazing habits, lowering his head to the ground to eat, and frequent bending of his neck up to nearly 180-degrees while on the lookout for predators, are all a part of his lifestyle and the process ‘rounds’ his back and strengthens its muscles. This is hardly the case with most domestic horses who tend to remain crooked throughout their lives due to confinement (in stalls or small paddocks) and the absence of natural socialization with other horses. Unless the owner fully understands the tenets and practices of “classical horsemanship” which stress the paramount importance of “straightening” the horse’s body and “rounding” his back in preparation for all advanced riding (including supporting the rider’s weight), he will forever remain ‘bent’ and at risk for what I am about to describe. Sadly, I know few equestrians who are aware of these classical principles, and fewer still who “train” Paddock Paradise - Con’t. on pg. 46
44 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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Paddock Paradise - Con’t. from pg. 31
their horses with them in mind. It is well known among classical horsemen that the concaved or hollow side of a crooked horse is the weaker side, and must be strengthened if the horse is to be made straight and an athlete. Failure to do this leads to a breakdown of the musculoskelature (bones, joints, tendons, ligaments, muscles) on the weak side. I have kept data records on many horses over the years and am able to correlate clubfootedness and lameness to elevations in a hoof ’s angle of growth (H). This cross-correlation is significant and useful, in my opinion, for predicting impeding lameness. Asymmetric (left versus right hoof ) elevations in H are probably
sub-clinical indicators of pain somewhere in the musculoskelature of the horse’s hollow side. The rider would feel this as a distinct “miss” (for example, the horse suddenly ‘gives” or “falls off” with a limp) when riding at the trot and specifically, over one of the diagonally supporting limbs (the front leg 95% of the time). The hoof supporting the affected limb will measure, or begin to measure, an elevation in H (the hoof ’s angle of growth). As the condition deteriorates, the hoof further deforms, with H becoming steeper yet. Typically, the entire hoof capsule contracts from side to side (mediolaterally) and front to back (anteroposteriorly) as pain intensifies in the upper body. The opposing
ABOVE LEFT: You can see this front right hoof has a host of problems including its unnaturally steep angle. This is the hoof of a mare named Audrey who came to live at the AANHCP Field Headquarters in March 2013 at the age of 14 following a five-year lease as a broodmare. (Photo taken on March 4, 2013.)
46 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
limb then assumes a more compensatory, load-bearing role, becoming wider, longer (front to back) and even flatter (i.e., less volar concavity than it previously had). Eventually, and inevitably if there is no intervention, the natural gait complex collapses and the horse becomes unusable and probably terminally lame. In the end, the boxy upright hoof, usually a front hoof, is so contracted that it cannot be trimmed into a ‘normal’ shape. When this is the case, the hoof is said to be a “club foot.” A true club foot, in fact, cannot be trimmed to “normal.” The angle will vary by degrees from horse to horse, but will always be steeper than its opposing foot. For example, if the
ABOVE RIGHT: Just a little more than three months later, the improvement in health and more natural shape to the same hoof is clearly evident even to the untrained eye. The health of the horse shows up in their hooves and it is typical to see this sort of healthy response in horses that are provided a more natural lifestyle (in a herd with 24/7 turnout) in conjunction with a more natural, healthier diet and genuine natural hoofcare. (Photo taken on June 16, 2013.)
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left front hoof is clubbed, it will measure at a higher (steeper) angle than the front right hoof. The same foot will also have a smaller ground bearing surface. It is important to understand, however, that the clubbed hoof itself is not in pain. It is simply assuming its upright conformation to form a “crutch” to better support the traumatized hollow side of the limb and body, from which – somewhere – the pain is emanating. To date, there is no evidence that a club foot can be reversed, unless trauma to the hollow side is caught early enough and stopped. A new hoof must grow and if its clubfootedness continues, then the damage to the horse above the hoof is very likely permanent. The humane course of action is to sustain the club foot and avoiding gimmicky ‘corrective’ trimming or shoeing methods. In conclusion, monitoring for sudden elevations in H is critically important in the prevention of club-footedness and, more importantly, damage to the horse’s upper body. Just as crucial, if not more so, is learning to ride more naturally (straightening and rounding the horse through systematic training/ conditioning) and providing more natural boarding conditions such as that in a Paddock Paradise. A wry foot is a hoof that has literally grown lopsided. Characteristically, one side of the hoof wall becomes steeper and “rolls under” towards the underside of the foot while the other side collapses in a “flare” in the same direction (i.e., towards the opposing limb). Wry foot typically arises in horses that are incorrectly trimmed or subjected to “corrective” trimming and shoeing methods to force them to look different. This is inhumane, in my opinion. (If people want a straight-legged horse, they should find one born that way.) Horses with a ‘toe in’ or ‘toe out’ conformation should be trimmed no differently than horses standing straight. Problems begin when the trimmer attempts to lower or raise one side of the hoof more than the other to get the hoof to stand “straight,” often at the owner’s or trainer’s request.
