Lessons and Training

I currently teach Basic Horsemanship, Western Pleasure and Trail for ages 10 and up.
Each potential student is required to watch at least one lesson before signing on
with me. I do this to be sure that the student, and the parents if the student is
under the age of 18, like my teaching style and think that we will be a good team.

After signing on with me, I will then evaluate each student so that I know which
level of horsemanship and riding he/she has. ALL of my students learn from the ground
up. My philosophy is that if you can not control the horse on the ground, you can not
control the horse on his/her back. Therefore, each student will learn to lead, groom,
lunge and free lunge, tack up, correct mounting and dismounting, walk, jog, and lope,
and proper care for the horse and tack.

I currently teach at a farm in Newburg, MD on Saturday mornings and travel Saturday
evening and Sunday morning. I have retired my western pleasure lesson horse as of
2008. I currently have 3 horses available to me on Saturdays to teach on at the farm
in Newburg, but none of these horses are 'western pleasure' horses. They are trail
horses.

If you have your own horse, I can either come out to you to give lessons or you can
trailer your horse to the farm in Newburg or to Oakridge Park in Hughesville.

Lessons are PRIVATE and are 1 hour long. I consider myself to be quite strict but I
also enjoy having alot of fun while I am giving my lessons. During my lessons, my
students and I tend to do alot of catching up on the week, laughing and generally
enjoying the lesson. But it isnt all fun and games. I am very strict on safety and
common sense. Helmets are required for all students under 18 years of age. If you
feel that you are not ready to attempt a skill, you have every right to say that
you are not comfortable, but if I feel that you should be jogging and not walking
in your second month of lessons, I will instruct you do so. The words "I Can't" and
"I Won't" are not tolerated. Belief in yourself and confidence are two very important
things to have!