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Testimonials |
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Not Easily Impressed
Two years ago we bought our 12-year-old
daughter,
Lizzie, a horse. This event was not entered into lightly. Though I, her
mom, had never grown up with horses, I had some when I was in my early
twenties. Now considerably older and non-the less wiser, I decided that
if we were going to make it through the teenage years she and we needed
something outside of ourselves.
So we found ANNIE. Annie is an 8-year-old Arab-Quarter cross. My
daughter and her hit it off instantly. Annie had some Parelli training
and I liked the idea of doing something more that just getting on your
horse and riding it. So, off we went with Annie to barrel racing and
gymkhana events. Now mind you, my daughter had maybe 6 months of riding
before we bought Annie. The other thing about my daughter is that she
is a phenomenal rider and has a natural affinity with horses.
After several gymkhana events we realized that we have a high
performance Ferrari on our hands. My daughter and Annie continue their
love affair and we continue to work hard and learn Parelli.
We now are on our way to the Gymkhana State Championship. So here we
are armed with our Parelli training and our Parelli bit going to a
weeklong event with about 400 riders where 95% of them want to do one
thing. GO FAST ! In one word, the place is NUTS. As I watch my daughter
ride, with my heart in my stomach, I realize that at this moment in
time, nothing, including all of our training is going to stop Annie
from going fast. I also know that scratching our daughter from the
event would do some serious psychological damage. On the third day, Liz
zigged and Annie zagged and off she went. I was over that fence in a
nanosecond. She was OK but I wasn't. Someone came running up to us and
offered to help. Now, we were at a decision point. Keep our daughter
safe or scratch her. I opted for the former. We now changed our rigging
to make up for what we lacked in control. I also told my daughter that
we were going to do some serious training with Annie after this because
this was not fair to her and it went against my grain. We made it
through the week and finished the event with lots of experiential
knowledge.
Back at home, we realize that Annie has one speed and that is FAST. She
does not have maintenance of gait and that if we do not do something
soon, she will not be a safe horse for Liz. Our search is on for a
Parelli instructor. We move our horses (now mom has one of her own) to
Moon Valley Ranch.
There is one word to describe Deb and that is phenomenal. What you have
to understand is that I am not easily impressed. What impresses me the
most is how Deb works with my daughter. Lizzie is Dyslexic and goes to
a special school to understand how she learns differently. Deb will
work with our horse then have Liz mimic her.
<>Though we are not through with our training and won't be for
quite a while, we now have maintenance of gait and on Annie that is a
wonder. But this is much more than that. The environment at Moon Valley
Ranch is supportive and nurturing. It is a wonderful place to watch and
learn. She and I have learned so much from watching Deb teach and from
listening to her.
The Parelli method has had a profound impact on my daughter's
confidence in herself and her ability to communicate with others
including horses. The structure of the program allows for Liz to
comprehend AND understand what she is doing. It parallels how she
learns in school.
What I like about Deb is that she is passionate about what she is
doing. That passion and enthusiasm is rare in today's world and is
something to cherish and hold closely.
Thank you for your program and for Deb. My daughter's new goal is to
pass her level 3 and become an instructor. So don't be surprised if you
see the name Lizzie Cupples showing up on roster someday.
Sincerely,
Marilyn and Jim Cupples