The Long Road toAthens

Kids, Do You KnowYour Phases?

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The Long Road toAthens

Kids, Do You KnowYour Phases?

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Natural Solutions for SPOOKY HORSES

Horses are born skeptics, cowards,claustrophobics and panicaholics bynature... They are perceptive to danger,people, places, changes and things... Andcuriosity can be hazardous to their survival!

It’s natural for your horse to bescared, he’s a prey animal! So whenyou’re introducing him to somethingnew, he’ll be looking to you for guid-ance. Can you be confident for him?Are you the kind of leader he trustswith his life?

In this DVD, through using “commu-nication, understanding and psychology,”you’ll see what it takes to achieve thiskind of trust and leadership as Pathelps a fearful horse go from fear toconfidence with various obstacles.

This DVD also includes a specialintroduction by Pat with his top mareand stallion, Magic and Casper. Pattalks about the wonderful potential forpair-bonding between horse andhuman, just as precious and powerfulas the synchronicity between a mareand her foal. Length 1hr. 17min.

JUMPING with Confidence

Linda Parelli’s lessons in “Fluidity”and “The Pushing Passenger Lesson”have proved revolutionary! And now...

Why do horses refuse, plow through,rush over, jump too high, buck, or run offafter jumps?

Whether it is from self-confidence ordisrespect, Linda explains how theanswers can be found in how we pre-pare our horses [and ourselves], longbefore we ever go near the jump!

In this DVD, you’ll discover: Howthese skills are valuable for more thanjust jumping! • How your leadershipcan improve your horse’s willingnessto jump • A deeper understanding ofthe real meaning of respect • How tobe in tune with your horse when jump-ing • How to use horse psychology onthe ground to keep your horse enthu-siastic about jumping • How to be creative with your jump sessions andnot bore your horse • How naturalcommunication creates a more respon-sive, interested horse who has a GREATfeeling about jumping!

Length 1hr. 36min.

My Horse WON’T GO

The ultimate feeling of being with ahorse is when he synchronizes with you – goes when you go, slows whenyou slow – it’s a magical thing. But is it really possible to have this kind of success with a horse that justWON’T go?

In this DVD you’ll learn how to create Impulsion; how to fix the “gobutton;” why kicking/spurs don’twork; why the five big lies can ruinyour horse-human relationships;how to use “phases” for lightresponses; plus incentive programs.

1. Parts I & II (39&29min.) Patdemonstrates with George, a veryclever, very lazy QH gelding who’slearned every trick in the book toout-smart humans who ask him todo anything more than just eat grass!

2. Q&A (26min.) Gain a deeperunderstanding of why horses won’tgo in this in-depth session with Pat.

3. Linda Parelli (20min.) A specialbonus session with Linda Parellidemonstrating Pat’s concepts andtechniques with a lazy horse.

Additional titles available: Discover the Catching Game, Successful Water Crossing and more! • Stay Tuned to www.parelli.com for new releases!

SSAAVVVVYYTTIIMMEESS

The Official Parelli Savvy Club Magazine

Issue 2, January 2004www.parellisavvyclub.comsavvyclub@parelli.comPhotography by: Coco/Firefly Fotos(except where noted)

Parelli Natural Horse•Man•ShipPO Box 3729 • 56 Talisman, Ste. 6Pagosa Springs, Colorado 811471-800-642-3335 • Fax: 970-731-9722www.parelli.comFOUNDERS Linda & Pat Parelli

PRESIDENT Mark Weiler

GENERAL MANAGER Mary Mingus

PUBLIC RELATIONS DIRECTOR Kate Riordan

ART DIRECTOR Yvonne Wilcox

GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Laura Dollar • John Driscoll

MARKETING/EVENTS Laura Rome

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIESChris Dollar • Heather Davey • Gabe Cersonsky

ACCOUNTING Sarah Hofheins • Penelope Stowell • Matt Coats

PURCHASING/TOUR MANAGER Barb Steele

SALES Carol Bentley • Trish Farrell • Michelle

Ferguson • Elizabeth Gayles • Renee Samson •

Sharon Sampson • Julie Schmidt • Dina

Siegwald • Rochelle Talbot

SHIPPING/RECEIVINGEllen Warren • Emily Wood

International Savvy Centers:COLORADO7110 Hwy 160 WestPagosa Springs, CO 81147FLORIDA8695 NW 120th StreetReddick, FL 32686DEAN OF THE INTERNATIONAL SAVVY CENTERS Neil PyeDEAN’S ASSISTANT Sue Shoemark

©2004 by Parelli Natural Horse•Man•Ship.

Junior Savvy Answers Porcupine Game: 3,1,4,2; Driving Game: 1,4,3,2; Yo-yo Game: 4,1,3,2;Circling Game: 2,4,1,3; Color the Zone: 1or2, 3, 4, 2; Quiz: 1.c, 2.d, 3.d, 4.c

2 Behind the Scenes

4 Education: The Eight Responsibilities of the Horse and Human

9 Parelli Tipswith Parelli’s Equine Relocation Specialist, Susan Pritchett

10 Tournaments

11 Savvy Lives Over the Silly Bridge

By Dr. Stephanie Burns

12 International Savvy Centers

14 Parelli News

17 The Cowboy and the Queen

By Kate RiordanPat Parelli pays a visit to Her Majesty The Queen

22 A Parelli JourneyBy Traci Falcone

26 My Wild HorseMeets Pat Parelli

By GingerKathrens

28 Junior Savvy: Kids,Do you know your phases?!

30 The Long Road to AthensBy Tracy Mattes

22

26

10

12

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Riding the Riverby Kate Riordan

“You gotta do an article on thisguy.”

This was the third time my assistanteditor had marched into my office andinsisted that I give this person “ink.”

Geez, I thought, not another cow-boy who could twirl a rope, tip hisStetson, and say “Howdy, ma’am” as hescuffed his boot in the dirt. Too manypeople who could afford $12 for busi-ness cards and hang a sign on the fencewere calling themselves trainers, eventhough they had no right to. And I surewasn’t about to give them coverage inmy magazine.

It was 1984, and I was the editor ofCalifornia Horse Review, a monthly, 300-page, full color magazine. It was aremarkable publication, representingthe state that at the time had the mosthorses in the country, even more thanTexas. I was bombarded by every personwho owned a stallion or had a kid who could sit in a saddle, thinking thattheir horse/child should be on the cover.And then there were the “wannabe”trainers...

But I recognized that my assistanthad a pretty good eye for horses andpeople. So to keep her happy, I agreed todrive down to Clements to watch thisguy (I refused to call him ‘trainer’ yet).Off we went, camera and notebooks inhand.

As I walked up to the arena wherethis cowboy was holding his clinic, Ipeered through the rails and looked atthe handpainted signs that adorned theinside of the round pen. Words

like “communication,” “justice” and“body language” were stenciled ontocardboard.

“What’s this?” I thought — “a cowboy who’s using psychology? Howrevolutionary!”

So I took my place along the out-side of the pen, dug my boot heel in thedirt, looked at my watch and figured I’d give him a good 20 to 30minutes of my time.

As you might guess by now, I stayedfor the entire clinic, glued to every wordPat Parelli said that day. Some 20 yearslater, I’m still glued.

When I started writing this column,I wondered if I could find that first arti-cle printed in August 1984, and howmuch of it still rang true and withstoodthe test of time. I dragged out a copyfrom my files and dusted it off. Here area few quotes from the article.

“A lot of horses with potential never

succeed competitively because theyweren’t started properly.”

“You can sell winning to people veryeasily, but winning alone doesn’t neces-sarily mean good horsemanship. If peoplereally want to have a good relationshipwith a horse they must learn to under-stand him.”

“The main problem horses have is peo-ple, and people misunderstanding horsesis the problem that needs a solution.That’s why I do these seminars — to helppeople understand the horse’s mind.”

“Wait until the horse wants to knowthe reason for the principles, then take allthe time it takes to accomplish the pur-pose. If you try to teach the purpose ofopening a gate too soon, the horse won’tknow how to do it, will become confusedand upset, and will be worse off thanbefore. Teach him how to do a job, then

Pat in 1984 giving a Liberty presentation

New Website for Savvy Club Members

Watch for YOUR new Savvy Clubwebsite: www.parellisavvyclub.com to belaunched in January! You will receiveyour user name and password via e-mail. This website includes articles,tips, specials for Club members only,photos, new Achiever’s tasks, tourna-ment details and much more! Comingin the future... interviews, video clipsand a virtual instructor (personalresponse to your questions from aParelli Endorsed Instructor).

Suggestions? Ideas? Brainstorms?Proposals? E-mail you thoughts tosavvyclub@parelli.com and we’ll chaton-line. We value your input – it’s yourClub and together we’ll keep making itbetter and better!

Back Issues Available!Missing a back issue? Whether it was

the first mag-azine, audioCD or DVD,we havethem allavailable foryou ata aspecial SavvyClub price!

SavvyTimes,

Issue 1 • October2003

• Choosing the Right Horseby Linda Parelli

• The Long Road to Athens by OlympicPentathlete Tracy Mattes

• Behind the Scenes photos,Tournament tasks, Parelli News,Junior Savvy and Q&A with Linda!

• Horses that Freak Out!by Linda Parelli $7.95 (+S&H)

“The Fundamentalsof Excellence,”November 2003

Audio CD• Sit-in on one of Pat’s Level 3 courses

at the 2003 International Savvy Centerin Colorado

• Gain a deeper understanding of whata ‘horseman’ really is

• Pat explains how the principles of“Teaching, Controlling, Reinforcingand Refining” are the basis for trulynatural and successful developmentof the horse. $10.95 (+S&H)

December 2003DVD, Issue 1

• Attitude: A Tributeto Tom Dorranceand Ronnie Williswith Pat Parelli

• Knowledge/Techniques:Linda provides a great insight intothe dynamics of simple lead changes.

• Tools: Pat gives step-by-step instruc-tions for how to tie The “Stockman’sBowline” and the “John Wayne” or“Bank Robber” knot.

• Imagination: Pat plays with Casperin the round corral showing how touse imagination with obstacles and challenges.

• Inspiration: Our children will learnhow to be safer, have more confi-dence, and more fun with horses!Here’s just a glimpse into this future.

• Behind the Scenes: In November2003, Pat and Linda were invited toperform a special problem solvingdemonstration at Buckingham Palacefor Her Majesty The Queen! Lindawas able to capture some of thisinaugural occasion on tape!

$15.95 (+S&H)

give him a job. I’m after a relationshipthat’s a partnership, so I want my partnerto be educated.”

When principles are true and solid,they’re true and solid forever. And for aperson to have his or her principles soingrained that they live them every day israre and indeed admirable. I rememberthat first day with Pat Parelli, as I domany of his clinics over the years. Weshared ideas and thoughts around morethan one campfire.

So here I am, 20 years later, still inadmiration of Pat, proud to be riding forthe Parelli brand.

• • •Why do I call my column “Riding

the River?”My dad was a Montana cowboy long

before he moved to Santa Clara Valley inCalifornia to become a rancher. He neverlectured much, or even directly taught uslessons, per se. But he exemplified whathe believed in, and he was a great archi-tect of what was right and just. I remem-ber him asking me one day, “Well,would you cross the river with that person?”

Even though I was young, I knewimmediately what he meant. I hadgrown up on horseback, riding aroundon our ranch before I could walk on aplow horse named The Baron, and pack-ing in the Trinity Alps and the easternslope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Iwas taught to be independent, but I wasalso taught to be prepared to help whennecessary. It took a bit of doing, but dadalso made me recognize when I neededhelp and then actually ask for it.

To “cross the river” with someonewas my dad’s way of asking can you trustthat person, will that person maintainfocus, will he or she be prepared, notabandon you or the project, stay true toyou, not be distracted, know how to readthe river, get the job done no matterwhat, have the necessary tools andknowledge. If you’ve ever relied on any-one to help you cross a river on horse-back, you’d better know that the dallywill hold and they will stay the course —a great simile for life.

That’s how I feel about Pat Parelli. Iknow I could always cross the river with him. v

“The more you use your reins,the less they use their brains,”

says Pat Parelli. “If you just catch thehorse, saddle up, kick to go, pull to stopand rein to turn you’ll do devastatingthings to the horse: You’ll rob him of hisbrains, his sensitivity and his dignity.

“In every partnership there aremutual responsibilities – for the horseand the human. Trouble is, people don’tthink horses can have responsibilities.They don’t give the horse enough creditfor how smart he is.”

I asked Pat how he came up withthese Eight Responsibilities; four for thehuman, and four for the horse. “TroyHenry drilled them into me every day!Every time I held the horse back fromchanging gaits, every time I picked up the reins to turn, every time I postedon the wrong diagonal, every time I was out of position in the round corral,he reminded me: ‘You have your respon-sibilities and horses have theirs,’ he’dbark.”

Troy Henry, Pat’s mentor from 1977to 1982, taught Pat what turned out tobe eight responsibilities in a specificorder. Pat then taught them to his stu-dents in clinics and finally publishedthem in his Western Horseman book,“Natural Horsemanship,” in 1993.These responsibilities have now becomean integral part of Pat’s home study pro-gram in the Level 2 Harmony section ofhis three part Savvy System.

