Tag Archives: MM Clinic

USMMA Clinic in Las Vegas!

What happened in Vegas?  It won’t stay in Vegas! The USMMA Annual Clinic happened in Las Vegas October 20-22nd! !

Here were the end results:

Functional Test  (Marchador/Rider)

  1. Flying Oaks Zodiac – Rusty Parks
  2. Alegria de los Cielos – Alessandra Deerinck
  3. Flying Oaks Athena – Jeff Bosley
  4. Flying Oaks Netuno – Rick Schatz

Geldings Marcha (Horse/Rider)

  1. Flying Oaks Zodiac – Rusty Parks
  2. Flying Oaks Netuno – Kate Barcelos
  3. Tesoro de los Cielos – Alessandra Deerinck
  4. Tory (Hilario do Lucero) – Sandy Dory

Geldings Conformation (Horse/Handler)

  1.  Tesoro de los Cielos – Alessandra Deerinck
  2. Flying Oaks Netuno – Rick Schatz
  3. Flying Oaks Zodiac – Rusty Parks
  4. Tory (Hilario do Lucero) – Sandy Dory

Geldings Champion – Flying Oaks Zodiac

Geldings Reserve Champion – Flying Oaks Netuno

Mares Marcha  (Horse/Rider)

  1. Flying Oaks Athena- Rusty Parks
  2. Fiesta do Campo Real – Kendall Melline
  3. Alegria de los Cielos – Alessandra Deerinck

Mares Conformation (Horse/Handler)

  1. Alegria de los Cielos – Alessandra Deerinck
  2. Consentida do Cascade – Jake Martinez
  3. Flying Oaks Athena – Rusty Parks

Mares Champion – Alegria de los Cielos

Mares Reserve Champion – Flying Oaks
Athena

Stallions Marcha and Conformation (Horse/Rider/Handler)

  1. Nashville (Igor do Lucero) – Rusty Parks
  2. Rio de los Cielos – Kendall Melline & Jake Martinez

Stallions Champion – Nashville (Igor do Lucero) – Rusty Parks

Stallions Reserve Champion – Rio de los Cielos – Kendall Melline & Jake Martinez

Overall SHOW CHAMPION– Flying Oaks Zodiac!

The clinic was taught by 2 Brazilian professionals from the ABCCMM, both of whom have taught at our past USMMA clinics. We welcomed them back!

Tiago de Resende Garcia – Tiago is the ABCCMM Director of the ENA – the National School of Judges. The ENA trains MM judges on how to evaluate conformation, gait and functionality of the Marchador. Tiago and his team judge every sanctioned ABCCMM show in Brazil, including the National Show in July which brings 1500 horses to the show ring over 11 days. Tiago has taught Marchador symposiums and lectures around the world.

Kate Moura da Costa Barcelos – Kate is a licensed vet and an ABCCMM inspector (the 1st woman). She has been the ABCCMM inspector for North America for several years. She is also an ABCCMM education program director. Kate is an accomplished rider, competitor and instructor; once the #2 dressage rider in all of South America. Studying for her doctorate, she balances work, school and her farm.

Attending the clinic were a mix of trainers, breeders and owners from far and wide.!

AB, Canada – Bill Dory, Sandy Dory, Blake Holtman, Patty Horner
BC, Canada – Gena Rome
AZ – Lynn Kelley
CA – Alessandra Deerinck, Linda Holst, Theresa Longo, Jake Martinez, Kendall Melline
OK – Rusty Parks, Rick Schatz
MO – Karin Roberts
MT – Tresa Smith (there for the PBR and clinic. Lori Silcher and her MM friend were also there because of the PBR so they joined in too!)
NV – Jim Hannah
TX – Cathy Pierce
NC – Jeff Bosley
SC – Aline Greene
UT – Valarie Giacalone

Spread over 3 days, the clinic featured some classroom parts, but mostly hand-on riding and teaching the marcha gait, Marchador conformation and the functional test. On Wednesday, the day was more relaxing with a beautiful trail ride in the red rock country of Nevada. Jim Hannah did a great job organizing this day.

Everyone helped throughout the clinic and one of the best parts of the clinic was getting to meet other Marchador owners and breeders! That actually may be the best part, for me.  I had a great time there

Thanks to the clinic committee, the trainers and the participants for helping us pull off our 4th annual clinic! Special thanks to those that brought Marchadors – Bill and Sandy Dory, Jim Hannah, Flying Oaks and Rancho de los Cielos.   The clinic cost is partially underwritten by the USMMA and the ABCCMM, so thanks to them too!

Next year’s clinic moves EAST to the Carolinas or Tennessee! A new format and new classes will be added – send in your suggestions – perhaps Working Marchador would be fun!

Our goal is to keep learning and enjoying our Brazilian Saddle Horses – the Mangalarga Marchador!

p.s.
Attached is the pdf file that described the clinic if you are interested in learning or reading more.

Want to Keep Learning? – Saddle and Stirrups article

Saddle and Stirrups – Issue 33. Christmas edition!

Please click on the pictures below to view larger to read the article!  Also available on your ipad!

