This time last year we all were likely looking forward to a good New Year with all the promises that it portends. This year I think we are scampering into the New Year halfway looking over our collective shoulders hoping we leave all the scared baggage behind.
However, and there is always a however, an honest view we can find many good things to bring with us into the New Year.
Despite all the bad things that happened to us collectively...the Coronavirus threat and government lockdowns, and my personal tragedies in losing a sister a few weeks ago, many friends throughout the year, and my best horse coming up chronically lame, I am choosing to focus on the good things. I got to spend more time with my own horses, other people and their horses, and despite the pandemic had a overwhelming response to my annual Arena Challenge as people were seemed kind of desperate for competition and normalcy.
I found a good new horse with great bloodlines counting Poco Bueno, King and Leo, and that purchase was timely like I mentioned my good Hackamore horse, Junior, came down chronically lame. X-rays and nerve blocks showed navicular and an arthritic condition of the coffin bone. Such a sad thing to see such a good horse in that condition.
I rode Junior, now 20 years old, as a Range Rider in BLM grazing units gathering cows and as a Conservation Law Enforcement Officer riding him in remote desert areas and the mountains patrolling for archeological thieves and game poachers. I've used him in Horseman's Challenges, Team Penning, Ranch Sorting, demonstrations and teaching clinics. He has certainly paid his dues and has more than earned to spend the rest of his years just as a pen mate to the other horses as long as I can keep him comfortable and his pain level low. I hope to do so in the short term with daily Equioxx tablets, monthly Adequan shots and Platinum Performance CJ supplement with his morning and evening pelleted feed. At some point working with a Vet specializing in equine orthro issues, Junior will likely receive steroid shots and maybe stem cell injections. We'll see.
The new horse, a Palomino gelding named Jake, is working out well. He picks up an understanding quickly. His only bad habits are wanting to trot everywhere - doesn't matter if you are leading him or just sitting the saddle, he wants to trot. So there was an understanding curve with him being with me, learning that walking is good until I ask him otherwise, but I do enjoy his willingness for forward momentum. His other bad habit was chewing on everything that was left where he could get it. Four fly masks and three halters so far, but everything after one is my mistake. As I write this I have more Double Diamond halters on order as I went through all my spares.
Another thing I am grateful for is a new puppy, now not so much a puppy...65 pounds and still growing. In early June, my wife and I watched the movie "Call of the Wild". The next morning while I was away from the house, my wife texts me a photo of an 8 week old puppy that someone threw over our fence line. Not the first time. I guess the words out that my wife rescues and fosters dogs. So that afternoon when I saw the pup, I knew I wanted to keep him. And keep him we did naming him Buck after the dog in the "Call of the Wild". He has taken to the horses. Playing with some. Wary of a couple, and comfortable enough with one in particular to lay in the Sun next a pile of hay while this horse grazes. Can't help but contrast how different species of animals can get along, but we humans are killing each other and destroying property in the big cities.
Anyway, I hope most can sent aside the bad things, instead focusing on their blessings and the promise of a good, new year, and spend more time with their family and their horses. Happy New Year and Safe Journey!
I think part of the unique American mindset, and more so during Christmas, is to find joy in heart warming stories of people helping others or doing something to better than communities. I was going to originally write about my Veterinarian, Amy Starr DVM, who always goes the extra mile in treating animals and who not only provides charity Vet and other services locally and in Mexico but in SE Asia and South America as well...but I ran across this story which I had never heard of and had to research more on. Thought I would share.
The Pack Horse Library Project was a Works Progress Administration (WPA) program that delivered books to remote regions in the Appalachian Mountains between 1935 and 1943, under then President Franklin Roosevelt’s initiatives to create jobs and decrease illiteracy to help lift America out of the Great Depression.
The Pack Horse Library Project was unique in that it was completely worked by women which at the height of the program used 30 supporting libraries to provide books and other reading material to 100,000 people. Pack horse librarians were paid by the WPA and these stalwart women traversed the difficult country side, often traveling as much as 120 miles a week to deliver reading material to these remote rural residents in rural Kentucky. They provided their own horses and mules, and reportedly were not deterred by bad weather.
By the end of 1938, there were as many as 270 librarians riding out across rural Kentucky counties. As many as 1,000 riding librarians participated in the program over the years with the program ending in 1943, the same year that the WPA was dissolved, as unemployment plummeted during wartime as US manufacturing picked up to produce war machines needed to defeat Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.
First off, I spent several years chasing bits, trying to find the right bit that would bring about the change I was looking for in my horses. Until I was humbled enough to realize that the change had to come from me and not a piece of metal. I have apologized to my horses for my past approaches, much like I apologized to my daughter for taking her into town for one of those nasty McDonalds Happy Meal once a week when she was growing up. It's amazing that as we get older some things get clearer. It's just too bad that some people, and I'm in that group, won't live long enough and learn enough to make right decisions the first time, but sometimes, maybe everytime, on how learning takes place.
When riding a living, breathing animal four to six times our size and who can instantly move too quickly for us, or dump us on the ground, it is human nature to try and gain control and that most often leads us to more and more severe bits and headgear. But, it really is logical that in our and the horses development in the progression of training you would think we should tend to get softer, not only in our approach and how we use our hands (and legs) but in the bits/head gear we make our horses wear. Put in another way, as we and our horses get better we should be able to get by with less effort and harshness.
