Of Girls and Horses
By: Sue Fenner
In 2016, during a summer family get-together, I made an offer to all of my nieces to
come visit my farm in Michigan for a week of “horse camp”. That simple invitation to a
group of young girls blossomed in to one of the greatest events we have ever had so far.
2017 Aunt Sue’s Horse Camp evolved to encompass twelve days, three horse shows, six
students, five Tennessee Walking horses, a professional camp cook, 6-8 hours per day of
riding and lessons, 2-3 hours per day of chores, daily laundry, one big birthday party, bon
fires, two youth instructors, one advanced instructor and one grand master instructor.
Oh, and one exhausted husband!
When they first arrived, each student had (1) lesson (that is all we had time for!!!) be-
fore their first 4H show. At the show, they each had (3) classes (showmanship, equita-
tion, pleasure) for their age division. With teachers and students, everyone helped each
other and cheered each other on for every event. The cheers and shouts were loud as
each rider placed in their events. High fives and ribbons all around!
Mornings were full of lessons about horse health, horse
care, feed, conformation, show attire, proper riding
attire, tack, farm equipment and farm/barn care and
maintenance. Afternoons were all about showmanship,
equitation, balance, form, and safe riding practices.
Most of these kids had only ridden a handful of times
and had certainly never been on a trail ride or in the
show arena. After dinner, everyone would go back out
for evening chores and they could practice on their own
to prepare for the 4H shows on the weekends. Around
8:00 pm, the race was on to see who could get into the
showers first and head to the bonfire.
Horse camp finished with their last 4-H show to test
their skills and practice what they had learned. The goal
was to improve and every rider met that goal. After the
show, horses and equipment were put away and we had
a big celebratory dinner and cook out. By the next day, all of the kids had packed and
gone back home to share their experiences with their families. …and we got to sleep!
What started as a simple offer to visit our farm evolved to a full-out horse camp. It was
such a great opportunity to introduce young riders to our walking horses and what it
takes to ride and compete. The best part for me was that I got to enjoy all of it with my
children, my husband and my mom. My mother started with walking horses over 55
years ago and passed that love to me….and we just passed that on to another group of
kids.
The following week was spent going over their show experience and practicing during
their lessons to improve for their second 4H show. Each day, the routine was basically
the same. Kids would be at the barn at 8:00am to do their assigned chores and then
back to the house for breakfast. After they cleaned up from breakfast, back to the barn
for lessons and riding. Lunch was ready around noon and then back down to ride and
practice before supper.
NWHA National News 44
NWHA National News 45