No one ever feels like they know enough with horses. Everybody needs to continue learning. Every day, I run across something new. I knew almost nothing about the Western disciplines when I started this journey, and I didn’t know where to go to get the information even though I’ve always been horse crazy. I grew up hunter-jumper, from a kid until my 20s. Then, I took 30 years off and didn’t ride untiI I was 57, and a friend of mine’s kids started showing AQHA. There are no English barns where I live, so I learned to ride Western pleasure and showed AQHA. I found “Filson” during COVID, in 2020, and started riding Western.
Moving into ranch riding, it drove me to seek more knowledge. It’s the culture of versatility ranch horse that felt more me and really drew me in, but it was a lot to learn! My first show, I was terrified and felt like a fish out of water, but everyone was welcoming, and I saw myself doing it going forward. It was frustrating for me not having a background in Western but having shown so much I had too many ranch riding points to qualify as a novice division rider, so I showed a level up from my experience. I’ve never won a buckle, but I wanted to do it, and that led me to buy a new horse, “Topper,” who is only 5.
I feel like I am still so new at it, though I have a good foundation, I need in person lessons so I don’t go astray, but when I can’t I still have a way to continue to learn at home with the Digital Training Library. Having really good friends in the RideLife community has helped me to stay on course. We talk about videos, about lessons, about how to connect with our horses. It’s huge to have that option to talk to such an incredible and supportive group. I talk to some of these friends several times a week, and I wouldn’t have that if Coach Shannon hadn’t created the RideLife community.
Sometimes, you don’t know what you don’t know, just that you’re having a problem. I go back and look at my runs, rewatch lesson videos, and find those pieces I need to work on, like sidepassing. I want to make sure I am following the method, the formula, which is laid out in each video. The expansiveness of the topics is a big deal when you’re not a professional horseman, when you’re a non-pro, and you don’t have decades of experience in your pocket. I have a resource to refer back to, a resource where I can learn over and over.
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