A Little Girl Who Loved Horses
I grew up in a small mining town in Northern Ontario near Sudbury. The streets in Dowling were gravel and we had ditches. My dad owned a little bulldozer and after working a full shift at Falconbridge Nickel Mines, he’d clear building lots to supplement his income. A family of 7 was a lot of hard work, and there weren’t many opportunities to get ahead.
It was my dad that introduced me to horses when I was about 4 years old. I can still remember a little paint pony that he plopped me on at a local fall fair. From that point on, I was smitten! I read every horse book in the school library, I played “horsies” with my sister and friends, and every now and then, I had a chance to ride a horse. It was glorious! My cousin was fortunate enough to own a few backyard horses, and I would do my best to be invited for a sleepover. I’d come home with my clothes smelling delightfully of hay and horse sweat, and I’d continually bury my nose in them and breathe in horse!
Carolyn and her Dad, Elmer, where it all started.
Many, many years later, after marrying my farmer-husband, Tim, I was finally able to purchase my first horse! She was an Arabian cross, small but fiery, and I had no clue what to do with her! All those horse books in the library don’t let you know that dreaming horses and actually owning and caring for one are entirely two different things! I learned many hard lessons on Jesse, but with a bit of help and advice from friends, I actually developed a riding seat!
My passion for horses broadened and when I met Joanne Milton from the ORHA, I attended my first “green as grass” reining show on my home-grown AQHA mare, Lady Sundown. I found many helpful reiners through the ORHA, including John Purdie, Tim and Lisa Stanton, Anne and Dave Dorland , Shelly and Maurice Price. Without an encouraging word throughout my sometimes ugly learning process, I would have given up!
Cowboy’s Nifty Tip was a colt that was born on our farm, bred to be a reiner, and he was to be my first attempt at training my own. He was easy to start, and he had ability, it’s just that I still didn’t have enough experience! Shelly and Maurice Price were patient and kind enough to help me get through the training process, and I stubbornly decided to enter him in the OBBO futurity as a non pro. Even though I rode intensely and hauled Tip to Price’s farm for lessons, I still was lacking in so much ability as a rider! When September rolled around I loaded Tip in the trailer and headed to the Western Fairgrounds in London, Ontario. That’s over an 8 hour drive from our farm in Massey!
My futurity run was a mess! All the holes in my training slammed together in one ugly pattern! Tip froze up in his spin, and the result was a big fat ZERO! I was frustrated! I had no idea how to fix his problems and I was so inexperienced, I didn’t realize that his problems were because of my lack of skill! Back in the show barn, I was a blubbering mess. What was I thinking? Who did I think I was? These other riders have spent years with a coach and are riding elegant, finished horses! Tip was basically a back yard “wanna be” colt with a very average start!
Shelly came along side me and kindly lifted me up. “That colt actually did a nice stop! You were brave enough to show up here, among people you hardly know, with a colt you put your own hard work into! You should be proud!” However, Shelly didn’t quit there, she went deeper. Her advice to me was to buy a finished reiner and let the horse be my teacher. No wonder I was frustrated! A green horse and an inexperienced rider is a recipe for disaster, and that’s exactly how I felt!
With Shelly and Maurice’s help, I purchased “Spinnin Jack Flash”, a 5 year old finished reining horse that was by their stallion. He was a cremello, and even though I wasn’t crazy about that super light color and his blue eyes, the first time I felt Gump drop his butt and paddle his front hooves in the best sliding stop I’d ever felt, I knew he was coming home with me!
Gump and I spent the next 5 years as a team in the reining horse pen. In 2007, we were 4th in Canada as Beginner reiners. Gump and I were Rookie 2 year end Champion in 2011, and ORHA Rookie circuit champion. We won Rookie 1 and 2 classes more than 6 times. My Gump just knew his job and was happy to let me guide him through so many patterns!
“Life is like a box of chocolates”, you never know when you are going to get a Gump.
I am so thankful to the guidance of so many kind friends throughout my horsemanship journey! If it wasn’t for their openness to share their knowledge, I would have quit reining altogether. When our family moved to BC in 2013, I quickly found new mentors to further advance my riding skills. Learning never ends! My riding and horsemanship skills can always get better, and I can’t do this on my own!
My Gump developed glaucoma in his eyes, and over a few years it worsened to the point where he was going blind. I made the difficult choice to have him put down. On a bright, gorgeous day in June, Tim graciously laid him down under a big fir tree on our ranch. Gump came along at a time in my life where I needed his ability to take me to where I wanted to be. One great horse gave me the confidence to take me where I am today.
Horsemanship is a partnership that requires openness to learning.
Find good mentors. Learn from others that are willing to share their experiences.
Be honest with yourself and when someone you trust gives you good advice….Take it!!!
Saddle up!
Carolyn