Ken McNabb in the saddle for HorseFest

By Mark Parker
Farm Talk (Parsons, Kan.)

February 15, 2008 10:21 am

— When Ken McNabb was 9 years old he sat on the back of an unbroken filly that was lying down out in the paddock.
The filly got up and, real sudden-like, the young boy was starting his first colt.
There have been a lot of horses since then — far too many to count — and the Wyoming cowboy’s horse training expertise has taken him all over the country and into the homes of thousands through RFD-TV.
And on March 7, 8 and 9, McNabb will be sharing what he’s learned with equine enthusiasts attending HorseFest at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds in Springfield, Mo.
Growing up near Cody, Wyo., cowboying was a natural vocation for McNabb and he was day-working on neighboring ranches by the time he was 11. By 13, he was cowboying full time outside of school hours.
And somewhere along the line folks got to noticing that the kid had a way with horses. He began starting horses for people when he was 14 and, outside of working at a feedlot one winter, McNabb will tell you, “I’ve never had a real job.”
Training horses is more of a calling than a job for him.
“There’s nothing quite like starting a horse and looking back at where he began,” McNabb said. “It’s like building a house. You start from scratch and when you have something, there’s a real sense of accomplishment.”
The nationally known horse trainer’s techniques have changed through the years and they continue to evolve but one concept guides what he does in the clinics he conducts across the country.
“I’m trying hard to make it easier for the horse,” McNabb said, “and that means making it easier for the handler to understand. If the handler understands, then it will be much easier for the horse to learn.
“Horses aren’t born with problems, for the most part. They want to eat, sleep and stay safe and that’s pretty much it. It’s when they begin to associate with us that they begin to have problems. So my focus is ‘get the problem out of the person and it will eliminate the problem for the horse.’”
The good news, he says, is that most horse people really want to learn. They are eager to get better at handling and getting more out of their horse. One of the most common problems McNabb runs into with his human students relates to the release of pressure.
“An awful lot of people apply pressure to the horse until they get what they want,” he said. “What they usually miss is when the horse tries just a little bit. That’s when they need to release the pressure but usually they’re so focused on their goal that they miss it and, eventually, the horse quits trying.”
Although McNabb grew up with western horses, he now has the opportunity to work with horses from a host of breeds and disciplines and while he acknowledges a few “personality” differences, he’ll tell you that Haflinger, Foxtrotter, Arabian or Quarter Horse - they all have the same basic needs and instincts.
And the same thing goes for the people who ride them.
“Good horsemanship is good horsemanship,” McNabb said. “It doesn’t make any difference what kind of saddle you put on in the morning.”
McNabb’s horse savvy has earned him a spot at this year’s Road to the Horse Colt Starting Challenge in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Each year the event picks three of the nation’s top horse trainers and they compete for the title. McNabb will compete against Chris Cox and Tommy Garland and will be at HorseFest the following weekend.
Joining McNabb in conducting daily clinics at HorseFest will be renowned horseman John Lyons.
Other featured events include a horse judging clinic at 10 a.m. on Friday, March 7, presented by Shannon Cunningham, coach of Northeastern Oklahoma A&M’s highly successful equine judging team.
Also on Friday, veteran cowboy shooter Jimmie Allen will conduct a Cowboy Mounted Shooting Clinic at 3 p.m. The HorseFest Shootout Cowboy Mounted Shooting competition will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 8, and Sunday, March 9.
New to this year’s HorseFest will be a Cowboy Church Service on Sunday at 9 a.m. Conducted by the Southwest Missouri Christian Cowboys, the service will include John Lyons as a speaker, singer/musician Shannon Smith of Springfield, Mo., and cowboy poet Geff Dawson of Alma, Kan.
On Sunday, exhibit halls will open at 10 a.m., following the Cowboy Church service.
The HorseFest trade show will feature hundreds of exhibits with products for horse and rider.
Area breeders will also have horses on display, representing a wide variety of breeds, during the event.
HorseFest hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Adult admission is $10 per day with youths 13-18 $5 and kids 12 and under free.
Parking is free. HorseFest is produced by Farm Talk and the Missouri Entertainment & Event Center. The Ozark Empire Fairgrounds are located just off of I-44 at the Highway 13 exit.
For more information, contact Farm Talk at 800-356-8255.

Mark Parker writes for Farm Talk in Parsons, Kan.

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