In the clinics I see all sorts of bits and headgear. Gag bits, mechanical hackamores, shanked bits connected to nose bands and tie downs. I've seen mechanical hackamores with really soft nose bands but with curb chains are pretty tight before the shanks are activated. And in the annual Arena Challenges I run, such as in this year's event, out of 27 competitors and horses, there were only two ridden in bosals and only two ridden in snaffles. To be sure, some competitors rode really soft in other bits, one rider in particular with a spade bit and several in leverage bits (having shanks). I was pleased to see more riders this year riding in a soft manner, with quiet hands and good communication with thier respective horses, however I had hoped to see less of the contraptions that try to control a horse through pain and not signal.
Over the years I am now in a place where I haven't used anything other than snaffle bits or bosals on my horses. On all my snaffle bit bridles I use slobber straps and have graviated to the longer slobber straps as I think they give a clearer pre-signal and quicker release. The two snaffles I use the most are the ones shown in the photo above. One regular snaffle with copper bars that really get the horse salivating and the other with a copper roller in the center.
The past week I had a gent come over wanting to see how I suggest he progress with a two year old colt he was going to pick up soon. The colt should have a dozen rides on him before this guy brings him home. This gent is no novice but it had been a long time since he has ridden green broke horses. I pulled one of my horses and rode him a snaffle showing him what things I would work on. Towards the end of the demo he asked at what point would I go to a shanked bit. He just thought that going to a leverage bit is the natural progression. While many of the best horseman (and women) in the country progress from a snaffle, to a hackamore (bosal) then to the two rein - riding with a bosal and a spade bit each with it's own reins, then eventually just in the spade bit, but there are many of us as well who can't get along well enough with our horses riding in a snaffle and being able to ride one handed, neck reining, controlling the front and back ends independantly from each other and getting horizontal and vertical softness....hence the draw of a leverage bit.
With the bosals and snaffle bit bridles, I can't remember using anything other than mecates as reins in the past 10-12 years. I think if more riders would give a snaffle bit a chance, riding several times a week on a particular horse, they'll come to find that they can not only get on just fine on a snaffle but actually see a better response in their horse. And the mecate reins, while seemingly may be complicated at first, is really a great tool. The photo above shows the snaffle bits with slobber straps and mecate reins. Maybe this will spark alitle interest in the snaffle bit as opposed to leverage bits. Safe riding everyone an Happy Thanksgiving.
The 2020 6th Annual Functional Horsemanship Arena Challenge is in the books. 27 entries across four competitive divisions stirred up the dust in the arena of the Red Bird Ranch on Saturday 3 October 2020 and when it was all said and done we saw some excellent riding by skilled riders on really good horses.
This Challenge is unique in the sense that it is not under any national association or rules, but the 10 to 14 requirements in each competitive division were all horsemanship tasks tied to working on horseback, showing the handiness of the horse, perform some elements of dressage and just general things you would want out of a good trail horse.
After the riding was done, the rider's sided up to the lunch line and awaited the scores. When the results were announced the riders were presented their awards and enjoyed a nice prize table thanks to our supporters in the industry - Cashel Company, Animal Health International, Eclectic Horseman magazine, Starr Western Wear, Tractor Supply Company, Hoof Wraps, CamelBak, and Diamond Bar V Horseshoeing. Cashel's very nice bridles, split reins and braided rope halters were the most prized items taken.
Leonard Benally (photo above) won the Stockhorse and Open Divisions, with Erin Weich winning Intermediate and Gena Blakenship winning Novice. Travis Reed, riding his awesome young mare, won the Horsemanship Award. I am posting the full results at the bottom of this article.
In the Stockhorse Division, the rider's had to throw a rope over a bow gate and pull a bag up like you might with a food bag to keep the bears from getting into it; trot a circle then show lateral movement and ride a switchback around closely placed upright poles; open and close a gate; work a Pro Cutter Flag showing stopping, doubling and cutting. The rope tasks were throwing the traditional head and heel shots, then we made it difficult by requiring the riders to throw a head loop while up against the arena fence and throw an off side head loop and move your horse in a turn on the hocks under your rope so you are facing up. The last requirements of stockhorse division was to rope a barrel and trot around it feeding out your rope like you were trailing a calf, and finishing by dragging a heavy log at a trot, like you are dragging a calf to a branding fire - that's Debby Hale dragging a log in the photo above.
Open Division was tougher than last year requiring among other things: backing in a serpentine then a circle; canter departures with a simple lead change; perform a shoulders in; then left and right leg yields. These riders also had to secure a garoucha pole, joust a rope ring then place the ring on the ground with the end of the garoucha pole inside the ring and trot a circle. A couple riders did this exceptional well - Leonard Benally and Linda Seeds come to mind. Photo above is Linda Seeds beginning to perform the garoucha pole trot. Proud to call both of them my friends.
Intermediate Division was won by Erin Weich who came out of no where (first year competing in this event) to beat Marianne Bailey just by 5 points. Marianne has ridden in all 6 challenges and is the President of the Perfect Harmony Horse Rescue & Sanctuary whom is supported by charitable donations through this event.
Novice Division was won by Gena Blakenship (photo at very top), riding a painted mare in a soft rope hackamore, with Travis Reed (photo above) riding a young mare in second place, and a young lady, Abigail Wendte coming in third. Competition was tight as 6 points separated these three riders. Travis Reed, who makes Sasquatch look small, impressed the judges and riders with his young mare who may have had 20 rides on her. He won the Horsemanship Award which was a statute and a Starr Western Wear gift card.
