“Believe in your horse, trust him!”
“Prepare to position for transition.”
“Always direct and then support.”
“Think, have a plan.”
“Ride the horse not your saddle, keep him between your legs and hands.”
“How little can you do?”
“Give your horse a job to do.”
“Only perfect practice makes perfect.”
“You’re alright, you’re doing ok.”

These are some of the phrases that stick in my mind as I reflect back on my participation in the recent Ray Hunt clinic at Chance Ridge in Elkhorn, NE hosted by Burton and Cindy Smith. Ray has tremendous insight about horses’ attitudes and how to get people to tune in to the horse and communicate with clarity. He doesn’t miss a thing. It felt like he could see right through every movement by reading both horse and rider with complete accuracy.

It was great to be in the presence of his spirit. He was not only friendly and funny, he was humble. He commented about not being righteous by saying, “no one is right and no one is wrong”. And then he taught us how the horse displays that to us. He gets you to think about things and always talks from the horse’s point of view. Perched from his chair above the arena he directed us with both encouragement and constructive criticism. Ray answered each person’s question with honesty, yet presented it in a way that it caused us to figure some it out on our own. I believe he was trying to empower us by causing us to think deeper about what we are doing and why.

The emphasis seemed to be on how important the little things are. Most of the time we tend to focus on the big things, like collection, sliding stops, lead changes, bits & tools etc. Ray reinforced to us that problems and flaws in our performance could be traced back to something very simple. He also stressed that we need to give the horse plenty of time, because many of us seem to get in a big hurry. The lesson was keep the basics going even while advancing and take the time it takes. It is very interesting how much the human is responsible for in the horse. I realized it is my job to adjust to fit the situation, and that no matter what happens I have to keep calm and focused with my first priority to honor the horse. The dignity of the horse comes first with Ray at all times. There is no place for a puffed up ego in good horsemanship.

I learned the value of transitions, preparing for them, and having a plan in your head at all times. A horse will wander around aimlessly without guidance. I saw a difference in the expression on the horse’s face when the rider had a plan and executed it. It seemed to build trust and confidence in the horse. You could tell when the message got from the horse’s mind through his emotions, and down through his body to his feet. Ray helped us achieve this by constant transitions. He didn’t let us do any one thing for very long, so it kept the horse’s attention and therefore helped improve the way the horse moved.

I realized when I ride at home I don’t make that many changes in a session, nor did I have a plan to do it. I may have gotten in a rut with the same old routine everyday. It was a good wake up call for me to get my horse more under me and more ready to do a lot of different things and make a lot of changes. I’m going to call it “the keep him guessing game.”

I will also remember Ray’s warning to us NOT TO DRILL our horses. He said when you drill a horse it doesn’t do any good. He said you have to learn how to recognize before it becomes a drill. You have to know when you’ve done enough and when to quit, and then you will make dramatic changes. If you will keep it interesting for your horse he will stay alive in his mind and in his feet. He will stay connected to you.

I noticed that over the three days Ray kept saying the exact same things over and over. It seemed to mean more and more each time he repeated it. There were people and horses attending from all different skills, levels and backgrounds. Even with the diversity Ray was conscious of each horse and rider and their different needs. Some may have gotten the message better than others, but I’m sure that everyone grew as a result of the experience whether an observer or participant. These principles and concepts take time to soak in and require lots of dedication and perspiration to bring them into practice.

One of my favorite parts of the clinic was watching the way Ray was able to communicate to his 18-year old grandson Kalon, and how well he listened. On the third day this young man was working with a mare in the colt-starting portion of the clinic because the girl who owned it had a little accident with this horse first thing that morning. It really impressed me that even if Kalon didn’t know whether the horse was ready or not, Ray knew, and he trusted his grandfather every step of the way.

Kalon put out a tremendous amount of effort with this horse and took the colt to the next level with his grandfather’s help. Kalon had both grit, perseverance, and confidence even though I perceived he was getting frustrated a few times, as this mare was what some may call “a difficult horse.” I don’t think Ray thought of her this way. He was extremely conscious of the self-preservation behaviors the mare held on to with perseverance. The horse came out good in the end, even though some of us may have been wondering about it a few times during the process.

The first two days of the class the colt starting looked deceptively simple. If we watch someone else make it look fairly easy we can get ourselves in trouble because we don’t realize that we didn’t comprehend all that we saw. I have noticed that the trouble in colt starting usually happens after the first few rides. Everything seems to be going along fine, and then all of a sudden something happens. Maybe we let our guard down too much, or the horse finally realizes what may be happening and chooses to react mindlessly out of fear. When this happens the horse needs immediate guidance with strong leadership from the human. And if we miss it, he’ll realize we don’t have the answers he needs, but Mother Nature does. So he may stop listening to us and start listening to his primal instincts. The dust is settling around us before we even realize it has started and we wonder what just happened. Ray stressed how we need to always pay attention because it could happen a year from the first ride. The effect our actions and interactions have on this horse may show now, and they may not show up until later, but they will show up. I realized how mentally, emotionally and physically fit we have to be to start a colt in a way that is best for each individual horse.

The horse learns what he lives and he lives what he learns. Every horse owner is a trainer whether they get paid for it in cash or not. Some do it better than others. Some are driven by ego and some aren’t. Some figure it out on their own, others need lots of help. Some are born with it and others have to work real hard at it. One thing I remember Ray said is “anybody can do this with enough heart and desire.” Ray inspired me to even greater excellence for the benefit of my friend the horse. I loved the way he kept calling the horse “his friend.” With great appreciation I want to thank Ray for making the world a better place for “our friend” the horse!

A hug and smile from Ray at the end of the class was enough for me to know that I was in the right place at the right time. My only disappointment was that there weren’t more horse people in attendance to absorb a little more knowledge and savvy from a great teacher and horseman and that it was over so quickly.

Gift of Greatness As I think of our nation I think of greatness and the many men and women who have made it great. Few of us will ever do anything that will be recognized or remembered by more than a handful of people, but that doesn’t make us any less important or special. I believe each and every person is unique with value and has a purpose in life. However, true greatness comes along so rarely that when we see it we want to touch it and we want a chance to be a part of it. There are a few horsemen who are truly great! They make it all look so easy and even magical. We can see the real connection they have with the horse. It is undeniable. A truly great horseman has a way of helping the horse feel good about whatever they ask him to do. They believe in the horse, that there are no good or bad horses, only horses that have or haven’t been given the chance to develop his own confidence and abilities with clear communication and positive motivation. When a person wants to become an artisan of horsemanship it is sort of like developing a great concert pianist. It doesn’t happen over night just because you bought a nice expensive grand piano. It takes years of foundational lessons with hours of practicing scales, chords, finger positions, feel of the keys, rhythm, tempo, balance, softness, loudness, various styles, and so much more. Eventually the great pianist will progressively begin to play more difficult scores until the sounds they can produce from the ivory keys are polished into beautiful music. Producing a beautiful harmonious ride on a consistent basis which feels good to both the horse and rider is a gift of greatness. But you can bet there was a lot of hard work, patience, and practice which went into that greatness. The art of horsemanship means developing a horse to be more than it could ever be without you. All horses have the potential to be beautiful partners moving confidently and gracefully while being ridden. With some horses it takes a great horseman in order to find that balance, not all horses can tolerate mediocre horsemanship. There comes a point when all great horsemen may have to ask themselves these questions: “How can I help this horse become the horse that I seek? How can I help him feel better about what I am asking him to do and who I am asking him to be? After all you picked the horse he didn’t pick you. Sherry Jarvis "Not only does talent create its own opportunities, but intense desire will create its own talents." - Bruce Lee