This week, the horsemanship world lost a great teacher and horseman and I lost a friend

The news struck me fast and furious.  Mark Russell suffered a horse accident at a clinic a week ago and he was being flown to Boston, unconscious with serious neck injuries.  A quick exchange with his wife Hela who was waiting to fly to meet him left little doubt... We had to prepare to say goodbye.

A day later, Hela posted the sad inevitable news.  Mark was gone.  He died doing what he loved, pursuing his life's work - riding a young horse and teaching.  The horsemanship world and I have been mourning since.

You see, there has been a huge outpouring of love and sadness at this news.  Mark was widely appreciated and loved by his students and all who spent time with him.  How could they not love him?  He was wise, patient, incredibly giving, highly intelligent, generous and so knowledgeable.  He was an advocate of the horse.  He smiled and shared his wisdom and understanding with generosity and passion for the horse and the people who love them.

I could go on and on about his career, but they are many people in much better positions than I to do him justice.  I want to speak of the man, the friend that Mark was to me.

He started by being my farrier.  My young Lusitano Menina was quite particular about her front feet, and since my trimming skills were only budding, and no other professional was having much success with her, I happened upon Mark.  He showed up in his truck and trimmed her right in the parking lot without fuss or dust.  I instantly knew he was different.  She loved him.  She did not love everyone, especially when it came to holding her precious feet.  Little did I know that Mark and I would share as much as we did.  I did not know Hela then, they were not married and he had kept her to himself.  Every time he showed up at the Rhode Island farm where I worked, we would talk horses, especially young horses, as I learned to educate my spirited young filly.  He told me to 'get a deep seat and a far away look' as he tickled her right on the loins and she cabrioled on the spot!  I knew I had my hands full with this one. He knew what she was apt to do, and how great she could become, I accepted the lesson and the challenge.

Mark had not yet published his first book, Lessons in Lightness: The Art of Educating the Horse.  That was going to come soon after.  Only a small select group of people had seem him ride, and he was not yet doing much in the way of clinics.  He was self-effacing and never put himself forward, he was easy to miss. Unless you had an eye for horses and how they respond to humans.

Then suddenly, he was married to Hela and they moved to Tennessee!  I am not sure how that happened, it just happened.  I was getting out of Rhode Island and preparing to enter Parelli University hoping to become a Licensed Parelli Instructor.  My only riding horse was diagnosed with DSLD and had to be retired a few months before my move to Florida.  Menina was just a baby.  So Mark offered a horse - Easter - who is featured in his first book!  He said I could have her for however long I needed her to go through my training with the Parellis.  She had some baggage from a previous owner, and he only had a few hours on her, but, as he told me, 'she is tough as nails, very well bred and she is a good horse.  Take care of her and she will take care of you'.  He had liked how I handled and ridden the horses at the farm and thought we would be good together.  What a gift!

I drove to Tennessee with baby Menina in the trailer to pick up Easter, and spent a few days on the new farm.  This is when I got to know Hela.  Mark and I talked horses, Hela was adjusting to life on a farm. Mark gave me his book, signed it and wrote something about 'lightness'.  We talked some more, I helped with chores and I cooked for them.  The farm has an old plank barn on it, there was barbed wire everywhere, and the house was not even heated!  The only riding enclosure was a round pen, which I believe was Mark's playground for several years until he build an arena.  This is where we introduced Easter to Menina, and left them overnight to bond before I headed South.  They have been pair bonded to this day. Easter adopted Menina as a mother adopts a baby and they have been best friends ever since.