This event concluded with the awarding of checks from Starr Western Wear and the proceeds of the raffle to Perfect Harmony Horse Rescue & Sanctuary. We generally have a couple special awards as well. The judges handed out custom hooks picks from Vince Vesely and Diamond Bar V Horseshoeing to Imara Jackson and Don Carpenter. Dan Bailey, who was beat out last year by a lady from Texarkana for second best mustache, came this year with a COVID beard. Alas, he did not have better luck, only placing second for best COVID beard. I won it. I was the judge.
One last comment on competitions....they can be used to observe what is possible, see where your holes are, and be exposed to tasks you may never consider working on - in short be inspired and motivated. So at best competitions can breed competence. At worst, people can focus on winning at all costs and that often results in unhappy riders, bewildered spectators and especially horses who can suffer. In short horsemanship is at risk. However, with the quality of people that have attended this event for the past six years, all one could see was great sportsmanship, good manners and people helping others. I thank the riders for that, as it makes it all worthwhile.
Three more months and hopefully we'll be able to look back at 2020 and say "good riddance" and turn forward to a better 2021.
While the Pandemic, lock downs, economic shutdowns, school closures and the ever present masks have impacted most of America, some are better at taking in stride and using the extra time to do something productive. I can't say I've been one of those people. I have squandered time I could have used much better,..and we all know time is that one resource we just can't refill, only learn to use better.
Still, I can't say that the COVID deal has badly impacted me. God has woken me up everyday so far and given me the day. I've done more local clinics; bought a new horse that I'm just tickled about - that's a picture of him up top - his name is Jake. I've seemingly found a working solution to a long standing fungus problem on my #1 horse; and, read a stack of books. The last book being the Essential Martin Black, volume one. I am sorry that all the top hand clinicians schedules have been stymied or at least reduced, including the Randy Rieman clinic I was planning on hosting earlier this year but was derailed due to the china virus. Hopefully 2021 will be a furor of clinics and horsemanship activity.
One man who has not lost stride is songster Dave Stamey. I have a stack of his CD's in my truck and if I have to drive any distance at all, I look forward to listening to him. The COVID lockdown and wild fires have given Dave Stamey some inspiration to create a "porch music" album. This is what Dave say's about his latest song - Porch Music Number 13 'The Next Sound You Hear is Me Leaving,' a little ditty of warning to gentlemen who forget to listen. "We hope you enjoy and will share to all your friends. Once again we are kept inside by wildfire smoke and Covid 19, but at least something is coming out of all of this. Yes, we will begin production of "Porch Music"--the album in just a few weeks...." I'm looking forward to it. And you all can see him perform 'The Next Sound You Hear is Me Leaving' below.
Leading up to the annual Arena Challenge I put on every year, I do several horsemanship clinics for each group of competitors. My intent here is to give them things to work on so when they show up and ride in the Challenge they can perform better. If they perform better maybe they'll reach for more.
The last two clinics were for the Stockhorse Division and the Novice class. I try to make it challenging for the stockhorse competitors having them throw loops from odd angles on the roping dummies and at greater distances than the team ropers are used to. Maybe the hardest throw was throwing a loop to the off side then as you pull your slack, raising it above the horse's head as you move your horse's front end to face up on the dummy. This can't be performed very effectively unless you can move your horse's front end independently of the back end. Pictured below is a rider preparing to make the off side throw.
Perhaps the biggest challenge for the stockhorse competitors and their horses was tracking the Pro Cutter flag. As they move one direction and stop the flag, or stop as the flag stops, then position up for a turn in the opposite direction and track the flag the other direction. Again the ability to bring the front end over setting up for a departure and a trot or canter departure is what is going to allow the horse and rider to stay up with the flag. I'll run the Pro Cutter all the way in one direction then immediately return the other direction requiring the horse and rider to double - an 180 degree turn with forward momentum. Ever see a Gypsy Vanner work and double on a flag? If you haven't heard of Gypsy Vanner horses, look them up on Google. I think they were bred to pull carts for leprechauns or something like that. The picture below is a Gypsy Vanner just beginning to double on the flag.
The last clinic was for Novice Division riders. I had six some to the clinic and while we didn't get to some of the things I wanted to expose them to, we did some make some progress. All but one rider rode with a mechanical hackamore and couple of the rider had less slack than others in their curb chains. This made it that much harder to get softness out of their horses. I think many riders don't know just how sensitive the horse's jawline is, so when the mechanical hackamore is tightened just a little by pulling on the reins, the nose band and the curb chain become a nut cracker on the horse's nose and jaw. Doing a smooth transition from the walk to trot or trot to canter when the mechanical hackamore is putting pressure on the horse is challenging.
Walk to a Trot transition. We worked on a subtle transition, riding on loose rein and getting your horse soft. I spent a lot of time correcting hand position on the reins and what a slack rein feels like. Sometimes the riders would put just a little more pressure on the reins which causes the horse to loose momentum - they just get confused with the lack of a clear signal. Some of this is the rider's preparing for the horse to go faster than than they want. If I'm only working with one rider, sometimes I'll take them to the round pen where a horse going fast is more easily managed.
We worked on the stop. Because too many of the horses move with an elevated head position the stops were not precise and heavy on the front end. An elevated head is aggravated when the rider is puling on their head or mouth. So we spent some time accentuating sitting deep in the seat of the saddle and exaggerating the feet forward and heels down, before ever picking up the reins.
