Treat Me NOW, Mom!

November 14, 2012Posted inCountry Frank's Lucky Star, Missouri Fox Trotter
I took about a month vacation from riding and playing with Lucky. (Velvet and I competed in a Seasoned Rider Challenge.)  Lucky and I have been coming along like a rumbling freight train since I started concentrating on winning the ground games.  Amazing.  Tony Vaught once told me that the quality of the ground game dictated what kind of ride you would get. Getting Lucky to move on the ground is key to getting him to move when I'm riding him.  Last time I rode Lucky is when he attracted…

Rick Lamb and The Horse Show-Fame!!

November 7, 2012Posted inMiscellaneous, Miss America, Pine Dell Farm
Rick Lamb. The Horse Show: Meet the Morgan Horse. The ADM segment was filmed at Pine Dell Farm. The program was aired in 2008,but Dr Judy Reynolds and Rick Lamb filmed at Pine Dell and both Pine Dell and I am in the final credits!! Wowsa! I learned that the Morgan is "The Horse That Chooses You". I now have a Morgan horse that came knocking on my door! Coincidence? I think not! Pine Dell is also the location on the ADM segment called The HayThorn Land and Cattle Co,…

She Squealed in Joy

November 6, 2012Posted inMiss America
This past Saturday, Miss America became a part of the entire Engle horse herd.  She's been sniffing Lucky Star over the fence for more than a month now.  I thought she was ready!  Since she has been here, she's been turned out only in the non lake part of the pasture.  She's been turned out with all the mares who have been shifted from lake to non lake part of the pasture, except for Velvet.  Miss America has been turned out with Velvet for the entire time she's been here.…

She Came Knocking….

November 1, 2012Posted inMiss America
Tuesday dark morning feeding time 5:45 AM...a presence is felt. I saw a big tree branch move. hmmm 5:46am..I get Lucky Star and take him to barn. 5:48 AM...an alarmed whinny 6:00 AM...Discover a strange horse in the yard. She came and met Lucky Star. I had turned Lucky Star out in the yard overnight because we had such a nice ride. This is all Lucky's fault! Mare Nicely fed..feet ok...in good shape 6:05 AM...Horse appears calm..put halter on and lead to barn-long beautiful neck may belong to saddlebred. In…

Back to Lucky Star I

September 26, 2012Posted inCountry Frank's Lucky Star, Missouri Fox Trotter
I've had about three rides on Lucky Star in a row where he didn't kick up in protest at going forward.  People in my arena of horsemanship believe in fixing problems on the ground instead of in the saddle.  Lucky Star and I have had many conversations human to horse - ground to ground.  My conversation is move and keep moving.  His conversation is move and immediately stop or slow down.  We've had many different conversations about this.  My last outing with Lucky Star was about the best conversation we've…

Sue – How Do You Decide on Rob?

September 21, 2012Posted inSue - How Do You Do!
This is what Rob Ballard said to me one evening when we were sitting around, advertising his new company, Shelter Defense:  “Horses were my baby sitter when I was growing up. My parents leased a horse for me and dropped me off at Leawood Stables every day during the summer. We would coax our horses to go far out in the pasture and gallop back to the barn. That’s all we knew what to do. I wish I could ride a horse now and get out there on the trails…