No time to write a post this week. Instead, enjoy some Carosella 2016 photos courtesy of Double Exposure Photography. Double Exposure Photography is Eleanor & Isabel Landels. For more of their photos see their Facebook page. There are more Carosella photos that have not yet been sorted. If you'd like pictures of yourself, email me…
Online registration closes today for Carosella! As our major event for the year, Carosella is your last (and sometimes only) chance to participate in some workshops and events in 2016, including: Intro to Mounted Combat Horseback Archery Classical Riding Clinics (only 1 space left!) Prix Fiore workshop Bandaging & Equine First Aid Clinics Ballet at the Barn Grooms'…
Carosella 2016, our full three-day symposium of mounted combat, horseback archery, skill-at-arms, and horsemanship, is coming up fast. This once-a-year event is an unparallelled chance to immerse yourself in these ancient arts. Whether you're an experienced rider and martial artist, or completely new to it all, there is plenty to engage you all weekend. If…
Ephemera from the Old Countries No formal blog post this week since I'm on holiday, but here are a few horsey things of interest from the UK and Germany. -- Jen The Suffolk Punch Trust Dover Castle British Museum Early European Collection Brabants at the Belgian border Upcoming Classes Riding & Horsemanship Classes Get…
This week I visited the Suffolk Punch Trust in Woodbridge, UK. The Suffolk Punch is the oldest registered horse breed in England, being first recorded as the Suffolk Sorrel in the 16th century. This magnificent animal is a heavy-bodied, medium-height draught horse, bred for farm work and hauling. Its broad chest, steep shoulder, and uphill build…
Registration for Carosella 2016 will be open in a matter of days! This year we have new workshops and demos including Garrocha, Natural Horsemanship, and an all-Canadian Horse Drill Team, as well as Horseback Archery, Mounted Sparring, Classical Riding, Mounted Games, and our exciting Sunday tournament! Now it's time to answer some of those frequently…
From Alexander the Great, to the Sultan Mehmed, to Louis XIV of France, monarchs entered battle on the backs of horses. There are practical reasons for this: from a horse you can see farther, move faster, and avoid many of the dangers a foot soldier faces. In addition, the beauty and power of a horse…
Horsemanship Level 4: Conditioning pt II At the end of April we covered work versus exercise in our Level 4 conditioning topic: 7. Work vs. exercise. Warm-up and cooling out, reasons why. Cooling out was covered in this Level 3 post, so this week we'll look at what constitutes an effective warm up. Just like…
Please join us in welcoming Red Colt's new resident caretakers, Elise Marquis and Graham Dube! Elise and Graham moved in at the end of April, and we are thrilled to have them join our team. Over the past year there has been a fair amount of upheaval at the barn with co-op members pulling in…