Several months later I returned to Tennessee with both horses and left them in Mark and Hela's care for a few weeks while I went home to visit family and sort out my life before returning to the Parelli campus, this time in Colorado for the summer months.  Once again, we shared stories, sat on the porch and I cooked for them.  Hela was adjusting, learning, still doubting, but faithfully doing her best.  She loved Mark and she was going to embrace the lifestyle.  I gathered my horses and I left for Colorado.  Throughout those first months with Parelli, I was learning to get to know Easter.  She had huge confidence issues, especially with riding, at least my riding! It took me a while to recognize it and I had to learn to earn her trust.  But what she did have, and I take no credit for it, was a deep understanding of contact and flexion, and a lightness to the bridle I had never felt before in my life.  She taught me what light could be, and I have since been able to take that feel to my other horses.  She taught me only because Mark taught her!  Her flexion started from way in the hind and carried on through to the hand and rider.  I was left with a big responsibility, and that was to preserve it! That horse was going to return to Mark, and I kept thinking, what if I 'break' her?  I remember a session riding with Karen Rohlf and Karen was explaining connection with the reins.  She took a feel of Easter's bridle on the ground, and with surprise, said 'Wow, that is light'.  It is all Mark's doing, I replied, I am just trying to keep it that way.

At the end of my year at Parelli, I returned Easter to Mark, hugely grateful for this wonderful mare and a fabulous gift of learning.  By then, we were doing most of the higher level tasks in the Parelli program, and Finesse was definitely our best savvy.  Mark liked what I did with her, he saw the bond we had developed, and he told me we had done well together and she had to be my horse... he would keep her until I could come back to give her a home. Six months later, we met in Connecticut and I took her home for good. Now 21, Easter is retired from riding due to old scarring in her legs from the damage done to her earlier in life and resulting arthritis, but I still play with her on the ground. She is a wonderful friend and partner, the lead mare in my small herd and a reminder of all I have accomplished in my journey.  Today she takes on a new aura as she carries Mark's memory and the full meaning of the gifts he left me before moving on.  Did I ever really thank him?

My last visit with Mark was at a clinic in Florida in 2014.  I still remember his smile and warm hug as we finally reconnected, and I spent the weekend watching him teach and ride.  We joked and reminisced about past days and mishaps, and I intently watched and listened as he shared his extensive knowledge.  I told him I thought I had finally learned enough to begin understanding what he was teaching!  He laughed at that.

At one point, he was riding a student's horse and no one was paying any attention to him or to what he was doing, least of all the owner.  The horse carried many physical and emotional scars from years of poor riding and handling, and Mark was softly and patiently working through the tensions to help him relax, find a better posture, soften, while explaining what he felt.  He did that so well, he knew how to restore a horse to health and comfort.

Later in the day, I asked him if it bothered him at all that everyone seemed so uninterested and disrespectful. He smiled and said 'I am here and this is what I do.  Not everyone is here to learn.  But you are here to learn.  So it is all good.'  What a lesson!  As a coach and teacher myself, how could I find that grounding and forgiveness in myself, and be able to be genuinely humble and loving in the presence of less than stellar students?  Knowing that we all have our own journey and that it is not be measured by who is doing what at the time.  Another gift.  I promised I would find a way to see him again.  Then life happened and I could not keep my promise.  Now he is gone.

Mark will remembered fondly and his beautiful spirit lives on. I will cherish Easter girl until she is ready to leave this world as one of the greatest gift I got from Mark. Without him and her I would not be where I am, I would not be the horsewoman I have become. They taught me a lot. I will cherish all my memories of times spent with Mark and Hela, in New England, in Tennessee, in Florida. Farewell Mark, we love you, we hope to make you proud as you watch from the heavens.

Hela is left with a farm full of animals and horses, medical bills, and the grief of losing a husband unexpectedly.  Mark Russell passionately, progressively and uncompromisingly worked to become a remarkable horseman. He was a teacher whose communication skills transcended the horse and made him a respected, sought after clinician worldwide. His work inspired horses and horse lovers, "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts".

The impact of his immediate loss to the horse world is profound, as is the hardship for his family that will be felt far into the future. We are coming together to show our support for a man who has changed the lives of so many of us forever. 

Because of all the generous donations, Hela and her friends will be able to keep producing more of Mark's work. That is a blessing. Thank you for everyone that has contributed so generously, and if you would like to contribute, but have not had a chance to do so, that would be wonderful!

