Whoa Podcast About Horses and Horsemanship

The Whoa Podcast About Horses and Horsemanship is just that - a conversation about all things horse related. Join us, John & Ranae Harrer as we explore this wonder world of equine ownership.

Holiday Horse Gifts

December 2, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Holiday Horse Gifts

Okay, you have got the person on your gift list that loves horses. What do you get them? Sure, they will always need a new brush or mane de-tangler, but why not get them something useful? On today’s show we take a look at some very useful gift ideas.

First, we have Rebecca Didier from Trafalgar Square Books and www.HorseandRiderBooks.com. Rebecca offers five different books tailored for almost any rider. The books are:

Each one of these books his rich in illustration and gives you information about how to be a better horseman and how to improve your riding. For those cold winter months when you can’t be out at the barn, you can still be working on your skills.

Do you have someone looking for a little hardware? Listen in as Ed Jessup from Case Cutlery joins us and talks a little horses and then tells us about the selection of Case pocket knives that would be perfect for anyone on your list. Personally, I was fascinated when he was describing the Equestrian’s Pocket Knife: a handy knife with a hoof pick tool built right into the knife.

Case has been making knives for over a hundred years. They are still manufactured right here in the United States. This would be a gift that you could carry for many years to come. Case also has a wide assortment of handles available in a bunch of colors. Ed tells me they even make some pink ones. Check them out. Ed suggests that if you are looking online you may want to check out Shepards Hill Cutlery Online.

Contact Us

We have well over 70 episodes up now and you can find them all for free on iTunes, with our Android App in the Amazon store, and now Stitcher, or wherever podcasts are distributed. Get the Stitcher app and let us know how it works. It’s Free. You can also find every episode and more about the show at whoapodcast.com. Please join our email list. Get in on the conversation with Facebook and Twitter – just look for WhoaPodcast.

Please let us know your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions for the show. You can email us at: John@WhoaPodcast.com

Thanks for listening,

John & Ranae

Episode #039

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Earn Your Spurs Interviews Your Host

November 23, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Earn Your Spurs Interviews Your Host

When I started podcasting this show nearly three years ago it was to learn more about horses AND to connect with other horse loving people. Imagine my surprise when I get an email from the Host of Earn Your Spurs Podcast and she wants to interview me. Earn Your Spurs, hosted by Alyssa Barnes, is a podcast dedicated to people who are looking to live a life “a little more Western“. It embraces the capital “C” Cowboy lifestyle in dress, ethics, and state-of-mind.

It was quite fascinating to be on the other side of the interview. Frankly, I really didn’t know I had a story to tell – but everyone does – and I am glad I got to tell mine. This is a forty-five minute interview that went by in a heartbeat. Alyssa is a very good host. She asks some really insightful questions. More importantly, it was conversational. To me a good podcast is one that has me eavesdropping on a couple of friends conversation. I walk away knowing them both a little better.

Earn Your Spurs has a great website with a lot of good information on it too. From how to clean your boots to how to be effective on a cattle drive. They even have some great merchandise.

I hope you will give Earn Your Spurs a listen. No, not just because I’m on it. There are a lot of far more interesting guests. J.J. Harrison talks about life as a rodeo clown. Chelsey Stimson talks about how horses can heal heartbreaks. Alyssa even interviews her Dad, a lifelong horse trainer.

Meanwhile, I’m working on some great podcasts for YOU. If you have any suggestions or comments I would love to hear them. Please drop me a line at John@WhoaPodcast.com

Thanks for listening!

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Chris Cagle Country Music and Horseman

November 18, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Chris Cagle Country Music Singer and Horseman

If you know anything about our podcast, you know I’m a big Clinton Anderson fan. I have been for a long time. I watch, listen, and read most everything he produces. I also love music. I was a weekend DJ at a country music station back in the 80’s. In looking for something a little different for the podcast, I remembered the episodes on RFD-TV that Clinton did with Chris Cagle. I thought Chris would make a great guest on the show. Chris seemed to struggle with many of the challenges of learning about horsemanship as you or I. He is a regular guy. He entertains thousands of people for a living.

Of course, I really didn’t think a big country music singer like Chris Cagle would have time for our podcast, but I looked up Chris’ agent and fired off an email. They were very nice and said they would forward my request to Chris. About a week later, I got an email from Chris’ road manager looking to arrange the interview. As luck would have it, Chris was playing in my hometown of Bakersfield at Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace. I asked if we could do something in person because the sound would be better. The next day I am nervously standing outside of Chris Cagle’s tour bus announcing myself to my contact person, “You the horse guy?” he asks.

“That’s me”, I say.

“Come on follow me.”

