I’ve decided to make this a running account of what I do everyday and the journey I’m on in my pursuit of Horsemanship and more importantly a best life scenario.
The last 10 days were some of the best most hectic times I’ve encountered since moving to Montana. We started off the Memorial day weekend taking our living quarters trailer and meeting friends at our Ranch in Big Timber Montana. It started out with a muddy road into our campsite and then a down pour in the middle of the night. Quite a mess. Next morning we awoke to rain and fog for most of the day. It was warm and we took a beautiful ride in the rain with some of our early arrival friends. That evening Kathy, let us enjoy the ranch house and all was well with showers, warm house and nice fire. The next morning more folks arrived and we were greeted to blue skies and the famous Big Timber wind. All in all it was a great weekend with music food and friendship. The new horses Nancy and I were riding turned out to be great and did a wonderful job of negotiating the cliffs and down timber on the ranch. They didn’t take a bad step. We enjoyed the family ranch like I have never had the opportunity to do before now. I rode places I hadn’t been since I was a kid in the late 1960’s. Old homesteads, Indian lookouts, teepee rings, and a blast to find and relive old memories.
Monday morning we loaded up and headed home. We arrived just an hour ahead of my new clients for the week. Jack and Rick from Victorville California. More about that next time. All in all things couldn’t have been better.

In Northwest Montana the snow has melted and it’s time to get back in the saddle. One of the things that’s important to our horse is the amount of time we spend

brand new saddle

 with them. They need familiarity. The more time we spend with our horses, the more relaxed they become when we are around. The more we interact with them, the more they learn what to expect from us. The more consistent we are, the easier it is on our horses.

Having said that, it becomes important to do lots of different things to habituate our horse to a wide variety of happenings. To do it correctly we are always asking our horses to take a little more. A little more exposure to new things, a little more pressure to a quick situation, alittle more difficulty in where they go or what we ask them to do. The key is to present a situation and give them time to respond. find a way to build his confidence going in, anticipate the right outcome and set it up so that he is successful. This takes a lot of forethought, and that is where leadership comes into play. We have to be the leaders and we have to lead in a way that our horses can understand and be successful. The only way to do this is to spend enough time with our horses to learn how each and everyone of them think and respond to us. Every horse requires his own lesson plan.  Get to work Summer is time for school, not recess.

   The best we can do  is to learn to communicate with horses, and that  too,  can always be improved. Look at how many problems people have communicating with each other. Now we are supposed to communicate with a horse???? If we can’t communicate in our own language, then how will do it with horses? Luckily horse language is more simple than human language and the rules are different!

A week in the equimersion program is really horse language immersion.  If you wanted to learn Spanish or French the best and quickest way, you would go to the country and immerse yourself in their culture. You would also learn the accepted  customs in their culture. 

This is what we attempt to do at the Lucky 2. It is a week long program to immerse yourself in the world of horses. everything here is about the horse.  To help, we have horses that are good communicators as well.  I will help you. No distractions just horses all day everyday. This is just the beginning but it will give you the foundations to build  knowledge from a solid base.  We focus on safety and understanding of the way horses perceive our actions. We build your confidence that you are doing the right thing and learn to read how a horse interprets your actions. 

It’s about body language and controlling our energy. We focus on the energy we send out from our feelings. Horses are hyper energy readers, this is their language.

Our work with horses is always in the present tense!  With horse, fluency is currency!

The more you understand, the farther you go.

If you’re in love with horses and you’ve never had the time or found a way to spend a lot of time with them, then a vacation to the Lucky 2 is the place for you. I’ll get you into horses in a way you’ve never dreamed of. Your love and appreciation will grow to the point where you have to  change your lifestyle to include horses on a regular basis. I’m warning you straight away,if you want to get hooked on horses this is the place, and this summer is the time. I’m booking up right now and have limited space available. Give me a call and pick a time that works for you. There is no place like Montana in the summer time and combine that with a total horse experience and I swear it will change your outlook on life. It’s a way to get in tune with yourself and to discover what really matters. To get a taste of what’s to come, scroll through to my Horsemanship is easy, not simple series of blogs.

New Blue Chaps,w/ Horse heads scallops

Wild Wild Horses

Just finished a new pair of chaps and I’m ready for summer. I’ve been riding at a couple of local indoor arenas but it’s just not the same as a warm spring day and a good horse covering some country. New chaps help me mentally get there!!

The trouble with our horses is that we don’t spend enough time with them. Horses are creatures of habit and they like repetition. In our modern world we expect to go out once a week and do what ever we want with our horses. Our horses however like to be habituated to their routines. It keeps them from worrying, builds their confidence, and allows them to relax despite our motion. A horse wants to relax in his environment, he’s really trying to save himself. He wants to keep his energy stores for survival, just in case.  This is part of what we’ll learn at the Lucky 2 Ranch, horseman’s vacation.

