An evening social and change of executive...

Sliders members got together last night to hang out, finalize some of our CRUZ CLINIC details, and to elect a new president, as our current president, Dawnna Robertson decided it was necessary to step down, due to the heavy demands of her current schedule. We would like to extend a big thank you to Dawnna for filling our president role for the last two years, and welcome Elli Meinert  into the position.  

 
Our new president, Elli Meinert

Elli has been a club member since our inception and will serve as a great ambassador for our club. She has been increasingly involved in the sport of reining, and has worked with a number of outstanding professionals to build her own knowledge base. Elli competes at many of the major reining shows throughout the province, and has recently purchased a young mare from Websters Performance Horses, to show in reining and working cow. We are all excited to see her and "Porsche" in the show pen this year.

Elli's new show prospect, Porsche

Elli also helps in the day to day operation of her family's EASY GO RANCH in Lac La Hache, and as a club we have been able to benefit from using their beautiful facilities to host a number of clinics. As well Elli and her mom have launched a new business this year in 100 Mile. THE LOG HOUSE, (website still under construction) tack, harness and western ware store opened it's doors in November.

It is a beautiful log house, and they carry all the popular western styles, quality tack, western decor and have great prices. If you are traveling through 100 Mile House, be sure to stop in!

We're back....and a look back on 2011

WELCOME BACK everyone to a new year of reining excitement. I have been a little slow at getting organized for 2012, but I have a series of posts I plan to make to get everyone back in the mood for reining and the upcoming show season...so hold onto your hats cause here we go...!
First of all how about a recap of some of the exciting things that have happened to our core members in 2011...

Our president, Dawnna-

What a year! Dawnna, is literally embarking on a new life. Having finished course work in Kamloops, she was hired to work in both WL and 100 Mile hospitals. Along with that, she and her partner, Pat have moved in and are embarking on a life together. Everyone is commenting on how happy she looks, and we all wish her well in all her new endeavors. Dawnna continues to immerse herself in her horse pursuits, working with her young gelding, competitively barrel racing, and of course, focusing on reining. Her energy and enthusiasm are inspiring to us all. One of her hurdles she had to overcome this summer was a severe and traumatic injury to her barrel mare.

Despite the severity of the wounds, she has made a complete recovery and is back to chasing cans with a vengence!

Our Vice President, Tiffany

Tiffany's focus this summer was on wedding plans and she is now happily married into the Pincott family. Her wedding was about as picturesque as a cowboy wedding can be, including being carried to the alter by her reining horse!

How beautiful! We all wish Tiffany the best!

Our Clinic Organizer, Mandy

Mandy and her family welcomed a new addition, baby girl, Larah into their life. Sweet and healthy, and new baby sister to Kaylee! Congratulations!! We're looking forward to having Mandy back in the saddle again!

Our youth liason, Ronnie

Ronnie had a stellar year capping it off by being named to Team BC, to go back and compete in reining at the Canadian Equestrian Championships. It was an incredible opportunity, and the club was proud to support Ronnie, by presenting her with a cheque to help cover her costs. Well done, Ronnie! Ronnie has gone to school to become a vet assistant. We wish her all the best!

Club Member, Courtney

Courtney is one of our newer members, and after taking a clinic last year with trainer, Carl Woods, she made the decision to send her young horse, Dallas into training with Carl.  Dallas is back home, and Courtney is thrilled with the results. She is looking forward to being an active member and continuing to learn about reining so that she may move forward with Dallas. We hope we can support you, Courtney!

Club member, Tanya

Not to be outdone, club member, Tanya, has recently announced her official engagement! I see another cowboy wedding in the Cariboo in the near future! Congratulations, Tanya!

We are all excited to start the new year, and welcome new members to join our close knit group as we work together to move forward in learning about reining, and supporting each other in our personal lives and our lives with our horses!
2012, here we come!

Canadian Horses Shine at the NRHA Derby

Photo: Jesse Beckley and Mizzen Wizzen (Photo taken from Google Images

The following info is taken from Western Horse Review's Facebook page.

In addition to Shawn Flarida riding a Canadian owned horse into the Open Finals at the NRHA Derby in Oklahoma City, Casey Deary and Elanachics, owned by Reinbow Ridge Equestrian of Schamberg, AB, Canada, have also made the Open Finals. Canadian trainer Jesse Beckley of Cranbrook, BC and Mizzen Whizzen (owned by Marilyn Copland of Victoria, BC) have made the Intermediate Open Finals. Good luck to all!

