From Shirley Smith Winer, Retired Pony Club DC, Former USPC Board Member, Huntington, MA:
I have known Kirsten since she joined pony club at about age 12. She shared ownership with another member of “Shokee”- a hardheaded appaloosa. She came to my summer camp for years and while in college she began teaching at the camp- and still does after 15 years! During that time she has developed as a teacher and a trainer, using her keen intelligence and creativity and her eclectic nature to broaden her own training and to integrate it all into what is her unique way of training horses and riders.
After attaining her Pony Club A rating, Kirsten has especially pursued Centered Riding, ARICP certification and natural horsemanship, which have led her into the heart of the basics of horsemanship: professionalism in teaching, how horses learn and respond, and the intricate ways people and horses affect each other.
Kirsten finds good horse prospects and retrains them for resale, hoping that a good horse with good basics will then get the good home and future he deserves. She is an excellent person to start a young horse, before he has been messed with and developed the wrong expectations of life with humans.She will also retrain an older horse, helping him develop a new attitude toward learning and working with his owners.
Please keep visiting this website! And keep Kirsten in mind for training and purchases.
After the 2006 Summer Clinic:As usual your stay here was a high spot for me. Your skills and professionalism continue to amaze me, especially your understanding of horses, kids and riding- all at once!