Another Buck clinic

Just got back from auditing a Buck Brannaman clinic in Alberta. We had  good trip as far as travelling went, the timing couldn't have been better; the day before there were high winds, and we saw 4 big trailers in the ditch, flipped on their sides; one was a Fed Ex truck, bet those parcels got delayed!.  The day after we got home we woke up to a couple of inches of heavy wet snow.
 Anyway, I brought Tess with me, because she had a date with Gus, and pups are expected in mid January- right about on my birthday! Should be exciting. This will be her last litter, and I really hope she caught this time. I'm keeping a female if she did catch.

I'm glad I audited this time, I think I got more out of it than when I rode in the Ellensburg clinic- it helped to put things in order, and watching everybody try so hard and being able to identify with issues my horses might be having was very helpful.
I really enjoyed watching Nitro in the clinic, what a beauty he is, and Kevin is doing a really nice job with him.

That crooked blaze makes him look like he has a big nose in this photo, but it actually looks like this:

I took lots of photos of them! Crappy indoor arena light so the photos aren't very crisp.
I really like Buck's program and I'm looking forward to implementing the things I learned when I ride Clancy. Lots of ground work exercises that will help and they translate to under saddle work. The thing that I got the most out of this clinic was the timing in connecting the rein to the reaching foot for lateral work, and the timing in when to cue for different movements according to where the important foot is- and which foot to be connected with.
I liked this demo Buck did:

He would apply pressure to the rope as the guy's foot was leaving the ground, and he was able to step smoothly in the direction of the pull. When he did that as the foot was about to land on the ground (past the arc of the step)the guy would about trip and stumble. And when he pulled when the foot was on the ground, it had no results at all. Timing your rein cue with the reaching foot became very clear!

Nitro again, I think they were working on transitions using the life in your body.

Buck was using a borrowed horse- too much trouble to bring one of his own across the border. Here he is demonstrating how to switch your hands with the leading rope and the flag after yielding the hind quarters to step the front across and change directions.

Random Nitro photo, I always like to take shots of the gear people use- like this one of Buck:

I have the opportunity to audit another clinic next year in Kalispell (3 hours away) at the end of July. Anyone want to join me? Tickets are at buckbrannamankalispell.com