elise

This is probably the most annoying spring ever.  Last year we had our vet appointments done and were riding down the road already.  This year we are still under snow with the forecast calling for more.  On top of that, or under it, the frost went out so it's also muddy.  So so muddy.

I ran out to see if I could scrape some mud off of Axel's legs and see what was going on under there.  I got a little mud off by scrubbing with snow but I couldn't get it all.  I'm pretty sure there's some scabs under there.  I've just been spraying the CHG on top of the mud, hoping it'll at least help a little.

I chased him around in the arena with the whip and once again, darn horse is nearly sound.  Walk, trot, canter, seriously.  If he keeps this up we're going to do some ground work and get the last two years of retirement out of his system and maybe, just maybe, go for a ride or two.  I don't think some light riding is going to matter much in the grand scheme of arthritis.  I just want him feeling good enough that if he feels too good I'm comfortable kicking his butt.

I also ended up meeting one of the new boarders that works nights, so I might have a lunch time riding partner again.

No pictures, cuz the mud.  So much mud.  Anyway, horses are dangerous, I tell ya.  I can hardly use my right arm since my last visit to the barn.  I put Cody in the arena so he could roll and then I scraped a pile of hair off him before tacking him up.  I decided to grab my dressage whip since Cody has lacked a little inspiration lately.  And here's where things got dangerous. I stood Cody at the mounting block, reins in my left hand, whip in my right.  I transferred the whip to just a few fingers and then used the remaining fingers on my right hand to grab the mounting block and move it closer.  The mounting block is homemade, two by sixes, pretty heavy, and apparently the remaining free fingers on my right hand are not strong enough to move the block and I pulled a muscle in my forearm.  Ug.  So yeah, I'm a wimp.

Free lunged Cody first to get him moving, left lead canter just about every time he was asked.  Rode for about a half hour.  Not a spectacular ride.  I think I need to step back and work with him on just responding when asked.  We're stuck in a catch 22.  He's reluctant, I nag, he tries everything but what I really want, I nag more, he's more reluctant.  Rinse, repeat.  So we might have gotten a left lead canter, it was hard to tell. When I got off I lunged him to the left and got the correct lead so that was our stopping point.

I keep thinking, "I can't wait til we get a new horse to work with and Cody can retire" but I really do need to keep him in shape so I can ride him while Daniel rides Haji.  But it'll be a whole new set of issues to tackle once we move him to a new location so I guess for now I just keep him in shape and keep working on his confidence and anxiety.  Looking forward to a few rides down the road when the new horse arrives, I just hope he rides out with a new horse as well as he did with his BFF Steele.

So I mentioned retirement in my last post.  So potentially the person taking care of Haji right now might be selling his place or moving or whatever in the Spring.  Which means Haji needs to either move in with Cody and Axel at the boarding barn or move out to Canby.  If he moves to Canby he'd be alone so obviously we'd need another horse out there.  But moving just Cody or just Axel seems unfair to Cody and Axel so maybe they'd both move to Canby with Haji.  Which means no horses nearby for me :(

Enter the gal who's been riding Cody for a while.  She'd like to own a horse one of these days but taking the financial plunge is always a big decision plus the thought of having a horse 30 minutes away is a little less than ideal.  So we formulated a little plan (much to our husband's dismay).  Send Cody and Axel and Haji out to Canby and buy a new horse that I then lease from her.  Sort of a reverse of her leasing Cody from me.

I'm thinking I can keep my budget about the same, I'll have to buy feed for the boys at the farm and then pay half the board on the new horse.  I think that should turn out to be about the same (not counting grass hay from the inlaws).  I think Cody and Axel's old owner would maybe lend a hand and grain them since they will be right down the block.  And since we visit the farm usually 2 weekends a month (at least), I'll still be seeing them about as often.  Plus Daniel can start riding Haji and I can still ride Cody.  And even take him out to the cows and do a little cow work.  While I won't be able to rush out there in an emergency I think there's enough family and friends that would be willing to lend a hand if necessary   Of course now I need to find a farrier out there.

So we're on the hunt for a new horse.  This could be interesting.  Oh and fencing, there needs to be a bit of fencing done at the farm place before all of this can come to fruition.  I think there might be a bit of overlap with my horses and the "new" horse so maybe we'll get to ride together a few times even.

