M&L HORSEMANSHIP

     My love of horses was initiated early on when my father would take me to ride a pony named Charcoal at a local stable. At the age of three, I knew that horses must be a permanent installation in my life. After Charcoal, I participated in weekly trail rides, where I fell in love with one of the horses I rode, a Quarter-horse named Spice. This is where I learned more about horse care and stewardship and gained some sense of responsibility. After a few years of leasing a horse, I finally got one of my very own--an Arabian-cross named Duke. Duke is one of our main lesson horses today. On the horse I had leased and later with Duke, I participated in and graduated from Westernaires. Realizing that there were other avenues to pursue with horses, I began barrel racing and acquired several more horses, one of which--a Quarter-horse named Revenue--I still have to this day. I travelled all over the state of Colorado competing in barrel racing events with Revenue.

     After high school, I decided to attend CSU's Equine Science program, where I took classes such as Packing and Outfitting, Equine Reproduction, Equine Pathologies, Sale Preparation and Colt Starting, and Riding Instructor Training. During the summers, I worked at Rawah Guest Ranch where I started young horses used for guests and for hunting. During my last semester at CSU, I managed a working cattle ranch where I became proficient in moving, selling and doctoring cattle raised for beef and of course the horsemanship skills required to do those things. 

     After that I was hired as an exercise rider of dressage and reining horses, and that's where my interest in dressage began. I saw the amazing transformation that could take place in a horse trained using the classical method, and the grace, precision and beauty of the sport appealed to me. 

     I met Laura (who had already been teaching horseback riding lessons for two years at that time) at the beginning of 2016 when we both started boarding our horses at the Brill Ranch. Upon realizing that we shared a common vision of what horsemanship should look like we formed our partnership of teaching horseback riding and working with horses. I eventually quit the job I had managing a high-end dressage barn outside of Loveland to dedicate myself more fully to M&L Horsemanship, and I continue to learn and improve as both a horse person and an instructor every day.