There are four responsibilities for thehorse and four for the human — num-bered in order for reasons that willbecome clearer as you continue throughthis article. FOR THE HORSE:

1. Don’t act like a prey animal.2. Don’t change gait.3. Don’t change direction.4. Look where you are going.

FOR THE HUMAN:1. Don’t act like a predator.2. Have an independent seat.3. Think like a horse.4. Use the natural power of focus.

1. DON’T ACT LIKE A PREY ANIMAL

A horse acts like a prey animalwhen he goes “right brain,” whichmeans he is reacting instinctively andnot thinking. He’s acting out of self-preservation, when flight is his primarymeans of survival. It’s natural for a horseto want to run away from somethinghe’s afraid of; it’s only when he’strapped that he will fight.

Why this is dangerous to people

A horse is apt to do anything to savehimself even if it includes killing youand him in the process. It may notappear logical to us, but it is instinctivefor the horse. Just watch any documen-tary on African wildlife and then putyour horse in the same category as thezebras. It’s hard to make that transition

because we think our horses are domes-ticated. However, it’s important to neverlose sight of the fact that inside everygentle horse is a wild horse. Every horsehas the same instincts; it’s just that someare quicker to trigger than others.

The most challenging horses forhumans are the ones wherein the preyanimal lives very close to the surface; itdoesn’t take much of a scratch to exposethat wild animal. These horses tend tobe the more spirited, sensitive, percep-tive types — not a great choice for manyrecreational riders! Others are far lesssensitive — the draft horse, for example.When it gets scared, it may run off for 50or 100 feet, whereas the Arabian mightrun for miles! (For more informationon this, see the Level 2 Harmony ProgramTheory Book.)

In the human environment thethings that might cause a horse to actlike a prey animal are:

• Fear

• Confusion (for instance, not beingsure of what is wanted of him –poor leadership or communicationon the human’s part)

• Lack of confidence (in himself, theenvironment or his handler)

• Claustrophobia (trailers, box stalls,stocks, wash racks, cinches/girths,cross ties, side reins, tie-downs, over-bridling, tight and restrictive reins,

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January 2004 5

tight hold on the lead rope, standingbetween other horses, ditches, etc.)

How to interrupt the prey pattern

First, you need to prove to the horsethat you are not endangering him. Thisis what the Friendly Game is all about.The more extreme the horse, the higheryour level of savvy needs to be.

Secondly, you need to be a goodleader. This means understanding thehorse’s psyche (his real fears) and redi-recting his attention. In a sense youneed to take charge of the situation andcause it to be difficult for the horse touse his right brain mode. Get him verybusy with tasks like putting his foot onsomething, going sideways for a fewhundred feet, playing the Yo-Yo Gameuntil he can go straight between two tar-get cones or something similar — any-thing but forward because horses can goforward easily when right brain.

Show your horse what doesn’t workand what does. For example, when he’s

freaking out, get more active to matchhis energy (but not his emotion). Gethim more busy. When he stops andlooks at you, stop, smile and get calm! Ifyou can do this several times in a row,you’ll convince your horse that you real-ly are in control of yourself and the situ-ation. Therefore the horse should trustyou and calm down as well. Think of itlike foals and their mothers; if mom iscalm, so is the foal. If mom is freakedout, the foal had better be freaked out!Do you understand your role? You needto know the behavior you are lookingfor and what to do as soon as the rightsigns appear.

2. DON’T CHANGE GAIT

When a horse lacks confidence, thefirst thing he’ll often do is change gaitby getting faster and faster. When he’sover-confident he’ll do the reverse: notgo. Even though a horse may not exhib-it his more extreme self-preservationfears, confidence can still be an issue

and it is often read as disobedience. Sohere’s your first clue: if a horse cannotmaintain gait it could be a confidenceissue. Sometimes this can be called“respect” but in my experience mostpeople think respect has to be fixed with punishment (which would not be effec-tive for any horse). It’s better to be spe-cific with labeling the cause so we canbe more appropriate with our approachto the solution.

What’s the solution?

Correcting a horse that changes gaitis not difficult. Simply lift the rein, bendto slow him down if he’s broken into ahigher gait. Go through your Four PhasesTo Go (Partnership Program, PocketGuide 6Lesson 12) if he’s broken into a lowergait. The most important factor here isWAITING UNTIL HE’S ACTUALLYCHANGED GAIT! If you try to preventit, you won’t be successful.

Treat it as a game. When it’s a game for you, you’ll develop an attitude that’s

Get him very busy with tasks like putting his foot on something, going

sideways for a few hundred feet, playing the Yo-Yo Game until he can go

straight between two target cones or something similar — anything but

forward because horses can go forward easily when right brain.

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more like: “I can’t wait for him to changegait. It gives me something to do!”

3. DON’T CHANGE DIRECTION

Horses change direction on the circle by not staying on it, making triangles, hexagons, etc. They changedirection on straight lines by ziggingand zagging. In both cases it has to dowith your leadership in being able to setthe responsibility for the horse and thensupervise his ability to stick to it.

As with the previous principle, it’sonly when the horse deviates from whathe’s supposed to do that you shouldremind him of his responsibility. If youcorrect him before he makes the mistake, you’ll stop him using his brainand turn him into a mindless andunhappy puppet. The secret is to allowhim to deviate and then justly make thecorrection.

It’s all about attitude

Let’s talk about the term “justly.” Itcomes from the word “justice” and isdiscussed in Pat Parelli’s Eight Principlesas Principle #5: The Attitude of Justice isEffective. This means little correctionsfor little mistakes and big corrections forbig mistakes, and every increment inbetween. You need to know how big orlittle the mistake was, and this takesreading the horse (which at first maynot be all that accurate, but as your levelof savvy increases, it becomes more so).So let’s assume the horse is never wrong.He’s only operating as best he can givenhis level of unconfidence, his feelingsabout you (or humans in general) andhis understanding of his task. Thereforeyour “corrections” need to begin softlyand get progressively more insistent ifhe doesn’t listen or respond.

At all times your attitude needs tobe one of “let me help you find the rightway” as opposed to “you dummy, stopdoing the wrong thing.” In terms ofyour relationship with the horse, this iscritical. After all, you want him to likeand respect you, don’t you? Respect ismade up of esteem and admiration forthe leader; there is no place for fear andresentment because they do not buildtrue respect.

4. LOOK WHERE YOU ARE GOING

Believe it or not, horses can watchout for holes, ditches, logs, fences, rocks,

trees, other horses, people and bumpsin the road! The only time they don’t iswhen they are acting like a prey animalor the human has robbed them of theircapacity to think for themselves.

The best way to develop this respon-sibility is on the ground, which meansyou’re not riding! Ground skills doneon-line over obstacles and uneven ter-rain are the best way to teach a horse totake responsibility for staying uprightand not tripping or balking at everychange in the ground. In Level 1 it’s on a12’ Line. In Level 2 it’s on a 22’ Line, andin Level 3 a 45’ Line. With each increase

in distance comes more complicatedtasks: higher obstacles, bigger ditches,steeper hills, etc. Some horses havenever experienced anything but flatground (like racehorses) so they espe-cially need help in developing theirskills here.

The main point is that YOU don’tneed to help the horse watch out forthings — this is his responsibility. Themore you use your reins to steer aroundthings you think your horse will havetrouble with, or avoid uneven terrainand more challenging obstacles, themore ineffective, irresponsible andbrain-dead you make your horse.

MUTUAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Okay, we put the horse’s responsi-bilities first, but the responsibilities of apartnership are actually mutual sounless you uphold yours, the horse can-not and will not uphold his! We can’t

expect the horse to do it first because heisn’t the leader in this 49%/51% part-nership — we are. Someone has to leador everything just ends up going in cir-cles. The difference is that this is more ofa partnership rather than an owner-slaverelationship. There’s always an agree-ment with both parties feeling prettygood about it. Horses are natural bornfollowers, they’re looking for leaders.

1. DON’T ACT LIKE A PREDATOR

The hardest thing to do aroundhorses is to not get out of sorts emotion-ally. As Ronnie Willis, one of Pat’s men-tors, said, “The horse is capable of bring-

ing out every emotion in the human.”Oh yeah — fear, self-anger, frustration, judgment, criticism, anger, annoyance,chauvinism, lack of confidence, pride,peacefulness, mothering, stewardship,joy and exhilaration — in fact in justone ride, we can run the whole gamut!

To the horse, an aggressive predatorand a scared predator feel just the same.They’re tight, emotional, and the clawsare out — one to fight and the other tohang on! Let’s examine each one, firstthe confident human tending towardaggressive, then the unconfident humantending toward fearful.Confidence tending toward aggression

People who are confident aroundhorses have usually discovered thatmost horses are easily intimidated. Theyare effective trainers who can get horsesto do all kinds of things but tend to usethe “stick” method. If the horse doesn’t

do what they want, they resort quicklyto punishment with the whip or spur.Even if the technique is right, the atti-tude is not. The horse is pushed intoeverything and micro-managed throughevery maneuver. The end result is ahorse with little if no expression, some-what robotic and usually not at allenthusiastic about their interaction withpeople. At the other extreme they fightthe human every step of the way and arebranded untrainable or dangerous!

Lack of confidence or fearful?

People who are unconfident aroundhorses are easily rattled, afraid of gettinghurt and are often intimidated by thehorse. They are afraid both on theground and when riding. The horse isusually dragging, shouldering thehuman and overtaking them whenbeing led. He takes full advantage whenbeing ridden: snatching grass uncontrol-lably, running off, refusing to go, bucking, rearing, barn/buddy ‘sweet,’recalcitrant, argumentative, difficult tomaneuver, etc.

Horses need a confident leader sowhen confronted by someone whodoesn’t have enough knowledge or con-fidence they either lose confidencethemselves (run off, freak out — rightbrain) or they take over (bully, doggedlydo what they want — left brain).

Unfortunately a lot of horses appearto do better in the hands of a bossy,aggressive human because the strongleadership part works for them, but atthe expense of the horse’s emotionalwell-being. If you look into this horse’seyes, his lack of expression, swishingtail, laid back ears — that says it all.

Balancing the scales of justice

Believe it or not, even people whouse the Savvy System can develop therole of too dominant a leader. It’s nothard to take the techniques and applydirect line thinking. To stay on track youhave to keep asking yourself, “Am I giv-ing the horse a chance to use his brainor am I just micro-managing him intodoing what I want?”

So the ideal must be somewhere inthe middle, somewhere between aggres-sive and being a wimp. It’s calledassertive. One of you has to be theleader, have a plan, communicate clear-

ly, teach or guide when necessary, beresponsible and caring. If the leader isthe horse, then get ready to live in thepasture and become part of the peckingorder, being told when you can eat,drink, who you can stand near, where tobe at what time of the day! If the leaderis you, then recognize your responsibili-ty to learn what it takes to become the effective, benevolent leader thehorse needs in order to get him to beinterested in interacting with you.

How to not act like a predator

It’s a process. Some of us need tolearn how to be more assertive withoutgetting mean, mad, frustrated orannoyed; others need to learn how to bemore gentle and thoughtful withoutbecoming a wimp. Recently I came upwith a way to teach this in my classesbecause some people were far too quickat correcting their horses, they went forthe Carrot Stick and the Schwiegermutterlook before knowing what the horse’sintention was! It goes like this. Whenthe horse does something you don’twant or didn’t expect, pause for amoment and say, “Hmmmm, how inter-esting.” Then you’ll be left brain enoughto figure out what is going on and beappropriate for the horse.

For example, the horse is circling atliberty and suddenly turns and comes into you, ears forward. You immediatelyturn and scold the horse for coming in,slapping your Carrot Stick and String tosend him on his way. You got the jobdone, but you’re annoyed. The horsewent back on his way but his expressionis now sour or he’s lost confidence andhas become unsure about whether heshould ever come back to you, evenwhen you ask!

If you used the technique of“hmmm, how interesting,” you’d see thehorse with his ears forward asking if hecan come to you, you’d smile at himand say “not right now, but thanks forasking” and gently redirect him. BIGDIFFERENCE. Just think of it from thehorse’s point of view... hey, isn’t that oneof the upcoming Responsibilities?

2. HAVE AN INDEPENDENT SEAT

That wonderful connectedness andfeeling of security when riding is indeedsomething to pursue. Once you find it,

Another strategy:Listen to your instincts

If you are worried about getting on thehorse, don’t. If you think you should get off,do — RIGHT NOW! Listen to your instincts,you’re right! Let there be no shame in actingon those instincts because safety comes beforeeverything. You don’t have to listen to thoseunsavvy people who tell you stay on, stay withit because the horse will think he’s won.Horses are not devious -— they are prey ani-mals who are emotional animals acting in themoment out of self-preservation. If you arestudying Pat’s program, you know better thanto listen to those who aren’t in the program!They’re using a different philosophy, one thatis not based on understanding the horse.

When is right brain okay?It’s okay for the horse to be right brain as

long as you aren’t. It’s a horse’s programmingto get right brain because it’s all about sur-vival and reaction time. Through Pat’s program you first learn to become less reactiveto your horse’s reactions, and more responsivewhich has an emotional coolness about it.Your fear is controlled only by knowledge andknow-how (savvy, as Pat calls it). The moreyou have, the less you are alarmed, afraid orout of control.