Hey, we had a baby! Check him out on http://www.ineedanap.net

Well if you haven't heard through the grapevine or any of the other usual outlets, Jeff and I are expecting a baby in June! You can check out all the gory details on the baby's blog at http://www.ineedanap.net

So blogger is making some changes and I won't be able to FTP any more. I'm not sure what this means for this blog, it'll probably just get a new URL and I'll just link to that but if something goes haywire you'll know why.

Hopefully to stay for a little while at least! He's got some posts up on his blog with some photos from the Hot Rod Power Tour.

So Jeff and Andy went up north on Thursday to start their thru-hike of the Superior Hiking Trail. Something like 250 miles total. They stayed in a hotel on Thursday night and set off at the beginning of the trail on Friday morning. Sounds like they hiked 12 miles and it was a tiring one. I got a call around 7pm last night saying it was raining but they got their tents up before it started. They were worn out and calling it a night. This morning's update was "it was so cold last night. I was okay but Andy almost froze to death. There was ice on the tents in the morning. We hiked on to Gooseberry Falls this morning and hitched a ride with a couple of campers to the car. Then we drove to Duluth so Andy could get a better sleeping bag. It's supposed to be worse tonight." So they are thawing out in a hotel tonight and picking the trail back up in the morning. Around 10 this morning when I checked the weather page it said 36F in Two Harbors. Brrrrr.

It's been a long week. I am officially an NSM widow. In February every year Thomson has a big sales meeting and for several weeks before the meeting Jeff is up to his eyeballs in work. So much that he didn't even come home on Wednesday night, just worked straight through from 4am Wednesday until 4pm Thursday. Then of course he'll be out in Phoenix for the actual sales meeting to take photos or whatever it is they have him doing.

But I've been busy as well. My counterpart at work quit last week so now all the work is falling on me, on top of that the backlash from a slow December means that January is the opposite. Now we're down to only one day left in the month and I'm behind my quota by 9 websites. So both Jeff and I are going to be in the office late tonight.

Tomorrow we'll take a break from our cubicle jail cells and transport the horses from their current barn to the new barn 2 miles from our house. Having the horses closer will be so nice. But I'm guessing that as soon as the horses are settled in it'll be back to work. Luckily Sunday is a new month so my goals will start all over again.

We haven't been home much since there's been so much going on with our families, so the kitchen is in the same state that it was at Thanksgiving, functional but not quite finished. Maybe when things slow down again we'll get back to all the projects at the house. As long as the freezer has ice cream in it, I think we'll be fine.

Bear with me now, just trying out a feature that might make it easier for us to post entries.  I promise one of these days to update with something truly interesting.  Or just a little recap of the holidays.  And I was going to post our holiday letter wasn't I?  Wow so much to do, I must have really been slacking over the holidays.  Sorry folks!

So I accidentally must have set up auto-renew on this domain though I was planning on letting it lapse. So I guess I might as well use it, at least once, right? Maybe I'll think of something else to do with it eventually. Today I'm going to use it to complain. My work computer is being a bitch. Plain and simple. The other day it crashed twice. I left it running last night with some items open that I didn't want to have to re-open this morning. Well this morning the whole darn thing was locked up and I had to force a reboot. Now my big monitor won't work. I've rebooted twice and unplugged and replugged the monitor - no go. So somehow I'm expected to work on a tiny little 15" second monitor while I stare a nice blank 22" monitor next to it. Is it Monday?

So I go to Ikea last week, during the day, on a weekday. I can hardly park or get around the aisles inside the store. Why? Because every stay at home mom and each of their 14 children has decided to go to Ikea. Are they shopping? Of course not. They've set up camp in all the various sections of the store, moms sitting around chatting while kids run aimlessly and unsupervised throughout the store. Meanwhile I can't find a damned thing because I'm being run over constantly by children and their careless parents. I casually make a comment on facebook about this issue and clearly offend some mom. She says sometimes they *need* to be in Ikea and at least the Ikea employees aren't kid haters. I'd like to clarify here by saying I don't hate kids. I hate parents. It's a f*cking store. Are you looking to purchase something? Great. Are you looking for a cheap way to not have to entertain your kids for an afternoon? You know, there's these things called parks. They're free! And the day I was in Ikea it was gorgeous out. You don't *need* to be in Ikea. I am not paying for items your kid has already sucked, sat, spat, or peed on. WTF you parents should be ashamed of yourselves.

