|
Look through our guestbook(mostly swedish) Lollo, I have just returned from a weekend at Jultorp ranch with my two sons, aged 17 and 15, and wanted to thank you for a really rewarding experience. As you know our previous experience of Western riding was in Colorado for a week the last two summers, and we were looking for a refresher before we headed out there again in July. I researched various venues in the Looking back, I did not read the website fully as we all expected the experience to be very similar to what we were used to in the US, i.e., trail riding, but it is not, and if I had read the site properly, I probably wouldn’t have come and that would have been one of the biggest mistakes that I had ever made. This whole weekend is about learning to communicate with your horse, and how this leads to a better understanding of how you work together. Initially, at the end of day one, both my sons weren’t sure if we had come to the right place, as we were in the indoor arena all day, and although they conceded they had learnt a lot, they were both itching to ride a trail. By the end of day two, they loved it. We were the only non Scandinavians at the ranch, but almost everyone speaks very good English and we were made very welcome, especially by the ranch dog who plays excellent football!! Your chef prepares amazing meals, which were not only excellent in quality, but there were always plenty for second helpings, and there is nothing better at the end of a day than relaxing with a glass of wine and a good meal. Later on, the line dancing ensured we all got a good nights sleep. Can I thank Lotte and Anne-Sophie, the two wranglers who taught us and took great care to ensure we understood everything that was said. I had been used to trail riding where although I always felt in control, in reality the horse would generally follow the one in front, and although I knew how to stop and start him, I never had to do much else. I can’t really describe the sense of satisfaction at being able to work with your horse in doing various manoeuvres at a walk, trot and lope, using reins, or just a rope around his neck, or no hands at all, communicating with him using just your legs and balance as well as hands. Early on day three, we all dismount and then the challenge is to get your horse to do the various exercises without touching him, just to get him to follow your lead, you really know then that you have bonded with your mount as “Roffe” dutifully did exactly what was asked of him. The final afternoon, we headed outdoors for the second time and hit the trail for a beautiful ride through the countryside, including indulging in some fun loping in a large field, before heading back to the ranch property. All the horses live outside except when working and as you enter their paddock on the way back to the stables, they all come over to greet their friends. I rode a quaterhorse, my sons rode an Arabian and a Appaloosa; every horse was in superb condition and they were, without doubt, the best trained string I have encountered. Once again, can I thank you all for an excellent weekend, and I would be very pleased to recommend the ranch to anyone. Tony Boot
|