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HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 47
Paddock Paradise - Con’t. from pg. 47
Farriers may use mechanical wedges to achieve this, forcing the hoof to pivot in place. The entire limb above the hoof is then affected, along with the descending weight-bearing force. The deformed hoof, in turn, obstructs the natural gaits and a vicious cycle of deformity and dysfunction ensues, leading to lameness. Wry-footedness is a serious and complex deformity. Precisely trimming the afflicted hoof over many months is of paramount importance to precipitating healthful
hoof and upper body changes. As the hoof becomes less and less deformed, more natural movement is facilitated and the biodynamic cycle of healthful “form and function” leading to optimal equilibrium can be attained. I want to emphasize that a vital key to healing the wry-footed horse is to provide ample turnout, space for him to move naturally and vigorously with other horses 24/7. Stall rest, parttime turnout and isolation from other horses are detrimental and will only delay healing. Ultimately, shoes are unnec-
essary and undesirable for correcting or preventing unnatural wear. In fact, shoeing is the worst thing you can do! There are two fundamental reasons. First, the presence of the shoe weakens the epidermal architecture of the hoof. Second, the shoe also obstructs the formation of active and passive wear patterns – essential for biodynamic hoof balance. In all my years as a hoof care specialist, I’ve yet to run into a horse that could not transition successfully to going barefoot.
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HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 49
REALTOR Roundup DEITRA ROBERTSON REALTOR Deitra Robertson Real Estate, Inc. 38351 FM 1736 Hempstead, TX (O): (832) 642-6789 (C): (832) 642-6789
TAMMY FOREMAN REALTOR Hodde Real Estate Co. 112 W. Main Street, Brenham, TX (O): (979) 836-8532 (C): (979) 451-2945
WENDY CLINE REALTOR/BROKER CLHMS, SRES, ABR, Million Dollar Guild Wendy Cline Properties Keller Williams Memorial
950 Corbindale Ste 100 Houston, TX 77024
(E): tammy@hodderealty.com (W): www.hodderealty.com
(E): deitra@IKnowRanches.com (W): www.IKnowRanches.com
SPECIALTIES: Farms/Ranches, Equestrian, Residential, Country Homes, Land. TERRITORY: Texas
SPECIALTIES: Farms/Ranches, Horse Properties, Land TERRITORY: Texas
(O): (281) 213-6271 (C): (281) 460-9360 (E): wendy@wendyclineproperties.com (W): www.wendyclineproperties.com SPECIALTIES: Equestrian, Farm & Ranch, Land, Residential, Luxury, Commercial TERRITORY: Texas
YOLANDA FUSILIER BROKER Peak Realty 17515 Spring Cypress Rd. Suite # C260 Cypress, TX (O): (979) 921-9530 (C): (713) 417-7567 (E): peak@wt.net (W): www.peakrealty.sbuilder.net
MARY GARBETT BROKER ASSOCIATE Right Time Real Estate LLC at KW Farm & Ranch 950 Corbindale Rd, #100 Houston, TX (C) (713) 213-2420 (O) (713) 470-2055 (E) mary@marygarbett.com (W) www.har.com/marygarbett
DEE ANN BOUDREAUXREALTOR Texas First Real Estate 1116 FM 109 New Ulm, TX (O): (903) 322-3379 (C): (979) 583-7305 (E): deeboudreaux@windstream.net (W): www.texasfirstre.com
SPECIALTIES: Farms/Ranches, Land Commercial TERRITORY: Waller, Harris, and surrounding counties.