So apparently the newest method in pushy sales tactics = "smarmy sales person with accent" + "I need to ask you a question?"

Does anyone really want to buy lotion from a smarmy sales guy at a kiosk in the mall?

Someone needs to explain to me the difference between smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol. Both have regulations as far as age, both are mood altering substances, both are legal. Then why can a place of work prohibit the use of alcohol on it's premises but not the use of tobacco? Why is my place of work eliminating healthy options like free fruit and milk but spending money on rebuilding smoking shelters so the poor smokers don't freeze in the middle of winter while they're out killing themselves?

I would like a daily/weekly email or blog that gives me algebra or calculus problems. It would then provide the solution and perhaps a nice practical application of that problem. I want to remember my 6 quarters of calculus.

I might start reading my Quantum Chemistry book again. Maybe it'll make more sense now that I haven't though about chemistry in many many years.

• It's still O.K. to flush the toilet, I promise.
  
• Closing drawers and cupboards when you are done in the break room is EASY.  Do it.
  
• Stop blaming everyone else and fix my damned car.
• If it was really that dangerous outside don't you think they'd cancel work?  Why do you get to stay home while everyone else is here?

I love my Wii Fit. I do not love that I have to select each exercise, do the 30 second activity, and then go through more menus to pick the next exercise. There doesn't appear to be a way that I can set up a "routine" and just do, say, all the yoga poses in succession. Why is this? And when I do a search on the web for this issue, I'm not finding anyone else complaining about this. I can't be the only one that thinks this is annoying? Isn't there anyone out there that has a hack for the Wii Fit? Isn't Nintendo coming up with an update/upgrade for the Wii Fit to make this possible? Common' people! Get with the program!

Today's list of Pet Peeves:

-Buzzed haircuts with bangs/fringe
-Not being able to figure out how to integrate this blog into my Life Stream

Opposite of Pet Peeve:

-When my fake budget and my check book and my account statement reconcile

Adding to the list of Pet Peeves today:

-People who can't walk without wheezing who also smoke
-Wasting company money on frivolous things like large scale posters when people are getting laid off right and left
-People who expect their dishes to get bussed even after seeing the dishes sit in the lounge day after day

I guess one way to get a person to update their blog is for blogger to send them a nice little email that says "oh by the way we think your blog is spam." I equate that to "what you have to say is of no importance, be gone you heathen." So to you Blogger - I am not spam. We just haven't gotten around to telling the riveting tales of our trip to Maine and our encounters with crustaceans. Nor have we had time to regale you with anecdotes on Betty Crocker. To be perfectly honest I can't even recall why we thought this blog was going to be the blog of blogs. We may have had some nice Maine alcohol by that point. Never fear, I shall rally the troops and we shall begin our quest. Just as soon as blogger unblocks this blog so I can actually post.

(The irony of it all was that I found a blog yesterday that was pulling in posts from other people's blogs - one of mine included - and just smattering them with ads. So as a good citizen I reported the blog as spam. So what happens, this blog gets locked instead. How is that fair‽)

Welcome oh curious ones, to the "blog" of a "lifetime." Soon you will find wonders to your heart's content. We will explore such topics as the thunder hole, interbang (‽), crustaceans, wikipedia as a legitimate source, erroneous quotations, and many other fascinating "life" topics that will amuse and amaze you. Come one come all and read the elegant prose of the famous writers that brought you "it's a warm delicious, single-serve dessert that's ready in minutes straight from your microwave!" and "bang'er!"

You might have noticed that We Can Ride is now on Facebook and Twitter! If you haven't noticed, you can see the updates listed on the right side of the We Can Ride homepage (http://www.wecanride.org). Facebook and Twitter are household names lately and if you aren't familiar yet, now's a great time to find out all about Social Networking!

In plain English: Facebook and Twitter allows We Can Ride to reach out to more people all over the world and keep them informed on what's going on with our organization easily and seamlessly!

So what does this mean for you? Simply put, if you want up to the minute notifications of what's going on with We Can Ride, you can sign up for Twitter or Facebook AND get those updates sent directly to your Cell Phone (via text message). Don't worry though, if you don't want to sign up or don't have a cell phone plan that includes text messaging, we won't be posting VITAL information to just these outlets. Class cancellations and things of that sort will still go out via our normal methods (phone calls and emails). These Social Networking sites will just give you a little faster heads up and maybe a little bit of exciting trivia that you might not know about WCR (did you know today is Dreamer's birthday)! WCR will frequently posts last minute requests like "we need substitute sidewalkers!" to Facebook and Twitter. If you get these updates on your phone you'll be able to help out no matter where you happen to be at the time!

