“Physically speaking, Jobber is not the right horse for this job… Try telling him that when he’s got the grit to run nose-to-nose with a reluctant-to-load bull…He doesn’t know he’s not built for this job, because he loves this job.”
(more…)
“The reality that I had learned to accept by Sunday was that my horse simply is not at the point yet to keep up with a truly fast cow, and no amount of me trying to pull his body around by the reins was going to change that fact.”
(more…)
“The only way to get better is to surround yourself with better people.”
(more…)
“I was gratified not only to see him go so nicely for another rider, but to know that my ‘flatwork is flatwork’ mentality with a focus on correct riding really did pay off, no matter what kind of saddle was on his back.”
(more…)
After a year of riding in the open pasture with her OTTB, Kristen Kovatch achieves a minor, yet important milestone. Riders battling demons of confidence, this one’s for you.
(more…)
Autumn in review: Jobber teaches his first lesson.
(more…)
“We had all walked very different paths to get to this moment; some of us hadn’t made it to the Horse Park at all. We were here for various little reasons, but our motivation was the same: we were here for the love of the OTTB.”
(more…)
“While I had been looking forward to showing Jobber’s talents with cattle in the freestyle, I equally had zero expectations for the class as far as placing and scoring went — I simply wanted to show the world that Thoroughbreds could work cows!”
(more…)
All of the ups and downs, training challenges, blood, sweat and tears came down to today: Kristen Kovatch and Jobber Bill showed today in the ranch work division at the Thoroughbred Makeover. How did it go? Click here for the full recap and video!
(more…)
“I couldn’t resist hugging him right then and there: we had made it, after all, and no matter what happened after that moment, we had accomplished my little bucket-list goal — we were here in Kentucky.”
(more…)
“I had wanted to go so badly, and no matter how much I told myself that this show was just one step on the longer road, I was crushed, watching Jobber hobble around the layup paddock. We had worked so hard, and frankly I had been starting to feel that we deserved to go.”
(more…)
“It’s not easy to admit, but very few of us are perfect horsemen.” Kristen Kovatch loses sight of her ultimate goal with her OTTB Jobber, but finds her way again thanks to the heart of her willing horse.
(more…)
“If you want to go for a gallop on your Thoroughbred in the morning light instead of working on upward and downward transitions for another session, go for a gallop. Enjoy the ride. There’s more to this horse life than tomorrow’s training goal, after all.”
(more…)
Kristen Kovatch shares some of the exercises she’s working on with her OTTB project Jobber to improve his flatwork, as well as his ranch horse life.
(more…)
“The moral of this story, kids? None of us are too good for a trainer, even if that trainer can only come by once a month. Flatwork is flatwork — it doesn’t matter if you’re running barrels, chasing cows or training dressage.”
(more…)
“Red taught me a lot of things as a horseperson, but he also put me on a hair trigger… The greatest lesson in patience so far in this retraining experience hasn’t been with Jobber or the weather — it’s been learning to be patient with myself.”
(more…)
Kristen Kovatch and her OTTB Jobber Bill, after a winter of alternately struggling in snow or mud, finally surrendered to the weather and headed out for their first field trip together to an indoor facility.
(more…)
How does a mouse eat an elephant?
(more…)
And all the walking you can shake a stick at.
(more…)
… and one step back.
(more…)
Kristen Kovatch takes a look at the bloodlines and race record of her new OTTB to get a full picture of his career up to the moment.
(more…)
It’s no secret that the Retired Racehorse Project’s Thoroughbred Makeover has already had a big impact on the OTTB world. Kristen Kovatch catches up with RRP Ambassador Kyle Rothfus to talk about the bigger picture — and where she and Jobber Bill fit in.
(more…)
Kristen Kovatch is well aware she’s not the first person to ever make a Thoroughbred into a ranch horse — she walks us through the Thoroughbred’s contributions to ranching and the cornerstone of the American Quarter Horse, now respected as the ultimate ranch mount.
(more…)
“The plain ones, the less-than-perfectly-conformed ones and the seemingly ordinary ones all need homes as much as the halter-perfect chromy 10-movers.” Kristen Kovatch takes the OTTB plunge with “Jobber Bill.”
(more…)
