>>>> I did. Let's just say she was a bit overrated. I know from reading Lee Ziegler's posts over the years that I would not have agreed with her on certain issues. I think that's true with any clinician. I don't think she was particularly into "natural horsemanship" as many of us are although I know that she was not at all abusive to the horses. I DO know that she was VERY much into "natural gait" and considering the history of gaited horses over the world, which alone is a big deal to me. I don't know of anyone who'd studied the gaits of so many breeds for so long, especially someone with such a strong background in classical horsemanship, and a good eye for the science of gait.
Oh, the gait knowledge that woman possessed! It was mind-boggling. I was just starting to breed when I joined gaitedhorses, and I'd learned a lot via trial and error with Holly. And, we'd realized that simply riding "easy" Mac wasn't really in his best interest - he'd become very pacey as he aged, while we'd blindly had fun with his easy gaits. I posed dozens of questions to that woman, both on the list and off. She could be quite abrupt at times, but she NEVER told me something relating to gaits that didn't pan out. And you know me - I question everything, try to find holes in theories, exceptions, etc. I've had a hard time finding much of anything to disagree with Lee on the subject of gaits, and believe me, I tried. After considering her point of view, I changed my opinion several times, coming around to agree with her. She'd seen it all, much more than I ever have. Most importantly, there was nothing she ever told me to watch for or try that conflicted with my own NH leanings. I could weave her gait knowledge into my own flavor of horsemanship. I have 19 Icelandics, plus the two TWH. I've sold several other Icelandics, and of course a few still aren't old enough to ride. And of course, gaited horses are common in NC - TWH are the second most common breed in the state behind QH - so I've seen and ridden other people's horses too. Every gaited horse I've met rides at least slightly differently, and this has been an at times overwhelming task for me, trying to sort through with horses have the best gaits - the ones I should breed, and to whom. While I have certain goals on a personal level that are probably similar to yours, I've tried to take the study of gaits to another level because the responsibility of breeding scares the heebie-jeebies out of me. The horses born here will live with the breeding decisions I made for their whole lives - and we know how awfully that poorly gaited horses can be treated. I haven't seen anyone who could isolate the nuances of gait even approaching Lee Ziegler, except for Liz Graves - and they were friends of course. On a personal horsemanship level, I too have so enjoyed Mark Rashid's books, Pat Parelli's weekend seminars, some light basic dressage lessons, my one Centered Riding clinic. I really enjoyed attending many clinics with Dave Seay when he lived in the area - although by golly, Dave is a lousy communicator and can be frustrating to try to follow. He was the first NH I encountered, and he helped me a lot with some of Holly's issues - I'd even call one clinic a real breakthrough. I can't even think of all the books I've enjoyed - Jane Savoie's Cross Train Your Horse, Bill Dorrence's book - I must have hundreds of books now on many subjects. I have room in my quest for Horsemanship (capital "H", since I don't think I'll ever reach the revered state I'm aiming for...) for many, many perspectives, many sports, many ideas, but my own leanings are towards what might be called Natural Horsemanship For The Pleasure Rider. Gaits are simply one trait of the horses I've chosen to be my breed. I draw knowledge about the other non-gait traits from as many sources as I can. But when it comes to GAITS, I have enjoyed the two Liz Graves clinics and the videos - but I don't refer to any single book or video the way I refer to Lee's book. Gaits are only ONE trait of Icelandics, but as a breeder, I think they are an important trait. I have bought oodles of Icelandic videos - and I haven't found ANYTHING in any of them that is helpful in the study of gaits. Nothing. Well, unless you count the stuff I've read that I instinctively and deeply knew was wrong - stuff that made me go on my own search for what IS right. That first Benni Lindal video isn't bad, but there's really nothing in it that I hadn't seen from other clinicians, and there's nothing at all in it that's helpful about gaits. (I didn't care for his second video much at all.) That Bruno Podlech "Natural Gait Distribution" video about Icelandics - well, I certainly wasted my money on that one. It was like a coffee table book on video - pretty pictures, but nothing meaty in it, nothing I found usable, CERTAINLY nothing "natural" about his approach to gaits, and it's full of things I simply don't find to be true. To use the old Texas phrase, I thought that video was "all hat and no cattle." As far as Lee being abrupt - after seeing how some people can be so rude on these lists when someone has "different" ideas, I don't think Lee could have ever accomplished so much if she'd always been a sweet, gentle person. So, I'm only guessing about what you meant as "over-rated" - but I have no illusions that I would have followed everything that Lee taught, every nuance. I have no illusions that she was a "sweet" person - fair, yes, and ultimately kind absolutely. (Thank goodness Liz is "sweet" - but I think that makes her life miserable at times.) It's just that I don't think I'm likely to ever encounter anyone else with her gait knowledge - Liz is close - and I'm really, really sorry I never got to experience that in person. Karen Thomas, NC No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.472 / Virus Database: 269.8.15/848 - Release Date: 6/13/2007 12:50 PM
