Cliff Tipton & Hercules

2008-03-10T10:50:00.006-06:00

Well for those that have been waiting for an update sorry to keep you waiting. I had no idea that there was such a following.

Cliff and Hercules have continued to work together over the winter and officially joined the Aces Wild - All Mustang Drill Team for their performances at the 2008 Utah Horse Expo this past weekend. They even carried a flag for the team on Sunday during the flag ceremony. What a wonderful addition to the team and we are all so excited to have them.

2007-09-24T21:42:00.000-06:00

Now that all the stress and pressure is off I slept like a baby last night. We arrive at the arena early and meet Jamie and her father. We go ahead and feed the boys and then get everything packed and put away for the long trip home while they eat.

Jamie gets Patriot loaded and then I load Hercules and Ranger goes in last. Hercules is happy to have someone else to ride home with I think.

We make a couple of stops in Amarillo to do some more shopping but other than that and the stops for fuel and a couple of stops to let the horses out to drink and walk around we drive straight through and arrive back home early Tuesday morning. It sure is good to be home.

2007-09-23T21:38:00.000-06:00

I didn’t sleep very well overnight and neither did Janet. It really hit us yesterday as people were walking around admiring the horses that there is a definite possibility that we may loose Hercules if we can’t go high enough. I have really come to love this big guy and will be heart broken if I loose him. I send Janet out to get a good seat. As I spend time with Hercules he is acting very nervous and I think he is just picking up on my anticipation and nervousness.

We are the third to last to go up for auction. Many of the trainers are not even taking their horses out under saddle as they are trying their best to take them home. I just want to do right by my horse and show off how far we have come. If it is meant to be he will come home with me if not then there must be something better in store for him. After I introduce Hercules and the bidding starts I really start to get nervous as I can hear the price going up but yet I don’t see Janet doing anything. The bidding goes crazy for what seemed like an eternity and then all of a sudden just quits. The auctioneer says “sold for $3,000”. I am scared to look at Janet but as I turn and give her the thumbs up sign she gets a huge smile on her face and gives me the thumbs up back. He is really mine. It is all I can do to get out of the arena. As soon as we are out in the tunnel I hop down and give the big guy a big hug with tears in my eyes. He just gives me a big hug right back like he knew it was going to be ok the whole time.

I take him back to his stall and untack him and give him some treats. We are all exhausted so we make the decision to stay one more night and head out first thing in the morning. Richard Sewing who came all the way from Utah to give us his support takes us out for a congratulatory early supper. After we drop Richard off at the hotel we decide to go see the Stockyards. There were only a few shops still open but we were able to get a few souvenirs.

Rick and Kitty ask if we are still willing to haul Ranger back to Utah so they can take their kids and do some sightseeing which we are more than happy to do. Jamie Thomas also needs a ride for her horse so we haul Patriot to Utah as well and then Rick and Kitty will take him on up to their place in Oregon.

2007-09-22T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today is the big day. We arrive at the arena early so that we can get Vicky set up in a good spot with the camcorder. She has agreed to video the day for us. Thank you so much Vicky, you did a great job. I also want to thank my sister Fran and my niece Amber for flying in from Colorado to be there as part of my support team and running errands so that I could concentrate on Hercules. And I would also like to thank Richard Sewing from the National Mustang Association for flying in from Utah to be there as part of the support team.

During yesterday’s trainer meeting my draw number for competition order works out to be on my side. I will be last on the in hand course and second to last on my riding portion. So I have almost the entire day to study the patterns and watch the other competitors. I am nervous but very excited and Hercules picks up on it and is constantly looking to me for reassurance. I feel like we can do everything in the on-line course as it is all stuff we have practiced before. I am more nervous about the horse course as I have not practiced on picking up correct leads or lead changes with Hercules.

For the online course we have to enter the arena and wait for the judges acknowledgement. Then we are to walk across 4 ground poles without the horse touching them. Hercules clips his toe on 2 of them I think. Then we are to walk into an “L” formation and back out of it. Hercules does this on a loose lead without any bobbles. Then we are to make a 270 degree turn and trot to the cone where we are to pick up all 4 feet. It is not a long enough distance and Hercules does not trot for me but did well with all 4 feet. Then we are to turn and walk over a “v-shaped” set of poles (this is the obstacle that most trainers missed that resulted in them getting DQ’d). Then load and unload out of the trailer. Hercules does this like a dream. Then the final obstacle was to trot through a slalom course of 6 cones. Hercules broke to a walk a little but other than that did it very well. Our final score for this portion was 63.3.

