VAQUERO STYLE
AQHA Journal
July 2009

            Building a horse   
  and rider relationship
         Nanton news
        Alberta Canada
        Sheena Read
        2009

It's  all about the process of learning.  For renowned vaquero horseman Richard Caldwell, a relationship of trust has to be built between a horse and a rider that is based on the learning process.  Caldwell is a master of traditional vaquero horsemanship, which promotes the natural, centuries-old method of training horses and skills of horsemanship.
     The vaquero tradition has its roots in medieval Spanish history, which crossed the ocean to California in the 1700s, moving upwards through North American with the opening of the New West.  The methodology evolved into various styles of cowboying and horsemanship, such as in the modern Texas-style cowboy, which uses horses to work cattle.  In contrast, the traditional vaquero uses cattle to work the horse.
    But it goes beyond that.  It's a process where the horseman develops a trust between him and the horse, and lean how to work in situations and know each other's abilities.  "I'm basically training the brain, so they're more in harmony with the horse," says Caldwell.  The result is that the rider and horse understand each other's personalities, and abilities,.  It's something that is sometimes overlooked in other methods of horsetraining.
    As a result, vaquero horsemanship is sometimes viewed to b e a return to a more traditional method of training.  Today, the vaquero is enjoying a renaissance as more people reconnect to their roots, and to time-tested methods.  With no specific deadlines for finishing a horse, the vaquero has always taken time in training.  The temperament and capabilities of the horse are critical to the training.  "It's hundreds of years old.  It's not new.  It's just going back to the heart of horsemanship, where it began," says Caldwell.  "It's basically the epitome of horsmanship."
    One of the biggest mistakes riders make is they try to control the hose and not let the horse act.  "They get to where they control the horse so that the horse doesn't make the mistake.  You have to see the mistake, let them fix it, and leave them alone."  The rider learns to have confidence and trust in the horse that he's not going to make the mistake again.  "If they think he's going to do it, he's probably going to do it.  A rider transmits the thoughts to the hose, the feelings."  Caldwell says horsemen need to learn time and patience. "They need to learn not to be rushed.  It's not a timed deal.  i don't wear a watch, and horses don't wear a watch.  Don't get in a hurry, don't make it happen," says Caldwell.
    During his clinics, Caldwell shows riders different techniques in the way they use their hands the position of their hands, how they use their hands, how they correct the horse, and how they need to release more.  Timing is everything, and they need to let the horse move naturally.  I'm impressed with the horsemanship up here.  it seems like it gets better each year.  It seems like people are more open to the ideas," says Caldwell.
    Caldwell just completed a series of three clinics at Winning Strides arena west of Nanton, returning for a second year.  Response has been good, he says, and the people taking his clinics have been very open to a return to a more traditional method of horsemanship. "Allot of times it appears that peoples egos get in the way.  People up here,
they seem pretty open minded," he says.  "It's impressive that  they want to try this type of horsemanship and see that it helps their horsemanship whichever discipline they go in -- reining...cowhorse.  You can see that it is feeling the horse, rather than mechanically moving the horse with your hand."
    Caldwell teaches about 15 clinics a year in the States.  There is also starting to be  a huge response in Europe.  Although vaquero horsemanship originated in Spain, there has been a yearning to learn about the heritage.  "They're really, really hungry for it," he says.  "In Europe, now they're trying to keep their heritage, and bring it back."
    Spanish horsemanship in medieval times was influenced by the arrival and integration of the Moors, who brought with them a style of fighting, and with different equipment and tack, such as the chin straps they used.  The California style of vaquero horsemanship that evolved from that uses some of those influences, but it has also evolved beyond that, Caldwell explains.  The California vaquero refined the techniques and tack for cattle.
    "It's the heart of all horsemanship.  It's a lifestyle for me.  People think that you have to have a certain saddle, or a certain bit,. or dress a certain way.  You don't.   It can be used by anyone.  It doesn't matter what the saddle is, it's about you.  I'm comfortable with the way i dress, because that's who I am."
    Caldwell himself likes to use traditional equipment, and competes in traditional garb, saddle and gear.  He spent 30 years buckarooing on ranches, and now lives in Alturas, California.  He travels extensively conducting clinics, competing in a buckaroo-style saddle and gear.  He is now teaching the vaquero lifestyle to his grandchildren.  Caldwell says his grandfather was a pretty renowned bridleman, and he was raised learning those skills.