The backup was next. We worked on using the reins as a secondary backup cue. When I could get the riders to stop pulling on their horse's head, the horses were more comfortable and the riders could get a change from their horse stepping with the back end as opposed to pushing with their front end. A couple of riders progressed very well and got their horses to back up with very little rein, instead using their feet to create momentum. The look on the rider's faces when they saw an understanding in their horse is priceless.
Then we worked on turn arounds. Because most of the riders were riding in contact they had the habit of a taunt outside rein on a turnaround with is confusing to the horse and ends up slowing momentum. The Arena Challenge will an 8' turnaround box as well as a task requiring switchback turns around vertical poles, and in order to do those obstacles the riders are going to have to get their horses giving to horizontal flexion and soft in the barrel to get the bend and maintain forward momentum. The Arena Challenge is just over a month away, so we'll see just how progress between now and then everyone makes.
I am putting on our annual Arena Challenge, the 6th year in a row, on 3 October 2020. I'd like to think this event is a little unique in the horse competition world for non-Pro riders as I try to blend different facets of multiple disciplines into an event where Cowboys, Dressage riders, Eventers, Team Ropers, Trail riders and yes even Barrel Racers can compete on an even playing field. Barrel Racers are asked to leave their yippy dogs at home! Okay you barrel racers - no offense. Those comments are meant for a certain barrel racer and I know she'll get a laugh.
It's kind of challenging for a working cowboy to have to cross an arena on a leg yield or move their horse on a shoulders in maneuver. Likewise, when a Dressage competitor has to draw a slicker off the fence and put in on, or, open and close a gate, it may be challenging. Some may find a 8 foot turn around box hard to do on their horse with forward momentum, and yet others crossing a long narrow bridge difficult. A canter departure on a given lead will be easy for some, while others may find backing their horse in a circle is something they may need to practice.
My objective in this annual event, other than to have a safe event, is to promote horsemanship and the desire to increase one's knowledge and abilities. I use some the same tasks over several years in a row to stress certain performance. One year the rider's were required to dismount, stand in a box and back their horses using just a feel on their reins or get down rope, then drop their reins/lead and walk away to demonstrate their horse ground tying. The next year the same was required and an observer could see who worked on it and who did not. Another task was draping a towel over their horse's head and leading their horse blindfolded, such as taking a horse through the smoke of a fire in a burning barn.
Additionally, the focus on horsemanship is paramount. I try to design each competitive division course as safely doable yet challenge the horse and rider. Each course is a combination of basic, intermediate or advanced maneuvers and obstacles as appropriate to the competitive division.
Common maneuvers and obstacles that have been used in the past and may be used this year include: turn on the hocks; turn on the forehand; backing straight; backing in a serpentine; backing in an L shape; backing in a circle; trot through serpentine cones, move bending through vertical poles; crossing a bridge; go through a cowboy curtain; retrieve ball from bucket and place on cone; open/close a gate; cross a tarp; retrieve and put on a slicker; dismount/remount; ground tying; backing a horse in hand; trailer loading; crossing ground poles; leg yield; shoulders in; transition from slow walk to fast walk; transition from slow trot to faster trot; canter departures on designated lead; simple lead changes; walk to trot transitions; trot departure to a canter transition; side passing straight; side passing in L shape; and side passing with front feet on platform; and blind fold horse and lead on ground to name some that a competitor may see.
In the Stockhorse division rider’s will be required to throw several loops on roping dummies and perform other roping and ranch horse related tasks. Most rider's in this division can throw head shots and heel trap loops - it's their stock in trade for Cowboys and Team Ropers. But I'll ask them to something different as well such as throw a loop to their off side and pivot their horse underneath the loop. Stockhorse competitors may also work their horses on a Pro Cutter flag; Drag a heavy log; throw a loop around a barrel and trot around the barrel feeding out their slack and wrapping it around the barrel; and, trailer load their horse.
We are thankful for the great support in the past from many companies. Notable supporters for this year's Arena Challenge includes Cashel Company and Starr Western Wear. Eclectic Horseman donated a box of magazines. When the awards ceremony has ended with everyone has been fed lunch, competitors have collected awards and prizes much more than their entry fee thanks to all the supporting vendors which I'll list when I post the results in October.
Saturday, July 25, 2020
What day is it? Why it's the National Day of the Cowboy!
Always celebrated on the 4th Saturday in July. While the Coronavirus scare has shut down events across the country - some parts more than others - don't let that hamper your celebration, private or otherwise.
James Owen, in his iconic book, Cowboy Values, points out that we can all share the seven core values of Cowboys as they are not just for the Cowboy, they are for all of us. And the Good Lord knows we can certainly use some of that right now. Courage – Optimism – Self-Reliance – Authenticity – Honor – Duty – Heart.
Anyway, start the day off right by watching Miko Marks Performs "Help" at the 2020 National Cowboy Poetry Gathering.
I received a phone call from Colleen, a lady who had previous called me to order some Functional Tie Rings and we ended up talking for almost an hour on ground training. This time her question was "is it necessary to warm up horses by lunging them before you ride them."
I told Colleen, that the short answer was 'yes' in my opinion, if at all practical and possible. I liken warming up a horse to me getting out of bed in the morning. Long gone are the day's I can swing my legs out, tie on some running shoes and go for a run. These days it takes me one cup of strong coffee and 50 minutes of stretching before I feel I can face my chores.
