Taking a Break

Hello, Cyber Saddle Riders,

We're taking a brief hiatus from the Reader Story of the Week posts as we work on streamlining our submission process and getting some website upgrades in place. However, we'd love for you to keep sending those stories in! They may not go up as quickly as usual, but we'll take good care of them until we're able to share them with the rest of the Northwest horse community.

Remember, you can always send horse-related stories, photos or video links to editor@nwhorsesource.com.

...and speaking of taking a break, here's a fun story about a donkey that had the same idea, just in case you missed it in our May 2008 issue.

Reading for fun or fact?

by Karen Pickering

Lately, I’ve been immersed in motivational audio books. It’s interesting, but it seems I never read for fun. I’m always hungry to learn (sometimes out of necessity). My horse stories and training books seem to gather dust as I focus on staying motivated. So I propose a new conversation:

I would be very interested to know what kinds of books you read. Do you read for enjoyment, knowledge, or to shop? What is the most important reason for you to read? Are you moved by an inspirational story? Do you prefer learning by training DVDs or reading magazines and books?

At this stage in my life I’ve somehow stopped reading those exciting horse books of my youth, the classics like Black Beauty, The Black Stallion or Misty of Chincoteague. I remember reading those stories and more for hours. I took great pleasure in uncovering the adventure on each page. I would love to hear your thoughts on reading and learning.

Take a moment to share your thoughts with me. It’s easy to comment--just post your views below this article. I’d love to know about your favorite books. Thank you in advance for sharing your thoughts!

Reader Photo of the Week: Monday, January 25, 2010

This week's reader photo comes from Lauren Pochron, who says:

"This is a photo of a wild pony that I found near the beach in Assateague, MD."

~Lauren Pochron, www.ponyislandart.com

Reader Story of the Week: Back in the Saddle

You've heard this story before. Everyone has, haven't they? So I'll skip past the childhood of loving horses and the injury that frightened me away for several years and fast forward right up to the day when I--Gulp!--decided to get back up in the saddle.

I was living in southwestern Washington, new to the area, and didn't have any connections to recommend a good trainer or lesson barn. I took my life in my hands and picked a number at random from the phone book and set up a lesson. It could have been a disaster...but from the moment I ment Chili, it wasn't.

For an intact stallion with a spicy name, Chili was the steadiest horse I'd ever encountered. His owner was just as patient and thorough. She did everything from giving me ground tips to gain and maintain the horse's respect to keeping a close eye on how I was interacting with him throughout the session and giving clear, precise pointers to improve the connection. I didn't realize until I was driving away that I hadn't thought about that old broken collarbone since the moment I settled into the saddle.

I'm honeslty not sure where this will take me at this point, but the confidence I gained will surely carry on.

Thanks for letting me share my story,
Linda P.

Note from the NWHS Staff

Hello everyone in blogland,

We are suspending the Thursday regional news blog posts temporarily as we update our website and work on other projects, but keep checking back every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for other posts here on The Cyber Saddle!

Don't forget to send us your stories and photos. Email your horse-related images and words to editor@nwhorsesource.com. We look forward to hearing from you!

~The NWHS Staff

Our World is Ever-Changing

One thing is certain in life: things will always change. I’m someone who resists change, much like the horse who wants to be fed at the same time every day and stick to the comfortable routine. When things disrupt my daily schedule I tend to get stressed.

When change happens we often can only control how we respond to it. Recently, we’ve had major changes with the magazine, ranging from working on developing a new website to staff changes. My hope is that everyone finds their path, enjoys the journey and is truly happy doing the work they do. It’s much the same with our horses. I think we find great success with our horses when we find their strengths and capitalize on them as individuals.

Learning to understand our equine partners has a great effect on us. I think they give us much in return. We must be patient to get the desired response; we must know when to correct them, and do it justly. We need to give them the freedom to do things right, and the best way to do this is to make the choice to do the right thing easier than misbehaving.

If we could just take these lessons and translate them into our daily lives, I think we would find great success with people.

I’m grateful for the horses in my life. They have taught me patience and courage; they've responded with a friendly nicker when I’ve had a tough day. They are always there to listen, take care of me on a ride and help me enjoy life’s journeys. For that, I am grateful.

Let me know how horses have impacted your life!

Reader Photo of the Week: Monday, January 18, 2010

Another entry from Orcas Island Trail Rides:

Reader Story Fridays: How to Send Video

Want to share your story with The Northwest Horse Source but feeling a little more like showing than telling? Sending us a video is easy. We require that videos are hosted elsewhere, but free hosting sites like YouTube offer plenty of help to get you started. Here's the quick tutorial on uploading your video to YouTube.com. Then all you have to do is send us the link and let us know you'd like us to use your video for our Reader Story of the Week.

Yes, it's that easy.

