On Mon, Nov 19, 2007 at 03:34:52PM -0600, Janice McDonald wrote: > > stjarni (icelandic-trained by an actual icelander) has run > > away with me twice.
i think isolating this sentence makes it sound like stjarni was doing something wrong. i don't think that is correct. i think that when we were being run down by the out-of-control belgian, getting the heck out of the way as fast as possible was the best course of action. and i think my failure to correctly understand how to cue him to slow down was what allowed it to happen the second time; he was not actually out of control, as demonstrated by the fact that i could turn him and he slowed down for me as soon as i did that (i.e. asked for something in a way he understood). nor has he ever bucked or reared under saddle, nor bitten (except the stray unseen finger too-clumsily offering him a treat), nor kicked. i'm glad your horses are so nice, too. > if you back a horse into a corner he is gonna show you whats in > his bag of tricks. i don't think i've ever seen stjarni feel backed into a corner, except that time on the trail with the belgian galloping at us. he's a brave guy. he's handled being surrounded by police scooters with lights and sirens going and ten-year-olds crawling under his belly with the same mild aplomb. i've never met a more trustworthy horse. > I have watched people give lessons all day at barn facilities and It > has been my considered opinion that 99.9% of all people who give > lessons are in it for the money, know less than almost anybody out > there about horses who actually rides them all the time, and I've only > seen one I would trust someone I cared about to take lessons from > them. Most were money grubbing dressage queens graduated up from > dressage brats, who decided when they were too old to take lessons > anymore they needed to put out a shingle and give them. this is my > experience, not only my opinion. i'll try not to take it personally, despite my dubeity about your ability to statistically handle numbers. i don't believe anyone is ever too old to take lessons; i have students older than myself, and i think most of my instructors have been younger than i. perhaps the fact that my state requires apprenticeships and exams and licensure for riding instructors raises the quality around here relative to where you live. --vicka
