Terry Golson

The type of riding that I compete in, dressage, is rather formal. What one wears is dictated by show rules and tradition. Garb is muted and includes dark jackets, white shirts and breeches, and tall and polished black boots. None of that I mind so much, in fact I like how it looks, […]

Braids

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As the saying goes, You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink. Last July I discovered how true this is. Tonka and I were at a USDF dressage show where the temperature soared above 90 F, the sun was unrelenting, there wasn’t a breeze and there was […]

You Can Lead a Horse to Water And…

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Some people meditate. I graze horses.   There’s something about a horse eating grass that is calming and centering to me, which is ironic because a horse has huge teeth that he uses to rip and tear. It’s noisy and there’s nothing dainty about it.     At Tonka’s barn […]

Hand Grazing Zen

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The first thing that a new rider wants to learn, once they get up on this big, powerful animal, is how to stop it. (Well, there’s always one in a bunch who wants to gallop off, but not long after that they wish they’d learned where the brakes are!)   At […]

“Ho” on the Trail

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On Sunday we trailered an hour and a half to the Beland Dressage Show. Tonk and I have moved up to USDF recognized shows where the competition is stiffer and the judges are more exacting than the schooling shows that we attended last year. About 80% of the horses at these […]

Tonk’s Guy Crush

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When and why it starts is a mystery. For many of us, our love of horses seems as much a part of our selves as our physical pieces, like our hearts and our feet. For the first seven years of my life I lived in a suburban house on a […]

When It Starts

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I’m working on a blogpost about training theory and how to introduce a positive approach to riders and horses who are still at traditional barns. I’m thinking about behavior and reinforcement and what’s really important. At the same time, I’m preparing for my first recognized dressage show of the season this coming […]

Quiet Time with Horses

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I love horses and they’re the focus of what I do, but I openly admit that my absolute favorite animal to train is the goat. Goats are endlessly enthusiastic and always in the game. Whatever I bring to an interaction with them, they add to it, with great good cheer and always a […]

Training Goats

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There’s a short, half-mile trail through the woods around the back of the stable where I keep Tonka. We travel it almost everyday. We walk it after a training session in the ring as a way to relax, stretch out and cool down. Then, there are days when neither Tonka nor […]

On The Buckle

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