If you would like to donate to this fund, click here.

You don't dance by forcing your partner into movements

Dressage should serve the horse, not the horse serve dressage

Sit on your horse like a champagne bubble

Any retraction of the reins leads to compression, not collection

Mark Russell

June 2014 News: A Time of Change and New Achievements! Juin 2014: Une période de changements et de nouvelles réalisations!

It has been a while since you have heard from me, and that is because I have been caught up in a whirlwind of unexpected events and change since my last newsletter.... 

Announcing my new certification as an Official Coach for the International Society of Rider Biomechanics!

This month, read about all my changes and travels.  Check out the upcoming event and this month's Savvy Tip.

Click here to read more June 2014 Newsletter

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Il y a un bon moment que vous n'avez pas eu de nouvelles par courriel, et c'est dû au fait que j'ai été happée ces derniers mois par un tourbillon d'évènements inattendus et de changement... 

J'annonce ma nouvelle accréditation en tant qu'entraîneur officiel pour l'International Society of Rider Biomechanics!

Ce mois-ci, je relate mes aventures et mes derniers changements.  Vous pourrez consulter le calendrier des évèenements à venir et le Conseil Savvy du mois.

Cliquez ici pour lire l'info-lettre de juin 2014

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The long road to Florida to ride with Linda Parelli....

Here we are, I have finally arrived in Florida, after weeks of agonizing preparations and delays due to my horse Menina suffering a severe injury on a wire fence.  We finally got the vet's clearance to travel, and off we went.  For more info on that particular mishap, check out my Facebook page www.facebook.com/parelliqc

We got here, not without a few issues on the way South, many of which were related to the extreme temperatures.  I left in -40C weather, everything was frozen, including all locks and doors on the trailer.  The horses got no traction on the rubber mats in the trailer in this cold and were slipping and sliding trying to find their footing to get on - hard to persuade them it is safe to load in this case... and it got to the point where I was very worried they would get hurt trying.  We left Quebec two hours later than planned.

Everything in the trailer froze solid - food, water, etc.  I had to feed myself with what could fit in my cooler in the truck and discovered that hard boiled eggs can be eaten even when frozen....  Thank goodness for peanuts, granola bars and yogurt, who withstand this type of temperature quite well....

Then we had to wait over two hours at the US border for the vet inspection.  We were preceded by several cattle trucks heading to slaughter, and the vet was training a new assistant who was very friendly, but not terribly efficient... When I said three horses, she looked at me like I had asked her how to land on Mars... and processed all the cattle trucks before me.  My revenge was eating all the chocolate she put out on the counter to appease us... it happened to be lunch on that particular day.

Five hours late at that point... I got to my stop in New York state in the dark.  I know the place, but it's on a very small windy country road and I missed the driveway... had to back the truck and trailer more than 500 meters because there is no spot to turn around.  Then, I was faced with a steep hill about 600 meters, snowed in... I put the truck in 4 wheel drive low and prayed we would not get stuck on the hill!  Yeah for the Cummins engine on my old Dodge, we got up there, all 10 tons climbed up the hill without even a skid - my truck is a locomotive!  My friends could not believe it, they were not too sure we would manage.  These are the days where I forgive my truck for being so expensive to keep going!

My two usual stops in Virginia were not able to take us in, too much snow and ice, so I had to find a place for the night while on they way.  Again, I was lucky and got referred to a fabulous facility who could take us, althought I had to sleep in my trailer in -11C weather, without water.  I was able to get heating, but it took several hours for the inside to thaw out and get warm - thank goodness for the winter sleeping bag and down filled boots I carry around for those types of situations.  With a wool hat and mitts on, I was still able to get a few hours of sleep.  No dinner that night, but the diner across the street prepared great breakfasts - the Pink Cadillac served eggs, bacon, fruit and unlimited coffee in a setting plastered with pictures of Elvis Presley!  The food was good and warm, it was heaven!

