✨ "It's not the breed, it's the brain." – Nik Lewis  Rupert Isaacson speaks with Nik Lewis of Horses R Us NZ, an equine facilitated learning program near Taupo in the Central North Island of New Zealand. For about eight years, Horses R Us has worked with young people and adults, including neurodiverse clients and clients working on social-emotional goals or riding, with no set parameters. As Nik puts it, if they don't know something, they go and find out. What makes the program distinctive is how little of the session is fixed. Nik describes working with whoever "rocks in on the day," keeping an end goal while letting the route change. Clients stay matched with one horse, each with a plan B horse, and in one story a 29-year-old non-verbal client walks and talks a jumpy Thoroughbred calm, reversing the usual roles of helper and helped. Her horses live in herds outdoors around the clock, and they get their own outlet: Nik and her horses also hunt and jump wire fences. The conversation covers Nik's bareback childhood in rural New Zealand, her path from teacher aide and classroom teacher to burnout in 2015, her EAGALA training, her mentorship with a social worker, and the 2018 leap into running the program full time. It also looks at how Māori tikanga, language, Matariki and Māori stories find their way into sessions, and where story and sense of place could take the work next. If you want to support the show, you can do so at Patreon. If you want to support the show, you can do so at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LongRideHome 🔍 What You'll Learn in This Episode How Nik's "if we don't know, we go and find out" approach shapes a program with no set parameters Why Nik links the Kiwi "number eight wire" mentality to a flexible, can-do way of working What Nik sees as the difference between outcome-focused and client-focused work, based on her understanding of RDA How a client and a horse can swap roles, with the client becoming the horse's regulator Why clients stay matched with one horse, and how a plan B horse and horse care days keep the relationship going What takiwatanga, the Māori word for autistic, means: in their own time and space How Nik moved from teaching burnout through EAGALA training and a social worker mentorship to leaving a secure income in 2018 What Nik found limiting about the EAGALA triangle when she trained, and how she says the model has since evolved How hunting and jumping wire fences shaped Nik's riding, and why she says it is the brain, not the breed, that counts in the hunt field Why Nik's horses get hunting weekends as an outlet, and how Rupert describes rotating therapy horses through varied work How Nik keeps her horses in outdoor herds around the clock and lets them "be horses" How Nik uses volcano language to help younger children notice what their bodies feel before an outburst How Māori tikanga, language, Matariki and stories such as Tangaroa show up in Nik's sessions Why Rupert suggests story and sense of place could be a next step for the work  ✨ "It's not the breed, it's the brain." – Nik Lewis  04:34 Nik reaches for "number eight wire," the Kiwi habit of fixing things with whatever is at hand, and Rupert answers with the Afrikaans saying "Ons sal 'n plan maak" (we'll make a plan). 11:17 Nik explains takiwatanga, the Māori word for autistic, which translates as "in their own time and space," and Rupert asks her to say it again so he can write it down. 18:10 A 29-year-old non-verbal client takes a jumpy Thoroughbred into the round pen while a farmer moves cows nearby, and walks and talks with him until he settles. 21:45 Nik explains that each client stays matched with one horse, that most have a plan B horse, and that a horse with an abscess turns the session into a horse care day. 54:13 Nik describes growing up jumping eight-wire dry stock fences with battens, and at 1:05:05 explains why she was taught that wire is safer than solid fences. 1:06:55 Rupert recalls the Horse Boy trail ride challenge with a big teddy bear in front of the rider, and how Nik took it a step further and hunted over wire fences with the teddy bear. 1:09:18 Asked what makes a good hunt horse, Nik says it is the brain, not the breed, and that you can't train for the atmosphere of the hunt field at home. 1:44:30 Nik talks about the volcanoes she uses with younger children to name what happens in the belly, the toes and the head before the mouth starts. 2:01:45 Nik links a "rompy stompy" child to the god Tangaroa and to nearby Ruapehu, which spits out every now and then. 2:15:49 Nik shares how her program celebrates weirdness, including the young client who first looked at rope reins for a week and then wouldn't let go of them. 📚 Contact, Projects, and Resources Mentioned Nik Lewis – Horses R Us NZ Website: https://horsesrusnz.com New Trails Learning Systems – Horse Boy Method, Movement Method & Takhin Equine Integration https://ntls.co Patreon Support https://www.patreon.com/LongRideHome 🌍 Follow Us Long Ride Home https://longridehome.com https://facebook.com/longridehome.lrh https://instagram.com/longridehome_lrh https://youtube.com/@longridehome New Trails Learning Systems https://ntls.co https://facebook.com/horseboyworld https://instagram.com/horseboyworld https://youtube.com/newtrailslearningsystems 📊 Affiliate Disclosure Links to books and products may include affiliate tracking. We may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting the show.

