On Sun, Sep 02, 2007 at 08:26:30PM -0700, Judy Ryder wrote:
> I have to trust my own eyes, my own first-hand experiences, and my long-term
> equine experience, over yours. Sorry.
and i have to trust mine over yours. sorry.
> I'm not so sure that a beginner and new owner can see other than a
> superficial layer.
i'm neither a beginner horsewoman nor, after a year, a new owner. my
experience is more current than yours; i speak, on average, to two
icelanders (ebba in person and another friend/colleague over the net)
every week.
> Especially when that person is vested in who they are expressing an opinion
> about.
and how exactly am i vested in either of them? one i bought a horse
from a year ago; the other is my current choice (among some arbitrary
number available; i've had half a dozen others) of instructors.
> But... tell me HOW you see that they are different than any other
> icelandic-style trainer in how they train and ride.
they fail to conform to your script:
. tack -- both are concerned with saddle fit, use snaffles,
and don't use tight nosebands
. riding -- both are "quiet" riders as i've seen them in real life
. priorities -- both prioritize, or at least support me in
prioritizing, a quiet, sane horse, not a hypersensitive one
(and if you insist that gudmar must prioritize the latter b/c
of the horses you see him on in videos, i should point out that
he *trained* stjarni, and several of the horses for sale on his
site are described in similar "calm, anyone can ride" terms --
and because i have stjarni as an example, i find this claim entirely
believable)
. preference for a "centered riding"-type seat for the rider
. emphasizing flexibility and suppleness for the horse
. concern for the horse as a living, sensitive, emotional creature
in fact i've never met any icelanders who *do* conform to your script,
although i am polite enough to presume you're not making it up out of
whole cloth and video, as representative of your average horseperson
from iceland as a rodeo show would be of your average american.
--vicka