Each Level in the Savvy System helps youclimb to new levels of savvy, that’s why it’simportant not to stop at Level 1! The absoluteminimum should be Level 2, and for morechallenging horses it will take Level 3. Forextreme horses, we’re talking Levels 4, 5 and6... and then there are some of the horsesPat’s helped with which take Level 8 (theHannibal Lector horses of the world!).

There are many horses anyone can getalong with, some horses some can get alongwith and a few horses that very few can getalong with. The higher your level of savvy, theless number of horses you can’t get alongwith, the more strategies and solutions youhave and the more success you have. Whenyou find a horse that finds you frustrated,angry, scared or ineffective, all it means isthat you don’t have enough savvy for thisone... yet.

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riding feels so safe, confidence soars andhorses are SO appreciative!

An independent seat basicallymeans that you can ride without hang-ing on to your reins or gripping withyour legs for balance. I used to think Iwas pretty good until Pat told me to trya Passenger Lesson, allowing my horse togo wherever it wanted (within a givengait) and to follow its movement with-out touching the reins. It was the scariestthing I’ve ever done, even at the walk! I felt out of control, vulnerable, emotion-ally and physically tight, and it reallybothered my horse. It was not until Icould go where he went, willingly andharmoniously, that he settled down.

The impact of our emotions

Horses are emotional animals,physically sensitive and are totally tunedin to herd behavior (when one runs,they all run). Their perception of yougetting emotionally and physically tightmeans “I’d better go too!” Horses trans-late fear into flight, so running off isvery appropriate for them and you arepart of the problem. The more a part ofthe horse you become, the less youupset them.

Becoming a part of the horse

A great new technique for this is thePushing Passenger Lesson described in anarticle available on our website (in theApril/May/June issue of Savvy Up atwww.parelli.com). It involves doing thePassenger Lessons in Levels 1 and 2, butincorporating the technique of pushingslightly down and forward with bothhands over the withers. The less confi-dent you feel, the harder you push. Themore insecure your horse, the harderyou push. The effects are astonishing!Riders feel ten times safer and horsesfeel ten times calmer — within minutes.This is because the Pushing Passengerposition helps you ride with completebalance and eliminates tension. Tensioncomes from fear or lack of confidence,the root of which is lack of balance.Once you experience what balance on amoving horse feels like, you can keepduplicating it and moving to greater andgreater expressions of it until one dayyou can ride horses up and down hills,over jumps, zig and zag, stop and turnwith greater velocity than you’ve ever

imagined — and feel totally confidentbecause you are “one with the horse.”

Let’s face it. If we knew we would never lose our balance and falloff, how much more confident wouldwe be? Balance is the key, and thePushing Passenger Lesson is your key todeveloping this skill.

3. THINK LIKE A HORSE

Ooooh, it’s hard to think fromsomeone else’s point of view, let aloneanother species! Horses think complete-ly differently from humans. Their valuesand motivations are different; that’swhat makes them so confusing and

complicated for those not ‘in the know.’And that’s why we get mad and frustrat-ed — we just cannot understand whythe horse won’t cross that silly littlepuddle, go into that narrow space ortrailer, the corner or certain parts of thearena, spooks at that trash can or sameblack stump on the trail every time.Should we blame the horse and call himstupid just because we think we knowbetter, or should we consider that itdoesn’t appear the same to the horseand he has very good reasons for beingskeptical or afraid?

Even though we pass that samestump on the trail every time, maybe it’sonly once a week or once a month.That’s an eternity for an animal thatlives in the moment, and that’s why theSavvy System teaches you to repeatrequests or tasks for your horse until hegives you a “positive reflex” (Level 2).That tells you the horse has decided it’sokay and is confident. If you just do itonce and he’s not confident, he’ll be thesame or worse next time. Repeating thetask until the horse is left brain and con-fident usually means that the next time he’ll be ten times better or totallydesensitized to it.

Naturally, there are a gazillioninstances in which to consider thehorse’s point of view, and the moresavvy you have, the more you’ll under-stand and the less you’ll blame thehorse for his reactions; therefore, the

What if we realized that...• Horses are deathly afraid of water because it inhibits their primary

defense mechanism – flight. If a horse cannot run away or is slowed down,this means he is more at risk of being captured by a predator. Remember,this is not logical for us, but it is genetically programmed for prey animals.

• Horses are deathly afraid of narrow corridors, enclosures or cornersbecause they are ‘traps.’ They block a prey animal’s escape options. Horsesneed much more than one way out; that’s why they tend to be plains ani-mals and not forest dwellers. They like wide open views and no hidingplaces for predators! That’s also why some horses won’t go into shelters nomatter how bad the weather.

• Horses are acutely aware of their environment, especially changes. If atrash can is in a different place, a pole is moved, a routine is changed —horses notice. Black stumps, strange root systems, snake-like branches lyingacross the trail — all are suspicious until proven not so. Horses are patternanimals. They tend to stick to their territories and follow the same trailsand patterns of movement by time of day or season.

3-STAR INSTRUCTOR JONATHAN FIELD

DEMONSTRATES THE PUSHING PASSENGER LESSON

more emotionally stable, calm, confi-dent and guiding you will become. Andthe more calm, confident, smart, braveand athletic a leader you are, the moreyou will earn the trust and esteem ofhorses. The more complex and challeng-ing the horse, the greater the leader youneed to be.

Humans are direct-line thinkers: Iwant this, therefore I will do this andmake it happen. Horses are lateralthinkers: predators will do this, there-fore I will do that! That’s why walkingstraight up to a horse and trying to catchhim often does not work. They knowyou’re going to do this and many ofthem will see your first step, in fact yourfirst thought, and start moving away.That’s called instant feedback! He readyou, you’re coming to catch him, and hedoes not want to be with you. Hard totake, but true. You need to be preparedto know the truth of what they aretelling you. Otherwise, get a bike.Bicycles rarely share their opinions!

Just what is reverse psychology?

You’ve heard Pat talk about “reversepsychology” but what does this reallymean? It means doing the opposite ofwhat the prey animal would expect. Justwhen he thinks you’re going to cometoward him, move away. Just when hethinks you’re going to smack him, pethim. Just when he thinks you’re going totrap him, let him drift. Just when hethinks you’re going to force him into thetrailer, don’t. Just when he thinks you’regoing to stop him coming out of thestall, the stocks, the trailer — don’t. Justwhen he thinks you’re going to shut thedoor and trap him in there, don’t. Justwhen he thinks you’re going to applythat bit/wormer/tube/thermometer/etc.,don’t.

Does that mean you never do? No.It means you read his emotions. If he’snot relaxed, don’t take final action. Rubhim and start again, as often as it takesto reassure him. The end result is thatyou’ll earn his trust because you consid-

ered his feelings and convinced him thatthere’s nothing to fear. Use lots ofapproach and retreat (the Friendly Game,Level 1). You preserved his dignity.

4. USE THE NATURAL

POWER OF FOCUS

What is focus? It’s more than youreyes and where you are looking. There’slong term and short term focus. There’svisual and mental focus. There’s relativeand direct focus. There’s egocentricfocus and exocentric focus.

Short term focus

Short term focus means you are concentrating on what you need to get done right now, i.e., the circle,straight line, maneuver, pattern, obsta-cle, grooming, saddling, bridling, therace, competition, trailer loading, trailride, etc.

Long term focus

Long term focus means you are con-centrating on where you want to takeyourself, this horse development, orhorse career. How far you want to go or

CONTINUED ON PAGE 23

Parelli TipsTrailering

theParelli Way

Tips from ourequine relocation

specialist,Susan Pritchett

Before you start your trip... Wefeed APF (Advanced Protection Formula;www.parellicollection.com) to our horsesevery day. This product allows the horse toadapt to stresses such as trailering, as wellas supporting the immune system. Astrong immune system prevents stress innot only travel, but showing, trail riding oranything else you do with your horse.

Tying... If your horse can safely beloose in the trailer, let him be loose. If you feel the horse must be tied, a reverseslant (diagonal) position (the horse is fac-ing the rear of the trailer) or fully facingbackward is the best choice. Because hors-es carry 60% of their weight on their frontend while standing still, they can more eas-ily find comfort facing backward.

Watering... Don’t worry if your horse doesn’t drink; he’ll drink when he’sready. Be sure to add some source of sugar to the water (1/2 to 1 cup ofmolasses for every 5 gallons of water) tohelp with hydration (good for people, too).Some of our horses drink less than a buck-et of water on a 10-hour trip, while othersdrink three buckets.

Feeding... We feed the horses beingtrailered before we leave. About halfwaythrough the trip, we feed them hay. Somewill eat and some won’t. If the horses aregoing to stay in the trailer while we sleep,we feed their evening feed and plenty ofhay. This way they’ll have full tummies andwill sleep. A sleeping horse means a sleep-ing driver!

To unload or not unload? Parellihorses have been known to travel 24+hours without being unloaded. We neverunload during a trip unless it’s for a mini-mum of 10 hours. Please keep in mind thatthe Parelli horses are hauled under the bestconditions: best trailer on the road(Jamco), horses ride backwards, good foot-ing, good flooring, proper ventilation, etc.However, unloading during a trip is stress-

ful for any horse. Changing a horse’s trav-el pattern after he’s become acclimated tothe rhythm of the road only to stand for 30minutes tied to the trailer doesn’t makesense. Why not leave him standing in thetrailer? Horses are pattern animals; stick tothe pattern!

Layovers... Horse motels, stables,fairgrounds, and rodeo grounds are every-where. The internet or the Equine StablingDirectory can help you find a place tospend the night.

Remember to trust your horse. He’ll bejust fine with very little attention and somecommon sense.

Ever wondered how those Parelli horses travel across the country to all those tour stops?

Have you heard about ParelliTournaments? This friendly

competition has been demonstrated atthe Horseman’s Savvy Conference, ourTour stops and on some of the new DVDreleases.

The first National Parelli Games arebeing held in Melbourne, Australia as wego to press (look for an insider’s view inthe next Savvy Times). The competition is

exclusive to the UK and Australian SavvyClub members and tests their knowledgeof the Seven Games in all Four Savvys.

The U.S. is gearing up for its ownTournaments. It also will be exclusive toSavvy Club members. The goal is to havea U.S. competition where the winnerswould go on to compete internationally!

So, here are a few more tasks for youand your friends to start practicing!

12’

HULA HOOP

TURN AROUND FOREHAND & HINDQUARTERS

Set-up: 12’ Lead or Measuring Tape, Hula Hoop, Tent Pegs & Chalk(Mark a 24’ diameter circle. Place the hula hoop in the center andpin down with tent pegs.)

Equipment: Saddle & Savvy String

Goal: Back into the chalk circle, place the horse’s front feet insidethe hoop, make one turn around the forehand both directions andback out of the circle. For 20 points, after the turn around the fore-hand place the horse’s hind feet into the Hoop, make one turnaround the hindquarters in both directions and back out of thechalk circle.

10 Points - One turn around the forehand in both directions

20 Points - One turn around the forehand in both directions and one turn around the hindquarters in both directions

No points if:- the horse does not back into

or out of the chalk circle- the horse steps out of the

hula hoop- the horse does not turn 361˚

START

45’

22’

Fine

sse

All Finesse tasks are to be completed with breakaway ties attached to one side of the snaffle for safety.

CIRCLING GAME

Set-up: 45’ Line or Measuring Tape, Barrel & Chalk (Mark two circles. A 44’ diameter circle inside of a 90’ diameter circle with the start line radiating from the middle. Place a barrel standing upright in the center.)

Equipment: Saddle & Snaffle equipped with Breakaway Tie

Goal: Circle in the lane for 2 laps, change directions through the middle, circle in the lane for 2 laps in the other directionand then stop with the horse’s nose over the barrel for 7 seconds. The Steward will determine which direction.

10 Points - Simple Lead Change

20 Points - Flying Lead Change

No points if:- the horse steps outside of the lane (except for the change of

direction or to stop in the center)- the horse breaks gait (except for the simple lead change)- horse does not canter across start line 5 times total- the horse doesn’t stop in the middle for 7 seconds- the breakaway tie breaks- the pattern is not completed- wrong direction- lead change not completed within the center circle

Free

styl

e

10 www.parelli.com

January 2004 11

Have you ever wondered whatkind of learner Pat Parelli had to

have been to do what he has done? Haveyou noticed that from year to year hedemonstrates new knowledge and skillswhen you think there just can’t be more?Have you ever observed students in aParelli course and noticed there are stu-dents who learn much more than theothers even though they have had theexact same experience? Of course, thereare many factors involved, but on myrecent visit to the ISC in Colorado, onefactor stood out above the others.

My aim in this article is to share amodel that will help you understand thatfactor. The lessons found in this modelmay greatly influence the speed andquality of your future learning. THE MODEL

I will build the model first and thenfrom it we will draw some ideas impor-tant to us as Parelli students. It starts withthree common labels.

Stupid

Smart

BrightLike it or not we do label people.