SPECIALTIES: Residential, Equestrian, Farm/ Ranch, Country Property TERRITORY: Texas WILLIAM “BOO” CHRISTENSEN BROKER/OWNER RE/MAX Advantage 110 E. Alamo Brenham, TX
TOOTIE LYONS RIXMANREALTOR, ASSOCIATE Heritage Texas Country Properties 605 S. Austin Brenham, TX
(O): (979) 251-7500 (C): (979) 277-8426 (E): boo@realtorboo.com (W): www.realtorboo.com
(C): (979) 277-2694 (E): tootie2@sbcglobal.net (W): www.heritagetexascountry.com/page46/Tootie-Lyons-Rixman
SPECIALTIES: Farm/Ranch, Hunting Property, Country Homes TERRITORY: Texas
SPECIALTIES: Acreage, Homes, Horse Property, Country Homes, Farm & Ranch TERRITORY: Texas
RENEE DIEHL ALHS Round Top Real Estate 101 Main St. Round Top, TX (C): (713) 401-8958 (O): (979) 249-5732 (E): diehl@gmail.com (W): www.roundtopland.com SPECIALTIES: Farm & Ranch, Land, Country & Luxury Homes TERRITORY: South Central Texas
50 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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SPECIALTIES: Equestrian Estates, Farm & Ranch, Residential TERRITORY: Ft. Bend, Waller, Austin, Washington, Grimes, Harris Counties CARRIE SHWAGER REALTOR The Property Source 7424 FM 1488, Ste. A-1 Magnolia, TX 77354 (C): (281) 960-5190 (F): (936) 449-4586 (E): carrieschwager@att.net (W): www.texasluxurypropertyrealtor.com SPECIALTIES: Equestrian, Farm and Ranch, Hunting, and Luxury Residential TERRITORY: Texas YOUR NAME HERE!REALTOR/BROKER The Best Real Estate Co. 1234 Main Street Houston, TX (O): (123) 456-7890 (C): (123) 456-7890 (E): info@bestrealtor.com (W): www.bestrealtor.com SPECIALTIES: Ranches, Hunting & Horse Properties, Acreage TERRITORY: Texas www.horsebackmagazine.com
3250 FM 2714-WINEDALE/ROUND TOP 1880's farmhouse restored to reflect its original unique character. Prime location, with high ceilings, Franklin stove, lots of windows to bring the outside in, along with a small guest cottage, old wooden barn, huge live oaks throughout the 98+ acres, great old pond, charming stone bridge entry across seasonal Jack's Creek. This home reflects an earlier time, on gorgeous property, 5 minutes from Round Top. It has it all. TxLS #87350 HAR 25657803 - $1,530,000
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February 2015 â&#x20AC;˘
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 51
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hether you’re a solo first-time buyer, you’ve expanded into a young family, or you’ve just sent your last kid packing to college, you need a realtor who is not only professional, but who is the Five Star Realtor in the neighborhood or community where you are hoping to purchase a home. These are our Houston Rodeo Five Star Realtors for the Houston market and beyond. Carrie Schwager – Magnolia/Montgomery THE PROPERTY SOURCE 7424 FM 1488, Ste A-1 • Magnolia, TX 77354 (281) 844-6584 • carrieschwager@att.net Dawn Fore – Cypress RE/MAX LAKELAND 17920 Huffmeister Rd. Suite 140 • Cypress, TX 77429 281-304-9500 Kara Puente – Tomball BETTER HOMES & GARDENS GARY GREENE - CHAMPIONS 8817 Louetta Rd. • Spring, TX 77379 (281) 610-5402 • kpuente@garygreene.com
52 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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Kelly Paul – Clear Lake/League City BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS 1790 Nasa Pkwy • Houston, TX 77058 • (281) 924-8455 • KellyPaul@usa.com Wendy Cline - Houston & Texas WENDY CLINE PROPERTIES, KELLER WILLIAMS MEMORIAL 950 Corbindale Suite 100 • Houston, TX 77024 281-352-8434 • (281) 213-6271 • wendy@wendyclineproperties.com Katy Walston - Katy, TX KELLER WILLIAMS GREATER NORTHWEST 19708 NW Freeway Suite 2800 • Houston TX 77065 713-320-1479 • soldbykaty.com Deitra Robertson - Texas DEITRA ROBERTSON REAL ESTATE, INC. 38531 FM 1736 • Hempstead, TX 77445 (979) 921-9470 • Deitra@IKnowRanches.com Armando & Gidget - Spring, TX THE GIDGET GROUP/REMAX INTEGRITY 19510 Kuykendahl Rd • Ste. B, Spring, TX 77379 (832) 515-1546 • armando@thegidgitgroup.com Tanya Schindler- Flatonia/Schulenburg SOUTH CENTRAL REAL ESTATE 80 N Kessler-PO Box 251 • Schulenburg, TX 78956 1400 Fm 609-PO Box 362 • Flatonia, TX 78941 (361) 865-2563 • (979) 743-3465