Okay sign me up: First thing's first, all updates that go to Facebook also go to Twitter so feel free to sign up for one or the other, or try them both and decide which you like! You can sign up for a Twitter account here: http://twitter.com/ and Facebook is located here: http://www.facebook.com

If you sign up for Twitter you can get We Can Ride updates via SMS by texting "follow wecanride" to your local code (40404 in the US, regular texting rates apply).

If you sign up for Facebook you can follow We Can Ride by going here: http://www.facebook.com/wecanride and if you want to get Facebook updates on your phone there are instructions listed on the Facebook Mobile page.

And that's about all there is to it! We look forward to having you participate!

We have moved our blog to the blogspot domain because blogger is no longer supporting the previous method we were utilizing. We hope this is a smooth transition but if you run into any issues feel free to contact the webmaster: webmaster at wecanride.org

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For the past few years and now this year, We Can Ride has held an annual Tack Sale Fundraiser. All of the tack in the sale has been donated by supporters of We Can Ride and all the proceeds from the sale go to support We Can Ride's Equine Assisted Therapies.

I've been to a few of the tack sales around Minnesota and I have to say, the We Can Ride Tack Sale may be small but it's packed with great stuff! The best part about the sale is that the items are not consigned, we set our own prices and the total price goes to our program! I almost always come up with an excuse to buy new tack for my horses. If you don't have horses our tack sale has horse themed apparel as well. Maybe you'd like a nice cowboy or cowgirl hat or a belt to wear to your next equine function!

Tell all your friends about our sale, print off a flier and put it up at your barn, and show up on Saturday morning at 9am! Check out our tack sale page for all the information: http://www.wecanride.org/tacksale.php

Saturday We Can Ride hosted the 2009 MN State NARHA Conference at the U of MN Leatherdale Equine Center. While it was a small conference this year, it was packed with great information. Attendants began the afternoon with a private tour of the University's Equine Center which showed off the facility's top of the line equipment, much of which is limited to very few locations in the nation.

Following the tour, We Can Ride Instructor/Therapist, Tina Phelps, presented the group some thoughts on Risk Assessment for both in the barn/arena and for life in general.

We ended the afternoon with a presentation by Therapists Doug Merz and Kathy Simcox on the Practical Application of Hippotherapy on the Neurologically Impaired. This final presentation included a practical demonstration in the arena with horses and riders.

Overall the conference was a success and provided instructors with some continuing education hours as well as a look at the new equine center. Now that the winter is coming to a close (can you believe that) it's nice to get back in gear and start thinking about equine assisted activities again. We hope to have a State Conference in the future so keep an eye out for news on the next one!

Fun class activity!
Asked each rider to draw their horse, how awesome are these?:

A Glamorous Night, A Good Cause! Come taste gourmet appetizers, mouthwatering entrees and desserts prepared by over 40 Minnesota chefs. Take a stroll around the silent auction tables and bid on meal certificates, creative baskets, artwork, and jewelry (to name a few!). Sit with friends, and meet new ones at a 5-course meal prepared just for you! Hang on to your hats—a live auction featuring fine wines, a Kentucky Horse Park vacation, and dining experiences hosted by executive Chef John T. Riley himself will take your breath away. And the best part: all proceeds support We Can Ride! Get more information at http://www.wecanride.org/chefs.php and reserve your tickets today!

Got the Holiday Spirit? Instead of battling mall parking lots, enduring wrapping-paper-cuts, and paying annoying shipping and handling fees, give a donation to We Can Ride at www.wecanride.org! Every dollar given helps support individuals and families living with disabilities by pairing them with well trained therapeutic riding and driving horses and a team of instructors, volunteers, and staff. You can give in honor or in memory of a loved one, or sponsor one of our many therapy horses pictured on our horse page. You will receive a thank-you letter acknowledging your gift, and your name and your loved one's name will appear in one of our quarterly editions of the Joy Riding newsletter!

