horseback riding Archives ⋆ Page 13 of 16 ⋆ The Whoa Podcast

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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Matt Sheridan Horsemanship

July 15, 2014 by John 1 Comment

Matt Sheridan Horsemanship

Episode #034

Horse and people trainer Matt Sheridan stopped by the Whoa Podcast studios in 2011. We were there to plug his appearance on an RFD-TV show, but the best part of a sit down with Matt Sheridan is the stories he tells. Oh, and he has a lot of them. Matt Sheridan is a fifth generation horseman and I think, if it has been done on a horse, Matt or someone in his family has done it. Matt’s been an extra in the movies. He’s taken a Mustang through the Mustang Makeover project, and he is an AHCA judge. This is a fun little interview, but we pass – well Matt passes – along some great horsemanship advice. Matt tells us about his early years in horsemanship.

You can find out more about Matt Sheridan Performance Horses by visiting his Facebook Page. You can find his five steps to body control on YouTube. Matt also has a website, Matt Sheridan Performance Horse, with lots of great stuff and chronicles his training of Luna, a Mustang.

Get a Lesson – Attend a Clinic with Matt Sheridan

Need help with your horse or want to improve things like your horsemanship, show, or trail skills? Matt has a variety of clinics available every year. Check out his clinic schedule HERE.

If you would like to see what our Clinic Experience was like with Matt Sheridan, check out this video we produced: Matt Sheridan Trail Clinic

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 thought, ideas, and suggestions for the show. You can email us at: John@WhoaPodcast.com

Thanks for listening.

John & Ranae

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Tommy Thompson Cowhorses

July 1, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Tommy Thompson Cowhorses

Episode #032

Our visit to Tommy Thompson Cowhorses. I first met Tommy Thompson at a recent campdraft event. When I saw him ride I knew he would be a great guest for our show. He agreed to come on and asked me what I wanted to do. I have been struggling with making a transition from the snaffle to the bridle. While I had never been too concerned with this, the snaffle is easy to ride in and Jessie responds well to it, I wanted to do more sorting and rope work and needed to move to a one-handed set up. Normally Tommy would not tackle such a complicated topic, but he agreed. As it turns out there was a lot of good horsemanship information in this episode.

Of course, when you are inexperienced like me, you begin to expect every trainer you run into to tell you are doing everything wrong. It goes with the territory. I don’t take it personal. So, when Tommy Thompson said I was doing it wrong, it was no surprise. But like many things, there is more than one way to get the job done. When you go to a trainer like Tommy Thompson you get the value of all of HIS years of experience. He was able to evaluate the tools I had and offer me the best way to reach my goal.

Ride Along With Me

We tried to produce this podcast so you could take it along when you ride. Give it a try. There are a lot of little parts to each maneuver. Having someone in your ear giving you the little adjustments will help you learn faster. There is also a companion video to this podcast. You can see what it’s like for me to get instruction form an experienced trainer and how much we struggle.

About Tommy Thompson Cowhorses

Tommy Thompson has trained and competed in the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. He has won the Limited Open, Fence Work Open, and Intermediate Open Reserve Champion. Located in Shafter, California, Tommy Thompson is available to train your horse, train you, coach you, or give a clinic. You can reach him at (661)-496-8729 or by email at: CACowhorse@Yahoo.com

Contact Us

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

Thanks for listening.

John & Ranae

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Finding a Good Roping Horse

June 24, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

Finding a Good Roping Horse

Episode #031

How do you find a good roping horse? While working on an assignment for a future podcast having to do with horse wellness and rehabilitation, I had the opportunity to once again visit with Champion Team Roper Denny Watkins. Denny has been to the National Finals Rodeo 19 consecutive times and has won just about every roping there is. And, he is not done yet. If you want to learn more about Denny, check out our December 2013 podcast, Team Roping with Denny Watkins.

I’m kinda a pain in the ass when it comes to talking about horses, especially a roping horse, with someone more experienced than me (that means almost everyone…yeah, scratch the almost). We finished the conversation on wellness – look for it in an upcoming podcast – and I really wanted to learn about how Denny evaluates a horse. Think about how many horses he’s seen. Think about all the hours and hours sitting in the saddle talking about horses, especially roping horses, between runs. Think about all the great horsemen he has crossed paths with over the last 25 years. Think about this vast wealth of knowledge. Yeah, I wanted to get a piece of it.