 
You can also view other Saddle and Stirrups issues where the Marchador is featured!

Subscribe to this innovative ipad magazine today!  Filled with great information, photos and videos.  The Mangalarga Marchador will be featured often.

You can order from itunes or by visiting their website

MM Clinic in August!

August 17-18
Our friends are coming to visit!  And we are taking advantage of their talents to offer a clinic/get-together at our ranch in August.    Please come and join us !  You can bring your Marchador or use one of ours!  You can just sit, listen and laugh.   It will be fun and educational.
If you wish to participate with a horse, the cost of the clinic will be $100 per day or $200.  First 2 to sign up get the early bird special – 1/2 off!  Let let me know if you want to use one of our horses for the clinic.  I will try to match riders and horses. N/C.
If you wish to audit, the cost of the clinic will be $15 per day.
Included in the lectures and riding:
  • About the Mangalarga Marchador
  • Gait Genetics Study Findings
  • Marcha Gaits and Techniques to Improve them
  • Assessment of each horse and rider
  • Versatility and Gait Competition and Judging
Dr. Laura Patterson  –   Lives in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.  But, being English too, she speaks Portuguese and English fluently.  A great friend to have in Brazil!  She is a vet, rider, trainer of all breeds and has exported Campolina horses to Mexico.  The Campolina horse is a larger breed, but with similar gaits to the Marchador, mostly marcha picada is popular in Bahia.    Laura brings a wealth of experience and knowledge wherever she goes and we are happy that she is willing to share it with us.    In 2012, Laura and Ann worked together on behalf of the ABCCMM, the Marchador association in Brazil.  This year, Laura got the opportunity to study at Cornell and took it!
Several years ago riding the championship at 1.25M https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpQyDT2Tgdw
Dr. Ann Staiger  –  We first met Ann because of her study on gait genetics.  The ABCCMM became one of her biggest fans, flying her to Brazil to collect DNA, measurements, surveys and videos of the Marchadors to be included in her study.    Originally from Maryland, her gaited breed is the TWH.  Her family owns and breed them.  But she loves all horses.   Ann studied at OSU, Masters in Animal Science and Breeding, and now Cornell PhD in animal science and equine genetics.  It is where she is seeking to discover and explain gait and temperament of gaited horses by finding a gait gene and gait gene combination with conformation traits.    We are quite impressed with her and her work.  For more information on her study, follow this link:  http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/brooks/study_intro.html
It should be a small and intimate group with plenty of time for one on one instruction if that is what you want.  Or, you can just sit at the picnic table and soak it all in as a spectator.
If you are interested, I can send out driving information, hotel information, camping information or whatever you need.  Come early or stay late!    We can share more time together than just the clinic days.
Please respond to me if you can make it!  I will send an invoice via PayPal or you can mail a check.  This is a special event, it can’t be repeated easily!
Thanks so much for being passionate about the Mangalarga Marchador!
Planning for the future:
Winter 2013 or Spring 2014
The Dead-Broke Rider with Ned Leigh, Equine Focus
Human to Horse with Alessandra Deerinck (probably in CA)

SW Update – SW Wins and Clinic Results!

While the main reason for holding the clinic was our education, the format was fun and exciting.   Evaluations by the judges was very informative and helpful.   We did learn a LOT!  Thank you Kate and Tiago!

A blue ribbon for Connie and Leo!

The Trail Ride – 1st place went to Aline Greene of Saint Horse Marchadors, SC on Erva-Doce de Tesouro.

Conformation and Marcha – 1st place stallion to Bill and Sandy Kambic of Haras Lucero, TN with Ritmo A.J.

1st place mare to Bill and Sandy Kambic of Haras Lucero, TN with Aliane Fazenda Zouga.  Aliane was bred in Brazil by Rick Schatz, then Fazenda Zouga, now in the U.S. breeding as Flying Oaks Ranch, OK who also was at the clinic.

1st place gelding to Connie Claire, our clinic organizer, of Ocala, FL with Leo, aka DaVinci do Summerwind, bred by us.

Jeff showing his winning form on Bacara! Whew - it was close!

Functional Test – 1st place won by Jeff Bosley of SW Future Foal @ Lumber Bridge on his mare, Bacara do Summerwind, bred by us.

For many participants, this was the first time they had ever done this!  The riders and horses were learning fast, but there was only time for one run.

Grand Champion – Combining all of the scores over all three days, this was awarded to Jeff Bosley of SW Future Foal @ Lumber Bridge with Bacara do Summerwind.

Almost every person and horse earned a ribbon!  There were quite a few Marchadors just started under saddle so we were all impressed by how well they behaved.   As Tiago would say “You can see, this is a real Mangalarga Marchador!”

Congratulations to everyone!  It was a great accomplishment!

The awards ceremonies were on Sunday, a great finale!

 

 

 

 

 

 

SW Update — Clinic, Marcha Gaits 2!