After lunch break it was time for the riding portion. We were to enter the arena and mount. Then pick up a left lead and lope past the judges to the cone. Stop and turn left. Then pick up the right lead and canter back around the arena crossing through the middle where we were to change leads to the left lead again and lope to another cone. Then break to a trot for about 10 strides then walk into a box and do two turns to the right and two turns to the left. Then trot out of the box and through the panel serpentine. Once past the serpentine we were to pick up a left lead to the bridge. Walk across the bridge and then trot across the poles into the L shape and then back out of the L and pick up a trot to the gate. The only part that Hercules really struggled with was picking up the lope on the first pass he just trotted. After that he picked up his correct leads and we just had a ball. Janet got so wrapped up in the routine that she only remembered to take pictures for the first half. After I exit the arena I jump down in the tunnel and get huge tears in my eyes. Hercules has done so good and I let him know just how proud of him I really am. Our final score on this portion was 91.0. So combined with our conditioning score of 34.5 this put us in a tie for 17th place. We didn’t make the top 10 finalists but we definitely did better than I was anticipating.

2007-09-21T21:00:00.000-06:00

My practice times were early today so that I had time to get Hercules cleaned up for the conditioning part of the competition and still get myself cleaned up for the big media party at the Cowgirl Hall of Fame tonight.

I fed Hercules and spent time grooming him. As soon as he was done eating I decided it would be good to go ahead and get my conditioning portion out of the way and try and beat the rush. Once I was done with the judges the Foundation put a Hip# on Hercules so that everyone could identify him through the competition and adoption. His number was #89.

I rode Hercules for my practice sessions and then had to head for the mandatory trainers meeting at noon. Janet and Vicky took this time to head to Office Depot to have signs and badges made up to get people to vote for Hercules for Mr. Congeniality.

Then we went back to the hotel to get cleaned up and ready for the big party.

2007-09-20T21:00:00.000-06:00

Once we found where we needed to be and which stall was Hercules’ we pulled into the Watt Arena stall area and unloaded and got things situated. I went ahead and gave Hercules a bath to help cool him down a bit and then Janet clipped his face to help make it prettier.

Each trainer was allowed to sign up for three 20 minute sessions in the big arena per day to help the horses get used to the obstacles and the arena. I was very impressed with Hercules willingness to go wherever I asked him to go and to check out all the new things. He even loaded in the trailer very well, which surprised me after having such a long trip here.

It is so much hotter here than it has been at home and so I send Janet and Vicky to the store to get a fan so that we can try and keep Hercules a little more comfortable. He made the trip well but did loose a little weight. While Janet and Vicky were shopping they decided to decorate Hercules stall as well. It sure did bring a lot of attention. I met the other trainers that were around me and got to speak with them a little. They are all very excited to be here as am I.

2007-09-18T21:00:00.000-06:00

We left our home about 6:00 pm. Janet and I along with our good friend Vicky Green were going to make the long journey to Forth Worth. For the most part the trip was pretty uneventful. We got stopped around Cuba, New Mexico for a couple of hours when the freeway was closed because of a truck fire. We also stopped a couple of times to let Hercules out of the trailer to rest and stretch. We arrived in Wichita Falls, Texas around 8:00 pm on Wednesday and decided to let Hercules spend the night at the Cruse Acres Horse Hotel since we couldn’t check into our stall in Fort Worth until Thursday morning. Sam Cruse was very nice and put Hercules in a nice big stall. We made sure Herc settled in and then went to find a room and food for ourselves.

I would highly recommend Cruse Acres to anyone traveling through Wichita Falls, Texas. They have a very nice facility and the horses are well cared for.

2007-09-12T21:00:00.000-06:00

Well I decided to take Hercules on one last trail ride before our trip to Texas. I really hope that I can bring him home from Texas with me but if not I know that he will make a fantastic horse for whoever ends up with him.

We decided to see how he would do leading the ride and though a little unsure he handled it all very well. We went up through "tire alley" and he was fantastic.

We also took him through his first on the trail water crossing and I was very pleased with how he did. He never tried to jump the stream just walked right through it.

After we stopped for a few minutes to let the horses drink we decided to head for home. There were some cows hanging out around the water trough and one calf in particular that was very interested in Hercules. So we let him check the cows out until he decided he really wanted to chase them and since they weren't our cows decided to head on home.

