20/20 Horsemanship

29/07/2025

Impressive!

24/07/2025

Ready-Set-Go....to the FAIR and stop by 20/20 while you're there!

23/07/2025

She is amazing!

NO LEGS? NO PROBLEM! Meet 21 year old Danish Para-Olympic dressage rider Stinna Tange Kaastrup, who was born without legs. Stinna and her pony compete at the highest level of the sport, most recently at the WEG Games. She rides in a soft, treeless saddle for a closer feel and relies strictly upon balance to stay in the saddle - - that's right, she is not strapped in - - and she carries two whips as compensatory aids.

Says Stinna about her interest in riding and her success in dressage: "When I'm on a horse, I'm equal to all others. When I'm on the ground or in my wheelchair, I have some things in the way like stairs and I can't run or walk. On a horse I'm free."

Stinna. . .we salute you! NO LEGS, NO PROBLEM . . . AND NO EXCUSES!

Watch Stinna and her pony perform in competition: https://youtu.be/cRhqN8OeYOg

And read more about Stinna here: http://dressagedaily.com/article/para-equestrian-close-stinna-tange-kaastrup

The next time I whine about how I cannot get my horse to do this-or-that, I'll think about Stinna . . . she's my hero!



23/07/2025

I wrote an article and turned it into a PDF. Tips for finding a riding instructor.
Reply with send if you'd like the link.

22/07/2025

This weather is putting me over the edge with my horse's feet. Come on and give Virginia's horse people a break!

16/07/2025

11/07/2025

Horses possess a remarkable ability to convey emotions through their facial expressions, showcasing a range of feelings from happiness to discomfort. Understanding these subtle cues can significantly enhance the bond between horse and rider, fostering better communication and care.

25/06/2025

There’s this old, tired idea that riding is about control. That dressage is about making the horse submit. Taming the wild. Forcing precision.

But here’s the truth:

You don’t ride to break the horse. You ride so 𝑦𝑜𝑢 don’t break.

Because the horse isn’t the chaos. You are.

Your fear. Your tension. Your ego. Your overthinking.
Every crooked thought runs straight down the reins.
And the horse? He doesn’t care about your excuses. He shows you exactly who you are.

So you learn to breathe. To feel. To listen more than you speak.
You learn to hold your position in the storm.
You learn to ride into the fire, not to dominate it, but to survive it.

Dressage doesn’t make you perfect.
Done right, it makes you unbreakable.

Not because you control everything. But because you learn to hold your seat when everything falls apart.

It’s not about who you are when the ride begins, it’s who you are when you dismount.

13/06/2025

19/04/2025

This is one of my favorite pictures of Blue.

BOING

06/03/2025

Time away was well spent. Getting sick while being way, and not getting better yet....I'm over it. And this weather! I really enjoyed the 75 and sunny Sanibel Island!

06/03/2025

Save $60! Register for classes before March 15!
Regularly $360/4 classes one lesson per week over 4 weeks. Before March 15 pay only $300!!
Want 2 lessons each week? Only $500/8 classes in 4 weeks! Only until March 15!