Warming up, horses or humans, helps get the blood circulating and making the muscles, joints and soft connective tissue more pliable and less prone to injuries. Warming up can also reduce pain. I think horses are no different than humans in this regard. And warming up a horse, if we pay attention, can show us where they are having problems, stiffness, lameness and such. Warming up is not just a physical thing, but again, if we pay attention, a warmup period can help focus on the horse on the handler who becomes a rider shortly thereafter. Can help make for a safer ride.
Lunging, either using a long lead rope or lunge line, or free lunging, what some people call lunging at liberty, is one way to warm up horses, not the only way.
Before we even halter a horse and lead him to where we are going to saddle up, we have to approach the horse. This in and of itself is a opportunity to remind and re-establish leadership with the horse. Once haltered and leading, we can use that to help the horse focus on us - correcting an improper leading position; stopping; backing; having the horse stand when there is no feel in the lead rope; correcting the horse if he becomes distracted. I would just caution not to make a federal offense out of anything, just correct him with as minimum pressure as necessary. All this takes maybe an extra 2 minutes, so there is not really a reason not to do it.
Once I have saddled a horse, some times my warmup on him is just riding at a walk for a bit, stopping and backing, disengaging his front end, moving his front end over, giving me softness in lateral and vertical flexion. Some times, I dismounted nd stretch a horse out. Other times on other horses, who need it and could benefit from it, my warm up may be lunging usually with the lead end of the mecate reins. Any time you are asking something from the horse which is usually be directing his feet - providing you are giving him clear cues - serves the purposes of getting that horse connected to you, so warming up both is a physical and mental benefit to the horse.
Today is the 244th birthday of the United States marked from this Nation's birth on 4 July 1776 at the approval by representatives of the 13 states, in the 2nd Continental Congress, of the Declaration of Independence. Supporting and signing the Declaration was akin to signing your death warrant if the Colonialists were not successful in gaining independence. The Declaration of Independence was a large step towards forming an independent United States.
The declaration was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and edited by a committee headed up by John Adams before being further refined by Congress. It was first printed and disseminated across America. A copy reached the Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army George Washington who read it to his troops on the 9th July.
While there is a loud minority of people in this country who desire to rewrite, even destroy, the history of this Nation, both good and bad, and recognizing that this Country is not without it's faults, there is no other country of the face of the earth where the people enjoy more freedom and more opportunity. Founding father Benjamin Franklin was asked upon the dissemination of the Declaration of Independence on what type of country the delegates gave the people and Franklin responded, "A Republic, if you can keep it."
In Congress, July 4, 1776.
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
What has helped me with my horses in the past few years was reminding myself that progress in myself and my horses was an incremental process, sometimes just inches at a time. I call this "two inches of horsemanship".
I really don't remember saying this out loud at least to people, but my horses hear me say it quite a bit, until a few months back when I was helping a client learn to ask her horse to move his feet using the lead rope and she said "Oh I see, just a slight difference".
She was referring to the slight difference in the angle of the lead rope which presents a different feel to the horse. We were asking the horse to moving an inside front leg over to the side and follow that with his outside front foot. When she vocalized her understanding, I said "Yep, just two inches of horsemanship right there."
That two inches can be six inches or can even be time like 10 seconds. It represents a slight change from the horse or handler that makes a difference. It can mean an extra moment of patience - ever heard the term "waiting on the horse?"
That two inches can be taken literally such as what a slight change in my foot placement within the stirrup meant to me when I had a horse who had trouble with lateral movement with forward momentum. He was good at responding when I asked him for lateral movement at the walk or trot to the right, but when asking for lateral movement to the left I was challenged at getting an understanding from him. Until someone way handier than me told me to 'try exaggerating the placement of my outside foot and as the horse gains the understanding, refine your foot-leg clue to a more subtle movement.' So putting my outside leg about two inches further forward gave the horse a better understanding if what I was asking.
Two inches of horsemanship also means just getting a try from your horse and building on that. I can't think of anything that demonstrates that better when teaching a horse to back. In the beginning when we ask the horse to back, when the horse even just shifts his body weight back, we give a release. Then we ask for a step or maybe even just picking a foot up in preparation for placing it backwards. As he responds we ask for more and before you know it he is backing. <br><br>
And yes I do talk to my horses. They are good listeners. My wife sometimes hears me talking to them and asks "who am I talking to?". I always say "just one of my horses". The horses will talk back to you, you just got to be a good listener too.
Conflicting emotions this memorial day. From seeing a country crawling out of an economic and social shut down, to what this Coronavirus means to us long term, to thinking of those who gave all in service to this Nation. Those men and women who answered the call to defend our way of life which is defined by our very freedoms.
I have many friends who died in conflict or died from visible or not so visible wounds received from their service. Some of them stand out as the very best men you could meet. And just like I told a family whose husband and father took his own life from those non-visible wounds, you can lose your mind asking why.
I envy the people who faith is so strong they don't have to ask the why. Instead, they believe they will know the answer in good time. But I still struggle with the unfairness of it all. There has to be some meaning. And if there is a meaning, at least in part has to include that they died so those they left behind could live a life worth their sacrifice.
So I am sorry that better men than me died before me. I'm sorry for the grief of their loved ones and emptiness at their families' supper tables and birthday parties. My way to honor them is to remember the shared memories, but to especially work hard not to squander the time their sacrifice gave me. Are we honoring those who sacrificed their lives for us and our freedoms by living a life that would they would say their sacrifice was worth it? I often fail.
I am going to finish this with a poem written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a surgeon during World War I, who wrote the famous poem "In Flanders Fields" after one of his friends was killed in Belgium. As they buried his friend in a field grave, wild poppies were beginning to grow between the graves. John McCrae did not make it through the Great War, dying before the end of it. Today, Red Poppies symbolize Memorial Day and honoring those lost.