Some labels relate to the behavior ofpeople as learners. Some people havebehaviors that earn them the label “stu-pid” or “lazy” or “incompetent.” Theselabels might be applied to a person whodoesn’t know how to do or what theyneed to do, in order to pass a test or geta job done. These are not particularlynice labels, but are widely used. Peopleeven use these labels to define them-

selves! We can take heart that there was aday when our Savvy String got knottedaround the Carrot Stick and we mostdeservedly achieved the label “incompe-tent” in Level 1.

The outcome when we learn, be thatthrough school or the Savvy System, is anintention to move away from “stupid!”We strive to achieve a label in the smartcategory. If we do this we “fit in” and“look good.” To be deemed smart isabout knowing just exactly what youneed to know or do in order to pass.Smart people can do all the tasks at theLevel they are studying.

Other people have a set of learningbehaviors that take them past the pointof being smart. They are perceived asbeing bright. You know, those studentswho have “a lot of potential.” This is“looking really good.” Bright people cando all of the tasks in their Level ANDhave well studied the Theory Book ANDdid all the extra challenges in thePocketGuides. I would wager a bet thatthey have read all of the answers thatLinda wrote to the questions for theVirtual Instructor in DB’s Cabin (parellinet.com)! So, there you go.Stupid, smart and bright.

To the right of those labels we havethree new ones.

Simple

Genius

BrilliantPeople who achieve the labels on the

right side of the model do so in sequencefrom bottom to top.

Clearly some people have a range oflearning behavior that takes them waybeyond simply what is known, or whatcan be done! The right side is a wholedifferent kettle of fish.

Brilliant is the label given to peoplewho have studied in depth as bright peo-ple do and then experiment wantonly.When Pat encourages us to be creativeabout how and where and in what cir-cumstance we play the Seven Games, thisis the door he is inviting you to walkthrough. In doing this we learn how touse the basic knowledge and skills inmany different and sometimes in newways. This, to me is where you will dis-cover savvy in the Parelli program.

Genius is the label given to a personwho will invest in learning all that is tobe known about something and then ripit apart in the hope of discovering waysof seeing it in a brand new way. Whatthese people do can change how wethink and what we believe to be true.Not everyone wants to go where youwould have to go nor invest what is nec-essary to achieve genius. Yet, how manyof you have had a fundamental changein how you think about horses sincebecoming a Parelli student? This was pos-sible because at least one person waswilling to go there. Thank you Pat.

Simple is the label given to thosepeople who take very great risks. They doeverything required of the genius butthen strive to make a new way of think-ing available to all of us. To do this theygo through complexity first, then look

Continued on Page 32

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COLORADO 2004

Level 1 Partnership with Parelli InstructorsMay 9-14 • Jun 13-18 • Jul 25-30 • Aug 15-20

Advanced Level 1 Partnership with Parelli InstructorsMay 16-21 • Jun 20-25 • Aug 22-27

Level 1/2 with Parelli InstructorsJun 27-Jul 2 • Jul 25-30

Level 2 Harmony with Parelli InstructorsMay 23-28 (FULL) • Jul 4-9 • Aug 15-20

Advanced Level 2 Harmonywith Linda Parelli • Jul 11-23with Parelli InstructorsMay 30-Jun 4 • Aug 22-27

Level 2/3 with Parelli InstructorsJun 6-18 • Jul 4-9 • Sep 19-24

Level 3 Refinement with Pat Parelli • Jul 11-23with Linda Parelli • Aug 1-13 (FULL)

Advanced Level 3 Refinementwith Pat Parelli • Aug 1-13with Linda Parelli • Jun 20-Jul 2

Level 4 Competition with Pat Parelli • Aug 29-Sep 7

Reining with Craig Johnson • Jun 27-Jul 2

Riding with Fluiditywith Linda Parelli • May 30-Jun 11

FLORIDA 2004

Level 1 Partnership with Parelli InstructorsJan 18-23 • Mar 7-12 • Oct 10-15

Advanced Level 1 Partnershipwith Parelli InstructorsJan 25-30 • Mar 14-19 • Oct 17-22Nov 28-Dec 3

Level 1/2 with Parelli InstructorsOct 24-29

Level 2 Harmony with Parelli InstructorsFeb 15-20 • Mar 21-26 • Oct 31-Nov 5Dec 5-10

Advanced Level 2 Harmonywith Parelli InstructorsMar 28-Apr 2 • Nov 7-12 • Dec 12-17

Level 2/3 with Parelli InstructorsFeb 22-27 • Nov 14-20

Level 3 Refinementwith Linda Parelli • Feb 1-13with Parelli Instructors • Feb 29-Mar 5

Learning from the Greats...By Gina Torrel Parelli 3-Star Instructor

“What sticksin my mindmost about CraigJohnson’s Reiningcourse was howthe two pro-grams comple-mented eachother. Pat’s SavvySystem formedthe foundation,so we could easi-ly apply Craig’s

techniques for developing a competitivereining horse.

“I saw how the importance of theimpulsion programs of Level 2 were alsopieces of the reining exercises, and even inthe competition itself.

“Craig talked about the positioning ofthe horse. Let them make mistakes. Thehorse needs to get to where he keeps doingmore and more on his own. Its like theResponsibilities for the horse in the SavvySystem. ‘Don’t change gait. Don’t changedirection. Look where you are going.’

“We did some fun, excellent exerciseslike ‘controlled confusion’ where you keepyour hand over the center of the horse’swithers following your focus, usingstraight lines and turns. If you felt himwant to go somewhere else you turned andwent the other way until you were connected.

“We also had a great time feeling slidestops on ‘scootch mountain’ where thenatural terrain of the land helped ourhorses do what we needed them to do.

“We practiced simple lead changes asa group and then started going over a log,and eventually tried turning that into fly-ing lead changes. Pat demonstrated a box-ing position where you throw a left punch,bring it back (both hands are coveringyour face) then right jab, draw back, coverface, again change hands etc...

“We finished up the last day with areining pattern and everyone got to take aturn like a real competition. A fabulousending for a terrific week of horseman-ship/reining with two of the best!”

Craig Johnson

Pat Parelli on ‘scootch mountain’

FLORIDA Fall 2003Level 1 Course

Savvy CenterSnapshotsFLORIDA Fall 2003Level 1 Course

Squeeze Game over logs

Friendly Game with logs

Circling Game with an obstacle

Instructor Rachel Gott gives the finerpoints of the Porcupine Game

Fluidity exercises

Instructor Jonathan Field gives hands on coaching

One rein riding

The confidence to squeeze!

Level 1 Friendly Game

14 www.parelli.com

Parelli and the ThoroughbredsThe name Parelli is gaining

momentum in the Thoroughbredworld. Articles in Florida Horseand Texas Thoroughbred areturning heads, and people are stilltalking about Parelli making theThoroughbred Times Magazine.Pat visited with the folks at ThreeChimneys, Lanes End and WinStarfarms in Kentucky prior to theLouisville Success With Horsestour stop. These farm managersare anxious to have their person-nel attend a course with Pat this winter. Pat continues to develop a multi-fold program forThoroughbred race horses, includ-ing a schedule for the first 1000days of a race horse’s life. We’llkeep you informed.

Also while in Kentucky, Patmet with Dave Wilkins, who’s on the Board of Directors of the National Reining HorseAssociation. Hot topic of discus-sion was having Pat and CraigJohnson give a demonstrationduring the NRHA Futurity inDecember 2004. Pat quickly cameup with a list of ideas thatknocked Dave’s socks off. Ideaslike a bridleless demonstration,adding other challenges to theofficial reining pattern, etc.Should be fun...

Mama, Can I Keep It?!Linda Parelli has a new pet. We

often have to “rent” dirt for thearenas at our various tour stops,and in Battle Creek, Michigan, thesoil was pretty sandy. While walk-ing across the arena before theevent, Linda noticed somethingmoving. Well, indeed, some snap-per turtle mommy had laid hereggs in that sand/soil, and one ofher young was poking up throughthe sand, flippers pushing thegrains aside. Linda swooped it upand declared this little creaturehers.

Parelli-On-DemandIf you have Comcast Cable,

you’re in for a treat. Primedia,publishers of Horse & Rider,

Equus, Practical Horseman,Dressage Today and ArabianHorse World, have chosen ParelliNatural Horsemanship videos tolaunch their “Equus” portion oftheir new video-on-demand pro-gramming. We’ll let you knowwhen our series begins...

The World Loses a Master Showman

One of Pat’s mentors, FredyKnie, died in October 2003 at theage of 83. Mr. Knie was known asa master showman in one of theworld’s greatest circuses. As theleader of the Swiss NationalCircus Knie for half a century, Mr.Knie won admiring audiencesthroughout Europe, including HerMajesty The Queen. Mr. Knie wasrenowned for the ease with whichhe presented his favorite animal,the horse. Pat greatly admired Mr.Knie, and they had wonderfulmoments together, exchangingphilosophies about training.

Student SavvySusan Engle gave a Parelli

presentation at the KentuckyHorse Park, representing theFoxtrotter breed. As other horsesdemonstrated the breed’s uniquegaits, Susan and Velvet did theSeven Games in the center of thearena, at liberty! The duo alsogave a bridleless demonstration —performing reining, jumping anddressage. Susan made sure theannouncer included the name ofSusan’s Parelli 3-Star EndorsedInstructor, Jennifer Copple-Vaught, so that everyone knewthat Susan was a Parelli student.Kudos!

6 Degrees to ParelliWe often ask people how they

heard about Parelli. One favorite

answer was given at a tour stop inKentucky. Seems as though KelliSummers first heard about Parelliin the emergency room of the localhospital. Kelli had been hurt in ahorse-related accident and waswhisked away to the hospital. Theemergency room nurse took allthe details, then proceeded to wagher finger at Kelli, saying “Youneed to get into Parelli and learnhow to be safe with horses!” Well,by the time Kelli left the hospital,the nurse was feeding her WinniesCookies (honest, I don’t make upthese stories) and volunteered toget Kelli on the Parelli fast track.To cut to the chase, Kelli is now aSavvy Club member and is enthu-siastically rocking and rollingthrough the Savvy System.

Another odd connection story:Our Horsecity.com (great website)representative, Blaine Burdette,was in a horrible automobile acci-dent, but gratefully is on themend. It turns out that one of hisangelic nurses is Savvy ClubLifetime member, LorraineKaliher. Talk about 6 degrees ofseparation...

And welcome to Linda Giles,newest Savvy Club Lifetime mem-ber. During the first break of theWinston-Salem, North Carolinatour, she marched up and joinedthe Savvy Club. When asked howlong she had been involved withParelli, she said this was her firstexposure to Parelli. Talk aboutbeing impressed! Thanks, Linda —it’s going to be a great journey!

VersatilityStormy, the Zorse who rocket-

ed to Parelli fame with InstructorAndrew Booth, was on the coverof a Russian horse magazine.Stormy and Andy now call the

Parelli center at Haras de la Cense,Paris, France, their home... Speaking ofAndy Booth, Pat honored him with aLevel 4 Horsemanship black SavvyString last Fall. Not a dry eye in thehouse...

Parelli AwardsPresentation Profile:

Joni and Stormy from Ohio havebeen Parelli students since 2001. WhileJoni was new to horses, Stormy wasvery strong minded. Joni knew that sheneeded a partnership with her horse...

Joni displays her award presenta-tion with great pride as a visualreminder of the time it took while sheand her Partner continue to take thetime it takes on their journey together.

For more information about awardpresentations and to place your order,contact Parelli Awards by Ginny Sue at(269)781-2564 or awards@parelli.com.

The Polls Are InThe Horse Magazine’s website,

horse.com, conducted a poll on naturalhorsemanship. Guess who landed in the#1 position. Yep! Parelli! And PatParelli was voted #1 trainer by thereaders of True West Magazine for twoyears in a row!

Student TipsHere’s a tip from Parelli enthusiast

Dawn Brennan: “I hang my barebackpad upside down over a hitching postand spray it with an orange based natu-ral cleaner (from my health food store).After it sits for a few minutes, I spray asmall amount of water on it to create alather and scrub it firmly with a stiffbrush. Then I rinse it well with the hoseand let it dry.”

Foundation for Police HorsesTheHorse.com had an article about

raising police horses from the weanlingstage using a certified animal behavioralspecialist and Parelli. The National PoliceHorse Academy continues to haveParelli as its official training program,and several members of the mountedpolice in Lexington, Kentucky areworking on their Level 2 Harmony.

Parelli enthusiasts in the Sierra foothills in NorthernCalifornia get together for a Halloween camping tripeach year — complete with tricks and treats for thehorses. The photos say it all — Parelli horses (andpeople) really know how to have fun! Thanks to SavvyClub members Celenia Penix and Wendi Wilkinson forletting us know about this fabulous event...

Photos by Celenia Penix

Ocala StyleWe’ve made mainstream

media. Linda and Remmer wereon the cover of the November2003 issue of Ocala StyleMagazine, a glossy, beautifulpublication about the city whereour ISC is located. Great story,too, by Cynthia McFarland. Ohyes, they even included photos of Pat!

Arabian Horse WorldWatch for a story by Jamie

Fend in Arabian Horse World.She came to our Media Days lastsummer, and was prettyimpressed with what she saw,including a magnificent blackArab mare who was outstandingin the reining course taught byPat and Craig Johnson. Who saysArabs aren’t versatile?

