february 2012
$2.50 Volume 35, issue 2
inspired by people and horses
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The Hansma way: a cut above the rest I did it my way Personal profile By Wendy Dudley
T
he Hansma name may be associated with the cutting horse world, but a black and white photo of Gerry Hansma jumping his horse Go Jamie at a Lethbridge show in 1970 explains his training philosophy, an approach developed over four decades. “You have to find the right job for the right horse,” said the 56-year-old who raises champion cutting horses on his farm near Granum, AB. “It is such a great feeling to be on an outstanding horse that is doing its job well, whether it be a reiner, a cutter, a barrel racer or a jumper. They’re all cool, and fun to show.” Today, Gerry specializes in cutting horses. He still gets excited when a horse shows natural cow sense. “The good ones are born with it,” he said. “They can read a cow and figure it out, and to do that is pretty special. The instinct has to be there for it to be developed.” The horse also has to be born with athletic ability, he added. “I can’t train that. They have to have the talent, and then I can shape it into my style. A good cutter can roll over and stay over its hocks. They have good stops, and are flexible and can bend easily.” But athleticism alone won’t get the job done if the horse isn’t keen on the work. “They have to have a ton of grit and heart.” Hansma, along with his four brothers, grew up knowing the strain of a hard day’s work. His father, the late Hans Hansma, came to Canada from Holland in 1948, homesteading the farm with his wife Henny. The family was not wealthy, but the boys were raised to take pride in a job well done. “We had to work for a living. We learned there are no real short-cuts. You learned to deal with what you had.” Always interested in horses, Hans outfitted his sons with ponies, never realizing how large a role horses would play in their lives. They did 4-H and gymkhanas, and showed hunters, barrel racers, reiners, pleasure horses, and at halter.
photo courtesy the hansma family
Gerry Hansma cuts cattle on Two Spot The Cat, his 2006 chestnut stallion.
Gerry’s brothers, Winston and Paul, moved to Texas, and took the cutting horse world by storm. Brother David manages the Claresholm Agriplex, and Taco now lives in Claresholm after years of helping out on the farm. Asked if he wished he too had moved to Texas — the centre of the cutting horse world — Gerry doesn’t even pause. “Nope,” he answered. “I like the variety. If I get sick of the horses, I can go out and pound posts.” While the shingle on the farm reads Hansma Performance Horses, Gerry and wife Sandy, who markets their horses and shows cutters and trains barrel racers, also run yearling cattle and put up feed. “We get stretched a bit here and there. We have to juggle, but we’re not on the road full-time. We don’t have to hit every show there is.” Staying home has served Gerry well. He has trained and shown multiple Futurity, Derby
and Classic Challenge champions and finalists. He also was named to the Canadian Cutting Horse Association Hall of Fame. Breeding and training horses isn’t unlike farming when it comes to unpredictability, he said. It’s always a bit of a gamble when selecting mares and stallions. “An individual may be awesome, but maybe it doesn’t pass it on. You can have full brothers and sisters that are so different. You just never quite know exactly what you will get. You have to be honest, and at some point realize that a horse may not end up being quite what you thought it would be.” Back in his dad’s day, the horse industry was considered a hobby, but with competitive horse sports and large purses, it is now a business. “The majority of our clients are recreational, but it’s certainly our business, you bet.” Gerry is just short of hitting the $1 million mark in
career earnings. He has won the Stampede Futurity Open four times, but he doesn’t keep track of those statistics. “I just try to do a good job. I like training horses and getting better at it. But there are some years when you have good ones, and other years when the horses don’t click. You work your butt off, and grit your teeth. Even at a competition, there are so many variables. The cattle selected, the breaks, the draws.” He has Publication Mail Agreement 40069240
learned by watching riders like veteran championship trainer Les Timmons and from mentors like Canadian cutting icon Bill Collins. “Bill got us started and was a big part of it, and the cow horse era. You learn something from everybody, especially the ones that beat you. You keep your eyes open. You don’t want to get hung up on your way being the best.” Hansma
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