First Trail Ride 2026

 

Last year I started Tumbleweed back to work on March 26, 2025. This year we are way ahead of that schedule thanks to the early start we got. And, there is no doubt that Katie’s work is moving us along faster. 

We started off in the arena, which was good for work on separation anxiety from Leah, and a surprising amount of deer who were fleeing from a very loud work crew clearing trees. (We only found that out because we encountered their trucks and chainsaws out on the trail.)

The deer in the video above walked through the obstacle course, which was our next stop, but it gave us the opportunity to let the horses chase them out. 

Katie shared a video from her ride yesterday where they met a coyote and she let Tweed chase it through the woods. It was very cool, and inspired me to do more of the same today, both with the deer and then a man with his dog. We didn’t chase the man and the dog, but I did turn and let Tweed follow them, thinking he was pushing them away. 

On the trail, Tweed went through every puddle, and there were lots of them. 

Leah was about 50/50 on the puddles, but she is starting to remember her trail manners. It was day 6 of her Equioxx and you can tell a drastic difference. 

There was one point, going up a hill, that she got right onto Tweed’s butt and he was able to flip a decent kick at her. After that, she kept a more respectful distance. We were turned towards “home” at that moment and she wanted to run up the hill, so I think she was trying to pressure him to break out of his walk. He put her in her place and did the job I was asking him to do. 

We saw lots of deer around the trails, but it was excellent practice for Tumbleweed since the trails we ride are usually full of them and wild turkeys—an occasional moose. 

The thing that scared him the most were the chainsaws we came across in the valley. The noise was very loud. You could see the red truck and work crews clearing trees not far off the trail. He did great despite that. 

It was just like Katie told me yesterday, he still wanted to rush up and down some hills, but he could be checked, then walk properly. He still prefers to go around a puddle, but if you point him at one, he goes through. That’s all I want and all I require. 

In a nutshell, it feels like a have a horse under me, if you know what I mean by that. The foundation is there. Now I just need to continue to build his exposure and confidence and help him to really enjoy the trails. 

We are kind of there already because when we returned to the trailer we went past it and back out again and Tweed seemed happy. Leah was not, and that’s why we did it. We don’t want them to think getting back to the trailer is “the end.” I was surprised that Tweed was so willing. 

The first trail ride is on the books, and it was a wonderful one. 

The Trail Plan

 

No matter how you choose to train your horse, the most important thing is consistency. The last three years have been lacking in that for me as I help to raise our grandson. 

In stepped Katie, and our plan for her to ride T on days that I can’t. 

Today was our first day testing the plan. I hauled both horse and grandson to the park to meet Katie. 

She rode Tweed in the arena, obstacle course, and then the trail. 

While she was gone, Cam and I went for a hike to find Cowgirl’s hair and place wildflowers in it. 

After about 1.5 hours, we met back up. 

Katie and Tweed ran into a little issue at the obstacle bridge. Rain the previous night created a puddle on the dismount side, and Tweed wanted nothing to do with it, thus, the extra half hour of training. 

That kind of resistance is worth addressing because the work it takes to get past it sets him / them up for success on the trail. She said he went through every puddle on the trail and did great on the downhills. He thought about going around puddles or rushing down hills, but a simple check fixed it. 

She said he even saw a coyote that was about 15-20’ from them in the grass, and didn’t care, except to look. 

It was a success and will be our new plan: on days I babysit, she will ride. On days I don’t babysit, I will ride. And, when we get Tweed going well, she’ll haul her horse down to ride with us and get us going good as a team. 

Year of the, Weekend of the, Road to the, Horse

My Weekend of the Horse, in the Year of the Horse, consisted of watching Road to the Horse, a vet appointment, and two days at the park with the loves of my life, Tweed, Leah, and my husband. 

Hard to explain how happy it makes me to see my husband with Leah. Our vet assessed her arthritis to be in her hocks, stifle, and hips. He agreed that movement is good for her, and suggested daily Equioxx, Cosequin ASU, and possibly the subcutaneous injection of Renovo. (We’re researching it now, but it looks promising for exactly her issues.)

My husband has knee surgery in May, but he should be able to get Leah back to light work all through April. I can then ride along with Katie on her, too, when Katie rides Tweed. 

