Trust First, Train Second: The Foundation Every Horse Needs
- afenner
- Jul 22
- 2 min read
You can have the fanciest saddle, the flashiest bloodlines, and the prettiest arena dirt. But if a horse doesn’t trust you, none of it matters.
At Rad Rodeo, we’ve learned this the hard way — and the best way. We’ve started over enough times, rehabbed enough "retired ones", and raised enough of our own to know one thing for sure:
Trust comes before training. Always.
Trust Makes Everything Else Possible
When a horse trusts you, they:
Try harder, even when they’re unsure.
Recover faster from mistakes.
Stay with you when things get fast, scary, or new.
That kind of bond can’t be forced. It’s built, step by step, ride by ride.
We Start Slow So We Can Go Fast Later
People love to talk about how quickly a colt gets patterned or how many futurity wins a horse has. But we care more about:
Did they load willingly?
Can they stand tied without a meltdown?
Will they move their feet without panic?
We take the time up front to build a foundation they can stand on for years — not just for a season.
Trust Isn’t Just for the Horses
The same lessons carry over to the kids:
They need to trust us before they’ll take correction.
They need to feel safe before they’ll be brave.
They need to believe they matter more than their last run.
We don’t just train horses. We raise people. And trust is the bedrock of both.
When in Doubt, Go Back to Groundwork
If things fall apart in the saddle, we don’t fight through it — we go back to the basics:
Halter work.
Yielding hips and shoulders.
Just walking and breathing together.
It’s amazing what a horse will give you when they know you’re listening.
Final Thoughts
At Rad Rodeo, we’ve built our program on more than talent. We’ve built it on trust.
Because a horse that trusts you will go farther, faster, and with more heart than one who’s just scared into obedience.
Trust first. Train second. That’s how you build something that lasts.
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Ann-Marie Fenner
Ranch Manager, Breeder, Rodeo Mom
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