Much of the training on our ranch is done by ourselves. Jacob does everything, from being the first to ride a horse at all, to being the first to place a halter on a foal.

    I am the mothering one, doing the repetitive work with the babies and putting “hours” on under saddle. We also enjoy the assistance of Diane Lindholm, an all-around trainer and endurance specialist (she rides her mules in the Tevis) The techniques that we use in training are not unique: if a technique involves patience, practice, safety, orderly progress, conditioning, and minimal props, it's probably something we do.Our facilities include a round pen, 2 arenas, a hotwalker, 20 acres of hill and miles of trails off our property. We specialize in gaited horses, but we offer all-around basic training for horse and rider, individualized care for pregnant mares or horses with special needs, groundwork for young and old horses, and plain, consistent handling and affection.

What we aim for in our training horses is to ready a horse to make a bond with a rider, to be receptive to cues, of course, but, beyond that, to be a willing partner and caring companion. We nurture an attitude of trust in humans and self-confidence in our horses by handling them from the first days of life, placing them in safe situations, like our round pen and hotwalker, where they are exposed to other horses, new items and challenges (trailering, for example).

    Our horses are born with the talent to gait. What we add to that is the knowledge of how to "bring out" gait, meaning that we condition a horse to the point of strength, flexibility, relaxation and concentration to make it easy for the horse to find the gait the rider wants and easy to maintain it. Horse and rider need to become attuned to each other, so getting the gait the rider wants becomes "push button." Jacob has a natural gift for getting gait, refined with the assistance of trainers and breeders of gaited horses in the US, Mexico, and Brazil. We help our Mangalarga Marchadors shine with the talents they were born with and we help people with gaited horses, especially ones they purchase from us, get "in synch" with their mounts to get the gait they desire.