All disciplines to benefit from the instruction of national clinician Patty Minter
If you have a horse and love to ride, Geauga Park District has several very special equestrian events coming up in May – ones promising to benefit all equestrian disciplines. Patty Minter, a USDF Silver Medalist trained in eventing, jumping and dressage, as well as a seasoned trail guide in Pennsylvania, Florida and Montana, will host all of these instructional trail rides, as well as a demonstration and dinner.
Registration is required for all these great cross-training events at www.geaugaparkdistrict.org or 440-286-9516.
Individual Equine Etiquette Instructional Trail Rides will take place Friday, May 6, 1-3 PM and 3-5 PM; Saturday, May 7, 9-11 AM and 11 AM-1 PM; and Sunday, May 8, 9-11 AM and 11 AM-1 PM; all at The West Woods Bridle Trail and Hunter’s Creek Farm. Each ride is limited to five people and costs $25.
The goal is to improve horsemanship and riding skills for the trail as well as the show ring. “To me, if the riders are focusing in on doing a leg yielding or a side pass, they are defeating the purpose of the trail ride,” Patty said. “I find the whole connection between man and horse to be much more unified when there is an actual function to the movements. With the emphasis on ‘creating good transportation,’ I think we get away from the ring tricks that I find so lobotomizing.”
In addition, Equine Etiquette: From Trails to Tales Demonstration and Dinner will take place Saturday, May 7, from 3 to 7 p.m. at Hunter’s Creek Farm. Here, Patty will offer a demonstration of skills and movements that can be used with a nervous horse or a young horse, or to strengthen your seasoned horse while on trail. Then all will enjoy a fireside dinner with other riders, sharing their best trail etiquette tales.
Registration for this demo and dinner, open to all, is $5 and covers your meal. Attendance may also be of particular interest to anyone who enjoys shared trails: runners, walkers, bikers. One need not have a horse or ride one to appreciate this interesting and enjoyable evening!
Who is Patty Minter? After the death of her father when she was 16 months old, her mother and family continued her father’s fledgling riding stable business where, by age 5, young Patty was leading trail rides through 10,000 acres of game and coal land bordering the family farm. As recorded in her little autograph book by Betsy Nadas, who played Mrs. McFeeley in Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, Patty showed her “how to hunt for wild strawberries in the hills” at age 6. And she continued to relish guiding hour-long tours, all day, picnic, campfire and overnight rides until she went to college at age 17.
At 19, Patty was awarded her “A” rating from the United States Pony Club and spent a summer traveling around the northwest (on her motorcycle) teaching Pony Club Clinics. Since then, she has produced either a horse or rider or both that has been among the top in the nation at their respective disciplines. Her student Rachel Church, at the age of 12, was 24th in the nation at the Marshall and Sterling jumper finals at the Washington International Horse Show, and later placed third in the national championships for USPC in evening. Another student, Emily Yslas, won the USPC national championships in eventing and was in the top 10 at the American Eventing Championships.
Patty’s own horse, Thomas Magnum, was all USDF all breeds champion in dressage at training and first level. In 2014, she attended the jumping clinic of Olympic Silver Medalist Peter Wylde in South Florida. Among others Patty has trained with are: in eventing, Phillip Dutton, Boyd Martin, Karen O’Connor, Stephen Bradley, Ralph Hill, Lucinda Green and Denny Emerson; in jumping, Kevin Babington, Anne Kursinski and Joe Fargis; and in dressage, George Williams, Walter Zettl, Charles de Kunffy, Leif Sorenson, Dietrich von Hoffgarten, Greta Clements and Betsey Steiner.
When it comes to horse ownership, Geauga County is in the top five per capita in the nation, and most people who have horses in Geauga County own more than one horse, according to Naturalist Dottie Drockton, who leads most Geauga Park District equine programming.
“Cross training is so important for a horse’s mental and physical wellbeing. They need to be able to do it all,” said Dottie. “Now is a good time to try to get all of our equestrian community together, because Geauga County has such a strength in this community.”
Geauga Park District is online at http://geaugaparkdistrict.org, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Image Courtesy of: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Show_jumping