Embark on a two-day journey of communicating with horses!

FREE Admission for Savvy Club Members! Just show your passport at the door.

AnExtraordinary

2-Day HorsemanshipSeminar

Kissimmee, FLORIDAFebruary 7-8

Osceola Heritage Park

Perry, GEORGIAFebruary 14-15

Georgia Natl. Fairgrounds

Andalusia, ALABAMAFebruary 21-22

The Covington Center

Tunica, MISSISSIPPIMarch 13-14

Tunica County Arena

N. Fort Meyers, FLORIDAMarch 20-21

Lee County Fair

Fletcher, NORTH CAROLINAMarch 27-28

Western NC Ag Center

Oklahoma City, OKLAHOMAApril 3-4

Oklahoma State Fair

Dallas, TEXASApril 17-18

City of Dallas Fair Park Coliseum

San Antonio, TEXASApril 24-25

Freeman Coliseum

West Springfield,MASSACHUSETTS

May 8-9 Eastern States Exposition

Hamburg, NEW YORKMay 15-16

Hamburg Fairgrounds

Lexington, VIRGINIAMay 25-26

Virginia Horse Center

And more... visit www.parelli.com for

additional dates and locations

The Love • Language • Leadership seminarcovers the Four Savvys of ultimate naturalhorsemanship: On Line, Liberty, FreeStyle andFinesse. Pat explains and demonstrates whatthey’re about and how they develop savvy inthe human and in the horse, to create an ultimate partnership.

With the help of his team of students andprofessionals, Pat shows beginner, intermedi-ate and more advanced versions of each savvyso you get to see how it starts and where itleads in Levels 1, 2 and 3 of the Savvy System.

Then, he takes a green horse (can be up tothree horses) that’ve never played the SevenGames and shows how he would go aboutdeveloping rapport and language so they cancommunicate. It’s a captivating display ofconfidence, curiosity, sensitivity and dignity.The next day, Pat and his team take the samehorses and show how to progress to trailerloading and riding.

Linda Parelli will give a demonstration ofhow she prepares her horses, shows the newthings she’s working on, explains why she’sdoing what she’s doing, what she’s learned tosavvy at this level, point out things in herhorse that she’s now being more particular

about, what to do when it doesn’t quite gohow you expected, etc. etc.

We’ve had many people tell us that this isthe best seminar they’ve ever been to. No twoseminars are ever the same... Pat is alwayslaunching new ideas, Linda has always mademore progress and the new demo horses arethe wild card. This seminar is a must forParelli enthusiasts and people with goals likesafety, recreation, performance and excel-lence. How one seminar can bridge all of thisis no surprise when you’ve seen it. With theprinciples of Love, Language and Leadershipas its base, how can any horse lover not be there? v

16 www.parelli.com

January 2004 17

“I‘m sorry. Who did you say itwas who wants me to give a

demonstration?”“Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.”“Oh. (Pause.) Hey! That’s great!”And so Pat Parelli, the world-

renowned Natural Horseman, packedhis Carrot Sticks, Savvy Strings andropes, and he and his wife Linda wereoff to Buckingham Palace to see TheQueen. Before he left, however, he wascaught practicing his bow in front ofthe mirror prior to his November 5,2003 royal debut!

Major Felix Wheeler, the CrownEquerry in charge of The Queen’stransport (with the exception of air orship travel), had called to makearrangements for Pat Parelli to demon-strate his horsemanship skills forQueen Elizabeth II, The Queen’sCavalry and the King’s Troop at theRoyal Mews (the working stables at Buckingham Palace that also house State vehicles including themagnificent Gold State Coach used forcoronations).

Over the past two years, ParelliNatural Horsemanship has been pre-

sented at 53 demonstrations through-out the United Kingdom, many withPat and Linda Parelli. At severaldemonstrations in London, membersof the Kings Troop have been present.They’ve incorporated many Parellitraining techniques into their programand have actually touted the Parellisystem to audiences during their performances.

Even though it may not occur tous mere mortals that the King’s Troopwould have challenges with their hors-es, they do. Like most culturesthroughout the modern world, theBritish too have inherited a generationdisconnected from rural life; they havea number of young men in theirtroops who haven’t grown up withhorses. And so they’ve turned to PatParelli and his curriculum for solu-tions and a plan for developing theirhorsemanship skills.

“At our presentation at Solihull,England in September,” says LindaParelli, “two young fellows from theRoyal Mews were really inspired bywhat we presented. They shared theirchallenges about their riding and driv-

ing horses with Pat that they felt Pat’sprogram would easily solve. Aftersome discussion of the possibility ofPat coming to demonstrate for theRoyal Mews, and hopefully TheQueen, they were so excited that theytook the idea of Pat coming toBuckingham Palace to Major Wheeler,the Crown Equerry.”

When asked if he was nervousabout presenting before The Queen,the Crown Equerry, Head of the KingsTroop, Ambassador to the UK WillFarrish (who also owns Lanes EndFarm in Lexington, Kentucky), mount-ed officers from the Royal Guard, offi-cers from Scotland Yard, members ofthe Household Cavalry, members ofthe Kings Troop, and Master of theHorse Lord Vestey, Pat Parelli smilesand says, “I’ve taught my butterflies tofly in formation. The only thing I wasworried about was bowing, and thenhitting The Queen when I came up.”Then he gets serious. “I usually askmyself whether something will benefitour mission statement, which is tohelp elevate the level of horsemanshipworldwide. The answer to this situa-

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tion was, of course it would. The mis-sion is the important thing. Doing itfor The Queen was a bonus.”

It must have been a bonus for TheQueen, too, since the planned 30minute demonstration held HerMajesty’s attention for an hour and 15minutes. The Queen even laughed atPat’s jokes.

It’s safe to bet that Pat’s cowboyhat stood out among the dignitaries atthe High Tea hosted by the CrownEquerry preceding the presentation.It’s also safe to bet that Pat’s mother,Doris Parelli, was bursting with prideas she and Linda Parelli accompaniedPat that day. Prior to High Tea, thethree of them were given a tour of theRoyal Coaches, including the GoldState Coach, the remarkably ornatecoach built for King George III, nowhoused in the Royal Mews. “It wasawesome, all in gold leaf,” says Linda,adding that Pat played the PorcupineGame (Game #2 of the Savvy System)on one of the fabricated horseshitched to the coach. “The insurancepremium to take the coach out onlyone time,” Pat adds, “is two milliondollars. They even have to dismantlepart of the building to get it out. It wasincredible.”

Now it’s time to go to the ridinghall, added in 1764 by King George IIIwhen he changed the name of the sta-bles to the Royal Mews Pimlico. Formost of the year the Royal Mews sta-bles are home to the working horses

that play an important role in TheQueen’s official and ceremonial duties.The horses are mainly Cleveland Bays,the only British breed of carriage horse,and the Windsor Greys, which by tradi-tion always draw the carriage in whichThe Queen is travelling.

When asked where she wanted tosit, Linda (rarely known to be shy)replied, “Right behind The Queen! So ifI sat behind her, I could answer anyquestions she might have.

“We all stood when Her Majestycame in, and she smiled her gracious,regal smile. Pat took off his hat, andbelieve it or not, Pat winked at her!When I asked him later if he realizedthat he had winked at her, he chuckledand said, ‘Yeah, and did you notice thatshe winked back?’

After we all sat down, the CrownEquerry gave a little speech about ourpresentation and why communicationand psychology with horses was soimportant. Pat followed with an open-ing commentary about what an honorit was to be there, that he wanted topresent his program with his students,and that this was really about what weteach people to do with their ownhorses.”

“It was a really short speech,” saysPat, “about 30 or 40 seconds. Maybethe shortest speech I’ve ever made.”

Neil Pye, Dean of the ParelliInternational Savvy Centers, then intro-duced the Savvy Team: “Her Majestyand Distinguished Guests...” Howmany times can you actually use thatphrase in a lifetime? Neil smiles andsays, “That’s exactly what I told mymother.” Neil went on to introducethe Savvy Team and the concepts of theParelli program.

Even though Pat Parelli has beendeemed “the Elvis of the equestrianworld” because of how he captivatesand entertains an audience, his fore-most thought is: “This isn’t aboutwhat I can do with horses, this isabout what I can teach others to dowith their horses.” In accordance withthat philosophy, Pat had three of hisstudents, Silke Vallentin of Germany,Ingela Sainsbury of England andCharlotte Dennis of England, performfor The Queen before he made hisappearance. “I wanted The Queen to

Neil Pye and Dave Stuart in front of the Australian ceremonial carriage

The Royal Mews

January 2004 19

see our ‘wow’ factor before Icame on to demonstrate the‘how’ part.”

And a “wow” it was. One ofthe students, Silke Vallentin,was in a motorized wheelchair,her “legs” for the past 19 yearssince an automobile accident.Silke’s demonstration for HerMajesty caused The Queen’seyes to widen in awe as Silkemerely pointed to the horsetrailer and her Friesian trottedin — no halter, no lead rope.Ingela and Charlotte earnedsmiles from Her Majesty as theyrode bridleless with fluidity andgrace.

“Because I was sittingbehind the Queen,” Linda adds,“I could watch her body lan-guage. At first she was sittingvery primly, crossing anduncrossing her feet. And thenCharlotte started doing somethings at liberty, canteringalongside the horse, and TheQueen leaned forward, captivat-ed. Her Majesty was rivetedfrom then on! Another thingthat truly captured her attention waswhen the Crown Equerry mentionedthat we have an approved horseman-ship university. The Queen thenleaned over to Ambassador Farrishand said, ‘Really!’

“I got a bit teary during the pres-entation, I have to admit,” continues

Linda. “I was listening to the gasps inthe audience during the performance,and I just couldn’t help myself. I thinkthe liberty demonstrations really tookthese people by surprise. When Silkecame on, she did a short presentationat liberty from her motorized wheel-chair, and then sent the horse into thetrailer on-line at the trot. Then she

sent the horse into the trailer atliberty and then backed him in.Everyone, including QueenElizabeth, just about fell offtheir chairs! One of the digni-taries had been talking to meabout trailer loading problemsthey’d been having, and Inudged him and said, ‘Wouldthat be good enough?’ Helooked at me with amazementand said, ’I’ve never seen any-thing like that!’ AmbassadorFarrish chimed in with, ‘Ohyes, Pat’s been playing with mystallion in Kentucky and doingall these things; isn’t it remark-able?’”

So what horses did QueenElizabeth have for Pat to playwith?

They provided a horse forPat that was, according to TheQueen, “quite dotty, really.”(Pat adds, “The Queen is quitea horsewoman; she reallyknows her horses.”) This par-ticular horse was an IrishDraft/Thoroughbred cross(mostly Irish Draft and huge,

according to Linda, adding that thehorse made Pat look like a midget nextto him). “This horse was really wired,”says Linda. “They said this horsespooked at everything and was unpredictable.”

Pat had tarps and other challengeslaid out, and initially the horse wouldn’t even go near them. He startedplaying with the horse, talking about hisphilosophy of love, language and lead-ership, and “doing his magic,” as manysay. Quickly the horse relaxed andgained respect for Pat. “Pat was doinghis Three Stooges thing around thehorse during the Friendly Game,” Lindachuckles, “and at first The Queen couldhardly believe what she was seeing, butthen broke into laughter. When Pat gota horse in his hands, he just started talk-ing like he always does, aboutprey/predator relationships, telling hisstories, talking about how horses arehusbands — you need to leave themalone at the right time. The Queen really laughed at that joke.”

Ingela Sainsbury and Charlotte Dennis preparing for the demo

Arriving at Buckingham Palace

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“I started off by just trying tothrow the lead rope over the horse’sback,” comments Pat. “This horsetook off like a bullet backwards all theway down to the other end of thearena. He wouldn’t even let me getclose to putting that rope over hisback. I just kept playing with him as Ibrought him back to the other side ofthe arena. I sensed the horse thinking,‘that didn’t work,’ and let him rest fora second. Then I saw the shift in atti-tude, and asked the audience if theysaw the change in the horse. Then Itossed the rope over his back threetimes in a row.

“I did the desensitizing thing withthe horse, too, asking the audience toclap and then stop when the horserelaxed and put his head down. EvenThe Queen participated, clappingalong with everyone else! I don’tthink The Queen is ever supposed toclap or applaud, but she did, evenwhen I said, ‘give this person or thishorse a hand.’

“I talked a lot about horse psy-

chology, and about howeven Olympic riderAndrew Hoy (AustralianThree-day Eventer) had tostand on a box to bridlehis horse and how I wasable to bridle the samehorse from sitting in achair after I played theSeven Games with him.”

“As he was tellingabout Andrew Hoy’shorse, Pat was sitting in achair, using his hands todescribe the story,” Lindaremembers. “Then TheQueen’s horse just wentleft brained and put hishead on Pat’s shoulder.Pat just continued talking,stroking the horse’s head!This horse’s behavior wasjust the opposite of whatwe had first seen. People were so impressed!Pat decided to end the per-formance there. He said he knew theQueen needed

to leave, and that therewould be a break beforecontinuing with the rest ofthe presentation. But theQueen was so riveted bywhat she had seen that shestayed.”