   A TRUE BUCKROO AT HEART  by Dana Martin, 2006

  From his wide-brimmed hat and neck scarf to his boots and short, slip-in chaps called armitas, Richard Caldwell portrays a deep sense of pride in his heritage.   
     "My first love is buckarooing," says Richard, who spent 30 years working ranches in Idaho, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, and California while rearing three daughters. (Currently also has seven granddchildren!)
     But as the years passed, Richard realized the need to move on and do something that would make their future more financially secure.
     "There just isn't any way you can get ahead in life working as a buckaroo," says Richard.  "Ranches are bought and sold, and there's just not enough security anymore."
     "Back when my grandfather buckarooed, you could do it until you were 70 and 80 years old.  They would find chores for you to do and you had a job for life.  Back then, they took care of you, but today ranches change hands to often nobody cares about you."  
     In June 2003, the Caldwells settled near Alturas, completing a barn and arena and diving into the business of training reined cow horses.
     As a certified journeyman farrier, Richard's primary income comes from his shoeing business.  He travels to large stables in Southern California and Central Oregon to shoe performance horses.
     The stables are booked on a regular schedule, so when Richard is not on the road, he can be home training horses.
     Using horsemanship skills he learned while working as a buckaroo, Richard trains horses in the vaquero style, following old California traditional training methods.
     Richard says the Spanish vaqueros brought their horsemanship traditions to the California cattle ranches in the 1700s.  With no specific deadline for finishing a horse, the vaqueros took their time in training, paying attention to the temperament and capabilities of the horse.
     While this method takes lots of time and patience, the result is a responsive, fine-tuned horse, Richard says, noting that makes all of the work worth it.
     "You go through all the little steps in putting a trained horse together and the horse tells you how far you can go," he explains.
     Richard follows the vaquero method of starting a young horse out in a hackamore.  He incorporates snaffle bits into his program so he can compete in snaffle bit futurities.
     "I'll ride a lot in a snaffle bit, but my goal is to always put a horse in a hackamore, because it's a traditional method," says Richard.  "The hackamore breaks the horse more at the withers rather than at the poll like a snaffle bit."
     Breaking a horse at the withers allows it to collect up easier, since it moves the process through the body of the horse, Richard explains.
     "A hackamore sits on the nose, so when you drive them up, they break at the withers," he says.  "It makes the horse's body more round, and they enjoy their job more."
     Richard rides a  horse in a hackamore until it reaches 4 to 5 years old.  At about the age of 6, or when the horse is ready and consistent in the hackamore, Richard introduces the two rein, which includes a smaller diameter bosal or bosalito worn under a bridle with a bit.  Both bosalito and bit have a set of reins attached, which results in the term two rein.
     Richard uses either a half-breed or spade bit with his bridle, disputing the notion spade bits are cruel.
     "They are just misunderstood," Richard says, noting the spade bit is just a bar with a spoon on it.
     The spade is considered a signal bit, as opposed to a snaffle, which works as a pressure bit.
     "Sometimes I leave horses in the two rein for two years," says Richard.  "I'm using the bosalito setup without putting any pressure on the bridle reins for three to four months, so the horses develop a mouth for the spade, and they know how to hold it and pick it up.  Then you start incorporating the reins with it."
     He compares the results of a spade bit to a car with power steering.  "There is no comparison," he says.  "It's so much nicer and easier."
     Richard's goal is to have a horse totally finished or "straight up in the bridle."  Depending on the horse, that can take seven to eight years.
     "It's a long process, and that's why people don't want to take the time," he says.  "But if you ever have a horse like that, you'll get the feel of it and there will be no comparison."
    Richard enoys his horses, but must sell them--they fetch as much as $50,000 each--to keep his business going.
     He is proud of their versatility.  "Each horse has his own personality and specialty, but what I'd like for people to think when they get on of my horses is they can do just about anything they want to do," Richard says.  "They can go rope, they can go cut, they can take long rides ... They aren't trained for a specific event.  They are just well-rounded horses that can do just about anything."
     Richard and Nancy have 13 horses of their own.  Five are in training.  The Caldwells have had impressive performances at National Reined Cow Horse Association events, such as the Snaffle Bit Futurity in Reno.  Richard also enjoys participating in Big Loop roping competitions.
     For Richard, the most important thing is to never lose sight of his roots.  He is a buckaroo.  "I show in a buckaroo-style saddle and always dress the way I am now," Richard says, noting a vaquero portrays a sense of pride in everything he does.
     From the well-polished silver on his saddle to every piece of clothing that has a purpose, Richard transmits this pride to his horses.
     Although he has left the range, Richard will always appreciate the buckaroo way of life.  He is proud to represent the culture through his training and performances.
     "I do it for those guys out in the brush who don't come to town to compete, but they are the real horsemen," says Richard.  "That's the real deal out there, and I admire those guys who stick it out and stay out there.  Those are the guys I rode stirrup to stirrup with.  They are the ones who taught me about horses and cattle, and that's what it's all about: the guys out there."