  A week at the Lucky 2 Ranch, enjoying a horsemanship vacation is just the ticket to familiarize your self with learning the importance of how to be, around your horse. When we can do this stuff everyday we get better, more efficient and smooth with our delivery. Horses like smooth moves, they don’t like quick jerky movements or noises. Horses are re assured by our own repetition of our movements and actions in their presence. If you could bring  your own horse, it would be even better. We all need to spend more time with our horses.  In the old days people, who didn’t know as much as we do today, got along better with their horses simply because the horses were used daily and I mean daily. It settles a horse to be used over and over everyday. They actually like it.

It’s always good to come home from a vacation experience and feel like you’ve learned something.  A week at the Lucky 2 studying horsemanship will be the best horseback riding vacation you’ve ever had, it you want to learn horsemanship that is!!!

All day every day of your vacation is spent horseback riding. Whether you are in the arena learning communication or out on the trails riding in open country with spectacular views of Glacier National Park, celebrating its’ 100th anniversary this year. You’ll learn that horseback riding starts with tuning into your horse on a whole other level. It’s about energy, the desire to horseback ride is the beginning of the energy flow.  Everything about horseback riding is about movement which is energy. A horseback riding vacation is an energetic endeavor. It is your job as the captain of your Horsemanship, to lead and direct the energy from your body to that of your horse, and to send it all in the same direction. For this to happen there can be no resistance from the horse. Your mind creates the intention to send you, on and through your horse to an intended destination, and to do it at the speed you ask. We learn how to ask our horses to accept our intentions without resistance.   By taking a horseback riding vacation we approach all or our riding with intention, it’s not about just going around in mindless circles.

If you want to learn real horse and rider communication on your horseback riding vacation, and do it with intention and style in some of the most beautiful country in the world, come to the Lucky 2 and we’ll have a great time.

Ken Jones

There’s nothing like a new year to get us motivated.  I always use it to regroup and jump start  into a better self. I’m not sure I always make progress but I like to think I do!

I’[ll show you a saddle I just completed for my friend, Wes Herring in Broken Hill NSW Australia. I’ve spent the last 2 months building it for him.

I always appreciate my horses and offer thanks to them for all they’ve given me  over the years. If you’ve any doubt, just listen to the songs I’ve written about horses and horsemanship. You can download them from the web site, I offer them for free.

 As I’ve said, I love horses and my western heritage that has given me a place in this world. I try to spend most of my time honoring the traditions and acknowledging my respect for the western way of life.  I recognize the importance of horses, in the world, both past and present, the lessons they teach and the raw strenght the offer.

I am inspired by leather craft and the infinite possibilities to create with leather and the incredible craftsmanship that is possible. I appreciate its’ symbiotic relationship to western culture and  lifestyle. 

I honor, support, and create(to the best of my ability) the West’s, literature, poetry and song,  enjoy it daily, and help to preserve  and share it with any and all in this great world that we live in.

I submit to you that if you ride straight and think positive, you’ll be alright in the end.  There’s nothing better than a good attitude. Surround yourself with positive people and  you’ll be amazed how good life can be. This will truly be a  Happy New Year.

Do you need EEV,  yes, that’s an  Equestrian Education Vacation!! Why not make your next vacation and educational one!

It’s such a good feeling to come home and think you’ve actually learned something and have a bit more knowledge, (no Pun intended). I created a program to study horsemanship in one of the most beautiful spots in America. Only 30 minutes from the entry to Glacier national Park, the Lucky 2 Ranch is situated in the heart of the Flathead Valley of Montana. We’ll study horses, hands on we don’t just talk about it. Most mornings are spent in the arena and the afternoons are out on the trail enjoying some of the most beautiful country you’ll ever see. It’s all about horses. Horse psychology, horsemanship, arena games, trail riding.  All day long, everyday. You’ll be horseback from beginning to end. I will guide you through all your experiences keeping you safe and enjoying a week of interaction with horses. I’m available for any questions and no question is off limits.

Horsemanship is a language and you have to immerse yourself in it to learn it. Once a week lessons will keep you from progressing.  Horses are all about repetition and familiarity it’s  an absolute necessity to create a relationship with the horse and build his trust and confidence. There is nothing like daily exposure to help both you and your horse.

Give this a try for a week and you’ll know whether or not you want to “dive in the deep end.”  I can help you make this a very positive experience. Give yourself and advantage and commit for a week at the Lucky 2.

I’m here for you and your families vacation of a lifetime.

Have a great holiday season!!!

We’ve experienced cold weather the last couple of days.  The horses have a big round bale and get to eat all of the  time. Food is what produces heat for horses. If they can eat they can stay warm.  I get to look at them out the both the big picture window in my living room and the double doors that open from my leather shop.  I look at them several times a day, 10 to 20 times.  I can be working on a leather project in the shop by the wood stove and glance out at the horses. It’s reassuring to know they are ok. When summer vacation season comes around, they get out to a larger pasture but I can still see them and have the boys trained to come in with a big whoop. I don’t ever have to wrangle the horses. Part of my program is to teach you how to work with your horses mind and  energy while keeping your energy in a calm current.

I marvel at the horses ability to adapt to any situation, as long as they can eat and drink. Add buddies, open pasture and running to that equation and you’ve got a happy healthy horse.