“She was supposed tostay 30 minutes to bepolite, 45 minutes maxi-mum. But she stayed anhour and 15 minutes,”proclaims Pat. “I think wemade an impression, and Ithink she would havestayed even longer if shecould have. But it was theperfect demo, and I thinkwe’ll be invited back.”

After The Queen left,two other horses werebrought out — one thatcouldn’t be clipped andone that couldn’t bemounted. Pat played withthe one that couldn’t beclipped while Dave Stuart,

5-Star Premier Instructor fromAustralia, played with the other horse.Of course Pat was able to use the clip-pers all over the horse within 20 min-utes. Not only did Dave get on thehorse’s back without incident, butactually stood on the horse’s back. Forthose of us who have seen Pat and histop Instructors before, we are continu-ally amazed, but are not surprised bythe success of the moment. However,for this audience, now in awe, it wasunprecedented. After that, Pat put thehorse’s soldier on board and movedhim around.

Just what does one give to theQueen as a gift?

“Before the Queen left,” says NeilPye, “Pat introduced Linda and Pat’smother to her. Pat gave Her Majestythe pictorial book about Pat andLinda, “Keepin’ It Natural.” As Patinscribed the book, he whispered toLinda, ‘How do you spell majesty?’and then signed his name. He passedthe book to Linda for her autograph.Linda dashed off her “Linda” five-

Dave Stuart standing on the Kings Troop horse

Pat with Cavalry horse

January 2004 21

character signature, at which time TheQueen said to Linda, ‘My dear, is thathow you always write?’”

Neil laughs and says, “Pat canonly do cat scratch handwriting, andhere the Queen was commenting onLinda’s signature (she usually hasgreat penmanship), which now in TheQueen’s book consists of an L, asquiggly streak, a D, and anothersquiggly streak.”

Linda is now roaring with laugh-ter. “The Queen launched at me whenI signed my name. And Neil’s right,she said, ‘Is that how you alwayswrite?’ — poking fun at me, so Iquickly responded, ‘Oh, only thatword.’

What was Pat’s fondest memory ofthis historic event?

“Probably watching my mom andthe fulfillment she got from it.

“For Linda and me, it was a hugefeather in our cap. It was almost surre-al, like in a dream. Now we realize themagnitude of the event, and the possi-bilities of what can come in thefuture. I remember a quote from beinga kid in Bible studies, something like,‘If you master your trade, you will per-form in front of kings.’ I never thoughtI’d be able to help fulfill our missionstatement by performing for HerMajesty The Queen, but we did. If youcan achieve something with excel-lence, then even kings and queens willtake notice. So perhaps there is a perfect order of things.”

And Linda’s high-light? “It’s now, realizingwhat we’ve accom-plished. Being there wasreally cool, but it’s thelooking back and under-standing the significanceof what we’ve done that’simportant. It was a hugehonor. Sitting behindThe Queen was fantastic,watching her watch Pat.It was really a treat towatch Her Majesty’s reac-tions. Oh, and I have toadd that Pat was evenpolitically correct!”

The follow-up? It’svery likely that Pat andLinda will be invited toWindsor Castle to pres-ent for Her Majesty andthe Royal Family. There’salso talk with the CrownEquerry about a Parelliprogram for The Queen’shorses.

And The Queen’sparting comment to PatParelli?

“I wish I would havefound out about thiswhen I was much younger. It’s mar-velous, really very interesting. Thankyou ever so much.”

Then The Queen smiled, andbowed to Pat Parelli. v

Because of the protocol of this partic-

ular invitation, there are no photographsof Pat and The Queen together. Restassured that after the next invitation, ByAppointment of Her Royal Majesty, therewill be another story and photographs ofThe Cowboy and The Queen.

Pat’s fondest memory: “watching my mom and the fulfillment she got from it.”

Pat giving pointers to a King’s Troop rider

I am lost inside the mind and body ofmy horse. My brain is telling me this

can’t be so, but we are bound together ina way I cannot describe. We communicatein silence. I see the course ahead andPrince willingly takes me there. This isfreedom and joy beyond imagination.

How am I lucky enough to becomeso lost and so alive?

I became acquainted with ParelliNatural Horse•Man•Ship in 1992. I had ahorse I could not clip, deworm or loadinto a trailer. I heard about a ParelliInstructor who specialized in difficulthorses and I sent my horse to her. After afew weeks, and some personal instruc-tion, I could not only clip, deworm, andload my horse, I could ride him on thetrail in a halter. My Parelli journey wasover (I thought). What else could I possi-bly want?! This was beyond my wildestdreams.

Then, three years ago, I bought a veryspoiled, almost four-year-old Arabiangelding named CCR Viking Prince. Icouldn’t lead him down a trail withoutgetting run over. I knew I needed help orI was going to get hurt. I again looked toParelli for help. Lucky for Prince and me,I was able to have a private lesson from 5-Star Premier Instructor, David Lichman.My eyes were opening. I could see a pathunfolding before us.

And now, after several Parelli coursesand lessons, and meeting every Mondaynight at a community arena with support-ive Parelli study group members, I havelearned the importance of prior andproper preparation; of love, language, andleadership. I have learned to think likemy horse — to be his partner, his leader.My attitude changed. We are teachingeach other. I am willing to let go.

Now it was time to put our principlesto a purpose. In August 2003, we traveledto Bridgeport, California to participate inour second 50 mile endurance ridetogether.

The afternoon before the ride, I leadPrince, at liberty, to the area where he willbe examined by a veterinarian. He standsquietly in a long line of horses while wewait our turn. The vet examines him andthen asks for us to trot out and back.Prince stays with me, and the vet com-ments, “That is very nice to see!”

Early the next morning, Prince and Istart out on the ride with just a saddleand Savvy String between us. We travel 50miles together over steep, rugged, moun-tain trails and glorious green pastures. Weare a team, listening to each other, trot-ting down the trail with one mind, onebody; time is standing still. I am exhila-rated — overwhelmed with pride, respect,gratitude, and love. v

I haven’t known Traci Falcone for very long,but when I first heard her talk about her Parelliexperiences, and watched the spark in her brightblue eyes, I knew that her tale was worthwhile. Shetells her stories quietly, with gratitude.

What Traci doesn’t write in her lovely prose iswhen she first got Prince, he would occasionallylunge at her with teeth bared when playing theCircling Game, and kick at her feet with his hind legswhen she rode him. Prince was far from being adocile pussycat. Over time, Parelli has transformedthe horse, and Parelli has transformed the woman.

Since Traci wrote this story, she and Princehave ridden four other 50-mile endurance rides(two bridleless) — calmly, with complete joy. Herpassive persistence in first riding Prince with aParelli hackamore, then the Savvy String, then bri-dleless at a walk — all that foundation paid off,resulting in an elegant communication betweenhorse and rider.

What Traci also doesn’t tell you is that on thefirst bridleless 50-mile ride, she dropped her waterbottle two times on the trail and her Chapstickonce. For those of us who have ridden endurance,it’s always tempting to just leave the items there,blindly ignoring them, because dismounting andholding a horse while others go rushing by is rarelyfun, and trying to get back on a spinning, crow-hopping four-legged creature is even less fun. Andthen it’s the inevitable out-of-control gallop tocatch up with the others.

Because of the relationship Traci has devel-oped with Prince through Parelli, she dismountedeach time to retrieve her articles, while Princemerely stood quietly by her side, waiting patientlyas horses whizzed past. (Remember — no lead rope,no reins.) What’s equally amazing is that Traci toldher riding partners to go on while she retrievedher stuff. As Traci mentioned, she even presentedPrince bridleless at the veterinary check-in andcheckpoints along the way. Prince trotted whenTraci trotted; Prince turned when Traci turned;Prince stopped when Traci stopped. The veterinar-ians, I’ve been told by others, were amazed.

Traci’s journey with Prince is captivating andinspiring. The more I talk to people, it seems as though every Parelli story is a remarkable jour-ney. And, as with all journeys, it begins with just one step... – Kate Riordan

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not is not the idea; knowing what it is,is! That way you can make sure you areon track with every little thing you do.Your underlying thought is always: “isthis contributing to the horse becomingmy partner/trail horse/race horse/per-formance horse/work horse/role modelfor its foal/etc.?”

Visual focus

Visual focus means you are lookingwhere you are going and not where thehorse is going. If you are watching out foryour horse you are taking away hisresponsibility and treating him like anidiot. Be careful that you don’t do for himwhat he should be doing for himself.

Do your knees focus?

Now, in doing your job and lookingwhere you are going (like any goodleader should) let’s establish how youshould be looking. Believe it or not, youhave more eyes than just those in yourhead. Imagine you have eyes all overyour body: on your head, your shoul-ders, your belly button, your hips andyour knees! This means that you look atwhere you are going with all of youreyes, thereby turning all those areas ofyour body. When you are consistentabout this you’ll be amazed at howmuch more responsive your horsebecomes, simply because you are beingreally clear and he can understand you.

Many riders just use their eyes tofocus and wonder why the messagedoesn’t get down to their horse’s bodyand his mind. Others just use theirhands and legs and wonder why theirhorse is reluctant to take each step. Youneed to use your whole body to com-municate. Even just bringing your ener-gy up or down to communicate how fastyou want a horse to go, riding or not, isremarkably clear to your horse.

Focusing with your mind

Mental focus means you have thewhole plan in mind: what you are goingto do today, why it is appropriate in thedevelopment of your horse or yourselfor your relationship (even a trail ride ispart of working on your relationship).This means that even if other thingscome up, like you discover an area ofyour horse that is not ready for what youwant to do, dealing with that is not tak-ing you off your mental focus — it’sactually moving you along it. Thinkabout how valuable that is when a wob-ble in your horse seems like it’s interfer-ing with your entire plan for the sessionthat day.

The value of direct focus

Direct focus means you are looking at where you want to take your horse,from point A to point B; from this circleto that; from that zig-zag through a

lead change; from this trail to that; fromthis point into the trailer; from his stallto the round corral. Sometimes yourdirect focus needs to be even shorterthan these, like just getting one or moreof the Seven Games played successfully!

The broad brush stroke of focus

Relative focus means you are look-ing at the big picture and where youwant to go after that in terms of themaneuver, the total exercise, the wholetrail ride. Remember, the horse is bank-ing on you, as his leader, to have a plan.

Inward and outward: the egocentricand exocentric focuses

Egocentric focus means you arethinking about you and everything inrelation to that.

Exocentric means you are thinkingabout what your horse thinks, and evenwhat observers think. In talking aboutobservers, let’s think about who reallycounts, those whose opinions are reallyvalid: your teachers, your uncondition-ally accepting friends. Let’s face it, notuntil you are Level 5+ are you going toimpress anyone in the performance fieldwith your riding mainly because youcan’t do what they do, however you willimpress them on the ground (On Lineand at Liberty), and if you are a HorseSpecialist, you’ll definitely impress themwith your handling prowess with horses

THE EIGHT RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE HORSE AND HUMAN CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

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that have never been ridden or are morechallenging than what they’re used todealing with. Let’s never lose sight ofthis: you’re studying to impress horses,not people. If you can impress a horse,then certainly you’ll impress theon–lookers. Horses are actually muchtougher!

THE EIGHT RESPONSIBILITIES

IN ACTION

Here’s a real life example for you toconsider.

Crossing Obstacles

Getting the horse to cross an obsta-cle he’s not comfortable about, likewater or a tarp or even a trailer. Begin byanalyzing the situation via the horse’sresponsibilities:

1. Is he acting like a prey animal?

Scared, skeptical, hesitant? If so, beready to do what it takes: matching hisdegree of reaction with your emphatic-ness. Be emphatic about things likestanding still, doing the Yo-Yo Game,going Sideways, doing the Squeeze Game.The worst thing you can do is try to calmhim down by doing nothing or pettinghim. Imagine if you were afraid ofsomething, you’d want your leader/ confident friend/parent/spouse to beable to assuage your fears by taking theemphasis off of it, making you concen-trate on something else, bringing you to your senses and interrupting yourtendency to freak out and run away!

In the horse’s case, it’s not about theobstacle. It’s about paying attention toyou. Use the Yo-Yo, Sideways or SqueezeGames to get your horse responding toyou and ignoring the obstacle in ques-tion. Most people try to take the horsetoward the obstacle (direct-line) toshow him that there’s nothing to worryabout, but they are thinking like people,not horses! The real issue is that thehorse is paying more attention to theobstacle than to you. Rule number one:there is nothing more important thanthe leader he can trust. So make sure youdon’t look at the obstacle, don’t eventhink of it just get the quality of yourgame right. Once you can do this yourhorse will get calmer, more focused andyou’ll be able to progress from there.

2. Don’t change gait. Once thehorse is not acting like a prey animal, is

paying more attention to you and iscalm, then you can proceed. So now, theGame becomes important. When a horseis unconfident the best Game to use is#7, the Squeeze Game because it incorpo-rates important elements like movingpast the obstacle then being able toturn, face and wait for further instruc-tions. This interrupts the right brainprocess because it causes them to thinkbefore making the next move and towait until you ask them to make thatmove.