✨  “The principal thing is love, passion, love, passion and passion and love.” – Luis Valença ✨ “The first thing is to communicate with the horse, and for the horse to accept you.” – Luis Valença  ✨ “It’s not gymnastics.” / “Our work is like music. It’s the same as listening to Chopin or Beethoven.” – Luis Valença ✨ “I have the same enthusiasm because I love life, I love the horses, I love the family.” – Luis Valença  ✨ “Never take the personality from the horse.” – Luis Valença Rupert Isaacson welcomes Mestre Luis Valença of Lisbon, whom he calls a living legend, a national treasure and the greatest living exponent of equestrian art, together with his daughter Sofia. Luis describes his method as a connection between human and horse built on love, comparable to the way we communicate with our children, and traces it back through his three masters: his godfather Fernando Ralão, Cunha Menezes (a Baucherist), and Nuno Oliveira. The conversation explores what the word dressage truly means (to dress the horse so he feels soft and good in his own body), the comparison of the work to music like Chopin and Beethoven, and how older, arthritic or traumatized horses are given back their trust and often rejuvenated. Sofia and Rupert also discuss the simplicity and flexibility of the method, learning to read the student in front of you, the contrast with competition dressage, and why the Valença family's inclusive, tribal approach sends people home with real tools. A rich, story-filled conversation with a family at the heart of classical equestrian tradition. FREE Helios Harmony Intro Course: https://longridehome.com/onoutpout What You'll Learn in This Episode 00:02:37 – Luis describes his method as a connection between human and horse, built on love and the same communication we use with children. 00:07:47 – How the method works for young horses and old ones alike, clearing negative memories and rebuilding trust before any work begins. 00:11:08 – Luis introduces his three masters and what each gave him, from his godfather's farm to Cunha Menezes and Nuno Oliveira. 00:25:10 – Rupert asks what dressage really means, and Luis explains "to dress" the horse as something soft, like music. 00:29:31 – Sofia explains dressage as helping the horse feel good in his own skin, and why the joy should begin the moment he enters the arena. 00:32:16 – Luis shares how he adapted a session for a horse showing back pain, staying with what worked without force. 00:48:15 – Sofia describes what a method really is and why the most important skill is learning to read the student in front of you. 00:50:12 – Rupert recalls Luis's sequence of lunging, in-hand work and the laterals that grow into piaffe and passage. 01:02:48 – Luis explains why you must never take away a horse's personality and how each horse has its own specialty. 01:35:38 – Luis and Sofia share their parting thoughts: love and passion, and learning to listen to what your horse is saying. Memorable Moments from the Episode 00:18:17 – Luis recalls receiving lessons from the ailing Cunha Menezes, who taught him from a chair with two reins and a spoon in his hand. 00:20:30 – Nuno Oliveira phones Luis's mother after watching him ride and invites him to begin working with him. 00:38:31 – Nuno chooses the "worst" horse from a group of Russian youngsters, Bunker, to prove his method could solve it. 01:16:47 – The story of a polo player's horse that fought its strong-handed owner and then opened up for a rider it trusted. 