It’s exciting stepping into the inner sanctum of the star’s tour bus – a little noisier than I thought. It was five in the afternoon. Chris had a meet-and-greet at 7:00 and went on at 7:30. I sat down, introduced myself, and right away we were talking horses. Some of the best conversations I’ve had were while I’m setting up the recorder, and while it didn’t take me more than 45 seconds to have everything up and running, we were well into Chris’ first story. You’ll hear some noise in the background as Chris band members go in and out of the bus. The sound might be a little echoy, I had to really work on reducing the drone of the bus’ engine or AC, but it is worth every minute. We talked for an hour and a half, sitting around like we had known each other for years. Chris Cagle shares some fascinating insights and emotions about horses, life, kids, music, and Clinton Anderson. Chris was so generous with his time, you will hear at the end of the interview Chris’ band mates had to come pull him away.

Links:

Chris Cagle website: Chris Cagle.com

Chris Cagle latest album: Back in the Saddle

Clinton Anderson website: Downunder Horsemanship.com

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Contact Us

Please let us know your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions for the show. You can email us at: John@WhoaPodcast.com

Thanks for listening,

John & Ranae

Episode #038

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Vaquero Heritage Trainer Challenge Podcast

November 4, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Vaquero Heritage Trainer Challenge Podcast

You’ve heard the pre-show episode. You’ve seen the video. Now, you get to hear the in-depth interviews with the folks from the Vaquero Heritage Trainer Challenge. Each trainer had a horse in training for 3-4 months. Then, during the event, they had a young horse to work with.

We speak to Diana Palmer, care-taker of the Wild Horses of Oak Creek and learn more about the horses and their history – or what’s known about them.

Dave Lemley, rides with the Search and Rescue civilian side of the LAPD. As a trainer, we catch up it Dave right after leaving his young horse on Day 1. Dave talks about his goals in horse training and how he accomplished them. Next up is Amber McGee, a local gal new to horse training. Amber is involved in The Life Savers Wild Horse Rescue in Tehachapi. she talks about what is like learning her craft and working with feral horses. She also credits Whoa Podcast friend and trainer Matt Sheridan with helping her learn so much about horsemanship.

Monica Whitmer was not sure she would fit in. She is an English rider and performs Dressage. After consulting with the organizers, she decided to put her skills to the test. Monica loves these feral Oak Creek horses. She calls them Tehachapi Mountain Horses. Monica tells us her plans of training one or two of these horses every year.

Steve Perron works in the movie business but his heart is with the feral horse. Steve also volunteers with Life Savers Wild Horse Rescue. A tinkerer at heart, Steve builds horse carriages out of PVC and hooks up young horses. He feels it is important to get these horses used to whatever may come their way.

Dave Wratchford has been training horses for twenty years. Originally from the east coast, Dave now lives out west. Dave talks about the horse get a job and doing it right away. Dave came into the long side of the competition late. He quickly caught up and had his horse working on cattle.

We also have a conversation with judge Jeff Ohaco from Ojai. He offers some insight into how the event was judged. He also gives us his thoughts on this type of training.

Maryanne Murray came to watch the event. After sitting in the stands for three days watching the training, she could not resist. During the auction she bid on and won a Oak Creek horse.

Finally, we catch back up with Jeremy Dunn who gives some final thoughts on the trainers and the events.

This just in:

Trainer David Wratchford is holding a clinic. Check out DWClinic.com

Contact Us

We have well over 60 episodes up now and you can find them all for free on iTunes, with our Android App in the Amazon store, and now Stitcher, or wherever podcasts are distributed. Get the Stitcher app and let us know how it works. It’s Free. You can also find every episode and more about the show at whoapodcast.com. Please join our email list. Get in on the conversation with Facebook and Twitter – just look for WhoaPodcast.

Please let us know your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions for the show. You can email us at: John@WhoaPodcast.com

Thanks for listening.

John & Ranae

Episode #037

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Vaquero Heritage Video

October 29, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Vaquero Heritage Video

When you spend three days with five trainers, two cameras, and an audio recorder you come home with a ton of material. This I’ve collated into the Vaquero Heritage Video.

First, I need to get this out of the way. The event benefited the Wild Horses of Oak Creek and there were many opportunities to donate. There was a silent auction that had a lot of nice things. Talulah Catahoulas was donating a puppy from a recent litter. I had just seen a photo of these fascinating dogs on the Friends of Weatherford Shelter Pets Facebook page. After spending some time talking to the breeder, I thought this would make a great addition to our household. Our 13 year old Aussie past away last July and we had room at the Inn. I place my bid a couple of times and the only thing more challenging than coming home with three days of media to edit, is to try and do it with an eight week old pup. Well, I survived. More importantly, so did he. His name is Buster and he is growing like a weed.

Back to the Vaquero Heritage Video. These five trainers put in a bunch of time to help these horses. They had received one older horse 3 to 4 months ago and they now had one to train in three 90 minute sessions. There was some prizes and prize money on the line. There was also some Vaquero pride.

There will be extended interviews with the trainers, organizers, judges, and even one of the people who purchased a horse at the end of the event in an upcoming episode of The Whoa Podcast. Look for it soon.

Jeremy and Brandie Dunn along with Diana and Steven Palmer did a wonderful job of organizing this event. Tehachapi is a wonderful venue. We look forward to seeing them next year.