Gait is not important. If he wants towalk, trot or canter towards, by, or overthe obstacle that’s fine. The more uncon-fident he is, the more likely he is to gofast or backwards. If you know to expectthis it won’t frustrate you. Accept it as anattempt and proceed as usual. Even if hegoes toward it but changes directionthat’s okay because you’ll calmly disen-gage him, ask him to face and wait, thensend him again.

The worst Game you can use in thisexample is the Circling Game because aprey animal is designed to go forwardwithout thinking (as in right brain) andoften you’ll play all four active Games(numbers 4, 5, 6, 7) just to prove that it’sall about the interaction between youtwo and not about the obstacle.

3. Don’t change direction. As statedabove, if the horse goes at any gait he’s

likely to change direction too, likeswerving away at the last minute. Knowthat once Responsibility #2 is accom-plished (he can walk toward it as direct-ed), he will then be able to deal with thenext step of not changing direction.

Once you are sure you can send himtoward the obstacle at the walk, thenyou can begin being more particularabout his propensity to turn away fromit instead of facing it. Do this by inter-rupting his behavior with four ‘bumps’on Zone 1 via the halter and 12’ Line.The first bump is soft and each bumpthereafter escalates so that the fourthbump feels more like a bite or kick froma dominant horse. For some horses (hotblooded, sensitive) this doesn’t takemuch. For cocky, less sensitive horsesthis could take quite a bit! Your job as adeveloping leader is to figure out whatthat takes and to maintain the disciplineof getting there progressively (it’s NOTyour first move or you’ll be branded asan inconsiderate bully by your horse).In fact, if you have been studying theSavvy System, at Level 2 you’ll rememberthat it’s a LONG Phase 1 and a QUICKPhase 2, 3, 4. If this is not quick enough,your horse will act like he didn’t evennotice it.

Important note: If you get too par-ticular about direction and gait beforeyour horse has gotten past acting like a

When a horse is unconfident the best Game to use isthe Squeeze Game because it interrupts the right brainand causes them to think before making the next move.

January 2004 25

prey animal, you’re in big trouble. Thisis when you tend to say things like “I didall that,” when in fact you thought youdid, but you didn’t effect a change in thehorse. The deal is, stay in Responsibility#1 UNTIL YOUR HORSE STOPS ACT-ING LIKE A PREY ANIMAL. Only thencan you move on. I’ve said this now asthe voice of experience because everytime I have tested the situation, thehuman is absolutely unable to play theSqueeze Game effectively (left brain) atclose range next to the obstacle (main-taining gait and direction), yet they aretrying to put the horse over or into it!

4. Look where you are going. It’sthe horse’s job to figure out HOW to puthis feet into that puddle or on that tarp,not yours. If the horse fumbles. If hetrips. If he jumps. SO BE IT! That’s hisjob to negotiate himself, not yours. Oh,if I could get a dollar for every time thehuman has tried to save the horse afterhe stumbles (let alone dollars for Pat!)I’d be a zillionaire.

I used to do that. I’d worry if myhorse tripped or skinned himself to thepoint that I’d never put him at risk andkeep him wrapped in cotton. At thesame time I’d be limping from a bruiseon my foot or shin (delivered by myhorse) and never give it a secondthought. Let’s get over it! We’re not try-ing to hurt our horses, but we do needto allow them to take care of themselves.Before you get to the obstacle, make sureyour horse is properly prepared in termsof skills via the Seven Games over allkinds of obstacles as listed in PartnershipProgram PocketGuide 10. Each Leveldevelops this skill and responsibility.That’s the whole message: prior andproper preparation prevents poor per-formance! Once I saw how capablehorses were of getting into a trailer with incredible athleticism, like jump-ing into the trailer from a standing posi-tion at the side of the trailer facing me, Ifinally learned this lesson. I didn’t thinkhorses could do that! Not to mention

them thundering onto the ramp andtripping off the side, fumbling andfalling down... to being able to scamperup the ramp making barely a soundbecause they are so light and positiveabout the whole exercise! Until I’d seenthis several times I had no idea thathorses could make such little noisegoing over a ramp.

If you have properly prepared yourhorse (via the Savvy System checklist)then don’t worry, proceed as usual. Ifyou haven’t, then stop right nowbecause you are forcing your horse with-out giving him the right preparation.You need to start at Partnership Level 1,which has all the ingredients you need,and if you need more, they’re in the second Level, Harmony.

Eight Responsibilities. A simple blue-print to savvy and partnership! v

In the next issue, Linda will take herTrakehner warmblood, Allure, through theBullseye Pattern for the first time. The EightResponsibilities in action while riding.

It’s the horse’s job to figure out HOW to puthis feet into that puddle or on that tarp, notyours. Before you get to the obstacle, makesure your horse is properly prepared interms of skills via the Seven Games.

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The fog was thick—so thick that thelocal man pulling my trailer could

barely see the road. I stared out the pas-senger window looking for an old, long-unused two-track on which I’d rideTrace into the wild horse range. Trace ismy blue roan wild horse. We first metwhen he was a tiny colt on theArrowhead Mountains of southernMontana. As a yearling he was rounded-up and I adopted him, bringing himhome to my ranch in the ColoradoRockies. That was in the fall of 1997.

Now we’d returned to his ruggedmountain home. As the truck and trail-er climbed higher, the fog grew thicker,and when a sign loomed in front of us,I knew we’d passed our turn. DryheadOverlook, it read, marking the edge ofan abrupt escarpment that droppedthousands of feet into the vast CrowIndian Reservation. “Let’s stop here,” Isaid. In the damp chill, I unloaded Traceand saddled him, slipping a Power Barand water into the small pack attachedto my lightweight endurance saddle.

Lastly, I put on Trace’s NaturalHackamore, just a string halter and leadrope—no bit, no tie downs, no runningmartingale. We were in a 60-thousandacre wilderness with over 100 wild hors-es out there— somewhere in the fog—

and I had a string halter on my horse’shead. Some might question my sanity.

But, I’d been introduced to the

Natural Hackamore when Trace and Iattended the Horsemanship Experiencecourse at the Parelli International SavvyCenter in Pagosa Springs, Colorado,only a month before. For five days, witha dozen Parelli Instructors and PatParelli himself, we worked on our SevenGames ground skills and then appliedthem to riding.

Trace is nervous when he encoun-ters people mounted on horses, andthere were 43 mounted riders, someworking only an arm’s length away. Onthe ground, he and I had few problems,but when we mounted up, it was a dif-ferent story. A tall horse and rider trot-ted up beside us and Trace bolted. Oneof the first things we’d been taught wasthe one rein emergency stop and did itever come in handy. I choked up on theright rein and stabbed my fist into mythigh. Within thirty feet, I had Tracestopped with just the NaturalHackamore on his head.

Trace’s fear is quite legitimate. Badthings had come at him from up high…

Photo of Ginger and Trace by Mario Benassi

“Cloud’s Legacy” Photos by Ginger KathrensPh

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January 2004 27

the helicopter that drove him and hisfamily off the mountaintop, workersatop corral fences shaking sticks withplastic bags on the ends to get the wildhorses to move into the chute, andmounted cowboys forcing terrified hors-es through a maze of alleyways, againflicking plastic bags.

On our last day of training, Patinstructed the entire class in the hugeArena Grande. One-by-one we werecalled into the center. When he called

my name, I went brain-dead. Pat wasmounted and on the end of his longstick was—guess what? A plastic bag.Oh, my God. Trace tensed but per-formed, despite my inept attempts atthe right maneuvers. “Belly button,” Patcommanded, and I pulled the rein tomy stomach. “Eagle,” he continued, andI tried to look over my shoulder, liftingthe rein skyward to turn Trace on hisforehand. Bottom line—it wasn’t pretty.But we lived. Trace learned to controlhis anxiety, and I learned to be more confident and to help him have confidence in me.

Riding off into the fog, Trace and Ifollowed the main road into the horserange, a muddy two-track across opensub-alpine meadows broken by densegroves of firs. Somewhere ahead werewild horses, and there was zero visibili-ty. I imagined coming upon a familyband and having the band stallion runus out of the country. Even worse wemight encounter a bunch of bachelorstallions who might try to play-fight

with Trace. Not fun either. I listenedhard for a snort, a stallion scream, foot-falls—any clue as to what lay ahead. Ionly heard the wind in the firs, the callof a chickadee, and the rhythmic beat ofTrace’s feet.

My Nature television producerswere already at Penn’s Cabin atop themountain, there to film my opening of“Cloud’s Legacy.” It’s the next install-ment in the saga of Cloud, the wildhorse I’ve filmed since the day he wasborn. I hoped they weren’t smotheredin fog—kind of scary for this trio fromManhattan. It turned out they were having the time of their lives.

The fog started to lift as I crested ahill above a crystal clear waterhole. Atthe instant I saw the cinnamon beardrinking, he lifted his beautiful head,sniffed and galloped into the forest.Trace acted as if nothing had happened.What was a bear to him? He’d grown upwith them. While riding, we’ve seenbears—even a mountain lion—butTrace has shown no fear. As Trace drank,the dun stallion Shaman and his bandappeared above us. The yearling palomi-no colt, who’s a key player in my newCloud program, was with them. What alooker! He’s Cloud’s son, but the marewas with Shaman when she gave birth.So the colt knows only the dun as hisfather. Trace and I backed off quietlyand made our way into the wild KruegerValley, more noted for bear sightingsthan wild horses—and one of themountain’s most isolated places.

In this valley, my film crew had leftmy 4X4 parked beside an old corral andbarn. Trace would stay there, while Islept in the car. That night I awoke asTrace prowled the perimeter of theenclosure. He had hay and grass grow-ing in the corral, but he was alone. And,I knew if he leaned hard on the ricketypole fence, it might collapse. Thenwhat? I imagined him rejoining the wildhorses. I got up and talked to him. Hesettled right down and I climbed backinto the car, only to hear him prowlingagain. I must have gotten up a dozentimes in the course of that long night.

Then, in the dim light of pre-dawn,I heard hoof beats. Oh, great. I made

out the shape of a horse and recognizedhim immediately. “Red Raven,” I whis-pered. It was Cloud’s half-brother, afeisty son of Raven. What was he up to?Red Raven watched as I quickly got outof the car and haltered Trace.Thankfully, Red Raven wandered off.After I gave Trace some oats, I tried toready myself to be filmed. No sleep, noelectricity, no running water. I was introuble.

Regardless, the filming went with-out a hitch: me walking and talking;Trace walking alongside, hitting hismarks and standing quite still while Ibabbled to the camera. We rode around,too—Trace in his Hackamore—againhitting every mark as if he’d been amovie horse his whole life. My NewYork producers were impressed.

As I rode Trace out of theArrowheads, we spotted Cloud and hisgrowing family. The pale stallion lookedup and I waved as I have since the dayhe was born. Nothing to worry aboutbig fella, it’s just me. In spite of preda-tion, bachelor attempts to steal his fam-ily, government roundups, killer storms,and a frightening wildfire, he has sur-vived. “Stay safe,” I whispered and Traceand I left the mountain.

While Cloud continues to travel thewilderness trails with his family, Traceand I explore the mountain trails abovemy Colorado ranch—and the time weshare together is precious. Still, never aday goes by that I don’t wonder “whatif?” What if Trace were still wild? Wouldhe have a legacy, like Cloud? I rub thelittle place under his eyes that relaxeshim, give him a kiss, and mount up. Hewalks out as he always does—boldly,bravely. In this way, he’s very much likeCloud; for that I am grateful. v

Find out more aboutCloud by visiting www.taurusproductions.netand learn more about wild horses atwww.savewildhorses.org Ginger Kathrens is an Emmy award-winning producer and an avidtrail & endurance rider.

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Muscle Hair Bone Skin

Shoulder

Touch it Swing it

Finger Elbow Wrist

Lift it Lead it

Porcupine Game #2

Driving Game #3

Yo-Yo Game # 4

Circling Game #5

Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________

Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________

Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________

Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________ Phase # ___________

Can YOU Put the Phases in Order?

Color the Correct Zone to Move the Horse!

Zone # _____ Zone # _____ Zone # _____ Zone # _____Drives the horse’s Drives the horse Drives the Sends the horse front end around sideways hindquarters around in a circle

Zone 1 Zone 3

Zone 2Zone

4

DelicateZone

Zone 5Zone 1 Zone 3

Zone 2Zone

4

DelicateZone

Zone 5Zone 1 Zone 3

Zone 2Zone

4

DelicateZone

Zone 5Zone 1 Zone 3

Zone 2Zone

4

DelicateZone

Zone 5

1. What does “right” brain mean?a. the horse always turns to the rightb. the horse has trouble turning leftc. the horse is acting like a prey animal instead

of a partnerd. the horse sees better out of his right eye

2. Why do we play the Seven Games with a horse?a. to create a languageb. to establish ourselves as his leaderc. to help him use his left (thinking side) of his braind. all of the above

3. What is Approach and Retreat?a. the way a predator hunts a prey animalb. a new flavor of ice creamc. something you should never do with a scared horsed. a technique to help a horse become curious instead of

afraid of an obstacle

4. Where did the Four Phases come from?a. Pat just made it upb. Pat’s mom taught them to Patc. Horses use them on each otherd. no one knows where they came from

QUIZTest your Savvy...