01:37:21 – Luis explains his habit of giving a carrot or sugar at the start and end of each lesson as discipline without force. Guest Contact & Links Valença Equestrian Academy: https://valencaequestrianacademy.com Social media: Valença Classical Riding and Sofia Valença https://www.facebook.com/ValencaEquestrianTours/ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069242888414 About Luis & Sofia Valença Mestre Luis Valença, introduced by Rupert as the living master of equestrian art, lives in Lisbon, where he has practiced and taught equestrian art for decades, keeping a stable of school master horses that he and his family have prepared themselves. His approach centers on love, passion and a soft, communicative way of working that respects each horse's personality, drawing on the old masters, including Baucher and Nuno Oliveira. His daughter Sofia teaches the method in around 40 countries and helps people learn to read their horse and apply it with a simple language. Their work is relevant to anyone who wants joy and softness in their riding, and you can find them at valencaequestrianacademy.com. See All of Rupert's Programs and Shows: Website: https://rupertisaacson.com Follow Us: Long Ride Home Website: https://longridehome.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/longridehome.lrh Instagram: https://instagram.com/longridehome_lrh YouTube: https://youtube.com/@longridehome New Trails Learning Systems Website: https://ntls.co Facebook: https://facebook.com/horseboyworld Instagram: https://instagram.com/horseboyworld YouTube: https://youtube.com/newtrailslearningsystems Affiliate Disclosure: Links to books and products may include affiliate tracking. We may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting the show.

Rupert Isaacson speaks with Dr. Amanda Minervini, founder of  EGLHE (Equine Guided Learning And Healing Experience), a nonprofit equine program in Colorado Springs, and professor at Colorado College.  EGLHE began taking shape during the pandemic, in response to a worsening mental health crisis. It was built around the preferences of one horse: Jimmy, an off-the-track Thoroughbred who raced as a stallion, was not gelded until after age nine, and was labeled dangerous. Originally intended for Amanda's college students, the program is now open to everyone. It brings together consent-based horsemanship, classical in-hand work, liberty, scent work, and good management, with a core belief that horses have a voice and that humans don't have to be in charge. The conversation walks through how Amanda layers a session so that a horse can safely run free through the woods with people who have never been near a horse, how scent work for horses can build confidence in a spooky horse, and why a horse must always be regulated enough to learn. Amanda also shares what she observed with the medicine paint horses at a Lakota Sun Dance, and she and Rupert explore the sacred in equine-assisted work, consciousness, Saint Francis of Assisi, and how zooanthropology helps her bridge methods rather than choose just one. ✨ "I'm trying to show humans that they don't have to be in charge with horses, that it can be a shared enterprise." – Dr. Amanda Minervini If you want to support the show, you can do so at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LongRideHome 🔍 What You'll Learn in This Episode What  EGLHE is, and why Amanda started it in response to the mental health crisis during the pandemic How Jimmy, an off-the-track Thoroughbred labeled "dangerous," became the horse  EGLHE was built around Why good management (herd life, a big pasture, free-choice hay) was the foundation of Jimmy's change How Amanda layers a session, from herd observation to arena liberty work to free movement in the woods Why she never assumes, and works with the horse she has on that day What scent work for horses is, and how to progress from visible treats in an arena to open searching on the trail Why olfactory seeking work may build curiosity and confidence in spooky horses Why a horse must be regulated enough to learn, and what to do when fear is too big How novel movement and BDNF connect horse wellbeing, human focus, and Amanda's own 17 years of kung fu What Amanda observed about the medicine paint horses and their caretakers at a Lakota Sun Dance How Saint Francis of Assisi and the idea of humans as "holobiomes" shape Amanda's view of connection How a zooanthropology lens helps Amanda act as a bridge between methods, disciplines, and cultures Why Rupert believes the synthesis of many methods is the next generation of equine-assisted work 🎤 Memorable Moments from the Episode 07:38 Amanda describes Jimmy's past: a stallion on the track, gelded after age nine, labeled dangerous, yet the only one he ever hurt was himself. 