So go play with your horses and your camera, then let us see what you're up to1

Take a Farm Tour!

Editor's Note: Our intrepid intern, Brandon Enyeart, has graduated from his internly duties and moved on, so for now every Thursday we'll be spotlighting local news that is submitted to us.


Whatcom County Planning and Development Services and Whatcom Conservation District are hosting a Conservation Program on Agricultural Lands (CPAL) farm tour. The tour will be held from 10 am to 1 pm on Saturday, January 16, 2010. The tour will visit two farms that are operating under farm plans. The tour will be a great chance for community residents and anyone interested in farm planning to see farm plans being put into practice. The farmers, Conservation District staff and County planning staff will be available to answer any questions you might have about the farm plan program. Participants are asked to meet at the Planning office at the corner of Smith and Northwest at 10am in order to carpool to the sites. Parking at the sites is very limited.

For more information, Elke Daugherty contact at edaugher@co.whatcom.wa.us, 360-676-6907

A Little Quiet Time

Do you ever feel like you have so much to do you’re never going to get it all done? Do you ever wish for a simpler life? I do on a regular basis. The only time I really contemplate or get things sorted out is when I’m sick. Sitting at home these past few days has made me stop and think about what it would take to have a simpler life.

Look at our horses. They live to see us two or three times a day to eat, though I actually believe they enjoy our company, too.

Nothing makes me feel more at ease than when I’m around the horses. The sweet smell of hay and warm bodies at the end of the day is more relaxing than a glass of wine. They listen without judgment or expectation. What better friend can we have?

I always feed and care for my horses, even when I’m sick. It’s the one thing that gets me up and moving, even if only for a few moments. The few times I was unable to care for them this past summer were really difficult for me. I enjoy their smell, their excitement to see me, and their playful natures as I kick them loose from their stalls in the morning.

I have to be careful with all the new ways to interact with people. It’s much easier to stay engaged online with email, Facebook, Twitter and all the other avenues we use to communicate, but I sometimes find myself pining for the simple days of reading books, going to the library or engaging with people face to face. I know that social networking has opened up more ways to connect with a larger group of people faster than ever before, but is it too much stimulation?

For the person who has a hard time saying “no” or who feels like every email needs a response, it can be overwhelming. I long for the summer days of camping and having a quiet cup of coffee with no TV, computers or outside stimuli.

I need to enjoy the quiet times and learn to simply turn off the computer when it's time to quit for the day. Finally, I need to be thankful for the industry I’m in and the people I interact with -- to enjoy the moments I'm given.

Let me know how you get away from it all. What rejuvenates you and gets you excited about life again? What gets you dreaming and planning for the future? Send me a note. I’d love to get some feedback!

Thanks again for joining me. You input is greatly appreciated. Now go have an awesome day!

Reader Photo of the Week, January 11, 2010

From the folks at Orcas Island Trail Rides:

Resolutions

This week, we asked what your horse-related New Year's resolutions were. Just a couple of the responses we received were:

• To qualify for my Regional and National Championships again for 2010
  Ride 3x per week
• What are your goals with your horses this year? We'd love to hear the tales of your successess and challenges.

Feel free to submit your stories to us at any time. Just email to editor@nwhorsesource.com with the subject line "Reader Story" and we'll try to get it posted right here on The Cyber Saddle blog.

Happy New Year!

Five Dollars A Mile

by Brandon Enyeart

Back in December I wrote an article about a lady from Eagle Point, Oregon named Carole Mercer (Oregon Morgans: Turning Nightmares into Dreams). At that time, Carole had told me about a grassroots program she was going to start for her journey to the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Lexington, Kentucky. First, let me give you a little information on the games.

The Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the games, try to imagine the modern Olympics with only equine events. The games have been held every four years since 1990. The event debuted in Stockholm, Sweden and since then has been held in Spain, the Netherlands, and Italy*. The 2010 games in Lexington, Kentucky mark the first time the World Equestrian Games are leaving Europe to finally give the United States a taste of this amazing event.

World Equestrian Games events include dressage, driving, endurance, eventing, jumping, para dressage (for disabled riders), reining and vaulting.

From Eagle Point to Lexington
When I first talked to Carole, it was before Christmas. Typical of her selfless personality, she decided that the holidays were a bad time to ask for monetary help from the people following her journey to participate in the Equestrian Village entertainment at the games with her Morgan duo. She told me to wait until after the new year, so I respected her wishes and waited.

The new year has begun now, and the journey from Eagle Point, Oregon to Lexington, Kentucky is approximately 5,400 miles round trip. That definitely means Carole needs outside to allow her to follow through on this once in a lifetime opportunity.