2007-09-10T21:00:00.000-06:00

The more I ride Herc the more I notice him tripping and acting ouchy so today my farrier (Gary Belliston) came over to put a pair of front shoes on Herc to see if that would help any. Herc got a little nervous a few times with the hammering but over all did very well.
I was amazed at the difference in made in his gait while lounging him afterward. I can’t wait to get on him and go for a trail ride to try the new shoes out. Hopefully I can get that done Wednesday.

2007-09-09T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today Herc had the day off. We were doing the last day of the IWHBA Summer Training Series clinics. One of our volunteers was out watching and decided to fill the water troughs in the stalls. Janet caught a couple of pictures of Herc playing in the water with her.

2007-09-08T21:00:00.000-06:00

This week has been such a crazy week. Utah isn't supposed to get tornado's. Well take a look at the second picture. That used to be my hay barn behind Herc and I. You can see it in some of the other pictures here on the blog. We got hit pretty hard on Tuesday night with a small tornado. Luckily Herc was unharmed and actually seemed to be the most calm of the horses around him and seemed to be trying to reassure them that everything would be ok.

Today we held a Meet & Greet for Hercules. Around 80 people showed up to meet Herc in person and he was very impressed and definitely was on his best behavior. He took time out of his busy schedule to pose for pictures and knowing him he also was more than willing to take the time to eat the many morsels of food offered to him from his adoring fans.
I rode Herc around for a while to show everyone what we are able to do to this point. Then we had a great BBq with so much food. Thank you to my two sons (Roy and Nathan) and my brother Troy for keeping the hamburgers coming. A co-worker brought out his corn roaster and we had fresh roasted corn, cowboy beans and to top it all off we had dutch over chocolate raspberry cake and peach cobbler for desert.
My daughter Rissa put together a slide show for everyone to watch so that those that had not been able to follow the blog could see the progress from beginning to now. Everyone really enjoyed that.
We also had a silent auction and raffle going. It was a night that I will not soon forget.
I want to thank everyone that donated and those that worked behind the scenes to make such a successful evening. I love you all so much and couldn’t have done this without the support of each one of you. Oh yes, Hercules thinks your all pretty cool too and is more than happy to give each of you a kiss.

2007-08-25T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today was the adoption and Gus (BLM) asked if we would ride our horses and talk a little about them when they were getting ready to start the adoption. There were several people that specifically came to the adoption to visit Hercules so he definitely received lots of attention and more than a few people that wanted to adopt him right on the spot. Nope, sorry, he is participating in the Extreme Mustang Makeover competition and then he will be coming home with me for good, (hopefully anyway).
Janet talked about Ladybug and all she has done with her first and then handed the microphone over to me. I was able to take the microphone from Janet and speak about Hercules without even and ear flick from him while I was sitting on his back. What a cool feeling.
We hung around the adoption and spoke with potential adopters for the rest of the afternoon and then started getting ready for the parade around 4:30. The parade had a start time of 6:00 and we would be riding from the end of the parade to the beginning. That way it would give the horses time to settle in prior to being in front of a crowd.
When we arrived at the check in we had to ride past a large grain trailer being pulled by a semi. There were several people on top of the trailer hanging banners off the side and we had to ride between the trailer on one side of the road and a jeep with a large bouquet of balloon on the other side of the road. Herc didn’t have a problem with it at all. Next we had to ride past the American Legion jeep with all the flags. That wasn’t an issue either.
When the parade finally began we were placed behind a snow cat on a trailer and in front of a large procession of antique cars, and behind the cars was the entry for the Manti ambulance and fire department so we got to listen to their sirens for the entire parade as well.
Herc took it all in and did the whole parade like the true champion that we have all know he is. He strutted his stuff for all the parade attendees to see and you would never have known that this was his first parade.
At the end of the parade we stopped and posed with the drill team. As you can see when Herc comes back home and joins the drill team for good he will be one of the biggest horses on the team. He is quite stunning when he really shows his stuff.