11:15 A grieving paint mare in her late 20s, who had lost her best friend days earlier, crosses the ranch uninvited and canters alongside the group. 13:39 Amanda breaks down the two-and-a-half-hour session: herd observation, arena liberty with a ball and tarp, a lead-line walk, then liberty in the woods. 22:14 Amanda credits 17 years of kung fu with giving her the focus to succeed in graduate school. 36:00 From treats on barrel tops to hidden scents to scattered finds on the trail, Amanda outlines how scent work progresses. 37:32 Riding Jimmy with a rein keeper, Amanda lets him search freely, and he chooses to go over poles without being asked. 44:39 Amanda's golden rule: there is no learning in fear, and she has promised her horses she will never put them in a freak-out situation. 53:37 Amanda describes students repeating in post-session questionnaires that they felt more balanced, more focused, and even more willing to do homework. 1:19:40 Amanda spends two days with the Sun Dance's medicine paint horses and sees them grow eager when it's time for their role. 1:23:37 Rupert recalls his horse Clue leaving the herd to sniff and lick a child in a wheelchair who had drowned and seemed unresponsive, and the child becoming responsive. 1:40:54 Rupert tells how his uncle, a pathologist, explained why most people misunderstand the placebo effect. 1:59:28 Rupert shares that a new Horse Boy center is opening in County Cork, Ireland, with the prime minister turning the sod. 📚 Contact, Projects, and Resources Mentioned Dr. Amanda Minervini – Professor, Colorado College; Founder,  EGLHE (Equine Guided Learning And Healing Experience) https://amandaminervini.weebly.com New Trails Learning Systems – Horse Boy Method, Movement Method & Takhin Equine Integration https://ntls.co Rupert Isaacson / Long Ride Home https://rupertisaacson.com Patreon Support https://www.patreon.com/LongRideHome 🌍 Follow Us Long Ride Home https://longridehome.com https://facebook.com/longridehome.lrh https://instagram.com/longridehome_lrh https://youtube.com/@longridehome New Trails Learning Systems https://ntls.co https://facebook.com/horseboyworld https://instagram.com/horseboyworld https://youtube.com/newtrailslearningsystems 📊 Affiliate Disclosure Links to books and products may include affiliate tracking. We may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting the show.

✨ "For me, competition has always been real feedback, not what I think is good." – Sinead Maynard ✨ "There's nothing about me that's gonna make you do this. You gotta love it, and we gotta love it together." – Sinead Maynard Sinead Halpin Maynard was born in Fort Worth, Texas, to Irish immigrant parents and grew up in South Carolina, where she stumbled into eventing via a hunter-jumper barn that didn't approve of her mother's black saddle. At 15 she drove herself to Middleburg, Virginia, as a working student, went on to train with David and Karen O'Connor, and after losing a horse on course, moved to England to ride for William Fox-Pitt. On the French-bred Manoir de Carneville ("Tate"), she finished third at her first five-star at 30, was first reserve for the London 2012 Olympics and rode on the US team at the 2014 World Championships in Normandy. Today she and her husband, Tik Maynard, run their farm in Florida, teach clinics, and Sinead commentates on top-level eventing