I'm reposting this article I found on DonateMyHorse.com about what makes a good therapy horse by Katie Guernsey:

Therapeutic riding is for people of all ages with various disabilities, and it has become very popular. For horses, however, the invitation is much more restricted. There are specialized expectations of a horse used in therapeutic riding. If there were a Therapy Horse Admissions Test ("THAT") analogous to the SAT or GRE, competitive scores for THAT would start at 700.

Foremost, a therapy horse needs to be safe, predictable, and sound. He has to be intelligent, well-conditioned, unflappable, sensitive, patient, hard-working, balanced, and versatile. He must also be tolerant of unpredictable noises and positional changes made by riders, and responsive to his handler's instructions. These qualifications insure safety for the rider, and provide an environment that allows the rider to enjoy and benefit from his or her experiences with horses.

The benefits to the rider are much more extensive than most people know. In addition to learning riding skills, the rider develops physical strength, flexibility, and coordination. Exercises specific to the person's disabilities are employed to improve motor skills and improve balance and body awareness. Communication and expressive language skills also develop. All of these benefits enhance self-esteem.

Just as the horse improves quality of life for the rider, quality of life is equally as important for the horse. Daniel Feeney, DVM, the regular veterinarian for several therapeutic riding centers in Connecticut and Florida, recommends "ample turnout, a regulated workload, consistent exercise by able-bodied riders, and high-quality nutrition and veterinary care" as some of the ways to keep therapy horses healthy and happy.

What kind of horse can meet the many needs of the therapeutic riding population? Too often people think that any older, mild-mannered, semi-sound horse of any size fits the bill. On the contrary, the ideal therapy horse is between the ages of eight and 12, around 15 hands high, and highly athletic. A stable's therapeutic riding herd should include horses of different breeds and conformations to offer a wide variety of movement types.

The reality of finding suitable horses is that most therapeutic riding farms have to compromise to some extent. They accept horses that come closest to meeting the criteria, then use specialized training programs to work on areas of weakness. Many of these organizations are non-profit, and significant portions of funds raised go to supporting the costs of riders. Luckily,

therapeutic riding centers across the country get phone calls on a regular basis from horse owners looking to give or lease their horses. Each center has its own methods of evaluating a prospective therapy horse.

Evaluating a Potential Therapy Horse

At High Hopes Therapeutic Riding in Old Lyme, Conn., the first step taken to evaluate a potential therapy horse is to obtain a background and medical history on the animal. The staff reviews a video of the horse showing the walk, trot, and canter with a rider. They might visit the horse on site, and/or bring the horse in for a trial period.

As former barn manager, Kristin Elliott-Leas of High Hopes explains, "While many of our horses are donated, we also fundraise to allow for purchasing horses to meet certain needs."

For example, several years ago High Hopes bought a 16.1-hand, 17-year-old Canadian Thoroughbred gelding named Doc. He was selected for independent walk-trot-canter riders as well as for hippotherapy, which uses the movement of the horse to treat specific physical, sensory, and speech and language disabilities. According to Carolyn Jagielski, physical therapist and therapeutic riding instructor, "Doc is very good at long-lining, which gives the rider better movement and the horse handler better control of that movement. By tracking-up, Doc produces more rotation in the rider's pelvis, which is a key element in achieving relaxation in abnormally tight muscles. He is narrow, and therefore good for riders who have cerebral palsy or multiple sclerosis and experience spasticity (severe muscle tightness) in their legs. When we first got him he could jump well, and that was good for our independent riders."

Greco: A Good Therapy Horse

Greco is a 16.1-hand, 21-year-old Oldenburg gelding whose owner donated him to High Hopes for use in the therapy program. Prior to going to High Hopes, Greco was a Grand Prix dressage horse that--according to his owner Karen Horn--"was ready for a change of pace." She could not bear to retire him with her other horses at her farm because she wanted him to be able to continue to interact with people, "because he thrives on being admired."

She was right. Greco fit perfectly into the program. Instead of doing piaffes and turns on the forehand with his riders as he did in dressage, he does beautifully controlled transitions and gives balanced, forward movement with plenty of impulsion to challenge his rider's balance.

When Things Don't Work Out

Have you ever started a new job or hobby, thinking that it was just what you wanted to do, only to find yourself dissatisfied with it down the line? This is just what happened to Kansas, a 15-hand, 20-year-old Thoroughbred cross, who after passing all therapy horse admissions tests with flying colors and working in High Hopes' program successfully for 11Ž2 years, became unhappy in his role.

