Class Act Farm

We can never get enough of watching enthusiastic young students enjoy and learn from our wonderful ponies 😍. Today was Emma Cate getting paired with our beloved “ Conner” ( Gigi and Alex’s wonderful Connemara Conway Lad). I personally have so much respect for our incredible horses and ponies that just share so much joy to so many people and children 🙏❤️😍🙏

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/zTceS1UC9R7AT3mQ/?mibextid=ox5AEW

9 Facts About Perfectionism: A mindset that must be unlearned or will ultimately bring your riding down 🧠

1. Every rider makes mistakes, even the best of the best.
It’s an unavoidable, universal experience and all a part of the sport.

2. Mistakes are learning opportunities.
You can grow from them and become better because of them.

3. Hyper-focusing on mistakes helps them happen.
They both become a self-fulfilling prophecy and take your focus away from your ride.

4. Mistakes mean you’re on the right track.
You can’t improve, learn, overcome challenges, and level up without them.

5. It’s not what happened but how you move forward from it that matters the most.
Moving on from the mistake matters more than the mistake itself.

6. Mistakes are temporary.
Work to fix and put them in the past instead of dwelling and allowing them to stick around.

7. Mistakes don’t define you.
You may have had a bad ride, but that doesn’t mean you’re a bad rider.

8. Social media only shows highlights.
Everyone is struggling whether they post about it or not.

9. Perfect doesn’t exist.
It’s impossible to meet unattainable expectations.

A perfectionist mindset and a lack of an ability to accept mistakes will do much more harm than good for an athlete’s mental performance. Mistakes are a normal part of sport and life. Everyone makes mistakes no matter how talented of an athlete they may be. Since perfect doesn’t exist, holding yourself to an unrealistic standard will only set you up for disappointment every ride. Instead, give yourself permission to make mistakes, using them to your advantage by viewing them as valuable feedback and learning opportunities. Refer to this post whenever you begin to feel hard on yourself, and remember that you are not alone! 🏇🏽💭✨
www.mindalignperformance.com

🦄💕

Took advantage of PoP’s schooling day to get us ready for tomorrow such fabulous opportunity to get in the rings and xc.
And EVERYONE was Super.

Morning feeding 🌞

Congratulations Hali and Thule for zooming around your first event together. Looking Amazing 👏🤩

❤️

When you finally turn double digits 😱. and we all Love you Addie

https://www.facebook.com/share/vxCfbeoQJrbcnUbK/?mibextid=ox5AEW

‘This is happening’: UK hobby horse movement grows as +100 enter championship - Horse & Hound The hobby horse movement is gaining momentum in Britain – with more than 100 people already entered for a championship show this autumn. Arena UK is to host the first Hobby Horse of the Year event on 17 November, organised by the British Hobby Horse Competition Club, and entries have been pouring ...

https://www.facebook.com/share/xjAaA8xsm6Q2W7rW/?mibextid=ox5AEW

Read , let it sink in, then read again :

“No. 1. Get your tack and equipment just right, and then forget about it and concentrate on the horse.

No. 2. The horse is bigger than you are, and it should carry you. The quieter you sit, the easier this will be for the horse.

No. 3. The horse's engine is in the rear. Thus, you must ride your horse from behind, and not focus on the forehand simply because you can see it.

No. 4. It takes two to pull. Don't pull. Push.

No. 5. For your horse to be keen but submissive, it must be calm, straight and forward.

No. 6. When the horse isn`t straight, the hollow side is the difficult side.

No. 7. The inside rein controls the bending, the outside rein controls the speed.

No. 8. Never rest your hands on the horse's mouth. You make a contract with it: "You carry your head and I'll carry my hands."

No. 10. Once you've used an aid, put it back.

No. 11. You can exaggerate every virtue into a defect.

No. 12. Always carry a stick, then you will seldom need it.

No. 13. If you`ve given something a fair trial, and it still doesn't work, try something else—even the opposite.

No. 14. Know when to start and when to stop. Know when to resist and when to reward.

No. 15. If you're going to have a fight, you pick the time and place.

No. 16. What you can't accomplish in an hour should usually be put off until tomorrow.

No. 17. You can think your way out of many problems faster than you can ride your way out of them.

No. 18. When the horse jumps, you go with it, not the other way around.

No. 19. Don`t let over-jumping or dull routine erode the horse's desire to jump cleanly. It's hard to jump clear rounds if the horse isn't trying.

No. 20. Never give up until the rail hits the ground.

No. 21. Young horses are like children—give them a lot of love, but don't let them get away with anything.

No. 22. In practice, do things as perfectly as you can; in competition, do what you have to do.

No. 23. Never fight the oats.

No. 24. The harder you work, the luckier you get."

~Bill Steinkraus

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/zRrTJqNPSsayMC3N/?mibextid=ox5AEW

Things your riding instructor wants you to know:
1. This sport is hard. You don't get to bypass the hard…..every good rider has gone through it. You make progress, then you don't, and then you make progress again. Your riding instructor can coach you through it, but they cannot make it easy.

