IN MY EXPERIENCE Riding in a Clinic
As a lifelong Western rider, I’ve noticed Western performance events aren’t as plentiful in upstate New York as they are in other regions of the country. Because of that, access to nationally recognized reining, ranch horse, and cutting trainers is limited. So when I learned Texas-based reining trainer Joe Hayes was coming to town for a clinic, I couldn’t register fast enough!
Coincidentally, Hayes, who’s judged in 23 countries, was born in Greenwich, New York, a rural town not far from George Peters’ Win$um Ranch in Schuylerville, where I’ve taken lessons. It really is a small world, because Joe and George attended rival high schools fewer than 20 miles apart—then met at Cornell University as undergraduate agriculture education students.
I’ve ridden with George for five years now. He regularly talks about Joe, their adventures together, and his respect for Joe’s training program. Thus it was a
