What do teaching and whip cracking have in common? At Vista Verde, it’s all part of a grand plan from the folks who head up the barn.
Mary and Sam had a lot of time to think about the summer program as they tossed out hay to the horses day after day this winter, and they have all sorts of great ideas brewed up for the horse program!
It starts with day one of staff orientation and how they are planning on training the wranglers, followed by in-depth wrangler clinics throughout the season. The goal of all this is to take the riding history of each wrangler, help them find a way to share that knowledge better with our guests, and then take them further along in their horsemanship skills, so every wrangler is a better teacher and horseperson.
Capitalizing on the unique backgrounds of each wrangler and recognizing that there are so many areas of horses and ranching that we don’t get to dive into with our guests, Mary and Sam are also putting together a new event to showcase all things ranching. From learning to crack a whip and swing a rope, to understanding proper saddle fit and examining conformation, to learning what to look for when purchasing a horse, to showcasing our wranglers’ special skills, this event will allow guests to experience the diversity of horses and ranching.
Mary and Sam have also been busy this past winter getting several of our young colts started under saddle and ready to go out on the trail and learn the ropes of being a ranch horse. Wingo, Scout, Charm, and Wesson are all well on their way, and a few older project horses who had been sitting on the back burner are turning into nice mounts ready to enter the riding string. With the addition of 5 new horses already this spring, and another sale on the horizon, we have a number of up and coming horses for you all to try out!