~Brianna's Corner~

Hours before complete chaos shut down the world, an amazing little Arabian mare and her equally incredible owner guided me through my first FEI 1* endurance ride. Almost two years ago, I remember setting two goals before signing on to the endurance experience. Goal #1: spend at least a year learning from the discipline. Goal #2: Complete a 1* endurance competition. Having achieved both of my goals just in the nick of time, I would like to reflect on my eye-opening experience. Hopefully this gives you some entertainment and things to ponder while participating in social distancing or quarantine or self-isolation or whatever it is you are doing to stay safe these days. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

I don't remember the first time I met you, but I am so glad that I did.

I have hundreds of pictures of me, as a little girl, hugging you tight and smiling from ear to ear and genuinely from my eyes.

You have been in my life from the beginning. You have been my guide, my mentor, and my longest friend... (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" If you have not been asked this question at least once in your life, surely you have not lived. I think I was first asked this question around eight or nine and I shrugged my shoulders and mumbled "I don't know." I am not one to commit to a definite answer unless I have thought it through to an infuriating extent. The ability to make quick decisions or commit to anything has been a slow and painful learning process. Mostly painful for the people around me who just want me to decide on a place to eat. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

Ask people what advice they would leave behind for the next generation and you will get a lot of plausible answers. Many say, “work hard” or “do what you love.” Others say, “be kind” or “give more than you get.” All of these are good things to ask of oneself and others, but one of the most interesting answers I have heard was on trust. This person, who I admire and even more so after hearing their explanation, said, “build trust in everything you do. Whether it is a business relationship or personal relationship make sure everything you do is building trust rather than breaking it.” I had not thought of trust in this way before. I know trust is good, but to make it a priority was profound to me. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

 Knowing where the horses head is and knowing where the horses head is, are two completely different things. As similar as they may read, one refers to the mental head and the other refers to the physical one. Despite our plethora of knowledge and vast array of studies which have led us to believe that the physical head position should not be as important as the rest of the body, we still have a fixation on the head position of horses. We struggle with the vision of a U—necked, head in the cloud’s creature. As riders we desperately want to ride that proud, powerful, submissive beast that we see on tv, in magazines, and at the very top levels of each discipline. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

"If you do not listen, I cannot teach." This is a sentence my mother said many times teaching kids how to ride. Unfocused and rude children would get these words served with a side of very serious face and tone of voice. Somehow these words reached the understanding of every kid they were told too. Something I admire about my mother is that she always found clever ways to get respect from naughty kids. That or the naughty little critters quit riding because they were not ready to listen. Listening was important to my mother because the riding business is a risky one. If people did not listen to her words, then they could get hurt or get the horse hurt. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

Lately, I have observed a trend among the horse world. One that has been built by our instant coffee machines, cell phones, and google. All of which give us what we want in seconds and prevent us from losing time on our netflix binge. They also require very little thought. This is the core of the issue. Today's world is made so simple and instant that people can not fathom taking a moment to simply think. Just sit in silence and think and study the world around us. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full blog entry)

(Enjoying the ride leading up to a win at Rocking Horse back in November)

A Gentleman, A Dragon, And A Dreamer

Well I am days away from leaving life as I know it. I have made the decision to pack up my perfect little life here in Ohio and drag two horses to... (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

Discipline

(The mare who has inspired a great deal of my discipline!)

I have been reading another book, this time of my own accord which means no date to procrastinate to. It is The Road Less Traveled written by M Scott Peck. The Road Less Traveled is an analysis of human behaviors, tendencies, and misconceptions. It reveals many ugly truths to the way we perceive our world via the educated eyes of a psychiatrist. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

Years That Ask and Years That Answer

(My recent visit with the master of success, the great American Pharoah)

I was fortunate to be forced by some educational reasoning to read “Their Eyes Were Watching God” over winter break. This really equates to forcing myself to procrastinate and read the whole book in two days as is my tradition. It is my belief that procrastination really means “being a pro at the last minute” thus its definition is easier to live by. None the less my unhealthy habits are not the moral of my story. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

Who has the ride away?

(Sunny and a much younger me)

Training is no place for pretty

Heels down, head up, thumbs up, quiet leg, look where you're going, elbows in, shoulders back, toes in, head, hip, heel!!! Sound familiar? It's the way of the equestrian world. Any instructor who dares to call themselves such, knows these tried and true tips of the trade. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

Riding With Fear

(Molly and I when I would hold on with everything, even my toes ;D)

I was raised right in the sense that I, like many others, had the privilege of owning a pony. My adoring little pony was a gift from my late grandfather. Not only was my pony a mare, but she was a fury red mare. She was devilish and her lessons were brutal but it seems I still enjoy riding so her lessons were not enough to drive me away. Molly was and still is that cruel teacher that snarls and states “grow up or get out”. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

At some point, every year, I have to accept that winter has returned. Every year I slowly start adding more and more layers of clothes until the process of getting ready to gleefully skip to the barn through the winter wonderland, is no less that 20 minutes and 10 layers deep. This is life here in Ohio for at least four months. This year I am struggling with accepting this depressing scenario because it has come early...a whole entire MONTH early. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)

Writing, Riding, and Lunch

(Me and the Dragon mare, taking a break)

In any relationship there is bound to be arguments. Great minds may think alike but they do not always agree. The relationship we have between our horse can not escape this principle of agreeing to disagree. We are inevitably going to find ourselves in the midst of a battle where neither of us understand what the other wants. The follow 5 tips are to be applied when you realise that a battle is about to pursue. These tips are a personal aid to my own frustration when I can not seem to communicate properly with my 1000lb partner whom I have affectionately nicknamed Dragon Mare and who is the sole inspiration of these tips. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

I recently got to attend a favorite event of mine, Equine Affair, (if you haven't gone you're missing out!) which holds tons of clinics for every discipline from sidesaddle and gaited to reining and dressage. It also has hundreds of vendors to window shop or, if you have money, actually shop! During my time at equine affair I got to sit in on a “equine back” clinic presented by Stephanie Reinhold, on how to keep your horses back healthy and how to prepare it for work plus how the horses back works in general. This particular topic is always of interest to me as my beloved OTTB is constantly dealing with back issues which call for chiropractic work and message (I know he loves his masseuse more than me). (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

(Mac and I doing what we love most!)

I don’t know about you but I have a need to ride! I love what I do, I absolutely live to ride. I like to think of it as a hunger. If I don’t get to ride I feel as though I am starving. There is something about the time we spend in the barn and in that saddle that just feeds a certain happiness. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)

The Tough Horse

As a young trainer I have learned through training more than I have through being trained. There's a saying that states that the toughest horses teach the most and I have learned this first hand. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)