LATEST NEWS AT MIRTNA PARK
- updated 27 December 2010

I LOVE A SUNBURNT COUNTRY.............RIGHT DOWN TO THE DROUGHTS AND FLOODING RAINS !!!!!!

Well. la Nina has certainly changed our world right around. At least during the drought most everyone who had a horse could ride, but at the moment most all-weather arenas have simply turned into swimming pools and we are very grateful for our indoor arena and the ability to keep on riding in the majority of weather. It does, however, feel a little bizarre to have to keep turning the watering system on in the middle of (what feels like) continual rain.

NEW YEAR

There are up sides to the weather. Lots and lots of grass and quite pleasant temperatures with generally not too much humidity, so no-one has overheated or stressed. Down side is wet horses, wet rugs and shoes falling off prematurely - all of which seems to worry me more than the horses themselves.

THEORY CLASSES

To enable students to be more deeply involved in the theory of riding and training horses without actually eating too heavily into their lesson times, Mirtna Park will run theory classes on various aspects of horsemanship from time to time. These classes will run for 4 cosecutive Monday evening from 7.00 - 9.00pm. There will be a lecture to start each evening, but I hope that participants will also bring along their own lists of things that maybe don't quite make sense to them, or things they have heard conflicting answers to. Sometimes apparent differences are in fact just different interpretations of the same thing - sometimes they're totally different philosophies. As a friend of mine often said: "There are no stupid questions - only stupid answers"

They'll be flagged on the noticeboard at Mirtna Park and I'll also send out emails advising the dates as they come up. Cost is $80.00 payable upon booking which includes light refreshments.

BROADENING THE BASE

This year we're planning to expand the experience with a little groundwork to heighten the riders appreciation of how the horse responds to (and sometimes tries to avoid ) the requests we make with our reins and our legs. This 'on the ground' work can be very helpful in understanding some of the things which go wrong when we're mounted - and therefore helping our ability to fix these problems. Simple things like the difference between bend and flexion can be easily appreciated and understood, as well as more complex problems such as timing of the aids and falling in or out through the shoulder.

Groundwork has the distinct advantage that if horse or handler get a little confused or muddled, it is really easy to stop an exercise, settle down and start again. At a basic level, horses can be introduced to and suppled with lateral work such as leg yield, shoulder in and travers by a person on the ground which makes the ridden application easier.

Please check at the bottom of the page for details re the schools

OPENING TIMES

Opening times will remain Wednesday to Sunday inclusive.

MIRTNA PARK WILL BE CLOSED OVER CHRISTMAS/NEW YEAR

OPENING AGAIN ON WED 5 JAN 11

Please let Pam know ASAP if you are interested in any schools

DATES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE, DEPENDING ON DEMAND