If you don't know who Dave Stamey is, you ought to get acquainted. He is an accomplished cowboy and musician. I am going to include one of my favorite songs of his (The Circle) at the bottom of this post. While you can download many of his songs via the phone music apps, I prefer to buy his CD's for my truck from Eclectic Horseman.
Dave appears in the excellent documentary "The Gathering" by Vaquero Films and his songs are featured in the Horseman Gazette series by Eclectic Horseman. Anyway, the following is a post Dave wrote on his Facebook page. I was reading it at Supper and had to stop eating otherwise I would have likely choked to death.
How to Write Songs
I have on my desk here a letter sent by Mr. Roscoe Dimmler from Squirrel Foot, Idaho. It appears that Mr. Dimmler lives in a sheep camp up there in the flat part of the state. It’s difficult to make out just what he wants, as the letter looks as if it were scrawled with a sharp stick dipped in charcoal, but in the lines I can read he’s asking about how songs get written, and in particular how I go about writing mine.
He says:
“Dear Mister Stamler, cud you tell me how you rite yer songs. I have seed you many times and herd you, and I think if you can do it probly anybody can.”
The rest of the letter drifts off into a description of how many sheep he runs on his place, and some trouble he’s having with a pesky neighbor. After that it gets smeary and unreadable. As I, proudly, know nothing about sheep, and have never met his neighbor, I can’t help him with those issues, so I will limit myself to his question about songwriting—though I know nothing about that, either.
I wish I did know. I pretend that I do, but that’s just empty posturing, easily seen through. I’ve written and recorded a bunch of them, somewhere around a hundred, I would guess, but that doesn’t mean I know how to do it.
There is a story that Irving Berlin, even in his nineties, would write a song every night before going to bed. Every night. A whole song. Every goddamn night. I imagine him there, sitting at his little desk with a pencil, lamplight shining off his old bald head, humming and scribbling, humming and scribbling.
Churning out these glittering lyrical jewels as easily as swatting a fly, and I kind of hate him for it. It seems wrong to hate the man who wrote “White Christmas,” something you might even go to hell for, but I can’t help myself. Irving wasn’t all that great as a musician, by the way. Allow me to point that out with only a smidgen of snarkiness. He played piano, but just barely. He could play in only one key—I think it was B-flat—and yet there he sat, every night, popping out a finished song before shuffling down the hall to brush his teeth. If he still had any. I’ve heard no stories about his teeth, but that’s not important. Even letting him have a weekend off every now and again, that’s still over three hundred songs a year, just in the evenings, let alone what he might accomplish during daylight hours. Such a massive output almost shames me. I’m lucky if I get ten or fifteen songs in a whole year, and some years it’s as few as five or six.
The nerve of the guy. I mean, really.
Diane Warren, who has written, I believe, a gazillion songs, most of them hits, and won Grammys and Tonys and Emmys and every other award ever dreamed up, says that she works at songwriting twelve hours a day, every day. She has a room she works in, like a little nest, and she claims it’s never been cleaned. That’s a bit scary, but not as scary as working for twelve hours, no matter what room you find yourself in. I can’t think of anything I’m capable of doing for that long. Once in a while I can run a weed eater for two or three hours, but then I have to quit and drink a Fresca. I’ve never met Ms. Warren, and while I’m sure she’s a very nice lady and I like some of her songs, twelve hours of anything is too much, I don’t care what it is. Twelve hours of trying to write a song will just make you nuts.
Writers like Irving and Diane have their tried and true methods, their routines. It’s called process. Writers talk about their process a lot. It’s what writers do, often instead of actually writing something, when they’re not being petty and resentful of other writer’s successes. They fixate on it, and worry about it, and obsess over it, and brag to their friends how faithful they are to the process, how well it works for them--and fret and fume when the process stops working for them, and must tinker with it and bang on it until the process starts working again. It consumes writers, much the way our medical conditions and digestion consume us when they don’t work properly. You have to trust the process, they say.
The word process indicates a series of actions, all pointed toward a specific goal. To even write a sentence like that makes me tired, and I want to find a dark room somewhere and lie down. I don’t seem to have a process. I have a goal, but no specific actions—not even one, let alone a series of them. What I do is sit around and hope a song arrives sooner or later, and you can’t call that a process because it’s too gradual. Almost glacial. At the end of the week I find I’ve written a total of two lines, neither of which seems to belong to the same song.
All that being said, for those who insist on learning the craft, and sowing discord and tension into your family life, along with financial uncertainty and general depression, here are a few tips I’ve picked up over the years, tricks of the trade I’m happy to pass along:
Always begin your song with “Well. . .” as in, “Well, here I sit,” or, “Well, I ain’t never,” or, “Well, she was a large woman. . .” It’s effective if you can drag it out for several measures, and even more effective if you shout it—the louder the better. This is the equivalent of tapping your baton against the lectern, or clearing your throat, or throwing something, a way to capture your audience’s attention and let them know they’re about to have a song inflicted upon them. If you can’t get their attention they’ll never stop chatting and ordering drinks and smoking cigarettes, and you’ll have to abandon your dream of a life behind the footlights and go back to your dreary job in the toy factory.