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Dee Ann Boudreaux Texas TEXAS FIRST REAL ESTATE 1116 FM 109. New Ulm, TX (903) 322-3379 (979) 583-7305 deeboudreaux@windstream.net Barb Chopek Conroe RE/MAX HOMETOWN 7214 FM 1488 Magnolia, TX (281) 415-0032 barbarachopek@remax.net JoAnn Ayres Burton, Roundtop, Texas HERITAGE TEXAS COUNTRY PROPERTIES joannayres@gmail.com texascountryproperties.com (979) 249-7494
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I provide a professional, a en ve, bou que-style real estate buying and selling experience with hands-on, responsive service tailored to each client. As a Texas ranch property owner, I have raised race horses, performance horses and Texas Longhorn ca le. My equestrian knowledge is asset in understanding the needs of those buying or selling acreage.
281-960-5190 • carrieschwager@a .net www.texasluxurypropertyrealtor.com
54 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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February 2015 •
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 57
+RUVHELWHV Horsebites - Con’t. from pg. 30
third four times in 10 starts last year while earning nearly $200,000. The now 7-year-old daughter of Pulling Punches won the Yellow Rose Stakes at Sam Houston, Wayne Hanks Memorial Stakes and Valor Farm Stakes at Lone Star and Zia Park Distaff Stakes in New Mexico. She has hit the board in 21 of 28 career starts with earnings of $368,418. Ol Winedrinker Who became a three-time champion by winning the Ruidoso Downs Thoroughbred Championship and San Juan County Commissioners Handicap and placing in three other stakes. Bred and owned by Sam and Sammy Stevens, the Sligo Bay (Ire) gelding was the Texas Champion 3-Year-Old Colt/Gelding in 2012 and Texas Champion Older Horse last year. The Joel Marr trainee is closing in on $500,000 in lifetime earnings. The award for Texas Champion Claimer will be announced in March after an online vote among the top Texas-bred claiming horses that ran in the Lone Star State last year. 2015 CATTLE RAISERS CONVENTION SCHEDULED FOR MARCH 27-29 IN FORT WORTH
Fort Worth, Texas – The Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) announced today that the 138th annual Cattle Raisers Convention, the biggest ranching industry event of the year, is scheduled for March 27-29, 2015 at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas. Vicente Fox, president of Mexico from 2000 to 2006, will be the keynote speaker at the opening general session. He will share stories of his prior experiences working to build a strong relationship between the United States and Mexico. Fox will also take questions from cattle raisers at the close of his speech. Former First Lady Laura Bush has been invited to speak at the opening general session of the Convention. Bush is actively involved in issues of national and global concern, with a particular emphasis on education, health care, human rights and the preservation of our nation’s heritage. Bush will discuss her role as a founder of “Taking Care of Texas,” which is an organization that promotes successful land, water and wildlife conservation practices.
