Bernie Traurig Clinic 2020

After attending the Bernie Traurig clinic in November at Farpoint Farm, I was eager to sign up for another session with Bernie in February. Once again hosted by Farpoint Farm, Wesley and I attended the three-day clinic in the 1.15+ jumpers section. Although I compete in the equitation, I have aspirations of competing in the bigger jumpers and more education on any aspect of my riding improves how I ride and how I think while on course.

Additionally to riding with Bernie, he was kind enough to agree to meet with me on Friday during the lunch break to discuss some questions I have about pursuing my professional career. I may as well take advantage of the knowledge of someone who has been in the industry for his whole lifetime. He was very insightful when it came to answering my questions about how to manage the financial side of becoming professional as well as what the best educational path would be to become the most well-rounded professional I can be.

As for the riding part of the clinic, Wesley was fantastic and jumped better and better throughout the weekend. I particularly enjoyed how Bernie had us play mock horse show on Sunday and let us think for ourselves in the warming up process of schooling jumps before the course. Furthermore, Bernie let me walk the course with him and walked me through step by step how he walks courses and how his method is simple and timely in the event of having a quick course walk. Historically, I’ve been confused while walking the course even in the equitation and his method really made sense to me and I’m excited to use it this season.

Once again, on Saturday night there was a Q&A hosted by Denise Youll. We discussed many topics including my question about how to manage finances as a professional. Many people had input on this topic and it eventually led to discussions on how the sport has gotten more financially difficult for the typical equestrian as well as discussions on the Thoroughbred horse and how we can make the sport more financially doable.

Overall, I’d like to thank Denise Youll once again for hosting Bernie Traurig as well as her assistant Sophie Geantz for making this weekend possible. As well as thank you to Bernie Traurig for coming out to rainy Washingon this weekend and for being kind enough to lend me his time and meeting with me on Friday. I’m looking forward to Bernie coming to Thumbs Up Farm December 4-6 and being in his clinic once again!!

Tami Masters Clinic 2018

This weekend I participated in the Tami Masters clinic hosted at Cottingham Farm on Bainbridge Island, WA. This clinic was my first time riding with Tami, so I was very excited to hear what she had to say. The first day, I learned a "true bend," and that opened my brain to many exercises I'm ecstatic to try at home. The first day was a lot of grid work and gymnastics to get us thinking about placing our horses and where they place their feet. This exercise helped me think about the technicality of the placement of my horse and utilize the space between jumps. After a successful first day, Danner retired with a bucketful of grain and lots of pets.

Second day, we have a course set up outside with a mix of combinations, lines, and bending lines. Also, including my favorite jump, a plank with the cover of jaws painted on it. Now the argument "the jump is going to eat me" is relevant. Anyways, we warm up over a quiet one stride with a halt at either end, an excellent warm-up to get the horses and us thinking of settling after a jump and going very straight. We worked on a lot of tighter turns and making sure our horses had a real bend. We ended on jumping three spooky jumps: the shark jump, a stand-alone a-frame, and a brick wall. Danner was such a good boy this weekend, and I'd like to thank Tami Masters, Stephanie Garrard, and Tenille Icard for such a successful weekend.

Jeff Cook Clinic at Archway Equestrian

My first clinic! I am super lucky to be able to have attended the Jeff Cook clinic at Archway Equestrian. Danner and I were in the 3-foot section of the two-day clinic, and we learned so much. The day before the clinic, I hacked Danner in the beautiful arena, and he felt slightly up, but manageable so I didn't think much of it. The first day of the clinic, oh boy, Danner was a fire breathing dragon and peaked at every jump, romped around, and jumped everything just about a foot bigger than it was. Not used to my horse being like that, I had a whole lot of fun with a different ride and learned a bunch of things I would not have learned if Danner was his usual self.

Nonetheless, I would rather my arms not be sore whenever I ride, so I lunged him the next morning, and he was a different horse. He was an absolute dream to ride, and I got to work on my heels, my seat, and anything Jeff had to comment on in my riding. I learned things that I've never thought of, and I'm so lucky to have been taught by someone with so much experience in the equestrian industry. I would also like to thank Archway Equestrian for letting us stay at their barn and for the excellent care our horses received. I hope to do more clinics in the future and learn from whoever I can!