I pulled up to Denny’s ranch in northwest Bakersfield around one in the afternoon. He had just finished a morning session with several students. We got comfortable on his back porch with a view of three of his roping horses. One he was bringing along, one he was winning on, and one that was probably on the far side of his career. I talked to Denny about what made this horses special. I wanted to know how he evaluated a roping horse from the first moment he sees it. Denny was gracious enough to give a lesson.

So You Think You Want to Rope

You can’t talk to Denny too long without falling in love with the idea of roping. On a recent weekend my horse and I were exposed to roping. We got a chance to throw at a dummy. Thinking back to Denny’s evaluation of roping horses, I’m not sure if my horse has the best stride for a roper, she’s got a bit of a mind of her own at times, but the one thin she does own is “pretty” – that’s for sure. Yes, I have thought of roping. It is a very exciting sport. It’s fast. It has cows. And, team roping has a handicap system. I like that. A beginner can compete on a somewhat level playing field. Anything I do, I want to try and do well. I wondered how much of a commitment I would need to make. Yes, both financial and time and effort. Geesh!

Denny talks us through the whole process. You know, it’s not that tough. I’ve got me a bit of a used rope. I’m working on a set of cones from the ground. You may just live long enough to hear the tale of me and Jessie catching our first steer.

Links for Denny Watkins Short Instructional Videos:

Denny has a series of short, yet informative, videos that can help you and your roping horse become a better team.

Check out a couple of these links to learn more about Denny Watkins Team Roping: http://vimeo.com/dennywatkins

And his Team Roping Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmgqsDpsQeBt17WKfU0F9cA

Contact Us

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

Thanks for listening.

John & Ranae

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Bar SZ Ranch Home of Doc Bar and Thomas Kinkade

June 3, 2014 by John Leave a Comment

The Bar SZ Ranch

The Bar SZ Ranch was once the home of legendary American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame stallion, Doc Bar. As part of an event of a No Worries Club West Coast Group, the Nor Cal Downunder Brumbies, we participated in a weekend long stay at this famous ranch. While Doc Bar died in 1992 he is still buried on the Bar SZ Ranch under a walnut tree just outside the mare barn.

The Bar SZ Ranch was sold to the artist Thomas Kinkade in 2001. The Bar SZ Ranch has a main house, a guest house, and an art studio apartment. Located in San Benito, California, once a stagecoach rest stop between Fresno and Monterey, the property is under the guidance of the Kinkade Foundation. The Bar SZ Ranch managers are Tim and Michelle Borland who also happen to be part of the group.

Nearly thirty people participated in the group activities. Meals and cleanup were shared between the attendees. The only thing we had to worry about was taking care of and having fun with our horses. There were a ton of things to do around the ranch. We had a large open arena, a covered arena, a couple of round pens, several different trail courses to ride on, and cows. One session was on ranch sorting, where participants got to try their had at moving cows. Another was roping and we had some mechanical devices to rope. For each event, the Bar SZ Ranch brought in a knowledgeable neighbor to help instruct.

When we were not with the horses we spent an ample time hiking or just lounging around enjoying the company of our new friends in a gorgeous setting.

If you would like to read more about our trip, check out this blog page.

Links to the Bar SZ Ranch:

There are lots of ways to get information on the Bar SZ Ranch. Below are links for their website, Facebook, and rental pages.

Bar SZ Ranch Website Facebook VRBO AirBNB1 AirBNB2

Nor Cal Downunder Brumbies

Chris White Equine Sports Massage Therapy HorseMasseuse@aol.com

Contact us

Stay in touch. It is easy. Just put your name in the newsletter subscribe box at the top of the page. As always, we are very interested to hear what you have to say about this episode. You can email us at: john@whoapodcast.com And, if you have any comments or suggestions for future shows, please pass them along. Thanks for sharing these podcasts. Our numbers are really growing and we owe it all to you, our loyal horse loving listener-ship. You guys are the best!

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