It's only once I got across the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina, where it snowed, that the snow disappeared and I was able to remove my winter parka - still wearing my long underwear, wool hat, gloves and down vest.  -6C in Georgia, that's a record... Usually, this is when I change to a t-shirt and start looking for the air conditioning control.

Hey, once across the Florida stateline, we finally got over the freezing point!  +6C with a great big warm sun, I felt like it was summer, or almost!  My water started to thaw - thank you America for inventing the truck stop where I could find drinking water to water my horses on the way! 

The horses are doing well and are very happy to find themselves in five acres of pasture after being cooped up for months in a small icy paddock and spending the last few weeks in stalls.  They ran, bucked, and gave us a great show of exuberance and excitement.  I enjoyed my first shower in four days with hot water (which was not working and I managed to fix), a hot meal and the satisfaction of being able to step out without my winter boots.  Our first night was rather cold (-7C), but the days have been warm and sunny! 

I was left with two days to have the trailer repared (some pipes did not survive the -40 000 C weather...) and get organized.  I had to remove Menina's sutures, find hay and supplies and get my tack ready.  Here I am enjoying the view on this lovely property, the sun on my skin and the comforts of a proper trailer hookup!

Leaving the harsh winter behind and looking forward to a great month of training and learning with Linda Parelli!

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For more info on Parelli training, visit www.vifargent.com

The rocky road to horsemanship: Finding the strength to get up

This year I found myself in Level 4 hell.  In case you are new to this blog, I passed the original Level 3 equivalent in 2003 with Jolie, my first Parelli partner, at the end of my first module at the Florida ranch, then dubbed the «10 week school».  It was at that time the first milestone requirement before being invited to apply to train as a future Parelli Professional; nowadays that entry point is the Fast Track.  Jolie was the horse that brought me to Parelli in 1999 and thanks to her, I discovered a whole new way of being with horses.  Sadly, she had to be retired immediately after I earned my green string from Pat Parelli himself.  At graduation, Pat told us that achieving Level 3 was only the beginning, a «license to learn».  It is only years later that I truly began to understand what he meant.

Jolie and I in Florida in 2003

As many of you may already know, Menina is Jolie's daughter and the perfect horse I had always dreamed of.  I imagined her, bred her and raised from the day she was born.  She is my dream horse, super talented, athletic, smart, spirited, sensitive, with outstanding bloodlines.  She also turned out to be a very challenging horse to develop, and I have written several blogs about our journey, which you can find here by looking under the label Menina.


With Jolie retired and Menina just a baby, I found myself without a saddle horse to attend Parelli University.  A good friend of mine, Mark Russell, offered to loan me a mare he had rescued from a very bad environment for my year of study at the ranch.  Easter entered my life.  She had been abused as a young horse and had a very poor start, and Mark had begun retraining her, but she still had baggage, lots of it.  She was rideable, but far from confident, and I ended up restarting her while at the ranch.  During my Uni modules, I rode many other project horses while studying for my first star, and at the same time, developed Easter and my rambunctious young filly.  I started Menina in her second year with the help of my mentors and peers in Colorado.

One my way home after achieving my first star in 2005, I dropped off Easter at Mark's place.  She had made huge progress and Mark was very pleased with what he saw;  he let me know that he would sell her to me before anyone else if I chose to take her.  Unfortunately, the price tag was well beyond my means.  I said goodbye and with a heavy heart, left her in Tennessee. I returned to the ranch the next winter for continued education and took Menina with me.  I was riding her, but she was still very green, and very challenging.  I got bucked off hard near the end of my course while riding in the playground.  At my exit interview, my mentors asked me to return 9 months later for the next part of my training, this time with a Level 4 horse, amongst other conditions.  My plan also included losing a lot of extra weight and getting very fit for a Colt Starting course with Pat Parelli and Rob MacAuliffe.  I had a lot to prove, and a very short time to get it done.  At that point, I was faced with a critical decision:  finding a brand new horse and taking it through the levels in nine months, or going to get Easter who was already approaching the required level.  I called Mark, he still had her and we negotiated a deal.  I borrowed the money and we arranged to meet in Connecticut to so I could take my new partner home.