2007-08-24T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today we loaded up and headed down to Manti for the BLM adoption at the Sanpete County Fair. Herc loaded up like a champ and rode beautifully for the 2½ hour drive. Once we arrived and got settled in Dona Bastian (BLM) told us that Aces Wild (our all wild horse & burro drill team) had been asked to ride in the Grand Entry of the rodeo. We were not expecting this and so the rest of our drill team would not be arriving until Saturday afternoon for the parade. I guess Hercules would get his introduction to the “public scene” a little early.
I thought it would be best to lead Herc out through the arena before the rodeo so he could see where we were going to be and at least be a little familiar with his surroundings without all the excitement. So off we went. His only concern was where Ladybug was at. So we went back to adoption to hang out until it was time to ride.
The grand entry was set for 7:45 so we started getting everyone ready about 7:00. When we arrived we were told we had to go through an alley way by the “rough-stock” to the other end of the arena and we would be behind the various royalties. Herc handled it all like a champ his only concern was when we entered the arena and he saw the royalty loping past him with the flags he wanted to go too. Once I got him settled from that he rode around with the drill team like it was no big deal. Even the clapping and waving didn’t bother him. He is definitely ready to ride with Aces Wild in the Sanpete County parade tomorrow.

2007-08-18T21:00:00.000-06:00

Hercules was a true gentleman today for his first “public” appearance. He was very well mannered and a pleasure to be around. We arrived early and spent some time getting Hercules groomed. We wanted him to look his best. Hercules would be the only mustang to compete here today and was a great ambassador for the breed.

The online course was the first “test” of the day. There were over 20 competitors. There were two courses going on at the same time and we were #4 on the far course. We had a series of 4 tasks to do within a 5 minute time limit and we were awarded points for doing each task. We could do the tasks in any order. The tasks were to have me sit on a hay bail and pick up all 4 feet and clean them (without moving off of the hay bail), standing in a 8 foot circle and fly spraying both sides of the horse without the horse stepping out of the circle, slalom the horse through a line of 6 cones from a line that was 9 feet away, and last was to “squeeze” the horse over 3-35 gallon drums laid on their side from a hoola hoop that was 6 feet away. The fly spray task was the only one we knew we could do but we gave all the rest of them a try. I was able to get 3 of Hercules 4 hooves up and cleaned while sitting on the hay and Hercules “snacking”. Then we went to the fly spray and aced that one. Next we tried the slalom. And though we had been practicing this at home we had not been practicing from that distance and we didn’t do so well. Hercules got confused as to what I was asking him to do so we ended up just passing on the task. Then we went to the barrels. We haven’t practiced him jumping anything so I settled for him going up and touching the barrels. I knew that later in the day I would have to ride him over the barrels so we would come back later and practice that.

After the lunch break I went back to the trailer and saddled up Herc so that we could practice before our test. I also discovered the Herc likes to drink out of water bottles. We were to go #3 on the course. Janet worked with Herc on the ground and getting him over the drums so he understood what I was going to ask him to do. Once I was in the saddle he was all business and did everything he was asked to do. The basket had not been put in place yet so I practiced picking up a helmet from the drum and moving it to the other drum.

Our tasks that we would have to complete in the “Freestyle” class (under saddle) would be. Picking up a basket full of stinky lama hair from a 55 gallon drum and packing over 20 feet and setting it down on another drum, cross the 3-35 gallon drums 4 times (twice each way), trot or canter each direction 4 times around a 90’ diameter circle and then stand in the middle with the horses head over the drum for 7 seconds on a loose rein, and then to go inside a 20’ diameter circle and place the horses front hooves in a hoola-hoop and do a circle on the forehand and then place the horses back hooves in the hoola-hoop and do a circle on the haunches.

When it was time to start the course we got our first glimpse of the basket. It was a huge stuffed Easter bunny basket. Then the kicker is when you picked it up it made a noise like a bouncing spring. Herc did great until I went to set the basket down and then he got a little worried and backed away from the drum. After a little bit of encouragement however he did move back to the drum so that I could set the basket down. Then we went on to the drums and passed over those with ease. Hercules chose not to jump them (why exert energy to jump when I can just walk over them) and calmly walked over them 4 times. He was kind of sluggish on his trot and I lost count of how many times we had gone around the circle so looked kind of funny but did finally get our 4 circles done and then Hercules decided it would be more fun to knock over the drum instead of stand with his head over it. By this time we were out of time. I was so thrilled with how well he did and how well he took everything in.

2007-08-17T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today Hercules and I practiced the obstacles that we may encounter this weekend while under saddle. And then went for a ride down the street and back on our own. I also took him over to the arena and rode some more over there and also let Janet ride him for the first time. We didn’t get any pictures of Janet riding since she didn’t bring the camera over with her.

