Claustrophobia and the fear of spring.
Many of us horse enthusiasts live in certain parts of the world where location allows winter to place its firm grip on all that we do. Snow, ice, cold, dark, wind, blizzards, and worst of all, indoor arenas.
I grew up in Northern Iowa where winter is more than a passing season. It's that space in time between when the corn is taken out and when it's planted. It doesn't take long for corn to grow. My parents were horse trainers, breeders, sellers, and competitors as well as farmers. I guess it gave us something to do while waiting on the corn.
Dad built one of the first indoor arenas in the state of Iowa. It is still there and in my opinion should be listed as a historic landmark, mostly for the reason that it was initially a local mystery. First, it was thought to be the world's largest machine shed. Odd since we only had two tractors. Then it was rumored to be a new style combination of machine shed, hay storage, and corncrib all in one. Eventually, the area spies discovered there was nothing inside but a layer of sand. It was a place to ride horses. After all these passing years, horses are no longer ridden in there. It has finally become the world's largest machine shed, hay storage, and corncrib all in one. At least now, we can be cleared of all accusations concerning the family sanity. Well, most of them. There's still suspicion surrounding the use of good corn ground for horse pasture.
The Rafter J arena was a wonder of modern construction. A full fifty feet wide, clear span wooden rafters, 160 feet long! Tin roof and sides. Roping chutes at one end, bucking chutes at the other. No insulation. It was where we could train horses year round without concern for the weather. Did I mention no insulation? It seems the tin roof and sides allowed for maximum cooling in the winter, as well as efficient heating in the summer. I'm guessing no insulation had something to do with it.
It was, however, the place where we learned fantastic things about horses. A place where we could experiment on a daily basis, those things that were supposed to work. Some did. We halter broke the babies, started colts, roped calves, trained cutting horses, pleasure horses, and reiners. On certain days we bred mares, and on occasion lived out our bull riding fantasies on board a few of Dad's wild cows.
The one thing that always puzzled me about the indoor arena was that, no matter how much time and effort you put into getting your horse really broke, when spring came and you were finally able to ride outside, all previous lessons the horse had learned were forgotten at the first sight of nature. Natural horsemanship? Please. If being ridden in nature were natural to a horse, why would the flight response kick in at the first sight of wide open spaces. It seemed odd that a horse who just the day before, could do wonderful feats of athletic achievement with total focus and confidence, would turn into a nickering prancing tail waving idiot in the space of 20 feet. If it weren't for the fact that most of the shows were outside, and that I was developing claustrophobic twitches and frostbite, I would have stayed in there year round. And yet it was those twitches that eventually drove me out into the sun. Out where birds chirp, trees sway, squirrels run, dogs bark, and horses forget. Of course, they eventually acclimate and all is well.
Many of you will never know this experience. Those who do, know what I'm talking about. Oh, and snow slide! The thrilling sound of thawing snow sliding down the length of the arena roof and falling to the ground. Similar to a 747 taking off, and then crashing. Always a fantastic seat builder. These are just a few of the main reasons we moved to Texas and trained there for 30 years. Most people loved spring. I had a fear of it.
These last 3 years we left the heat of Texas and have been building some wonderful opportunities and friendships in the Northeastern US. The people are friendly, the cities are amazing, the summers are pleasant and the food is fantastic. And yet, they have the two things that brought back the twitch and caused my fear to resurface. Indoor arenas, and spring. I had almost forgotten the sense of helplessness that these two conditions would create.
On a positive note, the arenas are now much bigger and insulated, but still, they are inside. Just the other day, after months of snow and weeks of mud, the outside riding areas were safe to tread. The sun was shining brightly and the temperatures had risen to a comfortable two layer degree of warmth. It was at that moment that it all came rushing back. Equine amnesia still exists and apparently has something to do with a vitamin D deficiency. Fortunately it's snowing again today and we will be back inside where I hope to recover lost files of information that should have been downloaded to the hard drive.
We are grateful to both Santa Hill Ranch and Foxx Creek farm for making our stay in the Northeast memorable, exciting, and rewarding. But I'm leaving. I concede. We are going back to our Three Circles Ranch in Texas with the hope of calming the twitch and once again overcoming the fear of spring.
Sure, Texas has it's own challenges as well, yet being prepared, experiencing claustrophobia, and equine amnesia were not among them. Ok, there's the occasional snake, spider, scorpion, chiggers, heat wave, tornado, and 40 inch annual rain fall 6 inches at a time, 7 times a year..... I feel so at peace there. Plus there's cows, an accent I understand, and people who are fixin' to do something. It's home.
We are looking forward to once again training for the public from our home in Gainesville, as well as offering our new unique riding programs and learning opportunities for riders that will be based from there as well. On our ranch, we have RV hookups, and a high probability of all the outdoor riding you can stand, year round. There is an indoor arena, yet it's mostly for afternoon shade. We are excited and energized about being back at the ranch, where we invite you to experience western riding at it's best.
Check out our web site at www.craigjohnsonreining.com for details concerning the move, and how we can be of greater help to you. We offer coaching, training, lessons, sales, and riding camps. Most of all, we are implementing the Craig Johnson R.I.D.E program to help you enhance what you already know, or experience the thrill of riding a reining horse. Complete details are posted.
Contact Jill at goin4savvy@windstream.net or 440-858-7273 to schedule your R.I.D.E experience.
Our popular FUN!damentals of Reining™ clinics will also be headquartered out of Texas, and from there to the world. Gainesville is just a short drive from DFW. You can easily get to us, or I can quickly get to you.
Contact Jennifer at 440-725-3824 or jennifer@sibits.com for details and advice on putting a memorable clinic together in your area.
Finally, be sure to come see us at the Equine Affaire in Columbus, Ohio April 7-9. We are presenting 4 new concepts for the advancement and development of both you and your horse. You won't want to miss it. It'll be magical. Drop by the booth and say hi. I look forward to seeing many of you there.
Let it Rein,
Craig
