| "I
have three major rules when I'm working with horses: I must not get hurt, my horse must not
get hurt, and I must be having fun!" -- Don West
Don West is a professional horseman;
breeder, trainer, teacher, author, promoter, and product
designer, specializing in paso and naturally gaited
horses. Billed as "America's Original Trail Riding
Clinician" he's performed at all the major horse
fairs and expos around this country. Not just another
lecturer or teacher, Don thinks of himself more as an
"equine success coach", Your Learning Leader For Equine
Adventure. Don is an internationally known and respected
expert on saddle fit, basic training for trail riding,
back country horse travel, and low impact horse camping.
In his "Easy Rider"- Training for
Trail Riding- Paso and Naturally Gaited Horse Weekend
Workshops, and his five day, "Come Ride With Me"-
Naturally Gaited Horse Training and Trail Riding
Intensives, held at his West Gait Equine Learning Center
near Fruita, Colorado, Don teaches what he calls "horse
handling-horse sense", "sit-down" equitation, and
"synergistic-synchronistic riding" . For the more
adventurous, Don offers a seven day hands-on wilderness field practicum called "Go Right-Go
Light"- Low-Impact Horse Camping. Don's motto is:
"Saddle Up- Let's Ride!"
Don is the co-owner,
product designer, and field tester at Have Saddle-Will
Travel, Inc., Innovative
Outfitter for people who were
"Born To Ride".
He's the creator of the Don West "Signature Series"
Training-Trail Saddles and Tack, "the sit-down
saddles with the fit built in - not added on",
designed for today's paso and naturally gaited horses.
Don is also the designer of the Saddle Software Systems,
Cordura™ saddlebags, packs and accessories, "bringing backpacking
technology to horse packing equipment", and the
Storm Riders Clothes Line, weather beating outerwear; "classic western designs
in today's hi-tech fabrics".
Don has a lifelong history with horses and a deep love
for the out-of-doors. He is a trained and accomplished
experiential educator. His saying, "A comfortable horse
is a happy horse, and a happy horse makes for a happy
rider.", sums up his basic straight forward,
no-nonsense, easy to understand approach to basic
horsemanship and training for trail riding. He holds a
B.S. in Parks and Outdoor Recreation Education from Penn
State, and did his masters work in Counseling at South
West College in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Don's work with Boston University, the Colorado Outward
Bound School, the Verde Valley School, Pecos River
Learning Center, Four Corners Center For Experimental
Learning, and other outdoor education programs, personal
growth and enhanced communication seminars, and
horse-handling skills spans over forty years. Don is an
Eagle Scout, was a U.S. Marine, and for five years was
Town Marshal in Crested Butte, Colorado, where he
also spent a season as a working cowboy. Besides horsemanship
he's taught hiking, biking, skiing, camping, backpacking,
rock-climbing, mountaineering, and nature education.
Don
is an author, poet, and philosopher. His articles have appeared
regularly in many well-known horse magazines and equine
publications. He's the author of four books,
the award winning "Have Saddle, Will Travel,
Low-Impact Trail Riding and Horse Camping", "Paca, Paca A Sure Cure For The Trots (Everything
You Wanted To Know About Peruvian Paso Horses, But Didn't
Know Who To Ask)", and his
latest book "Horse Handling-Horse Sense™: A
Practical Guide for Today's Pleasure-Trail Riders (especially
for naturally
gaited horse riders)." For
those who like cowboy poetry he wrote "Lessons
in Life, Love and Learning - Selected Poems by Don West"
.
Happy trails!
Last
Updated:
March, 2008
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