Senior Horsemanship - Tips to Help Us Enjoy Better Years with Horses and More of Them
The podcast name is changed to Senior Horsemanship and I’ll be building the senior horsemanship website over the next few weeks.So why the change? Probably the most important reason is that I’m certainly a senior horseman at age 71 with three horses. I’m very interested in riding, caring for, and training my horses as long as I can. I’m also very interested in making as long as I can to be as long as possible.That’s my goal in horsemanship. I don’t have any goals in the competitive arena, Not that competition is bad, but I just want to enjoy my horses. If you compete, then I hope you do it for the joy of working with your horse.So what will we talk about? How about the following.I’d like to talk about horse training, first because a well trained horse makes life safer and makes our time with our horse more enjoyable. A well trained horse also has better prospects for a good home if for some reason, we can’t continue to keep our horse. So for the good of ourselves and our horses, horse training for seniors is a great topic.I’d like to talk about horse care. I care for my horses myself and I’ve learned some things in the process that I’d like to share. I also hope to learn from others about ways to make horse care better and easier as we grow older.I’d like to talk about riding fitness and safety around horses. I’ve lost about 40 pounds over the last year and a half and it’s made riding easier for me and my horses. But with the weight loss has come a loss of some strength. I’ve also suffered from my share of horse-related injuries over the years including a broken arm, broken ribs, several concussions and most recently broken toes. What can we do to be safer with our horses. I’m not as nimble as I once was.I’d like to talk about the mental aspects of horsemanship because we need to rely on the mental more than the physical as we get older. When I was younger, there were ways of handling horses that could be characterized by “make them do it” and “don’t let them get away with it”. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that there are better ways and I’ll talk about them.Finally, I’ll talk about how horsemanship can be much more than riding a horse. I’ve been a volunteer with Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society here in Texas for a number of years and there are some volunteers who could be examples for all of us. Several volunteers can’t ride anymore, but they foster horses and give them a great start on a new path in life. Other volunteers work on the admin side to give the organization the ability to help as many horses as possible. All of those activities count as horsemanship. We’ll talk about those and more.Again, I appreciate all of the topic ideas I’ve received from members of the Equestrian Seniors Facebook group. I appreciate your interest in the podcast. And I hope to continue to provide information that interests you in the days ahead.Thanks for listening.
Senior Horsemanship - Tips to Help Us Enjoy Better Years with Horses and More of Them
Keeping the Joy in the Horse
We often forget that horses can do what they do, often in spite of us. In spite of our tension, our imbalance, our defiant grasp on the reins and our breath. A horse and rider can be poetry or a master’s work of art. Horses make us grander than we are on our own two feet. Their four hooves become an expression of what moves us when no one’s looking.
We often give ourselves credit for the activities horses do with us, as though we were the ones who taught them what it means to rise above the ground with such elegance. As though their balance and precision at a gallop were something we schooled. At their best, horse are who they are in spite of us. Not because of us.
This is a quote from the book, Getting Along with Horses - An Evolution in Understanding, by Crissi McDonald.
We have to keep the joy in our horses as we work with them. That should be part of the joy of horsemanship in the second half of life.
Here's a link to Descript, the audio and video editing tool I use and recommend.
And a link to the podcast website - Second Half Horsemanship.
We often forget that horses can do what they do, often in spite of us. In spite of our tension, our imbalance, our defiant grasp on the reins and our breath. A horse and rider can be poetry or a master's work of art. Horses make us grander than we are on our own two feet. Their four hooves become an expression of what moves us when no one's looking. We often give ourselves credit for the activities horses do with us as though we were the ones who taught them what it means to rise above the ground with such elegance. As though their balance and precision at a gallop were something we schooled. At their best horses are who they are in spite of us, not because of us. This is a quote from the book, Getting Along with Horses an Evolution in Understanding by Crissi McDonald. Welcome to the Almost Daily Second Half Horsemanship Podcast, where we talk about using your mind more than your muscles on the path to better horsemanship in the second half of life. The podcast features a thought for the day on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and a more in-depth discussion or interview on weekends. I'm your host, Paul Sherland. Years ago, I took a riding vacation in Wyoming and we herded a bunch of ranch horses through wild horse country. We ponied all of the mares in our bunch in an area where wild horses had been spotted, but that didn't keep a stallion from coming down to us to see if he could persuade the mares to go with him. I will never forget that stallion. He was jet black, beautiful, and in the prime of his life. The stallion circled our herd and riders with a collected trot that would've won rave reviews at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. He was the master's work of art that Crissi talks about in her book. After a few minutes of performing for us, the stallion galloped back to his herd. His performance was a reminder that our horses can already do most of what we're trying to teach. We have to keep the joy in our horses as we work with them. That should be part of the joy of horsemanship in the second half of life. Thanks for listening to the Almost Daily Second Half Horsemanship Podcast. If you're also on the second half horsemanship journey, please leave a comment on our website, second half horsemanship.com. We're always looking for topic and interview ideas. When I use links to books, products, and services in the podcast, some of those links might be referral links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, I earn a small commission when you purchase something through those links, but you will not be charged more by using the links. One more note, I use Descript for editing the podcast. If you have any video or audio editing to do, you should check out what Descript offers. It's an incredible tool for creatives. I'll also have a link to Descript in the show notes. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review wherever you listen to podcasts. Your reviews help the podcast, reach a larger audience. Thank you very much.
