Cari Swanson

When the Dressage Arena Becomes Routine, Join the Cowboys out West

Training Horses for a Swedish Horse Racing Commercial

Training Actors to Ride

photo credit:  Phyllis Burchett

I am training Ray Stevenson, the actor who rides in Jayne Mansfield’s Car, a new film written, directed and acted in by Billy Bob Thorton.  Ray learned in a few days how to steer and ride Mr. T for the the scene where he gallops across a sunflower field with his new love interest.  Ray was an excellent student and learned to ride balanced quickly after many exercises like this one where he moves his arm independently of his seat.

Meet Mr. T and RJ at The Meadow Park, Doswell, VA

RJ and Mr. T will be giving a demo at 2pm at the Meadow Horse Park in Doswell, VA as part of the 40th year Birthday Bash for the amazing Big Red, Secretariat.  Come visit the park and meet us in the stables, or at the arena.  Check for upcoming demos and clinics on our web site  Swanson Peterson Producions

How Does Your Horse See You?

Your horse should see you as the leader of the herd.  From the moment you snap the lead rope on the halter, he should be paying attention to you and respecting your space.  A common error we find is that people let their horse walk past them, on them, push into them, try to nip them for treats and ignore the handler’s personal space.  How your horse reponds to you on the ground will translate under saddle.  If he ignores you light tug to slow down and stay behind you while walking to the paddock, he will ignore your half halts and leg aids.  Set the tone immediately, and be the boss.

Establish rules and laws.  There must be consequences if these rules are broken or the trouble begins and soon your horse will take over.  Remember that you set the tone for your relationship and if you want a safe, confident, respectful horse, you must lay down the law and enforce them at the beginning.

Teaching Kids to Ride

Vanessa rides Tony with Cari on Allez and Lauren on a late summer afternoon.  Learning to ride with excellent balance and rhythm at Windrock Farm.  You can never start too early.  Learning correct basics from the beginning will result in a skilled confident rider.

Fiona demonstrates her talent for trick riding on Goldie with Rex on Mr. T, just back from filming on location in Texas.   Seven Days in Utopia (2011) is a new film about a professional golfer who finds himself on a horse ranch and Mr. T had a scene in a rain storm rearing to drop a stunt rider doubling for the principal actress.  T is back in New York for another day on Arthur (2011), a film we worked on this summer with Jennifer Garner and Russell Brand.

Kids Riding at Windrock Farm

Learning to ride is fun, especially at Windrock Farm when one of the trainers is the man who trained the horses for The Horse Whisperer.  Rex has a special gift teaching kids to be confident and accomplish goals they never dreamed of.  Here is Fiona standing on RJ’s four year old filly after a long hack at Wethersfield.

Working on the Set of Arthur

Cari and Rex working with Mr. T and Lizard on the set of Arthur in Long Island.  The weather held out for the filming to be a success.  Every scene had three cameras on to maximize the coverage for each set up.  The horses worked well and the actors progressively improved with their riding skills as the day progressed.  The film stars Jennifer Garner and Russell Brand.

Rearing Horses for Film

We have to rear Mr. T for an upcoming scene in a film with the two main actors on the horse.  To demonstrate how easy this is on a well schooled horse, we put a novice young rider behind Cari in the saddle and asked T to stand up.  He lifts up effortlessly and waits for Rex to let him down.  There will also be stunt doubles for the main actors if they are not comfortable with the scene.

Opening Night at Bard Summerscape

Bard Summerscape is like a rural version of the Next Wave Festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. It brings together visual and performing artists as both presenters and audience, creating a cultural center of gravity for the Hudson Valley.  Rex is visiting from California and met up with a colleague, David Straithearn.  They worked together on the film Temple Grandin.