Kate riding Cheveyo do MManor, owned by Brooke Little, Marchadors InMotion

We all had a taste of riding and training under Kate’s expert guidance.   Kate was able to ride each of the Marchadors herself to understand the movement and what it might need.   She brought with her a toolkit and recommended different things with each horse, sometimes changing to a milder bit.   Because she only had a short time with each horse and rider, she worked on getting the rider to feel the marcha when it was correct.  Then they could recreate it when they got home.

The quality of the marcha is based on many components, not just smoothness.   So, there was some range in the smoothness of the gait, the extension, the lift of the front legs and the expression of the movement (as compared to the “diagram” that should be in your head at all times.)  Part of the answer in the difference was in conformation, which Tiago evaluated on every horse at the clinic with the owner and sometimes the breeder paying close attention!

Conformation check for Leo (DaVinci do Summerwind) by Tiago with owner Connie Claire looking on.

The Brasilians have a complicated and precise expectation about each body part, the angles, the length and the proportion to one another.   Both the conformation and the marcha are evaluated and tested on all Marchadors being registered in Brasil by the ABCCMM.  Some breeders in the U.S. like us, also follow that tradition.  SW Future Foal is an  ABCCMM breeder.

These measurements and evaluation relate to the horse being able to move and flex the front legs and the back legs in a similar fashion.   In the marcha, the front leg hits before the opposite hind leg – this is called dis-association and it’s why it is a marcha and not a trot.  There is often over reach where the hind legs hit in front of where the front legs landed.

Surprisingly, all but one of the Marchadors in the clinic were marcha batida horses, even though some owners had believed perhaps that they were marcha picada because they were so smooth.

Kate in teaching mode. Bill Kambic, owner and rider on his stallion Ritmo A.J., Haras Lucero

So much valuable information given to each rider and owner!  Much of it was videotaped and I will be producing videos all summer so that we don’t forget!

From this year’s clinic, here are the learnings that are ringing in my ears from Tiago and Kate.

“There are 5 senses to help you feel that the marcha is correct.  Two eyes (if you are watching).  Two ears (close your eyes and listen).   One seat.  (you can feel it).”

“Relax your horse – the neck must be flexible and supple.”  

“Don’t bounce or post! Relax your hips and move with the horse.”  If you move up and down the horse will follow you and not stay smooth.

“Keep your hands steady with his mouth, but relax your arms and shoulders.”  I found this instruction fascinating. How can I keep my hands set but keep my shoulders relaxed?  But yes, you can do it.   If your shoulders are not relaxed, your hands will not be quiet.

“More speed!  More leg!” Most of us here in the U.S. seem to be riding our Marchadors way too slow for them to find their way.   The marcha has speeds and often the horses smooth out at higher speed, almost at a canter.

“Disassociation”  The rider should be able to feel AND hear that the hind feet are not hitting the ground at the same moment as the front feet.  The shoulders and hips of the horse should be swinging free and easy.  That’s why it’s so important that the horse stay relaxed.   And it’s also why some horses get smoother after they warm up.

“Inside rein.  Move your fingers!” To keep the head flexed and neck bent and soft.

“Breathe!”  To keep you soft.

Rebecca Boone on Aviadora do Campo Real, waiting her turn. Aviadora was the most improved marcha at the clinic. For her it was all about releasing tension.

Here’s what I wrote up after the 2011 Clinic and it is remains the same too.

  • Perfect the 4 beat extended walk.  (How many times are we told to practice a good walk in other disciplines?)  It is ESSENTIAL for a good marcha as it is the take-off point and retreat point always.
  • Practice in straight lines before teaching in circles, lateral work or ANY other discipline.  Teach the horse to elongate his back, his stride, relax and stretch without speeding up.
  • Always start on the good side for the stretches, but do both sides.  Stretching from the good side will help the bad side to stretch easier.
  • To move into gait:  From the walk, apply more leg pressure and ask the horse to speed up without losing the smooth rhythm that was there in his walk.  Collect the reins (have contact) with the horse’s mouth to ask him to collect his body in a good frame.
  • Do NOT let your horse continue to gait if it is gaiting badly.  Go back to the walk and start again.
  • On the other hand, keep the marcha going for long and longer periods of time.  Don’t stop! Ask for MORE SPEED from his legs while maintaining the collection.   You are trying to build MUSCLE MEMORY.  (This works really well!  I tried it on my horses after the clinic)
  • A marcha picada horse that paces is often still very smooth (I was surprised by this).  You can tell because your hips will go side to side instead of forward and back.  Try to put your leg on for more leg speed, but if that doesn’t work, return to the walk and start over.
  • Place your horse on the marcha gait line L4-D4.   Some horses will need training help because of poorer conformation or genetics, but some horses might need help because someone interfered with their natural gait during training.  The Marchador is a willing partner.  If you ask it to change its natural footfall, it will learn to do what you want.
  • You can use dressage to supple the horse and build muscle, but not too soon (remember straight lines).  Once you can do the circles, you can move to a higher-level figure.  The Marchador can do lateral work and the higher moves IN GAIT!  (Another surprise for me!)

Click here if you want to read the whole SW News article:   SW News411

Also, for Kate’s slides from the 2011 Clinic, follow this link:   https://www.namarchador.org/2012/04/mm-clinic-slides-2011/