Sylvia Longmire, Author of “Border Insecurity,” will also speak at the general opening session on the challenges of border security and illegal immigration issues. Longmire is a retired Air Force Captain and former Special Agent with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. Additionally, the School for Successful Ranching and issues sessions will feature 25 educational programs and a world-class lineup of subject matter experts who will provide insights into current ranching topics and practical tools attendees can take back to their ranch. The Cattle Raisers Expo is the largest annual ranching exposition in the region and will play host to more than 200 companies bringing the newest products and services to ranchers and landowners. A new addition for the 2015 Expo will be live cattle handling demonstrations, which will take place inside the Fort Worth Convention Center. The demonstrations will teach attendees how to handle cattle in a safe, low-stress manner. Rounding out the program are entertainment options such as the Cattle Raisers Dinner and Dance, Horsebites - Con’t. on pg. 60
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 59
+RUVHELWHV
Horsebites - Con’t. from pg. 58
Young Cattle Raisers’ After Party, the Texas Beef Council Fun Run and Walk, and the closing Luncheon Swing Riders Show featuring Doc and Mike Blakely. “We’re looking forward to another great Cattle Raisers Convention,” said Pete Bonds, TSCRA president. “The unique combination of speakers and educational programs, focused on issues of importance to ranchers, makes this a can’t-miss event for any cattle raiser or landowner.” Day registration begins at only $100. The Cattle Raisers Convention full registration includes: • Access to the Cattle Raisers Expo, including lunch on Friday and Saturday, and Friday’s welcome reception • Opening General Session and Closing General Session Luncheon • All School for Successful Ranching programs • All information sessions hosted by TSCRA committees • Cattle Raisers Dance and Dinner The Cattle Raisers Convention hotels are within easy walking distance of the Convention Center. Rooms are expected to book quickly, so those interested should register as soon as possible. More information and registration links are available at www.tscra.org/convention.
60 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
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February 2015 •
HORSEBACK MAGAZINE 61
*HQHUDO
Trail Ride! Howdy! Welcome to Cowboy Corner.
F
ebruary is trail ride month and March is rodeo month. In the area of influence, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo goes way beyond the whole of Texas. Love it, and I’m ready to ride to Houston one more time. This time of year I get questions like “what do I need to make the trail ride?” Let’s focus on the rider and list what you will need then you can add what you may want. To be comfortable you must stay warm and dry. To those of us that spend a lot of time outdoors in the winter staying warm should not be too hard. Ranching and trail riding use the same costume and lots of quality ranch work wear is available. Last December mentioned the insulated canvas duck vests which are very popular with barnyard boys. On a cold morning like to start with a long sleeve underwear or long underwear top, a heavy cotton work shirt, then my insulated canvas vest. Depending on the weather, then a light, medium, or heavy weight jacket or chore coat. Remember layers are best, and if you take it off, it may have to be carried behind your saddle. Trail rides have dress codes and some ski and hunting apparel is not considered appropriate for trail ride wear. Trail ride sponsors want the individual trail riders to look like cowboys not like ski bums or duck hunters. Never saw John Wayne wearin’ a ‘camo coat in a western movie.
About stayin’ dry, ain’t no such thing as stayin’ comfortable on a cold day if you are wet. Start at the top with a plastic hat cover. These hat covers are affordable, and easy to carry with your rain gear. Rain gear comes in all types, but my favorite is the cowboy “slicker”, which is designed and made to be worn horseback. These slickers are usually a nylon or plastic type material, not insulated, and good in moderate to cool weather. For cold weather the treated canvas “dusters” are hard to beat. The dusters are also made to be worn horseback and will keep you warm and dry. Slickers are much less bulky than dusters so the XX Large size boys might consider who’s gonna’ tote it if they ain’t wearin’ it. Remember the line to the ol’ song, “Cloudy in the west and lookin’ like rain and my danged ol’ slicker is in the wagon again.” The Brazos bottom school of hard knocks has taught me that totin’ slickers horseback needs some consideration. ‘Have all seen the bright yellow slickers tied behind some dude’s saddle, flapping in the wind and hangin’ on every thorny brush around. Guess that’s ok for the deep pockets gang, or the folks that like to use slickers with holes and tears. Have never met anyone
62 HORSEBACK MAGAZINE • February 2015
from either group, so let’s roll up our dry slicker, and put it in a feed sack or cantle bag, then tie behind the saddle. I like cantle bags made of canvas or leather that zip closed and can carry more than just a slicker and a hat cover. For footwear I like rubber knee boots in really wet weather, and just leather ranch boots in cold weather. Rubbers over ranch boots are available, and are really good in not too deep snow. The over boots were really great in West Texas where the temperature was low and the snow measured in inches not feet. Oil tanned leather ranch boots that are cleaned and oiled often can be almost waterproof, and a joy to wear every day. Guess how many pairs of sneakers I own. Now about chaps, or leggings, or chinks. Take your pick. On a cool dry day all are hard to beat, however have never been a chink man. Don’t like all that fringe floppin’ around, getting’ hung up, and bein’ in the way. Love the KISS approach, keep it simple stupid. Last on the list is a plastic saddle cover while being dismounted. Can also use a poncho or heavy duty trash bag.
Happy Trails...
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