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Would you like to pay a tribute to Bruce?
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us your stories and memories.
And photographs, if you have any.
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Horseytalk.net Special Interview
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“Bruce Logan has a really different approach
to horses. You can see that he believes in understanding
each individual one that he works with which makes time
at a clinic so interesting as you can see him working
with other peoples young horses and also sorting out
the problems that older ones may have.
I took my two year old Hanoverian Rocky to be started
by Bruce at his clinic in Isfield.
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Rocky started the week
being really worried about the saddle and his answer
to this was either to 'plant himself' or speed! Over
the week you could see his confidence growing and by
the end he was calmly walking and trotting with Bruce
in the round pen. After work he spent the time happily
munching or laying down in his straw bed - a lot of
thinking seemed to be going on.
The great thing for me was getting
on Rocky myself this week (to the accompanyment of a
mexican wave from watching friends) We have a long way
to go but this start was everything I could wish for. "
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Monty Roberts. Pat Parelli. Bruce Logan.
Ask 100 riders who are the greatest horsemen in the world.
Chances are all three will either be the top three or,
at least, in the top five.
Monty Roberts because he
seems to be recognised as the original horse whisperer, the
man who invented “join-up” and the whole idea
of equine body language.
Pat Parelli because of
his emphasis on bonding with horses and understanding their
patterns of behaviour.
Bruce Logan because he
believes in blending psychology with riding techniques to
give the horse the freedom to be itself, to calmly utilise
its own mind, body and feet.
“I would like to teach the world to ride horses the
way horses want to be ridden,” he says.
Bruce, who like Monty Roberts and Pat Parelli is a regular
visitor to the UK, was recently running one of his famous
courses at Isfield, East Sussex.
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There he spoke exclusively to Horseytalk.net
about his background, his life and his philosophy about horses.
“I was virtually born in the saddle,” he says. “My
family had a 7,000 acre ranch in Colorado.
“My father was famous for training cutting horses,
the horses that cut into a herd of cattle, take one out and
keep it out.
“I didn’t have a chance to not love horses. It
was in my blood.
“I probably sat on my first horse when I was three
or four years-old. By the time I was 12 I was winning competitions
for riding cutting horses. At 13, I broke in my first cutting
horse. I seemed to have the knack for it. After that, that
was my job on the ranch.”
Since then Bruce reckons he’s broken in or started
, as they say in the States, thousands of colts, developed
an equal number of Performance horses and taken part in thousands
of shows in the US specialising in Cutting and Reining Cow
Horse disciplines.
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At the same time, he has travelled the world with his wife,
Storm organising and running workshops and training sessions
promoting his unique philosophy of horsemanship:
Allowing the horse to figure out the correct way to efficiently
and calmly utilize ‘his’ mind, body and feet.
A fundamental difference, Bruce says, between ‘Developing
Foundation’ and ‘Training Foundation’ is
that development gives the horse responsibilities to maintain
and choices to make. The horses’ attention and mind
is, therefore, always connected to the rest of his body,
and connected back to the rider. It is a two way communication
where the horse stays mentally engaged and is allowed to
get smarter; just like any of us do when we are allowed to
figure things out or think for ourselves!
Bruce also works with challenging horses and restarts, helping
horses find responses as opposed to reactions. His aim
is to remove problem patterns and behaviors from the horse’s
vocabulary! Whether bucking, biting or bolting, a challenging
horse is offered a horsemanship with feel with Bruce, and
a consistent time, experience and education before returning
home. Owners are welcomed to his family ranch for one to
one guidance by Bruce as to the specific needs of their own horse.
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Bruce’s favourite horse at the moment is called Joker.
He is a quarter horse. A stallion. Five-years-old. So far
he has won over US $20,000 in prize money & Bruce reckons
he is worth currently over $150,000. But the more he wins,
the higher his price will soar.
“What I want to do is to teach people to understand
their horse – from the horse’s perspective. Today
there are more recreational riders than there have ever been
before. That also means there are more people who do not
understand horses than there have ever been before.
“The big problem is lack of information. People get
a horse and they say, Now what do |I do? It should be the
other way round. People should say, What do I do if I want
to get a horse and then get the horse.
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“People can be cruel without ever knowing it. They
don’t know how to communicate with their horse. But
they want to ride their horse. That can lead to all kinds
of problems. What I want to do is to get riders to communicate
with their horses. I want the horse and rider to be safe.
I want the horse to want to do what the rider wants it to
do. I want the horse and the rider to be consistent.
“Other people say, Ride the horse. I say, Ride the
horse the way the horse wants to be ridden.
“It’s like a teenager. He wants a car. He gets
a Ferrari. He doesn’t know how to handle it. It creates
all kinds of problems. First, he should be given old, reliable
car. He should learn on that. Then he should be allowed to
drive a Ferrari.
“It’s the same with riders. There are more recreational
riders today than there has ever been. In the old days people
thought of horses as a means of transport or simply as some
kind of work horse.
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“Today there are more and more people who come from
a non-horsey environment. They know nothing about horses.
They think they know. But they don’t. And they want
to develop a special relationship with their horse. It’s
not possible.
“Some riders can be cruel and not know anything about
it. I want to teach them how to truly communicate with their
horse. To show them how they can be safe with their horse.
How they can get their horse to do what they want to do.
How they can both be safe together.
“There are, unfortunately, some horses that are completely
untrainable. I’ve never come across one in England.
But they do exist. I reckon that as a general rule, say,
one in 5,000 horses is untrainable. With most untrainable
horses they are a danger both to themselves and to their
riders. I’m afraid I cannot do much for them or for
their owners.”
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Storm has also brought her experiences
to the table as a teacher. Gaining softness in body and mind
of both horse and rider is the core of her work, and she
has developed exercises to help riders and horses feel and
move together; effectively, efficiently and with balance.
Storm helps the rider understand how to shape their horse
for Foundation development and importantly how to ride
that shape, without constricting or blocking the horse’s
movement and ability. Her work in ‘Foundation with
Body Softness’ has culminated in individual centered
clinics, where horses and students benefit from a one on
one experience, even in the group dynamic.
'Every horse and human are unique. Therefore in
horsemanship there cannot be a one size fits all methodology.
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I believe in individual education that is centered upon
each horse’s specific requirements and in an understanding
that takes into consideration the individual needs and abilities
of the rider,” she says.
Stormy personally supports ‘students of the horse’ on
their Pure Horse discussion Forum and is currently
writing a book on Foundation with Body Softness. She is also
developing exercises for ‘Performance with Body Softness’,
while she continues to study performance development and
is working toward showing in the fields of Cutting and Reining
Cow Horse, on ‘home grown’ developed horses.
The amazing thing is that Storm was - Wait for
it. - born and brought up in Crowborough, East Sussex
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So who does Bruce think are good riders?
John Wayne?
“I love John Wayne. I have all his films and DVD’s,
But is he a good rider? No.”
Clint Eastwood?
“He’s alright. He’s an actor.”
Nicole Kidman.
“I went to see her in that film, Australia. She was
riding as an English woman rides.
It was in context.”
Tom Sellick.
“He’s a good rider. But he works at it.
He wants to be a good rider. For him it’s not acting.”
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Bruce Logan obviously wishes every rider was like Tom Sellick,
worked at it, took it seriously and rode their horses the way
the horses want to be ridden. Bruce,
We’re doing our best. |
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