Buck Brannaman – Clinic Reflections

I am continually amazed at the depth and breadth of his understanding about horses. Mostly based of course on the time he spent with Ray Hunt and Tom Dorrance but he has taken some of those ideas even further.

The four days were spent listening to him explain a concept and then giving us exercises to practice. Hard stuff but extremely useful. Wide serpentines, short serpentines, power direction changes, instant gait changes, leg yields at different gaits, backing in circles, directing and swinging front feet with the reins, everything at an extremely soft feel. He’s engaged the whole time, watching, suggesting, correcting what you are doing. And there are more than a few great stories.

Everything he does is centered on the horse. He talked about how he puts the stirrup just next to the horse, not actually touching, and expects his horse to yield to the “pressure”. Talk about a soft feel! That takes a lot of practice my friends. I think it is best summed up in his statement “I want to become the best rider I can to honor the horse.” It’s a simply beautiful challenge to all of us.

I learned more in those four days than at any other clinic I’ve been to. If you ever get a chance to audit or attend his work I highly recommend it.

And thanks to John and Cat Parks at Trinity Ranch for hosting it! Cat posted some great observations about the clinic after it was over that I’d like to share. I think it will give you a sense of how special it was.

“Our 4 day Buck Brannaman Clinic just came to a close. Every time Buck heads down the road, John and I have an enormous opportunity for reflection as riders, clinic hosts, and on a personal level.

“Thank you to our riders. We are overwhelmed by your ability to embrace quality horsemanship. You haul extreme distances to get here. You work quietly in the early morning and late into the night. You are attentive and ask good questions. Watching doors open as your understanding grows and your finesse develops over the course of 4 days is beyond inspirational. Thank you for recognizing the value that Buck is sharing with you. More importantly, your horses thank you, too.

“Thank you to our auditors. We are incredibly blessed to be included in some of the auditor’s personal stories; thank you for sharing your lives with us in person and through email. I have seen a 75 year old rancher brought to tears by watching Buck ride his bridle horse. I watched a complete stranger give a rider a compliment that meant far more to the rider than he will ever know. I saw an 11yo girl filled with hope and on cloud nine for getting a hug from Buck. We had auditors fly here from Chile and Norway. We had an auditor get released from the hospital for one day to watch the clinic as she is struggling to fight the rejection of her kidney transplant. Thank you for making whatever sacrifice you had to in order to join us.

“Last but not least, thank you to Buck. Thank you for spending 40 weeks a year on the road to share your knowledge with all of us. Words cannot say enough.”

The arena

Several hundred auditors

Eager students – Kevan Saunders (red dun), Cat Parks (black), not sure of the next person, Piar Marks (bay), Juliette Watt (chestnut), John Parks (gray), David Hanzlick (gray) and I can’t tell who the last rider is

Me with my horse Pecos (Photo by Linda Carson)

Betsy Sherman with her great Fresian horse Willem

Cat Roberts Parks

Buck explaining about the different tack he uses

Fabian Saak

Buck Brannaman and John Parks (Photo by Kim Reis)

Buck (photo by Kim Reis)