September 26, 2011
The Sam Houston State University horsemanship clinic team poses at the Stocker Hof Ranch in Germany. Photo by Amy Heartfield.
Howdy from Texas!
I am finally home after finishing up the last two camps in Switzerland and Germany with the horsemanship clinic team from Sam Houston State University.
August 10, 2011
Jennifer Cassle works with a camp participant on one of many drills that were worked on during the camp. Photo by Amy Heartfield.
I have spent the last week in Italy with the University of Wisconsin-River Falls horsemanship clinic team. The camp took place at Casanova Quarter Horses in Asti, Italy. The team had a wonderful time learning about the Italian culture and teaching the small group of 10 riders.
During the camp, riders focused on horsemanship, western pleasure, trail and showmanship. The UWRF team worked on the basics before progressing on to an upper-level trail course. This included bending and getting full control of the shoulders, hips and ribs. In addition, the student coaches worked on straight lines and stopping on a loose rein.
August 9, 2011
Jeremy Woodhouse does a sliding stop on a draft horse in Kreuth, Germany. Photo by Thomas Bauderer.
Kreuth, Germany: home of the annual AQHA European Championships. The facility in Kreuth was also host to the latest horsemanship clinic that I attended.
I spent the past few days with Jeremy Woodhouse, Jennifer Cassel, Rebecca Meinen and Kristina Hiney from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls for one of the largest clinics yet. With approximately 30 people, there was a wide variety of interests.
August 8, 2011
Barb Pfeifer, from the Colorado State University horsemanship clinic team, pretended to be a cow for AQHA international director Gerold Dautzenberg during the working cow horse demonstration at Gerold's Longview Ranch in Wilhelmsburg, Austria. Photo by Amy Heartfield.
Despite the cold and rainy weather, the camp had about 25 participants and all of them wanted to concentrate on the western style of riding.
The five girls from Colorado State University –Pam Harmeyer, Kate Auchmoody, Barb Pfeifer, Alexandra Eason, Megan Grieve — combined a variety of lectures with their riding schedule for the full horsemanship experience.
The days were divided as follows:
August 1, 2011
The team takes a short break in between clinics. Photo courtesy of Amy Heartfield.
The Texas Tech University horsemanship clinic team recently taught a camp in Sassendorf, Germany, hosted by John and Diana Royer at the Five Star Ranch.
The majority of clinic attendees were interested in the western riding style, particularly learning the art of riding a reining horse.
July 21, 2011
Kelsey Stokes, True Burson, Luke England, Amy Heartfield and Mattie Dunshee just finished up a clinic in Gotland, Sweden. Gotland, an island outside of Sweden, is popular not only for tourists from around the world, but for western riding enthusiasts. Photo by Ask Hyldgaard.
Right after their arrival in Gotland, Sweden, the Texas Tech University horsemanship clinic team got the opportunity to watch a trotting race, as well as a Swedish playday. The playday included classes such as ranch trail, reining and roping, as well as skiing behind horses. After trying their hand at arena skiing, the team settled in to teach their first three-day clinic.
Topics in the clinic covered everything from basic horsemanship to spins and rollbacks. There were approximately 20 people that attended the clinic, and they were interested in many different aspects of western riding. The participants were divided into groups so that they could have more one-on-one instruction. These groups rotated to different arenas to work on what they were most interested in. One arena had a trail course in it, one had a horsemanship pattern, and one arena worked on reining.
July 14, 2011
True Burson, of the Texas Tech University horsemanship clinic team, works a horse on a flag in Tørsbøl, Denmark. Photo by Amy Heartfield.
Hej from Denmark!
The Texas Tech University horsemanship clinic team just sepent the past week teaching in Denmark. We spent two days in Ringsted giving a short working cow horse clinic before moving on to the main clinic in Tørsbøl.
The participants in the cow horse clinic practiced working the flag on the first day and then moved to working cattle the next day. Cattle are much harder to procure in Denmark than in Texas, so all of the participants were very eager to try their hand at it.
June 29, 2011
Kelsey Stokes, True Burson, Amy Heartfield, Luke England and Mattie Dunshee gather around after the Texas Tech University horsemanship clinic in Hamar, Norway. Photo by Heidi Gronvold.
Hilsen fra Norge!
We just finished up a wonderful first clinic in Hamar, Norway. The Texas Tech University horsemanship clinic team taught 27 people the fundamentals of horsemanship, and in the meantime, we were able to learn about and enjoy the Norwegian culture.
During the four days of the clinic, riders worked on things such as being able to move the hip and shoulder of the horse, and they also learned the components of reining, trail, horsemanship and lead changes. The people were wonderful and seemed very eager to learn.
June 21, 2011
Amy Heartfield is AQHA's 2011 international intern. Follow Amy this summer as she teaches horsemanship clinics across Europe.
Hi everyone!
My name is Amy Heartfield, and I am this year’s AQHA international intern. I am a senior agricultural leadership and development student at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. I am originally from Belton, Texas, and I have been riding horses for most of my life.
This year, I will be privileged to travel with four different universities — Texas Tech University, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, Colorado State University and Sam Houston State University — around Europe to teach horsemanship clinics.
Between the four universities, we will travel to 10 European countries, and the universities will host a total of 14 horsemanship camps.
August 4, 2010
Back on the Swedish mainland, Dr. Clay Cavinder replaced Dr. Laura White, and the Texas A&M University team conducted its second horsemanship camp. The camp was hosted at the newly renovated Bokeberg Ranch, the same place that held the Swedish Championships the week before we got there.
The grounds were beautiful, and although the team had a smaller group of only about 10, they managed to stay very busy. The group was overall more advanced and had more showing interest and experience, so A&M was able to progress a little faster. They held a “show” theme while they worked on everything from hand positioning and position in the saddle to speed and style through a trail course.
August 3, 2010
A&M Team
Texas A&M University did a great job on this beautiful island!
I met with Dr. Laura White, Ari Sear, Amy Hartfield and Raul Valdez off the coast of Sweden and watched them conduct an awesome clinic. They had almost 20 participants, which kept the four of them very busy for their three-day clinic. The group was made up of mostly recreational riders with a few light competitors and a small number of serious show riders. The A&M representatives found a way to teach them all something new and to improve upon the basic foundation that all horse people should understand.
Basic 1: Following the nose/lateral movement
Basic 2: Move away from pressure
August 2, 2010
TTU's Team
Texas Tech University students and I have been here for the past few days teaching, training and eating!
The camp was hosted by John and Diana Royer at Five Star Ranch. They are not only excellent hosts with a fabulous facility but both accomplished riders on their own, and they will be making their American show debut at the 2010 National Reining Horse Association Futurity. The general interest at this barn is western, with a focus on reining. Levi and his team used this interest to form the four-day camp for the almost 30 participants.