Easter, my second Level 4 partner

Easter and I were able to demonstrate an appropriate level of horsemanship and she helped me earn my second star in 2007.  This coincided with Parelli's decision to modify the levels program.  Levels 1, 2 and 3 became easier, and the new Level 4 became the standard required for professionals.  It was quite similar to the Level 3 I had earned four years prior.  However, we were not granted an automatic Level 4 - we were asked to resubmit our auditions and demonstrate we had kept our horsemanship current.  Despite a lameness issue that kept cropping up, I started filming with Easter while still at the ranch; but she was uncomfortable and we ran out of time to get it done.  Easter went home lame and after months of vet exams and trying to get her back to sound, it became obvious she would not be physically able to continue with the level of training required to finish Level 4.  The physical scars from her past had caught up to her.  I passed most of my On Line with Easter but we came 2 minutes short of completing that savvy, and I had give up on getting it done that year.

Menina was coming along and she got promoted as my new primary saddle horse.  Still challenging however, and during subsequent visits at the ranch, I had the opportunity to get help from both Pat and Linda on how to manage this very complex mare.  I could clearly see that doing any of the Level 4 tasks was not going to be physically or mentally difficult for her, she is a natural athlete and a very quick learner.  However, I needed to develop a different style of leadership and partnership to convince her that my ideas were good ideas.  She was my first LBE horse, and what a learning curve that was!

Menina as a young horse, she loves airs above the ground!

I worked very hard these last few years developing Level 4 with Menina.  I mostly had to work very hard on MYSELF.    I was the one doing the bulk of the learning, she already knew it all and was waiting for me to get it!  The more focused I got on outcomes, the worse our relationship would get.  I was still thinking and behaving like a predator and she was the mirror.  I'm LBE, I really need results to feel successful; the idea of relaxing and enjoying the journey can be a challenging concept for me!  Meanwhile, I earned my third star after spending another five months at the Parelli ranch in 2010 which included time at Pat's barn, interning with Kalley and teaching the Fast Track.  During that summer, Menina came up lame for several months and I had to give her a rest.  Xrays showed that she had damage to her right hind fetlock that would likely limit her in the future, so while I addressed the issue with various nutritional changes, trim and treatment, I started looking for another horse to develop.  Blue Moon came into my life in the spring of 2011. 

Fast forward to the 2011 Summit, Parelli Professionals were allotted one year to complete Level 4 in the required savvies.  That meant all four savvies for 3 Star Instructors.  Despite all my efforts, hard work and long stays at the ranch, I still had not succeeded in officially completing any of the savvies.  At home, I boarded my horses at a very busy hunter/jumper barn and putting together auditions in that environment had proved impossible.  I just could not get the arena time and lacked the space and facilities to film or even practice some of the required tasks (especially on line and at liberty which require space and obstacles).  Without a partner or family close by to help with filming, and unable to find someone willing to do it, I postponed the idea of auditions until I could find a better set of conditions.   

We were given permission to film our auditions with someone else's horse, but to me, that was out of the question.  I truly feel that part of earning Level 4 is showing that you have the ability and knowledge to develop and bring up your own horse.  I believe that simply checking off tasks with a horse that someone else brought along would have robbed me of a large part of the learning and sense of completion that I needed to feel whole; I was not prepared to go that route.  I was determined to stick to my principles, regardless of consequences.  

I found a new boarding situation in early 2011, a small family owned property which lacked the luxury of an indoor arena, but had a round pen (a first for me!) and where I could have the whole place to myself during the day to advance my training and set up any obstacles I needed.  I borrowed more money so I could spend the winter on 2012 in Florida to focus on my horsemanship and surround myself with supportive friends and peers.  I played and rode with my horses every day, sometimes to the point of exhaustion.  I had been ignoring my body for a few years and it was a wreck, yet I simply could not find time to recover.  I just kept on going, I was determined to succeed.

