Archive for the "Rex Peterson" Category
Brownie Wins NJ Horse Park Judged Trail Ride
Brownie ridden by Joa Sigsbee wins his first attempt at a judged trail ride at the NJ Horse Park. He proves his willingness and athletic prowess by successfully maneuvering around many obstacles such as dragging an alligator behind him in the water obstacle, allowing his rider to lasso a steer, playing stick ball with a large excercise ball, walking through a curtain of rope, walking over a tarp and strange piece of material, being flagged from the ground and allowing Joa to mount and dismount in the middle of the course among many other strange and unusual obstacles. He proved his willingness and kind attitude toward negotiating all of the tasks required, achieving the highest score of all the junior riders. Check out the alligator water obstacle
Horse Training Tips
Does your horse have perfect ground manners? Does he listen to you and respond IMMEDIATELY to your request? Is your horse happy in his work? Do you cross train him to build up multiple muscle groups? Does your horse stop on command in any situation? If not, check out solutions to common horse training solutions.
“Secretariat” Back in the Press with New Disney Film
Pete Axthelm, who never saw a racetrack he did not wish to attend, glided across the typing turf.
“Secretariat generates a crackling tension and excitement wherever he goes,” Axthelm wrote. “Even in the kind of gray weather that shrouds lesser animals in anonymity, Secretariat’s muscular build identifies him immediately; his glowing reddish coat is a banner of health and rippling power. Magnificent enough at rest … when he accelerates … he produces a breathtaking explosion that leaves novices and hardened horsemen alike convinced that, for one of those moments that seldom occur in any sport, they have witnessed genuine greatness.”
Rex Peterson is the Horse Trainer on “Secretariat” currently filming on location.
Photo by Ken Regan-Camera Five
Jonathan Groff Rides with the Centaur
A “Taking Woodstock” reunion at Windrock Farm, Jonathan Groff (Michael Lang) and LuAnn Claps, the make-up artist from Taking Woodstock visit for an autumn ride. Jonathan had not been on a horse since the day of shooting him riding RJ in the mud field on the set. LuAnn loved Allez who was a perfect gentleman.
“Secretariat” Filming in Lexington, KY
Here is the view from the grandstands at Keenland in Lexington, KY where Disney is filming scenes for “Secretariat”. Dean Semler (“The Cowboy Way”, “Appaloosa”, Dances with Wolves”) set up several cameras on the track to shoot various scenes of the movie. Dean is a master of using several cameras to capture several scenes with one set up. Hundreds of extras showed up to fill the grandstands for the shot of the Belmont win. Several horses portray Secretariat depending on the shot, some are better for the close up shots and others are fast runners. Randy Wallace (“Braveheart”) directs Diane Lane who stars as Penny Tweedy and John Malkovich as the trainer. Rex Peterson is the Horse Trainer working with Rusty Hendrickson, Horse Wrangler. Over 30 horses are being used for the film, with several stepping in to portray the uber-athlete Secretariat.
Congratulations Belladora Second at Devon Dressage
Bella proves she is a winner, she was second in the 3 year old Materiale class at the Devon Dressage Show with a score of 71.5%, losing by only one tenth a percentage point. The judge Anne Gribbons commented that she showed an outstanding temperament and excellent obedience. I was very pleased with how she handled the atmosphere with the composure of a seasoned veteran.
Bella also took a fifth place, the highest placed filly in the 3 year old suitability class and was beaten by four outstanding stallions. She drew a large crowd in the warm up arena and received many compliments from the competition.
What is a Judged Trail Ride?
Last weekend we took a drive to the New Jersey Horse Park to compete in a Judged Trail Ride. We were lucky to stay with our friends Sandy and Ryan Gaum who live nearby.
This event was held at the New Jersey Horse Park on the cross country course with 15 stations where we were judged on how we accomplished the task at hand. Most of the stations were comprised of situations you may encounter on a trail ride such as jumping over a fallen tree, walking over a tarp, walking over a bridge that moves, dismounting and flagging your horse, roping a calf, walking by scary obstacles etc…. Nearly one hundred horses showed up for the annual event, including english and western riders.
I rode Black Gold, RJ’s 3 year old filly who has barely a month of training and she finished an astonishing fourth place! Nothing seemed to phase her as she tackled each obstacle and situation with patience and grace. Joa rode Brownie and Lauren rode Peadar who also performed very well.
This was such a fun event to take any horse to, I would encourage everyone to participate in a Judged Trail Ride with their horse to test their skills and training of their horse. It is also a wonderful experience for any horse to get out in an atmosphere with lots of activity.