
My journey in Horsemanship
My horsemanship journey began before I
can remember. As a child I was convinced that I was a unicorn, then
reality set in and I quickly replaced my unicorn obsession with a horse
obsession. In a desperate hope to force me to walk on two legs in stead of four, my parents
enrolled me in a riding lesson program at a local barn when I was
11.
I rode huntseat all through high school until I moved to Savannah, Georgia.
After graduation I went to college still looking for a way to keep horses in my
life. My freshman year I was blessed to be a charter member of the Georgia
Southern Equestrian Team (GSUET). I served as the Secretary for the first
two years and as the President the next two. That kept the dream alive
for me and my team mates through the first fragile years of GSUET existence.
The team started
with three riders and eventually grew to 19 during my presidency. It was during
that time that I started my study of dressage Under the direction of the
team coach, Christine Manka. I competed successfully for four
years at the intermediate level on the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) circuit. As an alumni I qualified for nationals in western
stock seat and reining
pattern and finished third and forth respectively in
1998. In 1997 I graduated with a B.S. in biology. GSUET is still
together and competing under there current coach
,
Eleanor Ellis at Evermore farm.
During those college years in the saddle, I trained and competed western pleasure on the Bulloch Horseman's Association circuit for a local retired farmer Bennie Earl Deal as well as taught local kids how to ride. To this day, I am indebted to Bennie Earl for his generosity in permitting me to learn and experiment with his horses on his stud farm. It was there that my hours in the saddle really started to add up. I gained experience working with Studs and learned about running a stud farm. I also had the opportunity to work with the weanlings
and yearlings
and do some colt
starting.
Post college I took a couple of years off and worked in the real world at
Rayonier Pulp and Paper Research Facility in Jessup, GA. In 2000 I Married
Fitz Moles, and moved to
Columbus, MS. In Mississippi again I was blessed
to meet my close friend, Joyce Brown. We were introduced by a mutual
friend that knew we both loved horses. Joyce is the owner
of the grey Arab mare shown in some of the pictures on this site. I rode Joyce's
mare for pleasure during my stay in Columbus. It was Joyce's Idea to
attend a Parelli tour stop in the fall of 2001. This was the first major
mile stone in my horsemanship journey. At this event that I
realized why my horsemanship had plateaued. This unlocked so
many mysteries for me and showed me how to achieve the partnership and
connection with my horse that I always wanted. It was here that I s
tarted
my Parelli journey and Joyce's mare, Cammie, helped me
hone my skills and achieve my level 1 and 2. Eventually, as the economy declined, I was laid off of my part-time employment. This gave me an opportunity to go back to teaching and training horses and I have been doing so ever since.
I Currently reside in Woodstock GA. and Have passed both my Level 1 and 2 in the Parelli journey and am currently accessing my level 3. I have attended several clinics under Parelli instructors Sam Beachboard, and Amy Brimhall. I attended a 2 six week studies in Ocala, FL. at the Parelli International Study Center in the spring of 2006 and spring 2007. Most recently I have mentored with renowned natural horseman and clinician Don Knapp.
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