Menina at the Game of Contact course in 2011

My first attempt to resubmit On Line failed.  So did the second one.  I was shell shocked, and my confidence was eroded.  I blamed the audition process and started losing my desire to try.  Thankfully at that point, Carol Coppinger stepped in.  I found a mentor!  She came to assess me with my horses and I was confident I was in good shape.  I was in for a shock and a huge dose of humble pie.  I thought I was ready to pass Level 4.  I was told I was not.  I had tasks, but I did not have quality.  I hit a massive wall, splattered like a bug on the windshield.  Anger, denial, chaos, I went through the whole range of emotions -- and almost quit.  I felt defeated, incompetent, used, betrayed, useless, crushed.  Years spent training in the various iterations of the Mastery Program and Parelli University, and I was not ready?  I could not believe it!  I felt like all this time, energy, money, years of sacrifice dedicated to my horsemanship were annihilated in that one moment.  Dragons from my past that I thought vanquished reared their ugly heads and started haunting me.  Carol came to see me twice and got pretty tough with me, pulling me up by the bootstraps, and kicking my sorry butt back into action again... it was appropriate, I really needed that kind of Phase 4 to pull me out of the hole I was digging for myself.  So I kept on trying...  until I had no choice but to head back to Quebec.  Facing massive financial issues, several health issues and having to resort to going back to an office job when I got home, life got even more challenging.  At that point, Carol sent me this wise note «Nothing is beyond the reach of determination.  Never give up... Just rest a while».  The advice was wise, but there was no rest possible.  I was juggling horsemanship time, work, health and personal issues, juggling to make ends meet and doing what I could to keep my Parelli business going.  It was a challenging summer and I started feeling lost and alone once more. On Carol's advice, I decided to send in the Finesse footage I had from Florida along with my new and improved flying lead changes filmed a few months later in Quebec, and I actually passed. A shimmer of light appeared at the end of the long tunnel.

I worked at this all summer, simultaneously putting a foundation on Blue Moon and trying to solve the issues that kept cropping up in my relationship with Menina.  I was tired, I was physically in pain most of the time, I felt alone and there are many days when I thought I was not going to make it.  The little flame of passion and dedication I have carried with me for all those years got very faint, and for a time, I thought it had extinguished.  But every day I got up and put one foot in front of the other, put together a plan and got myself to the barn.  I was in Level 4 hell.  It was not fun any more, it had become work, it was a job.  Of course, my horses mirrored that attitude, which was not helping our progress.  I felt guilty for imposing my timeline on them, for training hard in an arena with less than ideal footing which I knew could damage the horses, for pushing harder than I would have ideally wanted to because September 1st was approaching fast and the pressure kept mounting.  The consequences of not succeeding were very real, and everything I had built in the last 10 years was at stake.  How could my horses understand?

Just as things could not be much worse, my camera quit working!  I brought it in for repair and it took 7 weeks to get it back.  I looked for one to borrow, but video cameras are not popular in my entourage, and the only one I could find was not compatible with my computer.  I did not have the funds for a new one.  I had to wait!  It turned out to be a blessing because rather than only thinking about filming, I had to focus on refining the ingredients I would need to be ready.


By the time I got the camera back, I finally felt I had a good Freestyle audition with Menina, one I was reasonably proud of, and I passed my second savvy.  Riding always came easier to me that ground skills.  I have spent the last 40 years on horseback, but only 12 of those years playing on the ground!  Mastery of any skill only comes after 10 000 hours, I needed more hours on the ground.  I was left with finishing my remaining 2 minutes of On Line (yes, the circling game was my pitfall!) and all of Liberty.  The only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time and I was 3/4 of the way there.  But life kept on happening.  On the way home from Florida, Menina had nearly died from an allergic reaction to the treatment I was using to help her joint, so I had stopped using it.  She came up lame again, and I had to give her another long rest.  Blue Moon was near ready for the On Line portion so I started filming the required 2 minutes and barely got it together for a pass.  It was not great, it was just ok, but it was off my plate.

