Nicole Haunert dominates early Markel series grand prix

Special to the Horsetrader

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO—An enthusiastic crowd enjoyed a beautiful Southern California afternoon, cheering on 19 entries at the April 13 $25,000 Markel Insurance Grand Prix. After five went clear and advanced to the jump-off, Nicole Haunert and Concolue, owned by Cherokee Show Horses Inc., topped the field. Making the day extra special, she also placed second aboard Jamaico Drum van de Breepoel, owned by NJK Show Jumpers.

From Horsetrader sales staff

Come ride and learn with “The Six Million Dollar Man,” world-renowned reiner Shawn Flarida, when he comes to Southern California May 11-12 for a two-day clinic at Hansen Dam Horse Park in Lake View Terrace. Flarida is known not only for being the man in the green shirt, but also as the man winning the green: He’s the first to top the $6 million mark in earnings and also is the National Reining Horse Association’s all-time leading money-earner. His accolades include winning the NRHA Open Futurity championship six times and winning the All-American Quarter Horse Congress Futurity 11 times.

This special clinic will be presented by Ariat, LEGISequine.com, Foran Performance Horses, and Langer Equestrian Group. Professionals will ride May 11, with non-pros on the following day. Cost is $450 per day, with auditors welcome for $50 per day or $80 for the weekend. Each rider will receive lunch and two one-day audit passes, and the first fifty auditors will receive gift bags with a $25 online gift certificate to Ariat. Stalls and RV space are available. Contact Marnye@langershows.com for more information, or call (818) 563-3250, ext. 6. See ad on page 21.

Western States Horse Expo has been a fixture at Cal Expo for the last 20 years—two decades of bringing the horse industry together for a June weekend of education, entertainment and shopping. This year, the West Coast’s largest equestrian expo will move east about 15 miles to a new home, the beautiful Murieta Equestrian Center, and founder Miki Nelsen has more “newness” in store for 2019.

Miki, you’ve been an innovator since you began the Horse Expo, but this year you’ve really retooled.

I am excited. Very excited, actually. Moving to Rancho Murieta is a big change, but I feel very much at home at the facility. I think everyone will because it’s very horsey. Just the feeling of being around there—it has a festival vibe. It’s outside, beautiful, clean, landscaped with trees. It’s a world class horse facility that is beautifully built and well maintained.

I’m also very excited about Equus Masters—a brand new format.

How is it different?

There are four “Masters”, who will each select and train a halter-broke Mustang. The three judges, Pat Parelli, Chris Cox and Eitan Halachmy, will point out what they are seeing—or not seeing—along the way, in real time.

Another difference is the motivation—it isn’t money! The motivation is doing the right thing on the horse, and also to educate people to do the right thing. We want our audience to get some good education out of this.

The Mustangs are from the R3C Wild Horse Program, and the person who runs the program will also be “miked up” to give history and insight into the horses.

What’s the goal of the training?

That’s just it—there’s no end goal. Each trainer will have to determine what that goal is after they get acquainted with the horse. The prize will be the same for all four trainers—that there is going to be a lot of people watching them and seeing them in action and seeing what their priorities are. These horses are going to dish up challenges—different things and no one knows what they will be, including the trainer. It will be up to the trainer how they handle it. It’s going to be good. It’s going to be real. The judges will be giving their commentary while this is unfolding.

World-class MEC is a perfect Expo fit

RANCHO MURIETA—This will be a year of innovation for the Western States Horse Expo, which has always found thoughtful ways to stimulate its attendees, vendors and clinicians over the past two decades at Cal Expo in Sacramento. There’s the Equus Masters, a format conceived by founder Miki Nelsen along with clinic headliners Pat Parelli and Chris Cox. Among the fresh line-up also will be a new SANA West Rare Breeds Show, an NCDC Combined Driving Event, an NRHA Reining Boot Camp, plus a longer list of vendors—some not seen in years, and there will even be a food truck festival, complete with live music.

Full classes, international flair start season

Special to the Horsetrader

CORNING—Weather was the concern heading into the first affiliate show for the West Coast Reining Horse Association held March 1-3. Record amounts of snow over the Sierra Nevada had resulted in road closures, which made it impossible for eastern members from Nevada to attend. However, massive rain and high floods in the northwestern part of the state didn’t impede competitors from coming—it just took them a little longer than usual to make the drive to the show, held for the third year at the Rolling Hills Equestrian Center.

This exercise (“Exercise 5”) allows Les to find out if his zones will work together. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t; if they don’t you have to fix it.

Lots of signals in different directions

Aim for no resistance and good energy flow

What else is exercise # 5 good for? Develops muscles, tendons and ligaments for stopping on one side at a time

Making a horse relax

When you have control of all four zones, especially the head and neck, you can use this maneuver to take any tension out of the horse.

How much should you use this? 20–30 times a day is not unreasonable. If you’re getting stuck, identify the problem part and then work on it by itself. Then sneak from that exercise back into #5; the Columbo approach.

By Sheryl Lynde | Horsetrader columnist

Whether starting a youngster or working with a troubled horse, training takes time. The minimum time I will take a 2-year-old for starting under saddle is 90 days. The older the horse, add an additional month to the 90 days for each year older than two.

For instance, a 4-year old would need a minimum of five months. Yes, it is an expense—good trainers aren’t cheap (cheap trainers aren’t good). But your youngster’s foundation is not something to cut corners on. If there is a hole in the training, you may not find it tomorrow, but there will be a day that it will make itself known, and hopefully you will not be caught unaware.

Special to the Horsetrader

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO—Coming into the handy round in third place, young professional Jamie Sailor moved up to win the $15,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby aboard Hopeful, owned by Astrid Van Leeuwen. Both horse and rider earned their first derby victories. The pair finished with a two-round total of 370.5 points, while Karli Postel rode Get Rowdy, owned by Teton Farms, to a second-place finish with 368 points.