It was an easy decision to bring Kansas onboard, recalls Elliott-Leas. Staff and volunteers found him to be a perfect mount for therapeutic riding and were particularly impressed with his demeanor and charm. Given his background as a polo horse, he was accustomed to frequent weight shifts by his riders, and he was comfortable with various movements going on around him. Needless to say, he was readily accepted into the program.

Kansas spent an entire year seeming to enjoy his life and work at High Hopes. He shared a four-acre pasture and run-in shed with two other horses and worked in the program five days a week. He was willing and friendly, and he consistently impressed people with his abilities to work effectively with riders of all ages, with different disabilities and riding levels.

In his second year at High Hopes, the staff, volunteers, and riders began noticing changes in his behavior. Elliott-Leas recalls that "he seemed uncomfortable having sidewalkers due to their close proximity to him, was less tolerant of abrupt movements by his riders, and was easily agitated during grooming."

Based on these changes, he was given several weeks off, but it did not appear to help. Over the next six months, he was injured in his pasture and developed a hematoma on his back, which called for more time off. His workload was re-structured so that he participated only with riders needing little or no assistance from volunteers. Unfortunately, none of these attempts worked to bring back the "old" Kansas.

The initial step in the procedure for discharging horses from High Hopes is to contact the former owner to give him/her the option of taking the horse back, finding an alternative home, or allowing High Hopes to search for a new home, says Elliott-Leas. Kansas' previous owner elected to have High Hopes find Kansas a new home. According to his current owner, Kansas seems to be back to his old self.

The Impact on Therapy Horses

There is no dispute that therapy horses work very hard. They must stand quietly, always be attentive to the needs of their riders and the directions of their handlers, and wait patiently while riders mount and dismount. They are subjected to all levels of rider ability, and must develop skills particular to therapy horses (i.e., tolerance of wheelchairs, ramps, leg braces, and unusual rider noises). Due to this uniquely taxing workload, it is reasonable to expect that therapy horses experience a significant amount of stress.

To find out if this is in fact the case, Marie Suthers-McCabe, DVM, an associate professor of human-companion animal interaction at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, and Lynn Albano, DVM, a 2004 graduate of the vet school, designed and conducted a research study. They worked with 32 horses in four different types of equine-assisted programs. They tested blood cortisol levels twice a day--pre- and post-therapy sessions--as an indicator of stress level. In addition, the horses were videotaped during therapy sessions to evaluate behavior.

Suthers-McCabe says their results "indicate that 82% of these therapy horses are not experiencing elevations in blood cortisol levels, suggesting that equine-assisted therapy is not stressful for most horses.

"Two of the five horses with elevated levels were easily explained," she says. "One was new to the program and experiencing stressful herd dynamics, and another had a rider balancing on her mouth."

Also of note was that "in one horse, a comparison was made between changes in cortisol levels working with (mounted) physically disabled clients and the same horse working with (unmounted) mental health clients. This horse showed the lowest post-therapy cortisol level after working in a therapeutic riding program and the highest after working in an un-mounted equine-facilitated psychotherapy session."

Suthers-McCabe gave this possible explanation of the results: "We may have skewed our population because of the type of horses used. These horses have sound minds and were selected for that trait."

Based on these findings, she hopes to do further research "to determine correlations that will help people select the best horses for the work, and in turn modify the work to best suit the horses."

Take-Home Message

The high expectations set for therapy horses are directly related to the high demands of the work that is expected of them. Therapeutic riding is a sport unmatched in its uniqueness and effectiveness in providing inspiration, self-confidence, and opportunities to improve physical health and cognitive and psychological well being. If you think your horse might be suited to these tasks, you can contact a local therapeutic riding center and discuss a donation or leasing. To find a therapeutic riding center, contact the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (www.narha.org) for information on more than 700 programs nationwide.

printed in The Horse March 2006 Article #6641

I recently received the following letter from a previous WCR rider:

We Can Ride is a nice, friendly place. At We Can Ride has very gentle horses. The instructors at We Can Ride are nice to. I have a friend named Patti she is one of the instructors that teaches in We Can Ride. If you have disabilities sign up for We Can Ride class. We Can Ride helps a lot of people with disabilities everyone has sidewalkers and leaders when you are riding one of the We Can Ride horses. Love Ashley.