I shifted my focus to finishing Liberty with Menina who seemed to be recovering.  We had all the ingredients, but as I attempted filming, I could see her struggling physically and mentally, she was leaving me and not happy.  This is when I decided to call the vet again and we ultrasounded her joint.  It was bad news, really bad news, and this time, the damage was irreversible.  I was told she would never be able to finish Level 4 or move on to performance as I had dreamed.  I was devastated.  She could at best be a good trail riding horse.  Anger, denial, chaos, acceptance.  It was late August, I was not going to meet the September 1st deadline AND I had to retire my dream horse.  Blue Moon was simply not ready.  Hell got hotter.

I have been told my determination borders on insanity.  However, at that point, I was left with no choice but to LET GO.  There was nothing else to do.  I could quit, accept failure and crumble.  I chose instead to start having fun again and to take care of my horses and of myself. I needed to get back to the core of the Parelli foundation, putting the relationship first and allowing the horse to be in charge of the principles and the timelines.  I apologized profusely to Menina and promised her the best life she could have.  Along with Easter, now 17, her needs had to come first and the only outcome was to keep her sound in mind and body.  Just because I was in hell, my horse did not need to be.  For the first time in months, the little flame slowly started burning again. 

Blue Moon, my new L4 partner

I continued playing with Blue Moon, but this time, I made sure we kept it varied and fun.  I was not going to repeat the mistakes I made with Easter and Menina, and this time, I wanted to keep intact the great relationship we already had.  I truly started exploring how to get more accomplished by doing a lot less.  Without regard for human judgment and opinion, I wanted my horse to show me I had earned Level 4 and I needed to feel proud of what we had accomplished together.  I also wanted to avoid another break down.  I worked on advancing the whole package, relationship, savvys, phases, tasks, tweaking and refining, and once in a while, sending in a video to my coach for advice.  It's amazing how much information can be communicated in a very short sentence!  «You need more connection» «Try doing your lead changes over a log»  «Use less carrot stick» «Lift the ribs» and the best one: «Relax and breathe!».  She did not send me paragraphs, she sent me one liners!  It was of course spot on, and just enough information to get me thinking and looking for the right bits of savvy so I could improve what needed to be improved.

The less Liberty I did, the better it got.  Another really important concept here.  By working on the ingredients of the relationship, calmness, connection, responsiveness, our Liberty started coming together much easier.  End of September, fall has settled in and I'm running out of good weather, so I decided to film an audition, just to see what would come out of it.  It thought it turned out good enough to send, but it did not feel great.  I had to do several takes, and by the end of the session, I was sick of it and so was my horse.  Not a great place to end.  Several weeks passed, bad weather had set in and still no news from the audition team.  Waiting is absolute torture for an LBE!  I did short sessions here and there between storms, again just tweaking the ingredients since our footing was soggy and very unstable, and advancing our circling game when I could.  Then the sun appeared again, the footing dried up just enough and I pulled out the video camera once again.  By now,  I've pretty much won my Friendly Game with filming and can finally almost forget it's there.  With an official audition already in the pipeline, this was just to see our progress and a back up in case we might need to do it again.  I was learning to take the pressure off.  It was a lovely session, everything flowed, felt easy and light.  Blue Moon and I finished feeling great and very connected, our best session ever.  It had a few technical flaws, our flying lead changes were not the best we've had, but we got it all done in one take with a happy horse the whole time who kept her eyes and ears on me for a long time even after I left the arena.  Blue Moon told me it was Level 4, and I knew it too;  I felt very happy and proud.  Carol agreed when she saw the footage.

Interestingly, my relationship with Menina started to truly expand to another level once I learned she could not physically do the things I expected of her. I am more considerate and respectful of her limitations and in return, she is bonding even stronger and giving me a lot more in the things she can do.  She has never been so compliant, respectful and sweet as she is now that I have taken the pressure off.  The silver lining appeared, the gift hidden amongst the thorns has been revealed.

