Top Shots

Top Shots

 

Training for the Extreme

Extreme Cowboy Clinic Makes Brave Horses and Riders.

 

Entering through the gates of Craig and Dalene Cameron’s Double Horn Ranch fulfills a fantasy I have had since I was a child. Cowboying at a true Texas ranch with horses, long horns and a river running through it––cowboys in chaps doing chores atop Western outfitted horses under a big blue sky and surrounded by nature.

 

For three days I got to be part of that very fantasy. Working up an appetite after grueling days on horseback was just what this mounted shooter needed. My only regret that it didn’t last longer.

 

The Craig Cameron Extreme Cowboy Clinic is one of many that take place throughout the year at the Double Horn. The much anticipated trip included a pleasant drive from my home in New Mexico just eight hours through country I had not yet seen in my travels.

 

After settling in for the evening my thoughts turned to a phrase I heard from several people who had ridden with Cameron––it will be the “ridingest” clinic you will ever experience.

 

Day 1. We started off with breakfast in the rustic Cook Shack, followed by a review of the Extreme Cowboy Association (EXCA) rulebook as well as some of the judging techniques competition. Each day, Craig Cameron led a discussion on the concepts of judging.

 

When it was time to mount up, riders gathered in the large round pen. Cameron asked each individual to circle the arena twice and come to a stop in front of him. This gave him a chance to size up the riding skills of each person. He then offered critiques—and from that point on, he worked with each of us to help strengthen the positive and eliminate the negative. Like a drill sergeant, Cameron barks out instructions about leads, seat, lightness of reins, and more.

 

After the evaluation session, it was time to move out onto the trails that run through the wooded portion of the ranch. Narrow winding courses are used to get horses and riders warmed up and agile. The group trotted through the trails, a challenging exercise that tested the stamina of both horses and riders.

 

Once the trail exercise was completed, we moved onto some of the many Extreme Cowboy obstacles on several different courses. The first test: negotiating a deep circular ravine, while Cameron insisted on proper seat, signaling and pace. At first, some of the horses were reluctant to dip into the ravine, but before long all were navigating the obstacle with varying levels of proficiency. As the exercise progressed, so did Cameron’s demands; he eventually had all of us taking the challenge with eyes closed, hands off the reins and outstretched.

 

After the grueling ravine course, we moved on. Again beginning slowly, we rode our horses up to and through a wall of hanging ropes, and then through a steel tunnel. Like the first exercise, some horses took to it better than others, but before long, all of us were taking on the obstacle with no fear and with newly attained confidence.

 

One thing Cameron stresses throughout the clinic is the accomplishment of a brave horse. The Cameron regimen does just that. Before long, your horse has the confidence to take on almost any challenge. To be honest, I did things with Chato that I thought we could never do.

 

Day one ended with a group of exhausted riders and horses. Make no bones about it—if you come to a Craig Cameron clinic, you and your horse will work your tails off each and every day!

 

Day 2. After a rules and judging review, we were again instructed to meet at the big round pen for a second Cameron review. As I mentioned, after just one day, you could see that many students had newfound confidence. Our weak points were already improving. One student had a difficult time getting his horse in the left lead. By the end of the second session, he was getting the correct lead. Cameron changed the length of one student’s stirrups, and he convinced another to be lighter on the bit and allow her charging horse his head. By the end of the clinic, he was a charging horse no more.

 

Craig also worked us in the round pen with a circling exercise that focused on keeping the same line around a stationary point. Next, Craig developed an exercise that introduced the horses to gunfire. I was ready; I’d brought my .45’s and a bag of Buffalo Blanks. When the first shot was fired, Chato (an experience mounted shooting horse) stood still while the other animals took various levels of spook. Within a few minutes, Craig asked me to load the .45’s and run a circle around the student horse while firing away from the group.

 

After lunch, we were off to another portion of the racecourse for more obstacles. Log jumping is a common challenge in the Extreme Cowboy Race. Most students in the class had very little or no experience jumping objects—including me. Again we all started slow, eventually progressing to trots and canters, and before long most of us got into a rhythm and tackled the jump.

 

Next it was on to crossing a pond that was about saddle deep. Starting slowly, all horses made the trek several times with very little effort.

 

The next obstacle involved jumping off a three-foot wall, then climbing a steep stair-step of railroad ties, and then back to the jump again.

 

These exercises continued to build confidence in horses and riders. Most of the novice horsemen had never taken a horse through these types of obstacles. Many of us were surprised that we could do it. But Cameron is a great help, barking out instructions, telling students to lean back or give a certain cue to get through each challenge.

 

Moving back to the first course, we started putting the challenges together. For example, we jumped a gauntlet of logs, then cantered through the tunnel, rode through the wall of ropes and then into the deep ravine. This time, Cameron told us to judge each other based on the classroom training we had received.

 

Another course involved a long trot through a series of trails, then through a deep pond and back through the ravine. I think we were all surprised to see how confident we were after just two days of training. At that point, I could have ridden Chato off a cliff. Confidence, adrenaline and personal satisfaction were running high in us all.

 

Day 3. It rained in the morning, so we had our classroom session with Craig then joined him in a tour of his tack room. Craig pointed out and discussed different bitting setups, saddles, reins and other equipment. Learning why some of the items are used and what types of horse some equipment might be more appropriate for really rounded out the clinic for all of us. Craig wound up the tour with a rope tying demonstration and then answered our questions for over an hour.

 

Not that the rain put a stop to things.  Cameron told us to saddle up and meet at the round pen. We donned raincoats and headed down for a final trial; this time it was a race. Craig and all of the students took part. The course involved two legs of the challenging trails, starting with crossing the big pond. Granted, the trails were muddy, but we took on the challenge with vigor and ended the day wet, exhausted and happy.

 

Craig Cameron puts on one heck of a clinic. It’s about proper riding techniques and a lot of hard riding. There is a certain satisfaction when at the end of the day you are sore and tired from riding and your blanket is wet. Craig Cameron delivers on his promise of the “ridingest clinic of ‘em all.”

Related posts:

1. On the Cover   Craig Cameron An Extremely Original Cowboy   Craig...
2. Top Shots   Going To The Extreme—Florida mounted shooting club takes...
3. Craig Cameron’s Extreme Cowboy Corner     Flexibility To Move   Achieving straightness is just...
4. From The Publisher   From The Publisher   Recently, I had the...
5. Top Shots   Super Horse Championships. New arena sport includes barrels,...
6. Top Shots   Choosing the Right Bit for Shooting Horses.  ...
7. Top Shots   MSA—Taking Mounted Shooting to New Heights   Although...
8. Top Shots   Getting A Bead On Rifle Class Four-time CMSA...
9. Top Hand   Frank Turben leaves a lasting impression on the...
10. Loving The Goodnight Trail   Loving The Goodnight Trail. Trainer Julie Goodnight delivers...