The Bowline: The Knot That Will Not Slip Sep 6, 2026 Ocean View Stables There is a family of situations around horses where a knot tightening under load could hurt or kill an animal, and for those situations you want a knot that forms a fixed loop and refuses to close dow... Groundwork The Leyden Method Read more
Tail Talk: Swishing, Clamping, and Flagging Sep 5, 2026 Ocean View Stables Most riders watch the ears and the eye, and they should. But the tail is broadcasting the whole time too, down at the other end of the horse where it is easy to forget, and it publishes irritation, fe... Reading the Horse The Leyden Method Read more
Show, Then Step Back: Demonstration Without Dependence Sep 4, 2026 Ocean View Stables There is a moment every riding instructor knows. You have just demonstrated something, a way of picking up the rein, a feel for the timing of a cue, and the student watches, nods, and clearly gets it.... Leadership Through Horsemanship Teaching & Mentorship Read more
Przewalski's Horse: The Last Wild Horse, With an Asterisk Sep 3, 2026 Ocean View Stables Stand next to a Przewalski’s horse and it looks like a horse drawn from memory of a much older world. It is stocky and short-legged, dun-colored, with a stiff upright mane that stands like a brush rat... History of Horsemanship Horses & Human History Read more
Tying the California Knot Sep 2, 2026 Ocean View Stables Watch an experienced vaquero-tradition horseman finish saddling and you will see a small, deliberate move at the cinch that looks almost like a flourish and is anything but. That is the California kno... Grooming & Handling The Leyden Method Read more
The Barn as Mission: Routine, Purpose, and Care Sep 1, 2026 Ocean View Stables The horses have to be fed whether or not you feel like it. That sentence is the whole essay, in a way. A barn does not care about your mood, your sleep, or the weight you are carrying that morning. Th... Leadership Through Horsemanship Veterans & Resilience Read more
How Long Until I Canter? Aug 31, 2026 Ocean View Stables It is one of the first questions almost every new rider asks, usually within the first few lessons, sometimes on day one. How long until I canter? I understand the pull behind it. The canter is the ga... Field Notes Questions Students Ask Read more
If the Horse Walks Off When You Mount Aug 30, 2026 Ocean View Stables You get your foot in the stirrup, you gather your reins, you start to swing up, and the horse is already leaving. Maybe it takes two steps. Maybe it walks off the second your weight hits the stirrup, ... Problem Solving The Leyden Method Read more
Ray Hunt: The Man Who Took the Message on the Road Aug 29, 2026 Ocean View Stables Tom Dorrance had the ideas. Ray Hunt had the road. That is the shortest true way to describe why the horseman Ray Hunt matters, and why so many riders who never heard Dorrance’s name learned Dorrance’... History of Horsemanship The Natural Horsemanship Movement Read more
Reduce the Ask: Delegation That Actually Lands Aug 28, 2026 Ocean View Stables A horse blows through a request all the time. You ask for a side pass and it walks forward. You ask for three steps back and it gives you one, or none. The beginner’s instinct in that moment is to ask... Leadership Through Horsemanship Leading People Read more
The Soft Feel Under Saddle: Asking for Give at a Standstill Aug 27, 2026 Ocean View Stables Sit on a horse that has never learned to give, and you feel it in your hands the moment you close your fingers on the reins. The neck sets. The poll braces. The whole front end becomes a wall you are ... Riding The Leyden Method Read more
The Destrier: The Medieval War Horse Knights Actually Rode Aug 26, 2026 Ocean View Stables In the movies, the knight’s horse is a mountain: a feathered-legged giant that shakes the ground and blots out the sun. Filmmakers mount their knights on modern draft horses because draft horses look ... Cavalry & Working Horses History of Horsemanship Read more