For the last year, I have been looking forward to the relief that would come once this whole Level 4 ordeal would be over!  I admit there are many days where I lost track of the true meaning of Pat's vision.  Level 3 is about curiosity, confidence and sensitivity, Level 4 is meant to be about dignity.   Having done it with my horses helped me learn the importance of keeping my dignity intact as well as theirs, and I am now proud of what we have accomplished so far.  Not because it's done, but because I feel a major shift is occurring in my perception of horsemanship and leadership as a result.  I have found a path within myself to a new level of strength, leadership and confidence, and most importantly, a strong resolve to never let outcome dictate the quality of my life or my thoughts ever again. 

Now that I have renewed my license to learn, a new step in my journey awaits and I'm starting over... but I might just need to rest a while.

Right to left: Tina Giordano and Carol Coppinger leading the 2* Instructor course in FL, Fawn Anderson, myself and Jesse Peters, assisting.

My sincerest heartfelt thanks to my support team:  Carol Coppinger, mentor extraordinaire who just refused to quit on me even when I quit on myself; Tina Giordano, for her help and encouragement during my stay in Florida; Kalley Krickeberg, who helped me unlock a big piece of my puzzle with Menina; Kristi Smith who flung open the door to learning; Michelle Donlick, friend and fellow Parelli student who not only saved Menina's life, but offered a place to rest and regroup, friendship and support when I really needed it; Julie Destrempes, Parelli student and owner of the barn, who allowed me plenty of space to be able to focus on this project and cheered me on through the tough days; Pat and Linda Parelli, for their help and teachings over the years; and last but not least, my wonderful partners Easter, Blue Moon and Menina, who have been SO forgiving of my mistakes and failings, have taught me a ton, and tried their hearts out every day.  They are truly my stars and my guides on the journey to becoming a better me! 

Click here for a great inspirational video about overcoming obstacles and the power of attitude.

The journey is the reward

Bulletin de novembre 2012 - Trois façons de poursuivre votre apprentissage cet hiver! November 2012 newsletter - Three ways to keep learning during the winter!

Bulletin de novembre 2012 - Trois façons de poursuivre votre apprentissage cet hiver! Bonne lecture et n'hésitez pas à partager vos commentaires.

Cliquez ici pour lire le bulletin - Click here to read the newsletter

November 2012 newsletter - Three ways to keep learning during the winter!  Enjoy and please share your comments.

Update to my Trailer Loading at Liberty video! Ajout à ma vidéo de chargement en remorque en liberté!

I have updated my Trailer Loading at Liberty video to include my third horse, Menina!  Check it out!

J'ai modifié ma vidéo de chargement de remorque en liberté pour y ajouter Menina!  Voyez ci-dessous!

Trailer Loading at Liberty! Chargement en remorque en liberté!

Check out my new video:  Trailer Loading at Liberty featuring Easter and Blue Moon.
Easter is my second Level 4 horse. Blue Moon is my new horse, I have only had her 8 months and she came with trailer loading issues. She is the 4th horse I am developing to Level 4 of the Parelli program.

Trailer loading is about love, language and leadership in equal doses. It should be solid and needs to be part of every horse's foundation skills.
It demonstrates how you have been winning the 7 Games without making the horse feel like a loser.

Are you practicing regularly with trailer loading?

Ma nouvelle vidéo:  Chargement en remorque en liberté, avec Easter et Blue Moon.

Easter est mon deuxième cheval Niveau 4.  Blue Moon est mon nouveau cheval, je ne l'ai que depuis 8 mois.  Elle est arrivée avec de sérieux problèmes de chargement en remorque.  Elle est le quatrième cheval que j'entraîne au Niveau 4.

Le chargement en remorque est un exemple d'amour, de langage et de leadership à doses égales.  C'est une habileté de base essentielle que tout cheval doit maîtriser.
La remorque prouve que vous avez gagné les 7 Jeux sans que le cheval se sente perdant!

Pratiquez-vous régulièrement le chargement en remorque?