Long, smooth vowels are preferred, as opposed to short, sputtery ones. Avoid consonants, if at all possible. Never use words with the letter K in them, or P. “Oooh,” is a fine choice for a vowel, the favorite of many songwriters, and the longer you stretch it out the finer it is. Some songs have nothing but “oooh” in them, though I don’t advise going down that road. It grows tedious and people stop listening, or get the feeling they’ve stumbled into a meditation class. “Oh” is also a good vowel, and can be used interchangeably with “well” to begin a song, as in, “Oh, my my,” and, “Oh, say can you see.” “Ah,” however, is not recommended, as it makes people think there is a doctor with a wooden stick looking at your tonsils.
Use the word “baby” every chance you get. Do not hesitate. Throw it in there willy-nilly, like seasoning in a meatloaf. It can’t be used too often—in fact, every hit song that ever rocketed up the charts contains the word “baby,” as in, “Baby, I miss you,” and, “Baby, come home,” and, “Baby, don’t take the television.” Combine it with one of the longer vowels and you now have the recipe for a million seller, and can start thinking about paving the driveway. “Oooh, baby,” and “Oh, baby,” are timeless lines that echo throughout history. Elizabethan minstrels and troubadours used them, Druids chanted them under the trees, Australian aborigines employed them in their ceremonies, and I believe they can even be found in the Talmud.
It’s a good idea to come up with a melody for your song people can hum, a catchy tune that gets into their heads and stays there for days and drives them crazy, like “The Flintstones,” or, “Gilligan’s Island.” The official songwriting term for such a melody is ear worm, and an ear worm is always a good thing to have. Make sure you get one. I don’t know how. If you can cobble together a rousing chorus that everyone wants to sing along with, that’s another big plus, as long as you avoid making it a singing-in-the-round chorus, such as “Frere Jacques,” or, “Row, Row Your Boat.” This would be a mistake. Round singing has been declared illegal in every nation of the world, except France. They still like it over there, but they also like to eat snails and horse meat.
I’ll bring this discussion to a close with a few frequently asked questions:
Q: What comes first, the words or the music?
A: Yes.
Q: I’ve written a song. What do I do now?
A: I have no idea. Be happy about it, I guess. Some people keep them in a drawer.
Q: What’s the proper way to pitch a song?
A: I’ve found the best way to pitch one is to make sure it’s wadded up into a very tight ball. That way it won’t come uncrumpled and lose velocity on the way to the trash can.
Q: Do you have a list of publishers looking for material?
A: I suppose there are publishers out there looking for new songs, but they certainly haven’t been looking for mine. Maybe you’ll have better luck.
Q: How do I get my songs to Garth Brooks or Snoop Dog?
A: I don’t have a clue.
Q: Should I get an agent?
A: This is not a “should” question. It’s a “can you?” question, and the answer is no. Agents are interested in making money, and as a species they gave up on songwriters early in the last century.
Q: How do I get a record contract?
A: The Columbia Record Company used to have a deal where you paid full price for the first album and got the second one for a penny. You might call them and see if they’re still offering that.
I hope all of this has been of some help. My plan is to stick it into an envelope and send it to Mr. Dimmler and his sheep up there in Idaho, and hope it satisfies them. If any of you have further questions, I suggest they be sent to the estate of Irving Berlin. Or, if you can find an address for Diane Warren, perhaps she can help you. Personally, I intend to get out of this songwriting racket and start playing clawhammer banjo instead. It’s more socially acceptable.
Mañana is the Spanish word meaning tomorrow, such as Hasta mañana- 'Until tomorrow' or commonly interpreted as 'See you tomorrow'. With horses or more appropriately working with horses, it basically means not to push something, but to work on it the next day.
This came to mind as Elizabeth wrote to tell me that her 8 year old TB mare, which she has had for two weeks and hopes to rides in Western dressage, seemingly begins to pick up what she is trying to teach him, vertical and lateral flexion for instance, but as she said the mare soon seems to lose the understanding, gets bracy and regresses in his training.
Well there are lots of reason while horse seemingly starts to understand and perform something then degrade in performance. You can ask too much. You can ask too fast. You can forget to give the horse a release and pause to learn and a lot of other reason I'm sure. In the old days I would try to push the horse through it, rarely if at any time succeeding. It seems that I would get a resentful horse out of it. I really have no idea if a horse can resent something, but I think a horse can certainly get confused and seemingly shut down in willingness or softness. Took me a while, probably much longer than most people, to recognize when to stop. And not just to stop but to move on to something the horse can do - sort of like re-establishing communications between you and him, and his confidence as well.
I have a new horse in, Jake - a dual registered QH - Palomino (he's in the photo above). I learned long ago to re-start any new horse so you can see what he knows and not leave any holes, and to do so quietly because this is the beginning of your relationship with him. Jake was bred and trained for western pleasure and AQHA type events but hadn't been ridden more than a handful of times in the past 5 years. So we had a lot to work on besides spoiled pushiness and avoidance behavior that worked for him in the past. He came right around in 2 days of ground training, picking up the feel of the lead when I wanted him to come forward, backup, stay put-ground tie, or bring his left or right front end over.
In the saddle he was doing well learning to soften when I asked for it. Moving his front end or back end independently when I asked with my legs. Moving on to asking for lateral movement with forward momentum, he initially did good, allowing me to laterally adjust him for bigger circles but then he just stalled, instead slowing and moving his backend out. Asking again a couple times did not bring better results, so we just moved onto something else he was successful at doing.
So my advice to Elizabeth and her mare was to approach it in the mañana view. It's like you are addressing the horse - "It's okay you don't understand what I am asking, or you are not confident in doing it right now. We'll move on to something else and try this again tomorrow, or the day after that."