The Four Phases by Horses

A pair of poniesfor you to color...

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4!

The Angry Eye + Ears Pinned Back + Moving Toward + Bite or Kick

All answers can be found on the Table of Contents, Page 1

He l l o again!

In my last story in Savvy Times about myOlympic quest I was just about to leavefor Italy. But first I’d like to expand onmy experience at the Parelli InternationalSavvy Center in Ocala, Florida before Ileft. A few events happened that wouldsend my training on a completely differ-ent path — the most important ofwhich involved a horse, that has beenstrangely integral in every aspect of myexperience with Pat Parelli. The horse’s

name is Katie. I met her on myfirst trip to Pagosa Springs

when Pat paired me withher. One month later I

passed my Level 1 onher. I didn’t know at

the time what a keyrole she would

play in my life. The day I

arrived inFlorida, Patexplained theimportanceof develop-ing a strongindependentseat before Icould eventhink aboutjumping — theevent requiredfor the OlympicP e n t a t h l o n .

Pentathletes arerequired to jump 12

fences four feet high on anunfamiliar horse. Pat said the

best way to develop an independ-ent seat is to ride bareback for asmany hours as possible. I wasn’texactly excited about this concept.I couldn’t even sit a trot in a sad-dle, let alone without one. I had

always posted. The sitting trot wasuncomfortable and relatively out of

control, so I just avoided it. But thatavoidance thing simply wasn’t going tohappen with Pat.

On my first day Pat made me get onthe horse bareback. I was thinking thatat least we could ease into this barebackadventure. But I was wrong. So the firstday I rode a horse named Idaho bare-back, no pad, saddle, blanket, or any-thing. When we first started trotting, Ibounced all over the place. Pat justshook his head. But then he gave me afew tips and I began feeling a little bet-ter. That first day I rode for 3-1/2 hoursbareback; you can imagine how I waswalking when I got off. Pat told me Ineeded to ride as much as possible,bareback. So the next day I rode Idahoagain. Only this time we did drills overlogs shaped in a “Z,” with our focus on

“focus.” I was still bouncing like a corkbut it felt much better the second daythan the first.

I worked on riding bareback for thenext few days. As the weekendapproached, Pat and Linda left for ashow and planned to return on Monday.I was ready to practice diligently so bythe time Pat returned I would haveimproved. But the next day it pouredand thunderstormed all day so I wasonly able to ride for an hour or so. Thesun came out the following day. I wasdetermined to conquer this barebackriding assignment.

On my way to the ranch that day, Istopped at a tack shop and purchased abareback pad, thinking this new piece ofgear would be more comfortable andenable me to ride longer. I didn’t knowthat Pat had invented the perfect bare-back pad, so I purchased one from thelocal tack shop. When I arrived at theranch, I learned that all the students andinstructors had the day off and were ontheir way to Disney World. I was deter-mined to practice and look better whenPat came home. I decided to get Katie. Ithought she would be the perfect horseto practice alone with that day, becauseI felt comfortable with her. I outfittedKatie with a halter, lead rope and thetack store bareback pad. After playingthe Seven Games with her, I felt confi-dent enough to get on and ride. I justknew it would be a great day. Boy, was Iwrong!

We began with a nice, slow, amblingwalk, then all of a sudden she took off ata whistling-fast trot. The lead ropeslipped down off her neck, and there Iwas — trotting completely out of con-trol with the lead rope zipping along theground. To make matters worse, theonly way I knew how to stop a horsewas to bend her with the lead rope,which I no longer had in my possession.So there I was, gripping with my legs fordear life, reaching out in front of me totry to reach the rope. And to top that off,my energy — comprised totally by myfear — was at an all time high.Everything my body said to Katie was:Go faster! Which is exactly what she did.She took off at a huge, fast canter. Andwhat do I do? I grip harder! I give off

30 www.parelli.com

The LongRoad toAthensby Olympic Pentathlete Tracy Mattes

more energy! Katie is now even moreout of control, galloping at an unbeliev-able speed, all the while slipping andsliding in the mud from all the rain. Shesuddenly threw her head down, and Ilurched forward. I don’t know how Istayed on, but at that moment my headwas resting on her ears. Then she tookoff again at a full gallop, and againlaunched her head down. I just knewthis was it, the end of my equestriancareer. I flew right off her head, crashingto the ground. The fall wasn’t badbecause Katie’s head was so darned closeto the ground. What was bad, however,is that she never stopped running. I’mnot sure how I ended up under her, butshe ran right over me, stepping on myleft leg in the process.

Can you imagine how it felt to have1000 pounds of horse coming down onthe lower part of your leg, just above theankle? Whatever you imagine the actualevent was worse! I laid on the ground,writhing in pain, looking around forsomeone to help me. I knew I couldn’twalk, and the pain was pounding, butnone of that seemed to matter in themoment. All I kept thinking was, not myleg! Thoughts of the Olympic Gameskept flashing through my mind, andhow it would be all over if my leg wasfractured.

I finally got up and dragged myselfto the dining hall, where there was onelone student who immediately took meto the hospital. It was Sunday and therewas just one doctor available. Everyonethought I was crying because of thepain, but I was crying because I thoughtmy leg was broken. After six hours andmultiple X-rays, I learned there was nofracture. The doctor said I was very luckyit had rained so much, because whenKatie stepped on me, she pushed my legdown into the mud. He said if shewould have stepped on me on hardground, the pressure would have justshattered the bone. I missed six weeks oftraining. My leg turned black, blue andpurple from my foot up to the top of mycalf, and I still have a permanent inden-ture in my leg that is actually Katie’shoof print.

This experience left me a little shak-en, as you can imagine. I never saw

where Katie went after she ran over me.In fact, I never saw her again during thistrip.

When I returned to the Florida ISCsix weeks later, I was a little apprehen-sive about getting on a horse. That firstday there was a tournament for the stu-dents and Pat suggested I just gothrough the drills. To my surprise (anddismay), which horse do you think Patpaired me with? You guessed it — Katie!I remember that when I got her ready, Inever even looked her in the eye. I justkept saying to myself, ‘you made memiss six weeks of training and nowbecause of you I have to go to Europe tocompete.’ I know horses can sense whatthe rider is feeling, and Katie sure sensedwhat I was thinking of her. It was a mix-ture of fear and animosity. Of course shedid nothing I wanted her to do, and thethings I did manage to get her to dowere just half effort on her part. I rodeher the next few days in a saddle andsnaffle bit. She was as difficult as ever,and by the end of the week I was happyto not have to ride her again. I’m sureshe was happy to not have me as a rider, too.

You know the sayings, ‘Out of allbad comes good’ and ‘Everything hap-pens for a reason,’ which can be reallyannoying when things are going bad. Inmy case, these statements couldn’t havebeen more true. The accident with Katiecaused me to go to Italy (during myrecovery I missed competitions in theU.S., so I had to go to Europe to com-pete in order to qualify for theOlympics). That trip turned out to beone of the best tools of advancement forme. Not just in my riding with Parellistudent and international competitorLuca Moneta, but in the other foursports of the Pentathlon as well — espe-cially fencing. I learned things in Europethat I would have never learned had I

just stayed home to train and wait for aJune competition. They fence very dif-ferently in Europe (where the sport wasborn) than they do here in the UnitedStates. I was able to fence against thebest fencers in the world, which hashelped me tremendously in my trainingand competitions.

As fate would have it, the best thingto come from this experience involvedKatie.

It would be three months beforeKatie and I would meet again. To mysurprise, our encounters over the sum-mer would totally change everything.This horse would be my horse for theentire summer at the ISC in PagosaSprings. Although I would never haveguessed it at the time, Katie wouldbecome my greatest teacher, partner,learning tool, and even my very bestfriend. She would teach me things abouthorses and riding that I never knewexisted. She would help melt away allthe fears I ever had about riding freelywith an independent seat. This veryhorse that had heightened my fears,would now erase them as though theynever existed. She showed me what itwould feel like to fly! I was never afraidagain. She helped me believe in myselfand my riding abilities. I changed, andshe changed.

How this transformation happened,through Pat and his fantastic program,amazes me because it seems as though ittranspired like magic. I would neverhave guessed how much you could learnfrom these amazing animals. And Katie— of all horses on earth. v

The next issue of Savvy Times will featureTracy’s on-going quest for the gold, as we followher training and competitions throughout theworld. As we go to press, Tracy is leading all USfemale Pentathlete competitors. The final selec-tion of Olympic contenders occurs in June 2004.

January 2004 31

for simple ways to help others see and dothese new things. These are people whomake a fundamental change in ournature. This can lead to controversy andridicule for a very large part of any indi-vidual life. For us to now be able to learnfrom Pat Parelli, not simply watch himperform, required that he take this step. THE BIG QUESTION

The question now begs to be asked:What is the difference between thosewho play on the left side of the modelfrom those who achieve the labels of theright?

Larry Wilson, the originator of thismodel, would say that those on the righthave crossed a bridge. The name of thisbridge is The Silly Bridge.Stupid Simple

Smart Genius

Bright Brilliant====>SILLY BRIDGE ====>What is the Silly Bridge? The Silly

Bridge is the decision to NOT careabout what other people think duringthe time when you are learning! LEARNING BENEFITS FROM

RISKING SELF-IMAGE

Unfortunately, most of us are edu-cated away from crossing the Silly Bridge.It is not a good idea to look stupid inschool or in the workplace. That messageis made very clear from a very young age.We quickly get the game of “lookingsmart” to avoid the consequences thatfall on those who “look stupid.”

Of course, this is a good motive fordoing what you have to do to be smart,but it causes a fear of doing what is nec-essary to be more than smart. It causes usto not ask questions, to not practice withothers around who might help, to notvolunteer and to not experiment. We justdon’t want to look “silly.” It keeps usfrom achieving savvy!

Be very clear that if you make thechoice to learn, then looking silly, stu-pid, uncoordinated and slow is going tohappen. It is trying to avoid this thatcauses you to limit yourself to “smart.” Italso causes learning to be frustrating,anxiety provoking and unsatisfying. Youmay stop learning from occurring at all!

So, smart people are stuck. Brightpeople have it even worse! Imagine

achieving this glowing label from par-ents and teachers. How compelled wouldyou be to risk looking “silly” then? Notvery! This is one danger with the currentlabels of bright, gifted and high poten-tial. The message can be: Do whatever ittakes to “look good” which is very differ-ent from what you have to do to “begood.”

Learning benefits from a willingnessto risk your self-image. People who playon the right side of the bridge are willingto look “not cool” while in the process oflearning. I had a student once whowould not practice the piano when any-one was home. She was concerned thatshe was not very good and that embar-rassed her. Of course, this behavior wasnot going to help her get good either.And the really silly thing was that NOONE expected or needed her to be good!She’s a learner! The Silly Bridge Modelhelped her become a satisfied studentand very good pianist!

IN CLOSING

During my visit to the ISC this sum-mer the lessons of the Silly Bridge Modelwere vibrantly apparent. Some studentshad learning behaviors that allowedthem to take full advantage of what was

offered. Others just had never had theopportunity to learn the lesson that car-ing about what other people think pre-vents them from learning as fast and asmuch as they can.

When you next sign on to be a learn-er think about how important the issueof “appearance” is to you. If it matters alot then you might think about this as anadult with an important goal that mat-ters to you. You have the best models inlearning through Parelli. Pat, Linda andmany students truly cross the SillyBridge. They are the ones you see withsavvy.

Savvy lives on the other side of theSilly Bridge. v

Linda Parelli discovered the fascinatingworld of “accelerated learning” while attend-ing a multitude of courses and seminars with Dr. Stephanie Burns in Australia in the80’s. Stephanie’s development of the “OnLine Support” website (aka DB’s cabin) atparelli.com has been a major influence incatapulting Parelli students to new levels ofself-awareness and goal achievement. Formore information on Stephanie, her pub-lished works and interactive tools you canvisit www.stephanieburns.com.

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32 www.parelli.com

To those who know her and herwork, Stephanie Burns is something ofan icon. She has devoted her life toachieving a greater understanding ofthe learning process and what constitutes influential communication.

Originally trained as a computerengineer in the US Army, she startedher career as an educator designingand teaching programs on the practicaluse of computers.

Stephanie’s work in the fields oflearning and communication led her toAustralia. Her work has provided anunprecedented insight into why somany otherwise successful adults fail tosustain action when it comes to impor-tant goals – goals related to health andfitness, education, relationships, etc.

Stephanie Burns remains unique inher field due to her unquenchablethirst for understanding the how andwhy of learning. Her energy levels,combined with her knowledge of, andcommitment to the learning and com-munication process, are extraordinaryand clearly distinguish her from othersin the education arena.

Savvy Lives on the Other Side of the Silly Bridge Continued from Page 11

“These days it is so hard to know what todo for our horses in terms of their best

care, and I take very seriously my role inintroducing to you the things we know

work. They are what we have been usingwith proven results that you can trust.”

— Linda Parelli

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PAIDProvo, UT

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Parelli Natural Horse•Man•ShipPO Box 3729 Pagosa Springs, CO 81147

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