Packages and Options

"Whole Horsemanship"

Day 1
Early afternoon arrival of participants. Reception, Introduction, Welcome.
Round Pen. Lecture/Demonstration on Horse and Rider Psychology. Herd dynamics. What does a horse really want? How does the rider fit into this picture? The language of Equus, uncommon sense, intuition. Developing trust.
Join-up- Demonstration, followed by each participant being introduced to their mount for the week, and "Joining-up" with them. Barn Picnic Area. Dinner, followed by campfire with entertainment at Ranch Headquarters.

Day 2 
7:15 Ranch Headquarters. Breakfast.
8:00 Barn. Riders warm-up and stretch, followed by Centered Riding and other exercises, emphasizing balance, posture, stabilization, relaxation, and breathing for the proper 'seat".
9:00 Tack-up. Riders will groom and tack up their own mounts, with help from instructors. Proper technique and safety issues will be discussed/ demonstrated.
9:30 Round Pen and Arena. Participants will mount up and work in the group and individually with instructors at the walk and trot, emphasizing principles taught in the warm-up session. Each individual will be video-taped. 11:30 De-tack and groom horses.
12:00 Noon Ranch Headquarters. Lunch.
1:00-4:00 Free Time. Medina River tubing or antiquing/ shopping excursion in Bandera and/or Fredericksburg, Texas.
4:30 Barn. Bridle, groom, and mount horses. Bareback Exercises for balance and relaxation. Or, evening trail ride as riders prefer.
6:30 Return to Barn. De-tack, groom, feed.
7:00 Barn Picnic Area. Fajita or Barbeque dinner. Afterward, trip to local rodeo and/or dance hall.

Day 3
7:15 Ranch Headquarters. Breakfast.
8:00 Lecture/discussion with diagrams on developing "In Frame" movement in the horse. How does a "Balanced" mount move? Center of Gravity. The planes of movement. How are a balanced horse's body parts are aligned when moving
1) In a straight line, 2) On a diagonal, 3) On a circle or curve left or right.
Using flexion and collection to achieve balance.
Flexion: horizontal, (side to side.) Ribcage, neck.
Collection: vertical, (front to back.) Back, neck, poll and head.
How to create flexion and collection.
On the Ground:
Warm-up and stretches for the horse. "Bitting up" and lungeing. Equine massage. In the Saddle
1) Create forward momentum. Relaxation. 2) Use proper cues
Legs:
1)"Driving" the horse forward. 2) Flexing the horse- Moving the ribcage Front/back, Suppleing the neck
3) Collecting the horse- Lifting the back "Rounding" the neck Bending the poll Hands:
1) Guiding the horse- the leading rein vs the indirect rein
2) Flexion- Positioning the horse's head/ neck to accommodate flexion and direction of a particular part of the horse's body.
3) Collection- Asking for rounding of the neck, bending at the poll. Proper cueing- Steady hands. Strong, but not jerking movements. Cue/response/remove cue. Repeat and/or adjust cue. Repetition and conditioning.

9:00 Barn, Round Pen and Arena. Practice of discussed techniques. Warm up and stretch horses. Tack up and bit up, lunge horses. Mount up and practice in the group and individually flexion and collection cues and techniques. (Work will be at the walk and trot, and may advance to the cantor, depending on the skill level of the riders.) Video riders. Relaxation- The "Calm Down" cue.
11:30 Barn. Break, de-tack, equine massage.
12:00 Noon.
1:00-4:00 Free time. Tubing, shopping, relaxing.
4:30 Barn. Tack-up for evening ride. May be used as practice time for skills introduced earlier in the day, or as an evening trail ride.
6:30 Return to Barn. De-tack, groom, feed.
7:00 Barn Picnic Area or Ranch Headquarters. Dinner and Campfire with riders participating in entertainment.

Day 4
7:15 Ranch Headquarters. Breakfast.
8:00 Barn. Rider warm-up.
8:30 Horses warm-up and stretch.
9:00 Tack up and mount up. Continue with practice of "Balanced Mount" techniques from previous day. Advance to preparation for/execution of the cantor/lope, and/or flying lead changes. Video riders.
11:30 De-tack, groom.
12:00 Noon Barn Picnic Area or Ranch Headquarters. Lunch. 1:00-4:00 Free time.
4:30 Barn. Tack up. Evening practice of "Balanced Mount" techniques. Application/use in specific disciplines and events.
6:30 Return to Barn. De tack, groom, feed.
7:30 Depart for dinner and dancing in Bandera.

Day 5
Morning. (Late morning or early afternoon departure of participants).
6:00 AM Barn. Tack up. Depart on Sunrise Trail Ride.
7:30 Breakfast on the trail.
8:30 Ride back to barn.
9:30 or 10:00 Barn. De-tack. Participants get ready for departure.