A couple days later I ask Jake for some lateral movement while trotting a circle and he's expands the circle and does so in much better balance. My job? Quit asking so much.
Sorry to have to inform everyone that the Randy Rieman El Paso Horsemanship Clinic, previously scheduled for 2-3 May 2020, has been cancelled due to the Coronavirus Pandemic. We are being ultra cautious in cancelling the clinic which we think it just the right call given many unknowns, especially how the pandemic environment would look at the beginning of May.
Since many were looking forward to Randy's clinic, I thought I would include a video of Randy and his horse Chewbacca, a really nice travelling Buckskin gelding, from three years ago. This will have to tide you over until we can look at a Fall 2020 date. Regards all.
I received the following questions from a gent concerning cinchas and latigo straps: "I looked at several of your videos and photographs and I am trying to determine how you secure your cinch. I have a hard time with my cinch strap and the belt buckle on the cinch. Also what type of cinch(s) do you prefer or recommend? I used to have a cotton rope traditional cinch but have since went to a neoprene cinch as my saddle keeps slipping. thank you in advance for answering my question. Lawrence."
Hello Lawrence, I am assuming that the problem you mention is finding the right hole in your latigo where the tongue of the buckle can keep the cincha tight enough but not too tight. I haven't used the buckle tongue on a cincha for decades now. I just use a friction tie from the cincha buckle through the saddle D ring to the keeper. In fact, on many of my cincha, I cut the tongue off the cincha buckle. Once I was doing a demo in a indoor arena and one of the ladies got my attention to tell me my cincha latigo was not secured through the buckle tongue. I replied "I cut the tongue off the buckle, I don't ever use it." She looked at me like I was a heathen. Anyway, the pictures below are closeups of the 'cowboy knot' and the fleece cincha buckle.
I am not, by any means, saying that this is a better method. I've ridden with a bunch of people, much better than I'll ever be, and they use the cincha buckle as designed. I was just tired of chasing the right hole to get the right cincha tension. The way I secure the cincha, which I have heard people call a 'cowboy knot', works for me, at least in part, as my saddles fit my horses very well and all of them have at least a little bit of withers to help the saddle stay positioned.
Years ago I used to secure the cincha latigo with a girth knot. I see people do that all the time and its a legitimate way, but for me it place too big of bulk under my leg. The pictures below show that method of securing the cincha.
For the past twenty or more years, I have used mostly fleece lined cinchas unless I was riding someone else horse and equipment. I have a couple Mohair cinchas and felt cinchas, but again I prefer fleece lined. I am just not a fan of neoprene cinchas or saddle pads for that matter. I think they build up heat too much.
You did not mention what type of saddle pad you are using. While you likely can't fix a really poor fitting saddle by using pads and blankets, I think you can make it better and the horse more comfortable. I use CSI pads that are formed for the withers and have vent holes, as well as plastic pressure plates to even out the pressure from the bars of the saddle. The pads are two piece, felt on the bottom and automotive carpet on top. However, there are several different makers of formed pads like 5 Star Equine. I would start by setting the saddle of your horse's back and see how it fits his back conformation, and go from there.
Again this year we were able to get Randy Rieman to come down from Montana to do a Horsemanship clinic. This years clinic will be on Saturday and Sunday, 2-3 May 2020. His current prices are $150 per session which is a bargain in today's clinic costs.
Each day is two separate 3 1/2 hour sessions - one morning and one afternoon. I already have riders signing up to ride one horse on one day then a different horse the next day.
Randy rode with Tom and Bill Dorrance, and Ray Hunt, bringing that sort of approach to horsemanship. I meet and talk to horses owners a lot and it continues to surprise me that so many people have not heard of the Dorrance brothers, Ray Hunt nor all the top clinicians that their teachings have spawned, like Randy, Buck Brannaman, Bryan Neubert, Martin Black and many others. It just seems to me that if you are going to own and ride horses, even just for pleasure, then you would embark on a journey for knowledge which would led you to these gentlemen at some point.
In last years clinic, which was Randy's second visit to the El Paso, Texas - Las Cruces, New Mexico area, I think only one rider knew who Randy Rieman was prior to the first session. The others showed up on faith, and hope, that someone can make them better. Many of these riders were fairly accomplished in their own right - barrel racers, dressage competitors and team ropers.
Randy's clinic format's are such that there is no set format. He helps the horse and rider from where they are at, with what they need. It's problem solving at it's base. The education you can get from being helped, or watching someone with Randy's experience helping someone else, is priceless. A smart person never stops learning and a humble person knows it'll take a lifetime to learn what you want to know. These top shelf clinicians help speed up the learning curve. And as John Lyons told me one time, "People need to do less buying gear and more buying knowledge."
Two moments from last year's clinic are always fresh on my mind. One was a barrel racer who had issues backing her horse and opening gates. Randy helped her and her horse achieve those things, and at the end of the session with tears in her eyes, the rider commented - "this morning my horse was for sale, not anymore!" The second was a dressage rider whose horse does well being ridden in contact, but had the habit of speeding up just a bit - just wouldn't be consistent in keeping the same speed within that gait. Randy rode her horse and showed her how she could make her horse responsible for keeping the same gait and speed, and do so on a looser rein.
Anyway, if anyone is in the commuting area and wants a clinic slot, just get ahold of me. Or if you want to host Randy Rieman at your location, give Randy a call.
