Tips for Getting the Most Out of Horse Clinics

Learn how you and your horse can get the most out of your clinic time with these tips from trainer and clinician Mike Brashear.

At the start of Mike Brashear’s clinic in Nunn, Colo., he invited—or nearly commanded—students to ask questions and speak up if they didn’t understand or needed extra help.

“You’re paying good money to get help,” he said. “Make sure you’re getting what you need while you’re here.”

Brashear’s mission is to help horses and riders get the help they need to keep working together. After hosting many clinics, he says he can often tell if the horse and rider pair will keep progressing on an upward trend after the clinic: It’s all in how the student approaches the clinic, prepares to learn, and asks questions to make sure they can keep working at home.

Here, Brashear helps you learn how to learn. He provides tips to find and attend a horse training clinic and get the most help possible so that you can constantly improve your horsemanship.

Make Sure the Clinic is the Right Fit for You and Your Horse

“You’re never going to know all of it when it comes to horses,” he says. “Let go of that pressure on yourself to have to know all of it already. But if you never go get extra help, you’re not going to get any better.”

Brashear recommends searching online, getting input from reviews, and asking friends about clinicians who will be near you. He says you need to find a teacher who you can work with—and who has your best interest at heart. If you ask about the clinician’s approach and style, you’ll find someone who feels approachable.

“There are horsemen who are great with horses but may not teach humans the way you personally want to learn,” Brashear says. “You need to find a personality match. Ask someone who’s been to a clinic with the person you want to learn from. What is their teaching style? What are you going to learn? How is the clinic set up?

“A clinic needs to be fun. It’s not a horse show. It should be informative. When you leave there, you shouldn’t feel worse about yourself than when you showed up.”

Consider Training Styles

Brashear says that he finds that most of his clinic students board their horses at a location without a trainer or keep their horses at home. However, sometimes riders who have trainers for specific disciplines reach out for horse behavior help or to get a different perspective.

“I think that if you have a trainer, it’s good to find out if the clinician that you want to work with shares the same horsemanship philosophy,” says Brashear. “You have to be careful with that because you can get confused. If you like that your trainer at home uses natural horsemanship, look for someone who trains in that style. If you learn natural horsemanship in one setting, and at the clinic it’s all about positive reinforcement, that can be confusing.”

However, he says there are times when it’s good to question how your usual trainer works.

“If you’re starting to question your trainer, maybe you go to a clinician because you’re looking for a different way,” he says. “You’re looking for what’s right for you and to learn about the new style. Don’t dismiss something because it’s new.”

Once you’ve found a teacher with the right approach and style, think about what you want to learn. Brashear says many clinics now can help you with trail obstacles or to hone your skills for ranch riding or a specific event. Even if you have a trainer you work with regularly, seeking help for a specific event or to expose your horse to a new event can be a good way to keep learning.

“Sometimes there might be a trainer who says, ‘This clinician is coming to town and this is who I learned from/want to learn from.’ Good trainers know that they need to keep learning and getting different perspectives, too.”

Prep Your Gear for the Clinic

Once you’ve selected the clinician you’ll ride with, find out what they like riders to have ready at the clinic. Brashear says he likes students to have a rope halter and a long training lead (at least 12 feet).

Some clinicians may have a kit to help you prepare and have their tools before you arrive. However, Brashear says if you take some good-quality gear from home, you should be able to work your horse well in what you have.

“Don’t go out and buy all new tack because you’re going to a clinic,” he says. “You don’t want to confuse your horse by changing everything to match what you think the clinician will want. Find out if what you have works or if there may be a good reason for changing up your gear—if it applies to what you need help with. There’s going to be somebody there that’ll let you borrow something if you need it, and we always come with lots of training gear, too.”

Have the Right Mindset at the Clinic

Brashear’s first tip for attending a clinic with your horse? Choose a growth mindset.

“Have an open mind and an open heart,” he says. “You might get a different perspective than you expected about your horse or the problem you’re asking about. That’s why you’re there—to get different info. If you go to get help, but then you’re closed off and say, ‘I don’t do it that way,’ or ‘I’m not doing what you say,’ you’re not going to learn a thing. I think that all clinicians at the core want to help people and horses, or they wouldn’t do this.”

Brashear also advises watching and listening when the clinician works with other riders. If all riders pay attention, he says he can often get into deeper topics because he doesn’t teach the same lesson over and over.

“Clinics are meant to be a fun time and a time with friends—just don’t get so involved in your own conversations that you don’t watch and learn what others are working on,” Brashear says. “You may not need that specific lesson now, but there’s something you can learn from everyone in the clinic. Think: How does what’s being taught affect me? How does this coincide with what I do with my horse?”

Create a Healthy Balance for You and Your Horse During the Clinic

Brashear says that many times horses and riders need some “soaking time” to relax and watch and learn from another clinic attendee. He says some riders have told him they want to be moving and learning all the time. That can be a lot for the horse and human—especially if the horse isn’t used to being ridden all day for a few days in a row.

“I tell people to be careful of when they go to a clinic,” Brashear says. “They can’t be so excited to learn everything that they miss what they really needed. If you wear your horse out early, you might be done by the time the clinician teaches what you really wanted to learn.”

Brashear suggests checking in with your horse and remembering that only you and your horse matter.

“When you get there, try not to be thinking so much about everything else that’s going on,” he says. “Just be there with your horse. That’s how you’re going to create that partnership that I’m working toward all the time—it’s by being there and being present with your horse.”

Brashear says that when he takes a clinic, he plans ahead to build in some downtime for himself and his horse.

“I’m going to work with my horse for a bit, then I might sit out for a little bit and take some notes,” he says. “I’ve got notes from [clinics] 25 years ago. When you take notes, it gives you something that you can refer back to.”

Brashear warns that if you want to record or video the clinic, make sure the clinician allows that before you begin.

Brashear’s Final Tip for Horse Clinics

As for Brashear’s final tip for you and your horse, he advises that when you’re at the clinic, remember that you’re the customer. Trust your gut. You’ll know what’s best for you and your horse to continue learning safely.

This article about horse clinic tips appeared in the November/December 2023 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!