Carole’s idea is simple: $5 a mile. She feels that amount will be adequate for her to make her journey to Kentucky and back to the Pacific Northwest. For every person who donates $5—getting her and her Dancing Morgans a mile closer to their dream—Carole will send a small token of her appreciation, so for years to come everyone who was a part of her adventure will remember it.

I know that simply talking to Carole for 20 minutes on the phone was reason enough for me to skip my soda and chocolate bar for a day and send her the $5 instead. I hope both articles I have written about her now have done justice to what an amazing person she is and what an amazing story she has lived.

If you'd like to help, Carole has set up a PayPal account on her website, www.carts-carriages.com, for donations. It is so easy I just donated my $5 while writing this article. You can also send checks to:

Carole Mercer
2890 Alta Vista
Eagle Point, OR
97524

On behalf of Carole, thank you so much in advance for being part of something truly inspiring in the world of equine sports.

*The games held in Rome, Italy (1998) were originally supposed to be held in Dublin, Ireland, but at the last moment Dublin cancelled the event and Rome stepped in. Because of the late cancellation, the endurance part of the 1998 games were held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

www.alltechfeigames.com

Words of Encouragement

by Karen Pickering

Monday was a particularly difficult day. Coming back to the office after two holiday weekends can be a challenge. I don’t think Mondays are ever easy as we struggle to get jumpstarted for the coming week, and this week was just more difficult than normal. As I fought back the urge to focus on the state of the economy—which I’m tired of hearing about, talking about and trying to figure out—my day was interrupted by a special phone call.

The voice on the other end of the phone was responding to the Christmas letter I sent out a few weeks ago. I had shared some of the challenges this past year had brought me; the letter, for me, was closure on a year I don’t wish to repeat. A very wise but energetic voice counseled me about what I had been through and told me a story that gave me some perspective.

One of my friend's cousin’s sons was traveling to a holiday get-together with his young family. He became confused about where he was going and made a split second decision that ended his life and changed the lives of his family members forever. Suddenly my problems didn’t seem so bad.

Feeling a little ashamed at how I had sensationalized my sad little story of 2009, I listened intently as she shared with me some very valuable lessons she had learned in her lifetime. She graduated from college in 1963 and started her own ad agency. She never settled. She always expected the best, worked with the best and never compromised her values. She shared with me many ideas that had worked well for her over the years in her business, even in the face of past economic difficulties.

She ended the conversation with words of encouragement. Most encouraging of all was the fact that she had felt moved to call me in the first place—it couldn’t have come at a better time. Her advice and positive feedback gave me the push I needed to persevere.

You never know how you might impact someone with a few kind words and helpful suggestions or a simple reminder of all there is to be thankful for. I am working in the industry I love and doing what I was meant to do. I only hope that one day I can encourage someone and give back the kind of hope and value this wonderful woman has given me.

Thank you, my friend, for this gift.

Reader Photo of the Week: Monday, January 4, 2010

Julie writes:

Breanna (mom) has been at the vet hospital since last Tuesday and hopefully will come home today. Baby girl was born Friday at the clinic and was only 16 pounds and 18". She came home yesterday and has to be pan fed her milk every 2 hours. This will be a Christmas to remember.

Julie Jones
JF Miniature Donkeys
Mount Vernon, WA
www.jfranch.net

Reader Story of the Week: Friday, January 1, 2010

Happy New Year!!!

Reader story form submission from: Orcas Island Trail Rides

How long have you had horses?
all our lives

What is the funniest thing your horse has done?
We had put out a new mineral block for our horses and went out to feed in the evening and they were lined up behind each other (8 of them) like they were waiting for their turn to get to it!!! We unfortunately didn't get a pic as I had dropped our camera and broke it. It was pretty comical.

When you're worn out, what motivates you do get out and spend time with your horses?
We love to ride and train our horses.

Describe your dream horse
A red roan with champayne mane and tail.

Have you ever had to say goodbye to a beloved horse? Tell us about it.
Yes, we had a great trail horse who ended up being older than we thought (when we bought him, the owner didn't know his exact age, so guessed it) and after the 3rd season he started going down on weight--we tried everything to bring him up to no avail--then winter set in and he just got weaker and weaker. He was one of our main trail horses and was a lot of fun to ride--always wanted to go--had a lot of energy and stamina. We miss him terribly.

Sometimes horse owners have to improvise. Whether it's homemade halters to catch a runaway or making trail obstacles out of whatever's handy, what have you done that's creative with your horse?
We used my husband's belt to catch a horse and bailing twine to mend a broken bridle on the trail.

How have you shared your love of horses with others?
We do trail rides for people here on Orcas Island on beautiful trails in an old growth forest.

Anything else you'd like to tell us about you and the horses you love?
We have a horse we would like to give away to a loving home for a little girl or boy so that they can learn to love horses like we do. We can't use this horse on the trails anymore and would like her to have a good, loving home with someone who will treat her with tender loving care.