The Senlac Multiple 4-H Club has projects in beef, light horse and miniature horse driving, offered this year for the first time.
The club has five members in the beef project, three in driving and 20 members in the light horse project making a strong club of 24. The light horse and driving project members attended the Niki Flundra horsemanship and trick riding clinic held Jan. 12-13.
Instructor Niki Flundra is from Pincher Creek, Alta. and was the clinician for this two-day event. Flundra is a trick rider, liberty horse entertainer, stunt woman, pyrotechnics co-ordinator and has performed at the Canadian Finals Rodeo in Edmonton as well as the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas several times.
The kids worked with their own horses throughout the two-day event, in addition to Flundra's horses "Z" and "Spartan." Spartan is a regular on the show Heartland.
Two clinics were run each day with 10 members attending morning sessions and 10 in the afternoon sessions. The clinic was held near Macklin at the arena of Lana Clark and Joe Harrison. The first day students were taught groundwork as well as horsemanship skills. The second day was a day of experiencing and learning beginning trick riding skills, with each member taking a turn riding the star horse Z. The participants thoroughly enjoyed their time with this amazing instructor and have hopes that she can return for another clinic.
The light horse project meets twice a month to ride at the arena near Macklin and once it gets close to their achievement day at the end of May and Lloyd Expo Horse Show in June, the kids start riding at least three times a week in order to be ready to compete. They also participate in general meetings as members of the Senlac Multiple 4-H club.
Katrina Cooper is the light horse project leader with assistant leaders Twila Zunti, Debbie Ganser, Lana Clark and Kevin Stang. Debbie Ganser is the project leader and Gord Krupka and Lana Clark are the assistant leaders for the driving project. Brady Moncreiff and Burt Forbes are the beef leaders. Burt Forbes is the general leader.
Of course, to support their projects, there needs to be funding in place. Therefore, the light horse members do a few fundraisers such as picking ditches in Senlac and Macklin, holding a cake bingo Easter weekend and collect cans, in addition to set up and take down for weddings.
The club is also hosting a Scott McClelland clinic in the spring. McClelland trains RCMP horses, so he is creative about what he has the members doing on their horses. He does a desensitizing clinic and the horses even walk through fire. Clinics held for the light horse project members can create a concrete relationship between a rider and their horse. The participant and their horse learn to trust one another and have fun while doing so.
Clinics as well as other shows, achievement day, and Lloyd Expo are like a game and the 4-H riding meetings are like a practice. So once they are "playing" in a clinic they get to use the skills and knowledge the leaders taught them along the way. The skills these kids learn in 4-H demonstrates to them all of the avenues that 4-H can take them in their lives.
To follow this club log onto their website at www.senlaclighthorse.homestead.com