and serves as a US team selector. Rupert and Sinead talk candidly about the money and hustle behind a competitive career, why she still loves competing, and how she uses competition as honest feedback on her partnership with the horse. They explore sports psychology and narrow-versus-broad focus, whether riders have the right to ask horses to compete at all, and the difference between training from fear and training from play. Sinead explains retreat and approach, why she'll swap a bigger bit for a rope halter, how rider selection now weighs horse welfare, and why fitness and varied terrain are the foundation of a sound, happy horse. A frank, funny and wide-ranging conversation between two eventers at heart. FREE Helios Harmony Intro Course: https://longridehome.com/onoutpout What You'll Learn in This Episode 00:03:19 – Why eventing's camaraderie comes from competing against the track and your own preparation, not other riders 00:17:59 – The honest truth about money, sponsorship and getting a "leg up" in upper-level horse sport 00:37:58 – William Fox-Pitt's two pieces of advice: go five-star by 30, and don't let anyone change a horse's natural style 00:52:15 – Why Sinead competes: taking the relationship out under pressure to find the flaws you can't see at home 00:56:00 – Narrow focus, broad focus and visualization: the sports psychology that turned fear into a skill set 01:06:07 – Do we have the right to ask horses to compete? Matching the horse to the job and calling it when it isn't a fit 01:09:26 – Fear versus love, the role of play, and how skill sets and familiarity make room for joy 01:17:42 – Why "tough it out" training fails, and how retreat and approach builds a horse's confidence in you 01:34:36 – How to watch a top-level horse: expression, balance and why independent balance means safety 01:45:20 – Fitness as the foundation of welfare: varied terrain, interval work and heart rate monitoring Memorable Moments from the Episode 00:19:33 – Karen O'Connor tears up Sinead's lesson check; years later she pays David with her first big prize money 00:33:04 – Sinead takes a 30-quid ferry to France to see a "skinny and ugly" horse who becomes her five-star partner 00:36:00 – Days after arriving at William Fox-Pitt's, a surprise pony provokes Tate into kicking through a metal door 00:55:32 – David O'Connor's "one jump at a time" gets a terrified Sinead around the course after breaking her femur 01:38:00 – An Italian rider jumps off his horse one fence from home at the World Championships because something feels wrong Guest Contact & Links Copperline Equestrian (Sinead & Tik Maynard): https://www.copperlineequestrian.com About Sinead Maynard Sinead Halpin Maynard is a five-star event rider who represented the US at the 2014 World Championships and was first reserve for the London 2012 Olympics with Manoir de Carneville. She learned her trade as a working student in Middleburg, with David and Karen O'Connor and as a rider for William Fox-Pitt in England. Now based in Florida with her husband, Tik Maynard, she combines competition with a horse-first approach built on retreat and approach, play and honest feedback. She teaches clinics, commentates on top-level eventing and serves as a US eventing team selector. See All of Rupert's Programs and Shows: Website: https://rupertisaacson.com Follow Us: Long Ride Home Website: https://longridehome.com Facebook: https://facebook.com/longridehome.lrh Instagram: https://instagram.com/longridehome_lrh YouTube: https://youtube.com/@longridehome New Trails Learning Systems Website: https://ntls.co Facebook: https://facebook.com/horseboyworld Instagram: https://instagram.com/horseboyworld YouTube: https://youtube.com/newtrailslearningsystems Affiliate Disclosure: Links to books and products may include affiliate tracking. We may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting the show.