2. You're going to ride horses you don't want to ride. If you're teachable, you will learn from every horse you ride. Each horse in the barn can teach you if you let them. IF YOU LET THEM. Which leads me to…

3. You MUST be teachable to succeed in this sport. You must be teachable to succeed at anything, but that is another conversation. Being teachable often means going back to basics time and time and time again. If you find basics boring, then your not looking at them as an opportunity to learn. Which brings me to…..

4. This sport is a COMMITMENT. Read that, then read it again. Every sport is a commitment, but in this sport your teammate weighs 1200 lbs and speaks a different language. Good riders don't get good by riding every once in awhile….they improve because they make riding a priority and give themsevles opportunity to practice.

5. EVERY RIDE IS AN OPPORTUNITY. Even the walk ones. Even the hard ones. Every. Single. Ride. Remember when you just wished someone would lead you around on a horse? Find the happiness in just being able to RIDE. If you make every ride about what your AREN'T doing, you take the fun out of the experience for yourself, your horse, and your instructor. Just enjoy the process. Which brings me to...

6. Riding should be fun. It is work. and work isn't always fun.....but if you (or your rider) are consistently choosing other activities or find yourself not looking forward to lessons, it's time to take a break. The horses already know you don't want to be here, and you set yourself up for failure if you are already dreading the lesson before you get here.

7. You'll learn more about horses from the ground than you ever will while riding. That's why ground lessons are important, too. If you're skipping ground lessons (or the part of your lesson that takes place on the ground), you're missing out on the most important parts of the lesson. You spend far more time on the ground with horses than you do in the saddle.

8. Ask questions and communicate. If you're wondering why your coach is having you ride a particular horse or do an exercise, ask them. Then listen to their answer and refer to #3 above.

9. We are human beings. We make decisions (some of them life and death ones) every day. We balance learning for students with workloads for horses and carry the bulk of this business on our shoulders. A little courtesy goes a long way.

Of all the sports your child will try through their school years, riding is one of 3 that they may continue regularly as adults (golf and skiing are the others). People who coach riding spend the better part of their free time and much of their disposable income trying to improve their own riding and caring for the horses who help teach your child. They love this sport and teaching others…..but they all have their limits. Not all good riders are good coaches, but all good coaches will tell you that the process to get good is not an easy one.

*thank you to whoever wrote this! Not my words, but certainly a shared sentiment!

Our special Easter “egg” hunt. Everyone welcome. There might even be some money involved. 😉

The Easter Bunny 🐰 race won by the Class Act Team and its friends @ TerraNova Equestrian Center

Big Congratulations to the new owners of Chuckles. A Wonderful horse can’t wait to see him back in the show ring. Thank You Stacey Reeser for finding him his people

These three made my morning 😍

https://www.facebook.com/share/42wj4ErVrGz3rA8x/?mibextid=ox5AEW

Huge Congratulations to this sweet little girl on getting partnered with our Lovely CoCo Chanel. I believe it was Love at first sight for both. We have Loved having CoCo here and Miranda have learned SO much on her. We Can’t wait to get updates from these two 😍 And Thank you Payton for doing a wonderful job ❤️

2024 Horsemastership Clinic: Katie Prudent Uses Gymnastics To Build Thinking Riders - The Chronicle of the Horse Standing in the midst of her gymnastics course, show jumping legend Katie Prudent put her hand up to her purple visor to block out the sun as she squinted up at six young riders trotting around her. Her floral shirt blew in the warm breeze, and she took a deep breath before she spoke. 

Christmas is my Favorite time of the year. And this Christmas feels even more special than the last….
I would like to share two stories but will start with
Sunshine our WONDERFUL pony who has had us worried for some time not having a great appetite ( and anyone knows her knows she is usually a Hoover;). Ended with a bad fever/colic and since something not right for a bit we took her straight to the clinic and by end of the day she went for surgery. At 20 yr I’m planning on having her for another 10 at least. The surgeon believes that her older teeth not able to fully chew and it had clumped up in her intestines. Luckily with his help and a changed diet she is now feeling fantastic so a little Christmas modeling was appropriate we thought

This is a special request to my friends and maybe their friends. I have a very dear horse/animal loving friend that enjoyed her last partner into his 30’s !!! We sadly lost him a couple of weeks ago and I’m hoping to find her next best friend . Has to be sane !!! I do not want her to worry about getting dumped on a regular basis. She is retired so I’m hoping you have a horse that you love but can’t keep up with what he used to but would still love a job with basic dressage. Extremely good care with awesome Christmas pics sent in your future. Please pm me 🙏
Mostly looking for a care lease or just a promise of love and care

Let’s get going 😉

Teacher work day at school equals full work day at the farm 😉. Jumps washed and painted. Halloween 🎃 decorations and brand new jump courses in both clay and grass rings. And of course we had to give them a test run as Thanks for job well done 🏇🏻