Photo your breed papers/card with your Smart Phone

Ok, seriously this is a V8 moment, while cruising through my facebook feed, I came across a post from Mark Harrell Horse Shows. Now if you've never shown at a Mark Harrell Horse Show, they've got their office work down to a science, really!  Their suggestion was to get all your paperwork done before you got to the office and remember to PHOTO your breed card and papers with your smartphone, this way if you forget to bring your papers or card with you, they still have all the information they need! 
As a trainer, I will definately be doing my card this way, I'm constantly losing it with one client or another, when they sign me up for a class, they bring my card back and put it "somewhere" and then I forget about it, until NEXT show...lol.
Ingenius... why didn't "I" think of that.

Why being in shape is so important

New year, new year's resolutions. The best showmanshippers are the ones that are in shape, I'm not saying they have the "perfect" body, but they have the wind in their lungs to practice and then go in on a long pattern and arrive in front of the judge not winded.  Showmanship takes cardio, upper AND lower body strength, if you're lacking it's going to show to the judge. Think about it, all patterns have running, running in circles (balance) and practice usually involves pulling your horse around, sometimes head down (or up) and you need that upper body strength!  If you don't work out on a regular basis, or feel you don't have the time/money, whatever may I highly recommend Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, it's a 20 minute a day workout that really gets everything into shape in 20 minutes/day (of course check with your dr. before starting any workout) and currently is $6.99 at amazon... cheap for the results you'll get, you'll notice you're balance improving, your upper and lower strength improving and most importantly, you'll get less winded.

The Power of Positivity

I've been observing at the shows here lately, a. lot. I watch parents, I watch trainers and I watch those that they are coaching, and I've come to the conclusion that those that coach with positivity, generally, have happier students and better placings. I'm not saying they don't inform their student what they do wrong, but they start off by telling them WHAT THEY DO RIGHT, then they explain what needs more practice without belittling them, making them feel inferior or calling them names.
Think about it, if you are belittled for every little mistake you do, does it make you want to try harder or just get out of the situation? Are there too many mistakes? Maybe it's time to break things down into baby steps, so that the student can succeed. When starting with a green horse or client, we have "small" goals, like stick the pivot...no matter what ELSE goes wrong in the pattern try and STICK YOUR PIVOT, this way they can come out of their class feeling the sense of ONE ACCOMPLISHMENT, which encourages them to tackle another goal (like making it straight to the judge, setting up in under 3 seconds, trotting AROUND the cone...well, you get the idea).
TEARS: I once over heard a trainer say to her crying student "I don't do tears" and walked away from the crying child. What this trainer did was abandon her student and left her student frustrated. Personally, I don't like tears either, but I've been to that point where I'm soooo frustrated that it is my frustration release mechanism. When I have a student on the verge of tears (we try not to get to the tear point, but it DOES happen), we either work through the problem together...or we take a break and come back to the problem when my student is calmer and more in control of their emotions...and I'll tell them, go take a break and we'll return to this when you feel better (no reason to point out that they are crying, most likely they are embarrassed enough just by crying). Remember that tears can come from frustration of TRYING to do it right and then feeling that failure of not getting it right, most times, if handled correctly, it will motivate your student to practice more...
NAME CALLING and BELITTLING: Usually this only manages to make the student feel worse. If they are not understanding the coach, then it is UP TO THE COACH to find a different method to teach so the student understands. Many times I can tell a student the same thing until I'm blue in the face, my husband steps in and says the same thing in a slightly different manner and TADA instant understanding. Not fortunate enough to have a partner in crime, sometimes a parent/friend of the student can help you out...most of the time it's just slight miscommunication and finding the "phrase" that your student will understand.
So if you are coaching your child, a friend, or are fortunate enough to be a mentor (meaning someone LOOKS UP TO YOU!), do so with positivity, build a person up, be a POSITIVE role model.

Horse and Rider August 2011

If you don't have it, go and purchase the Horse and Rider August 2011 magazine. Fantastic article on Showmanship. I even learned a few new things!

Showing at Congress this Year?

It's getting to be Congress entry time, they are requiring a Piroplasmosis test. Be sure to be up to date on all the health regulations and get your vet appointments scheduled, check it all out at OQHA.com

What ARE they looking for?

Can't figure out what the judge's are looking for in showmanship? Here's a fantastic judges guide (complete with photos) on what the AQHA judges are looking for . I ran across this little gem of information when downloading some score sheets. Be sure to look it over...very informative.

Congress...are you going?

Thoughts of going to Congress? It is AUGUST...time for entries to be turned in. Remember that you MUST turn in your entries by August 25th and this year for the first time ever they are taking online entries! Be sure to visit OQHA's page to find out all about Congress!