✨ "I think the horse and the animal is kind of an anchor that keeps you in the present." – Krisztina Molnar Deep in the forest near Debrecen in eastern Hungary, a six-year-old foundation has become a home for animal-assisted therapy of every kind: clinical equine-assisted psychotherapy, work with neurodivergent children, family therapy, group therapy for children, adolescents and parents, and sessions for adults, alongside a small riding school, dressage and a vaulting team. Clinical psychologist Krisztina Molnar leads its clinical work with children and parents, supported by a team, 14 horses and three therapy dogs. The original plan was four to six horses and a quiet life in her "fairy forest." Instead, the foundation grew one family, one colleague and one need at a time, guided by a single principle: keep running something only as long as it serves everyone in the story, meaning the clients, the animals and the therapists. Along the way the forest itself became a therapeutic tool, complete with a wishing forest, a mound where problems can be blown away, and a transparent indoor arena that clients describe as a safety bubble inside nature. Rupert and Krisztina explore why nature can take clients deep very quickly, and why that is both a chance and a danger. They discuss how a classic "three wishes" diagnostic task becomes a fairy tale, what Winnicott's transitional space and the "wise mode" of schema therapy have to do with the forest, Hungary's relationship with mental health and transgenerational trauma, the difference between healthy fantasy and delusion, and why the horse is the anchor that keeps a person in the present moment. If you want to support the show, you can do so at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LongRideHome 🔍 What You'll Learn in This Episode How a foundation planned for four to six horses grew into a multi-program center with 14 horses, three dogs and a full team Why the guiding rule is to run something only as long as it serves clients, animals and therapists alike Why mentally healthy therapy horses need a natural environment, and how that shapes therapy before a session even starts Why the forest can take clients deep very quickly, and why that brings both a chance to grow and a risk of falling apart Why children who are overloaded by impressions may fear the forest, and what they are really afraid of How having a forest, an arena, a small indoor and an inside room lets the therapist tune the setting to each client's safety needs How a transparent indoor arena, chosen because it was the cheapest option, works as a "safety bubble" and a transitional space How magical places in the forest, like the wishing forest and the mound where problems are blown away, are built around clients' psychological needs How the diagnostic "three wishes" task becomes a fairy tale, and how to translate a child's wish into an underlying need What schema therapy is, and how the forest may help clients connect to their inner "wise mode" How to tell healthy fantasy from delusion: does it connect you to yourself and others, or disconnect you? Why the horse acts as an anchor to the present moment How Krisztina sees dressage as maintaining harmony through constant rebalancing, and why training of any kind helps therapy horses handle more situations 🎤 Memorable Moments from the Episode 00:03:40 Krisztina introduces herself as a clinical psychologist specializing in children and parents, certified to include her therapy dogs in sessions 00:07:10 She reveals the original plan: four to six horses and a peaceful, quiet life in her fairy forest, which is not what happened 00:08:50 Krisztina shares the one principle that guides every program: it runs only as long as it serves clients, animals and therapists 00:22:50 She explains that frightened clients are not afraid of nature itself but of their own impulses projected onto the forest 00:41:50 Krisztina describes nature as a model of resilience: a tree meeting an obstacle grows around it instead of trying the same way 100 times 00:45:30 The transparent indoor arena, chosen as the cheapest option, turns out to be the best space for therapy, and clients call it a safety bubble in the forest 00:51:00 The wishing forest story: Krisztina once wished for six horses and now has 14, so be careful what you wish for 00:56:30 She shows how the "three wishes" diagnostic task becomes a fairy tale, and how a wish for one more toy car reveals a need to be heard 01:16:40 Rupert asks whether there are real fairies in her forest, and Krisztina answers, "Of course there are" 01:30:30 Krisztina draws the line between fantasy and delusion: imagination that connects you to yourself and your relationships, versus imagination that cuts you off 01:49:30 Krisztina tells her own real-life fairy tale of asking the fairies for a life close to nature and horses, and finding more than she ever imagined 📚 Contact, Projects, and Resources Mentioned Krisztina Molnar – Clinical Psychologist, ÉletrevaLÓ Gyermekekért Alapítvány https://www.eletrevalodebrecen.com New Trails Learning Systems – Horse Boy Method, Movement Method & Takhin Equine Integration https://ntls.co Rupert Isaacson / Long Ride Home https://rupertisaacson.com Patreon Support https://www.patreon.com/LongRideHome 🌍 Follow Us Long Ride Home https://longridehome.com https://facebook.com/longridehome.lrh https://instagram.com/longridehome_lrh https://youtube.com/@longridehome New Trails Learning Systems https://ntls.co https://facebook.com/horseboyworld https://instagram.com/horseboyworld https://youtube.com/newtrailslearningsystems 📊 Affiliate Disclosure Links to books and products may include affiliate tracking. We may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting the show.