grading

Grading System for Horse and Rider Suitability

We pride ourselves on matching horse and rider. We want everyone to have a successful
relationship with their horse. I have a "grading" system for each horse, that shows what level of rider's
experience is suited for each horse. This is not a perfect system, and I don't use it as so. This is
simply me telling you my opinion on who the horse is suited for and, as such, my grading might not be
what someone else would grade the horse.

I get many emails and calls where the customer will ask me if the horse is "deadbroke", "childbroke",
or "bombproof".    First...let me say that I rarely ever say a horse is those things. I feel it is misleading,
and there is no way I can predict how a horse will behave in the future. I would be rich if I could! If
you ever see me describing a horse with those words, believe me, that horse has been utterly perfect
and has totally impressed me!

I rarely rate a horse "Beginner". I usually rate my very broke horses "Advanced Beginner". I am
particular and very picky about the horses I deem suitable for Beginners. The tests I put the horses
through are very picky, precise and hard. So just because I rated the horse Advanced Beginner....
don't assume the horse has problems...it's me with the problems! The horses that I think are
Beginner safe would probably be suitable for therapeutic programs, that is how stringent I am about
saying the horse is Beginner safe.

My younger horses (5 and under) that are riding very well I will generally grade suitable for
Intermediate and Up simply because the younger horses obviously need more time and work, and I
think you should be an Intermediate Rider in order to have the knowledge and experience to provide
that. If I say the horse is for an Intermediate Rider, that does not mean the horse bucks, rears, bolts
or is any way difficult to ride and handle.   We DO NOT sell horses that have issues like that.

Horses that I rate Advanced Rider are not problem horses. They don't have issues. It may be that
they are finished performance horses that the Beginner or Intermediate Riders possibly wouldn't be
experienced enough to successfully use the necessary cues or aids to achieve the correct result. Or
perhaps the horse has more energy than the average rider would be comfortable with.

Finally, let me say that In no way do I judge the buyer...this grading system is in place to help
YOU figure out what horse is right for you! And as I mentioned above...this system is not
perfect and may not always be accurate.

My definitions:

Beginner Rider:   One who can guide the horse around a little from the saddle but doesn't
really know enough about the cues to use them effectively. One who still needs to work on
seat, timing, and balance.

Intermediate Rider: One who totally understands all the basic cues, has a good sense of
balance & timing & a good seat. She will also have a good grasp on getting transitions from
one gait to another done smoothly and effectively.

Advanced Rider: One who can use independent aids and move certain parts of the horse's
body independently from the rest. One who can collect the horse and get him to lighten his
front end while shifting his weight to the hind quarters. This type of rider can rate the
horse at any speed and keep the horse under control at all times.