I just wanted to thank my viewers! Over the weekend the Sliders Blog passed the 10,000 views mark. Since I only started the count this past fall, that means all of those views have been in the last eight months!!
However, you are a quiet bunch! I rarely receive comments...which in my mind would make this blog truly successful. So I invite you, especially if you are a regular reader, to help make this blog a good place for people to "join the conversation". Start with this post by telling me who you are, what you like about the blog, what you would like to see more of, or any other tidbits of information you would like to share!

Prince George Spring Slide Follow Up

Pictures:
Top: Tiffany and Gypsy at Gus Evangelopoulos Clinic
Bottom: Casandra and Twister in the warm up pen

Unfortunately, I missed Tiffany and Mandy's classes, as they were done on Friday, and I started on Saturday, so I didn't get any pictures of them :( Sorry, ladies!
Once the professional proofs are up I will add a few shots to the blog.

Here is the press release for the Free Press and the Wolf Radio, re the Spring Slide.

Three members of the 100 Mile Sliders Reining Club traveled to Prince George this past weekend to participate in the Prince George Reining Associations, “Spring Slide 2011”. Competitors traveled from across British Columbia and Alberta to participate in the 4 day event that included classes in cutting, working cow horse and reining, for all levels of riders, from beginners to professionals.

The Sliders brought home some money and hardware, as Tiffany Vaughan won her Ranch Cutting class on her gelding Itty Bitty Gypsy, and Casandra Jakubiec placed third in the Beginner Horse Open Reining class, on her 4 year old mare, Gay Bars Major Twister. Although not in the money, Mandy Pincott, and her gelding, Rafter Dudes Chicado, had a respectable 7^th place finish in a tough class of 20 entries.

Next up for the Sliders is Riverslide, the first in the Western Canadian Reining Association’s high point series, to be held in Kamloops June 3^rd to 5^th.

The Sliders get together to ride at the Outriders grounds every Thursday, from 6:30 to 8:30. New members are always welcome.

Absolutley Priceless!

(All Pictures are screen captures from the You Tube video-see link below)

This horse being a palomino is definitely not false advertising-he's solid gold!! Have a look at 5 year old Wyatt Deery and his reining horse Dun Dual. The future of reining is in good shape if this is the face of our up and coming youth! This video made my day!

Gus Clinic Follow Up

Last weekend, we had the extreme good fortune to work with reining trainer and AQHA horseman, Gus Evangelopoulos, at the beautiful Easy Go ranch in Lac la Hache.


Gus was quickly able to hone in on each participants individual needs and work with each horse rider combination to help them achieve their goals for the weekend.

Nicola & Bart

Nicola brought Bart the first night in the hopes that Gus would be able to work with him to make him a more willing and responsive partner for her on the trail. By the time Gus was finished with him on Friday night, we were teasing Gus that Bart was ready to be his next reining horse prospect!! Under our noses, and almost without us realizing what was happening, Gus was able to get Bart into a willing frame of mind, going from being aggressive and pushy to being light and responsive. The next day, Nicola rode Bart and was able to get him into a walk, trot and lope on a loose rein, as well as picking up some riding tips from Gus.

Don and

Don came to the clinic hoping to build on his horsemanship skills. Gus was able to give him a few subtle tips that helped to transform his relationship with his mare, again, making her more light, willing and responsive. Don was impressed by how a few minor adjustments could make such a big difference in how his mare responded to him.

Val and

After watching Gus work with everyone on Friday, Val made the decision to come out and ride on Saturday. After recovering from a serious accident, Val was hoping to rebuild her confidence on the back of a horse. Gus was more than impressed with Val's courage, and reaffirmed that she is indeed a good rider and with a lot of skills and knowledge.

Casandra & Cee

Always happy to take the opportunity to ride with Gus, Casandra made the trip up from Kamloops and was more than happy to put a ride on "Cee", Don's young filly, that she put some time on last spring. Gus has been a strong supporter of Casandra over the years and she was glad to spend some quality "horse time" with him again.

Tanya and Monty

Tanya came to the clinic with the hopes of learning the skills to be able to get her gelding, Monty to pick up the correct lead going to the left. Her continued persistence paid off, and by the end of the weekend, she, most importantly, had the knowledge to be able to continue to work on Monty to help him become more consistent. Those of us on the ground were able to watch and learn as well, and will hopefully be able to support Tanya, as she continues to work with Monty.

Tiffany and Gypsy

Tiffany came to the clinic with her newly acquired gelding, Gypsy,which she hopes to show this year in reining and working cow. Gus reaffirmed for her that she "has a lot of horse". Her gelding is an incredible athlete with a big motor. Tiffany came away from the clinic with some tools to help keep him calm and quiet. We are all looking forward to seeing them in the show pen!!