One of the great things about being part of an organization like We Can Ride and NARHA is the opportunities for education and personal growth. This past weekend a few of We Can Ride's Instructors and I went up to Fargo, North Dakota for the Region 6 Conference. The Regional Conferences offer centers in each region a chance to gather for learning opportunities as well as vote on important topics in the region, discuss standards and wording, and brain storm with other centers.

Friday evening, after arriving in Fargo and checking into our hotel room, we gathered together for the beginning of the conference. Michael Richardson www.brokenrranch.com started off the night with an enlightening keynote that covered his abilities as a paraplegic in the horse industry and how having a solid relationship with yourself can take you further in this world than anything else. We followed up his keynote with pizza and beverages and a lot of discussion around the pool in the hotel and the opportunity to bid on several silent auction items.

Bright and early Saturday morning while the state representatives met, we filled up on breakfast and awaited our first session. I attended a talk on Cereberal Palsy and Developmental Adapted Physical Education (DAPE). The biggest idea I took away from this session were some great examples on how to educate our volunteers on what a rider with CP and similar abilities would experience in our program. If you're volunteering on Thursday evenings in Minnetonka you might get hands on experience with my "enlightenment!" I followed up that presentation with one regarding Physical Disabilities presented by an Occupational Therapist. After a great lunch and a meeting to discuss Region 6 matters we zoomed over to the NDSU Sheppard Arena for the barn demonstrations.

We were fortunate enough to have Michael Richardson lead a demonstration on his techniques for working with horses. He worked with two therapy horses from the hosting program. All from his chair in the round pen he exhibited how to work with a "sassy" horse at liberty and get her to the confidence level that would allow her to explore a "scary" tarp on the ground. He also worked with a "pushy" horse on leading and staying the proper distance from the leader. The horse demos were followed be a talk on Equine Chiropractics and Accupuncture led by a Certified Equine Chiropractor as well as a talk on tack fit and how the two things go hand in hand. When these sessions were complete we were free to explore Fargo and find some dinner. We ended up at the Lone Star for some really great steak and a fun waiter that we may have recruited as a therapeutic riding volunteer!

Sunday morning it was back up early as can be for the State Meetings. This is the chance for each state to discuss business, make decisions, and vote on leadership. I guess I was in the "right" place at the right time as it appears I'm now the Minnesota State Vice President for NARHA. We followed up our state meeting with attending the Standards Meeting. This was a place to discuss the NARHA standards and assist with wording so that they are easy to understand and make sense. Finally we attended the Instructor Forum for some lively discussion on various aspects of instructing therapeutic horseback riding. We were limited in time but I'm sure all of the instructors could have talked all day about their centers and ask questions of other instructors on games and classes and any number of topics.

So now we're back in Minnesota and I know the four of us that attended the conference are ready to start a new season of riding with We Can Ride. We're filled with new ideas and reenergized. The Region Conference is a great place to start off a new session and anyone can attend, volunteers, administration, board members, care givers, not just instructors. So maybe next year give it some thought, check out the topics, and put it on your calendar.

It always seems like such a long time between your last therapeutic riding session of the year and your first riding lesson of the next year. Never fear! We Can Ride is right around the corner along with spring and warmer temperatures. Just think, this time next week it'll be an hour later in the day!

So while you're patiently waiting for the new session to start here's a few things you can do to get ready:

Clients:
1. Get out that helmet - dust it off, make sure it's a certified helmet, and make sure it still fits! Now is a good time to practice wearing your helmet and make sure all the buckles and clasps are in proper working order. If you've never participated in WCR before, practicing with your helmet is a good way to get in the mood!
2. Start stretching - don't forget that sometimes after your first ride you might be a little sore. Do some simple stretching: reach to the sky! touch your toes!
3. Brush up on your horse parts - do you remember where all the important horse parts are? Where is the horse's head/poll? How about the horse's withers? I bet you remember where the horse's tail is!
4. Remember your cues - do you recall how to ask your horse to "walk on?" How about asking your horse to "whoa?" Don't forget to brush up on your right and left so you can tell your horse which direction to go.