2007-08-16T21:00:00.000-06:00

Hercules and I will be participating in the Natural Horse Showdown this weekend in Midway, UT. It is a fundraiser for the Utah Animal Adoption Center and I think the perfect opportunity to get Hercules out in a crowd of “strange” horses and see how he will behave. So tonight we spend practicing obstacles on the ground that they used last year. We worked with a tarp and doing a slalom course with cones. Then just for fun we threw in some obstacles that we may encounter in Texas worked on crossing a bridge and some more with the ground poles and also with pulling a slicker out of a mailbox and wearing it. Hercules just thrives on new tasks. We are having so much fun.

I also wanted to expose Herc to the electric clippers since his brand will have to be clipped in Texas. He actually seemed to enjoy the vibration. I asked Janet to give him a bridle path and while she was at it she clipped his whiskers. He actually pushed into the blades to feel the vibrations. It was quite comical.

Since it has been so hot and Hercules has been doing so good I took him over to the sprinkler and let him stand in it to cool off. Then he thought he would return the favor with the other sprinkler. This horse really does have quite the sense of humor.

2007-08-14T21:00:00.000-06:00

Time to hit the trail. Hercules has been doing so well with everything that I have given him to do that today we ventured out on the trail with Janet and Ladybug. Hercules took everything we encountered like he has done it all his entire life. WOW amazing. He even got out and led for portions of the trail, of course he felt more secure with little Ladybug out front but he definitely seemed to enjoy getting out and seeing the hills.

2007-08-13T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today I took Hercules over the arena and we practiced what we had learned at Sage Creek on Saturday. He was much easier to get up to the faster gates in the open arena then he is in the round pen. I think he is just really bored with the round pen and so we will continue our lessons from now on in the arena and out on the trail. We were able to get walk, trot and canter in the arena.

2007-08-11T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today we loaded up Hercules (for his first trailer ride since arriving here) and traveled to Heber so that the two of us could get some assistance from my good friend and mentor Jim Hicks. I have been struggling with getting a good steady trot from Hercules and I have not felt confident to ask for a canter yet. I also wanted to get some help with turning. Jim took a little time getting acquainted with Hercules and then we went to work. With Jim’s coaching and help I was able to accomplish what I set out to with Hercules today. We got some good turns and bending going on and then after a lot of encouragement from Jim we finally were able to get over the canter hurdle. Hercules was a dream and actually seemed to enjoy actually getting up and moving. Now to continue these lessons at home…

2007-08-10T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today I decided to take Hercules over the arena and turn him loose and let him play. The biggest area I have turned him loose in the past was the round pen so I thought he might enjoy the wide open space.

First I walked and trotted him around the perimeter and then turned him loose. Man what a treat it was to see him move and fly across the arena.

2007-08-08T21:59:00.000-06:00

Since my last post Hercules and I have been working on our walking and trotting with both of us staying relaxed at the same time. Some days that is easier than others but we are getting better together.

Tonight we started our routine as usual with some walk, trot, canter transitions on lounge line. Hercules appears to have a bit of a "lazy" side and doesn't really like to stay in the faster gait for very long. Will have to venture out to a bigger area and see if that is the problem or something else.

He was doing really well otherwise and staying calm so I moved right into riding. Tonight was the best night yet. No boogers found either of us and we learned to relax together. However Hercules has been continually getting more stiff when turning to the right with the halter so I added some reins to the bit and began to use the bit to support the turns and he then really seemed to "get it" and became much more light. We also began working on backing up from the saddle.

Hercules was being so good and staying so relaxed I decided to try our first ride out of the round pen. I know I am going slower than a lot of the trainers but I am really enjoying the whole experience and am just proceeding as we both feel comfortable with each other.

Hercules was so awesome. He never even got nervous. I rode him past all the stalls with the boarded horses in them, past the hay barn, past all the chickens milling around and then over some ground poles. He took it all in stride not even spooking when he accidentally stepped on a ground pole and it rolled. He maintained his composure and proceeded on across. I am so proud of how far he has come.

We are almost ready to venture out on a trail ride. Hmmm.. Maybe this weekend.