An interesting thing happened last night on our ride, Tweed attracted another mare. It is the third time this has happened. The first one reared up on her owner and snatched the rope away, then ran across the park as fast as she could to Tumbleweed. The second was a mare on a trail ride who refused to leave Tumbleweed as they were passing going the opposite direction. The one last night was a little Arab who broke free of her owner and came running to him. I dismounted, grabbed her rope, and waited for her very apologetic owner. 

For the record, Tumbleweed never does anything to encourage it, nor does he look surprised when they lock onto him. 

It is wildflower season again. 

I enjoyed watching Road to the Horse, which I got into because Ryan Rose (one of my favorite horsemen) was a contestant. 

The two lady contestants were new to me, wildcard champion, Tiffany McLaury, and eventer, Elisa Wallace. I noticed they talked to, and touched, their horses more often, and their horses responded well to it.  Tiffany was more traditional western and Elisa was English / bareback / freestyle / jumper / at liberty/ emotional connection, which defies category. Both did awesome. 

Elisa’s methods were unusual and surprising, but when it came down to it, exactly what I have been writing about the last few months put into practice. She brings a joyful spirit of fun to her work and she strives for real, emotional connection. She was like a heat seeking missile toward connection, and she went from dead last to World Reserve Champion (2nd place) because when it came to the obstacles (the true test), her horse trusted her to do every single one of them and still had 8 minutes leftover. 

On her rail work she got spun or bucked off due to the premature clapping of the audience, but she got right back up and finished stronger than anyone imagined possible. She never stopped believing in her horse or what they’d formed together. 

She was very emotional after it all, and ended up buying her horse, Wendy/Windy, and taking her home with her. It will be fun to follow their journey. I wish every contestant also took the horse home so we could see what it looks like to build that relationship in a normal setting. 

You can still watch Road to the Horse, at the links I shared in the previous post, and see Elisa’s methods from Day one (start) to Day three (competition). 

All four competitors had very different methods, and I’m sure, given more time and less stress, they’d get the same good results. But when it came down to it, I really felt that connection and trust trumped everything else. The extent to which they got that, early on, determined everything else. Nick Dowers got it, too, and he ended up winning it for the 3rd time. He used his saddle horse to help get her trust early on. That was a bit messy the first day, but paid off on day 2 and 3. The first time he loped his mare, Precious Teapot, was in the competition.  He was more interested in getting the “feel” right between them.

The takeaways. Go out and have fun with your horses. Play with them. Get to know them. It should always be about working with, and rewarding, their natural curious spirits. Honor them for the gift they are and their supernatural ability to bond with their humans. Above all else, embrace that childlike joy. 

Permission to be silly!

Road to the Horse Live Feed

 Friday’s Link

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You can watch Road to the Horse LIVE on YouTube. It’s fun to see them start a horse from scratch. Ryan Rose is one of my favorites, but they’re all good. 

They make it look so easy!

Road to the Horse 2026 Wild Card Competitors include Sadie Fischer (USA), Tiffany McLaury (USA), Jason Irwin (CAN), and Rob Leach (AUST). Championship Competitors are Elisa Wallace (USA), Nick Dowers (USA), and Ryan Rose (USA),

Saturday’s Link: you can watch the clinics and the competition. 

Saturday Schedule. It appears to be EST. 

You can rewind the live feed to watch the clinics the competitors offer beforehand. 

Oh, To Be a Child Again

I attended a western horse auction yesterday, and was amazed by not only the quality of horses, but the horsemanship of the Junior Wranglers riding them in the show pen. These were young kids, little ones, having the time of their lives. No fear. No baggage. Just pure love of riding those horses.

It hit me hard, and it brought back memories of my own youth. The desperation to be with them. The freedom. The pure, ecstatic, grateful, carefree joy of horses. 

For many years now I have looked back with almost embarrassment of those years. How little I knew. How dangerous I was. How maybe even I shouldn’t have been allowed to have horses. 

I was dead wrong. 

The concentrated enthusiasm I brought back then was, in fact, far superior to the knowledge I have now. 

So, today I ran out to the barn like a child in love with horses. 

Tumbleweed and I jogged and plodded together through puddles where the snow had melted on the road to the barn. We splashed together like babies, me in my Bogs, and him with his hooves and nose.

And then I bridled up, jumped on, and fulfilled my “goal” this year of riding T bareback in snow. 

He was wonderful, and made my heart sing.

My new goal is only to be a child again when I’m with my horses. Leave the adult baggage in the trash heap, where it belongs, look less at my fears and more towards my dreams, be a little stupid and silly, and allow myself to feel the joy and presence of my horses as fully as possible.