Volunteers:
1. Start stretching - stretching is always a great thing for both riders and volunteers. Have you been sitting at a desk all winter? Take some stretching breaks to get ready for spring!
2. Get strong - don't forget you might have to hold your arms up to steady a rider for a good portion of a class, so start working those biceps so you don't tire as quickly. Now is also a great time to get out for some regular walking to prepare for walking in a riding lesson.
3. Make a list - are there some things about therapeutic riding you'd like to learn more about? Make a list and ask your instructor when the session starts.
4. Dust off those boots - don't forget that the barn isn't neccessarily the cleanest place, get out those old barn boots so you don't have to tip-toe through the horse "apples!"
5. Get some WCR swag - if you want to help support We Can Ride and wear some groovy red and black, check out the WCR Wearables for some fun items!
6. Don't miss the first night - make sure you don't miss the first night during the week of March 24 (call the office to find out if your location is holding this class), you'll have the opportunity to brush up on your skills, ask questions, get a tour, and get to know your fellow volunteers.

I hope these tips will help get you ready for spring. I know all of the We Can Ride staff is looking forward to seeing everyone in a few weeks and ready to start another awesome session of therapeutic riding and driving!

The high temp expected today is five degrees above zero... days like today one would need a good pair of coveralls and mittens, hat, boot and boot warmers, and long underwear to brave the outside!

So here's a thanks to those of you taking care of our We Can Ride horses, no matter what the weather. Thanks for looking after everybody during the cold, and every, season. And don't you just love that the horses just do what they do living in this stuff?!

So it's after the holidays, and it's been a month to put everything away, and get settled... is anyone else starting to get the itch to get back to the barn? I am starting to look forward to getting back to seeing everyone, hugs for horses, high-fives for riders. Especially after watching last week's Extreme Home Makeover where they revamped a home and barn for a woman running a therapeutic horseback riding program... watching the warm sunshine and horses and riders and volunteers, I remember why I love it, and miss it.

But hey! If you haven't heard already, there are some great classes going on through WCR in their office and the barn. You can find that information on this very website! I took a bunch of the classes last year- and they were really great. And if you attend any classes in the barn- good place to warm up your hand quickly is right under the mane of any willing horse....

After however many years it's been (almost a full 9, I figure) I can't believe how rewarding it still feels to volunteer for WCR. I'm about to finish my first session teaching my own class. Sure I taught last session, but this time, I was like REALLY in charge. It hadn't even occurred to me until a volunteer brought it up to me last night. We had just finished class 7 of 8, and after he said it out loud I laughed at first, and then felt like I needed to be pinched. A whole session on my own.

I'd almost even forgotten that his was my first. Nine years of class every Monday and I guess I've gotten pretty comfortable in the class setting. And even though every week it seems hard to come up with something to do- I always do come up with something. I see similar things in the volunteers. Getting to know their clients and each week getting more comfortable with certain things. Then on the other side they are trying new things with the stuff they aren't comfortable with.

I had a brand new volunteer leading in class last night. It was a slow and hot night and thought it would be a good night to practice. And she did great! And the end she almost let her horse out with her halter still on, thankfully I was right there and we caught her time. But I just had to laugh. I remember when I first started and let a horse out with the halter on, but then it was dark out. And we (the instructor, my mom and I) went marching out with flashlights into the HUGE pasture and retrieved the halter. I didn't do it ever again!

I get so excited for new volunteers, getting to feel that exhilaration that the first few sessions / year / years can bring. But then, what am I saying? It still feels that way after 9 years. I love going to class. I get excited about getting to see everyone each week. I like getting to work with the clients and volunteers. I LOVE seeing volunteers getting excited about what they are doing.

We Can Ride is good therapy for ME. I can't believe the session is almost over. I guess it's true what the saying says, "Time flies when you're having fun". I am having loads of fun.

Introducing the new therapy department. A way to expand services and knowledge through the help of our very special therapists! First up- a little bit of fundraising. We've got these awesome rakes for sale for just $5. They are really cool in that they are shaped more like a hockey stick than your traditional rake. What an awesome way to get some yardwork done by playing some leaf hockey... and even better benefiting WCR. Contact the office if you are interested. 952.934.0057

Busy Busy!
We just completed our annual tack sale (below are some photos of all the awesome stuff there was!) and in May we had a special event hosted by the Onion called Brewing for a cause.
Watch out because coming up is the annual golf tournament, ride-a-thon, and a trail ride fundraiser. See our News and Calendar pages for details on these events.