Mandy & Frenchy

Mandy brought her up and coming 3 year old prospect looking for some tips and ideas to move forward with her training. Gus was impressed with the work that Mandy had accomplished so far with the filly, and was able to give Mandy some tools to help her to get to the next level with Frenchy.

Dawnna & Moke

Dawnna and Moke? Well, lets just say they had some "issues" to work through. Gus's belief that you face issues and work through them, ending up with a better partnership with your horse, proved to be a philosophy that we were all able to embrace by the end of the weekend. Dawnna and Moke persevered, and by Sunday, you could see that they are a going to be strong contenders in the show pen this season!

Bella & Chico

And that leaves..me. After realizing that my own horse Jewel was still lame and I was not going to be able to ride her, I was extremely grateful to the numerous individuals who made me offers of horses I could ride in her place. I ended up riding Chico, Mandy's lovely gelding. It turned out to be the right horse for me for the weekend. Being the perfect gentleman, Chico allowed me to focus on my own riding and horsemanship skills. Riding without a sturrip, and without rein contact, trying to find my balance, Chico never took a wrong step. I'm not quite ready for a bridleless, saddleless freestyle yet, but hopefully I came away with a better feel and a better seat, and as a result will be a more confident, balanced rider.

On behalf of all the participants, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Gus for coming to the Cariboo, and sharing his skill and knowledge with us. We all came away with some new knowledge and skills and that is the ultimate accomplishment for any clinic.
For any of the participants, I would welcome your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below!
I would also like to thank Pete Mclennan for taking all the great pictures. I have CD's of ALL your pictures for each participant.

Sliders Executive Change

The 100 Mile Sliders would like to thank Randy Brodaway, for his service to the club as he will be stepping down as our Vice President. Randy has been instrumental in getting the Sliders started, and has been an active member since it's inception. We wish Randy all the best, and look forward to his ongoing involvement with the Sliders.

(Randy with cutting trainer Dale Shel, 2010 Horse Bazaar)

Tiffany Vaughn will step into the role of Vice President for the remainder of the 2011 year. Tiffany has also been involved with the Sliders from the beginning, and we look forward to having her take on a leadership role with the Sliders.

Tiffany and Sliders president, Dawnna, 100 Mile Horse Bazaar, 2010

Tiffany and Bandit, WCRA's 2009 "Riverslide"

100 Mile Horse Bazaar

PICTURES:
TOP- Ellie putting Dodge into a spin...Nice crossover!
MIDDLE- Ellie-the "Queen" wave
BOTTOM- Sliders members hard at work behind the Sliders booth

Congratulations to Ellie Meinhert, of Easy Go Ranch, and 100 Mile Slider Member, for doing such a wonderful job of promoting the sport of reining, and promoting our Sliders Club, in a demo she did at the 100 Mile Horse Bazaar, with her great gelding "Dodge". Ellie had a fantastic season least year in the reining pen and is a great example of the quality of reining in 100 Mile.
Also a big thank you to all Sliders members who came out and manned the tack sale booth, and Sliders table at the Horse Bazaar. It is your commitment and passion to the club that makes us strong.

Lynda Smith Becomes a Sanctioned Reining Judge!

Photos:
Top: Lynda giving some advice at our Sliders clinic/schooling show April 2010
Bottom: Equine Canada's web site shot

This exerpt below was taken from Equine Canada's Web Site.
CONGRATULATIONS, Lynda!!
"Following the Reining Judges’ Clinic on January 27-28 at the Equine Canada Convention, Canadian Reining Committee (CRC) pleased to announce four new reining judges in Canada. The clinic was the first one offered by Equine Canada to accredit judges for sanctioned reining competitions. The course educated future judges in the scoring system for reining as adopted by Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI). The curriculum and testing protocols were developed in conjunction with The Reining Horse Association of Germany and were presented by Gary Yaghdjian and Bernie Hoeltzel.

The first reining recorded judges are Sherri Whitworth of Rockwood, ON; Lorraine Gilchrist of Asquith, SK; and Lynda Smith of Pitt Meadows, BC. Beth Hora of Moose Jaw, SK was granted senior status as she is also a National Reining Horse Association judge.

“It was integral to keep the level very high in accordance with the industry standard. Reining has the most intricate and transparent judging system with all score sheets posted for exhibitors to review at the conclusion of each class,” said Yaghdjian, who is also the chair of the CRC. “We are very pleased that the following candidates were successful in attaining the prerequisite 80 per cent passing grade. Congratulations to our new judges.”"

Clink on the Equine Canada link above to view the entire article.