2007-07-26T21:27:00.001-06:00

WE DID IT!! We got our first ride together tonight. I didn't start out with the intention of riding tonight. I was just going to do some refresher work with Hercules but as I was doing my mounts he remained totally calm so Janet told me to go ahead and get my first ride out of the way. I knew it wouldn't be a long ride as there was a storm movin in and I could see it coming across the valley. Once I was up Herc didn't want to move his feet. (Janet later told me I never really did take my emergency brake off, so I guess I will have to work on that too. :) )

But Hercules did awesome. I couldn't have asked for a better first ride. He remained calm and we finally did get two laps around the round pen before I dismounted and called it.

I am so very proud of my boy. And I think he was pretty proud of himself as well.

2007-07-25T21:20:00.001-06:00

I wanted Hercules to look his best for his debut with the local media so I spent some time prior to their arrival cleaning him up a little.

Erika Edberg and her camerman (Doug Flagler) from ABC Channel 4 news arrived, we made our introductions and then got right to work showing them our progress.

First we got saddled up and put his bridle on him. Then we lounged him to show how softly he is learning to travel.

Then we showed them our mounting and dismounting with a relaxed sit. I didn't think I was up to the possibility of a buck on TV so chose not to ask him to move.

Then we took the saddle off and played in the water.

Then it was time for our interview with Erika. I think Hercules was actually posing.

Erika also wanted to lead Hercules around while she was talking. And Hercules was such a gentleman. She seemed to be quite impressed with the big guy. Once we were all done we all said our goodbye's and Hercules got to go finish his breakfast.

2007-07-23T21:10:00.000-06:00

Today we did some more work on mounting and dismounting and remaining calm. Then I went ahead and threw my leg over and sat down. I just can't get over how willing Hercules is to please. That is where I called it good. I wanted to end on a good note as a storm was brewing with lightening and thunder.

Then for a change of pace I decided to see how he would load. I haven't asked him to load since I brought him home from Reno. He loaded on the first attempt like he had been loading his entire life. But I think I am going to have to get a taller trailer.

2007-07-22T22:00:00.000-06:00

Today we made some great progress. I added the rear cinch to the saddle and let Hercules pack that around for a little bit and then started doing some prepatory work for mounting. Though nervous Hercules did great with it and seemed to settle down rather quickly. We are definitely on our way to having a successful first ride.

Then I decided to have some fun with Hercules and he decided to show off with the hose. I think this horse has decided he really likes water for something else besides washing his feet in his water trough every day. :)

2007-07-09T22:00:00.000-06:00

Now that Hercules' angles are more correct I decided that tonight was the night for his first saddle. I had to clean stalls before I could really "work" with Hercules so I took in the old saddle and put it in the middle of the round pen so that he could investigate it and play with it (which he really likes to do). I also took my second wheelbarrow in and left it in the round pen and I think Hercules spent more time trying to figure out how to get in to it then he did actually playing with the saddle. Janet was busy with yard work so missed getting any pictures.
Once the "chores" were done I put the saddle on Herc. At first he moved off very quiet but then realized the saddle was cinched in place and so took a lap around the round pen trying to get it off. Then he quieted down and would do walk, trot and canter both ways relaxed.

2007-07-07T22:00:00.000-06:00

Today was IWHBA's Summer Training Series - Bomb proofing course. After I was done working with people who had brought their horses I decided to take Hercules out in the course and see how he would do. We have spent a lot of time bonding with each other and today it paid off. He was willing to follow me through and over just about everything I asked him to initially. There were a few things that we had to work at a little bit but as you can see by the time we were done he was doing the obstacles like a pro.

2007-07-06T22:00:00.000-06:00

Today I decided it was time to see how Hercules did with a bit. He has been giving to the halter really well and was ready to progress. I also put a surcingle on the big guy so I could use some side reins to start getting some flexion going. He is still a little touchy with his ears but took the bridle very well other than that.

I also thought that I would see how he did with me jumping around him. He would get nervous but did allow me to jump up and briefly lean on him. Then I just did some more work with his ears.

2007-07-04T22:00:00.000-06:00

Hercules got the weekend off due to me being out of town at an adoption. When I got back in with him on Monday you would never have known he had any time off. He picked his lessons right back up. We spent the week just reinforcing everything. I didn't want to put to much strain on his legs with the weird angles on his fronts so just spent a lot of time working on putting his head down and allowing me to touch him all over his body. I also took him out in the yard for his first trip outside the pens. He was nervous at first but soon found the green grass under his feet and settled right down.
Today my farrier was able to make it over and give Hercules his first "official" trim. He was able to change his front angles by 4 degrees and said his backs were fine.
Hercules had taken up the habit of whenever I came into his pen of going to his water trough and putting his front hooves in the water. I think he was trying to tell me his legs were bothering him.
I also introduced Hercules to fly spray as with this unseasonably hot weather we have been having the flies are coming out in force. He jumped around a little but soon settled down when he realized it really wasn't hurting him.
This guy is so logical and picks up things so quickly. I have really began to fall for this guy and we are forming quite the bond. He may just have to come back home with me after this competition as I am not sure I will be able to let him go.

