Driving Clinics Level 1

Learn to drive your horse! Now is your opportunity to learn in a safe and supervised environment while you master the fundamentals of horse driving, harnessing, and the dynamics of driving a team.

This course will offer you hands-on experience in:

Harnessing
Ground driving
Hooking to equipment
Driving a single horse and team

Delivery: Olds Campus

Fees: $349 + GST(includes textbook)

Program Dates:

February 19 - 21, 2021
October 15 - 17, 2021

Friday: 7:00 – 10:00 pm | Saturday and Sunday: 9:00 am – 4:30 pm

Credential: Non-credit

Length of Program: 2 days and 1 evening

Applications Open: Registrations are accepted as long as there are seats available, however this class fills quickly, so you are encouraged to register early.

Required Materials: Appropriate footwear (no running shoes) & clothing suitable for working with horses and variable weather.

What Will You Learn?

This clinic provides an understanding of the fundamentals of driving and basic horse psychology.

Discussion topics include:

Harness parts
Equipment
Safety problem solving
Horse behavior
Communicating with the driving horse
Starting and retraining horses

This course is an excellent opportunity for the beginner and experienced driver of both light and heavy horses to expand their knowledge. Horses and equipment will be supplied and you will receive an excellent textbook to take home - this book covers such topics as: choosing, housing, feeding, harnessing, hitching and working the draft horse. This is a book that every draft horse owner should own & once you take this course you will.

Friday evening is theory and demonstration, Saturday and Sunday are hands-on.

Instructor Bio

Dwayne McArthur has been a teamster starting, training and driving horses the old fashion way for over 15 years. As new ways, thoughts and processes have progressed over the years, he has been introducing them into the program & courses here at the College. When dealing with 1200 - 2200 lbs draft horses, Dwayne is a believer that one needs to be firm, while using as little pressure as possible. The safety of his students, as well as his horses, is his main priority. Dwayne supplies his own horses for the program at Olds College, he has 7 teams for all different levels of drivers and teamsters. When Dwayne is teaching at the college, his style is the same as when back home on the ranch - no 'fancy stuff' or showing. He does sleigh and wagon rides, as well as field work and logging at home, and brings this experience and knowledge to share in the classroom.

Can youth take this course?

For our equine short courses, there is technically no age restriction. As long as a student is 13, independent (no parents along to oversee) or over and feels confident with the subject (ex. If taking Driving Clinic or Horse Hoof Care they are comfortable/experienced handling horses), then we will allow them to enroll. We have had a number of teenagers take most of the short equine courses over the years and they have been successful.