2007-06-21T22:00:00.000-06:00

Today I was late getting home from work and since we had extra volunteers show up to work horses at the IWHBA Learning Center my wife decided to introduce Hercules to a new person that he hadn't met before. Pat's task with Hercules was just to groom him as that is something that I haven't really worked on yet. As you can see once Hercules was able to check out the grooming tools he was more than happy to show Pat where he would like to be brushed.

We also gave Hercules a toy to play with to encourage his playfulness. He was quick to check it out and has been seen picking it up and throwing it around as well as "kicking it."

2007-06-19T22:00:00.000-06:00

I have spent the last week just reinforcing all of the lessons that Hercules has learned since his arrival. He has become a very affectionate horse who thrives on attention and also has a mischevious/prankster side.

Today I decided it was time for something new and brought out the bareback pad. At first I was concerned whether it would fit around him but it did. When he first moved off after being girthed he let out a couple of hops but realized it was to much effort and came back to see what else I had.

2007-06-13T22:00:00.000-06:00

Today was a great day. This horse never ceases to amaze me. I was able to walk in and immediately start touching him all over without taking my pole in.

I decided to skip the "rope" today and just work on Hercules with the halter. Within about a half hour I was actually able to put the halter on him and he was learning to give to pressure.

I also figured it was a good time to start working on picking up his feet. I have noticed that his angles seem a little too steep and that he seems uncomfortable on his front hooves so I want to be able to have my farrier be able to correct the angles as he needs to.

2007-06-12T22:00:00.000-06:00

Herc is gaining confidence in letting me touch him so I decided to see how he would react to a halter. We made it just a game at first. Just trying to see how many places he could "wear" the halter before we put it on.

Then I used a rope to put a "quick halter" on the big guy. He was not to thrilled with his options being taken away and struggled with the rope so we never did get the halter all the way on. However I wanted to end the evening on a good note so took the rope off and went back to just petting on him and he settled down very quickly.

It is getting unseasonably hot here so have to keep our sessions short, for both of our sakes.

2007-06-10T22:00:00.001-06:00

Thought you would like to see some "beauty shots" of this gorgeous boy.

2007-06-10T22:00:00.000-06:00

Today it was time to go to work. I typically start with the bamboo pole touching the horse everywhere to initiate first contact between us. Hercules seemed very interested in this and was checking everything out along the way. I was very pleased with our progress today and even got our first touches in.

2007-06-09T21:00:00.000-06:00

I was full of anticipation as I traveled to Reno, NV with my wife, the other Tooele county trainer, and her significant other on June 9th. I didn't sleep at all on Friday evening and so I was up early on Saturday morning to travel to the Palomino Valley Holding Facility to meet my new project horse. As I saw the horses coming down the alley way all I could say was "Holy cow, he is BIG!" Hercules is a 4 year old bay gelding from the Warm Springs, NV HMA. My wife thinks he looks like he has the state of Texas on his forehead but I am not sure I see that. What do you think?

Hercules was very well behaved in the chute and loaded into the trailer with his traveling companion very easily.

The ride home was uneventful and both boys unloaded very nicely. We had to reload Jana's horse and deliver him over to her barn.

Since it was about an 8 hour journey home I decided to let Hercules settle in for the evening before doing any work with him. but wanted to get in with him for a few pictures for some perspective. He stayed very quiet and seemed to be interested in me.

2007-05-01T22:38:00.000-06:00

I was very excited when I submitted my application to the Mustang Heritage Foundation for their Extreme Mustang Makeover event. I never dreamed that I would actually be chosen to participate.
I found out the first week in May that I was one of 100 trainers that were selected out of 220 applicants to participate.
Now all I had to do was submit some final paperwork and then wait until the second weekend in June to travel to Reno to meet the horse that I would be working with for the next 100 days.
The excitement and anticipation continued to build as I really didn't know what to expect from my horse other than he would be a 3-4 year old gelding from Nevada and would either be brown, black, sorrel or bay.