by Erik Pague (from The Othello Outlook!)
Tom Davis will offer his expertise to Othello riders to train them to develop a solid working relationship with their animals at a June 22 clinic at White Horse Arena. The arena is located at 152 Norton Lane. Tom’s wife Traci said her husband has created a unique program that should help riders improve their skills. Tom hails from Connell and Traci is an Othello native and former rodeo queen. Now living in Texas, the pair will offer the all-day clinic for $300 with a 50-percent discount for 4-H members, seniors and high school rodeo members. She said 
she thought she was a good rider be- fore learning from her husband but now feels like she’s improved a lot. “I grew up riding horses my whole life and I thought I knew a lot,” Traci said. “When Tom started trying to tell me some of his ideas, I was resistant to them and then as I started listening to him … I started to learn more.” Based on her own experiences working with Tom, Traci said her husband has great ideas, is talented and works to build confidence for riders. She said building that confidence and the relationships between the two would go a long way toward improving riding ability. “We all have something to learn and nobody’s perfect at it,” Traci said. “Everybody can learn something new that their horse is able to do.” Traci said a big part of Tom’s method involves building a strong bond between horse and rider. “Everybody can learn something new their horse is able to do and sometimes, they don’t
know that their horse is able to do it,” Traci said. “Tom can show you those skills to help you advance you and your horse’s skills together and improve that relationship.” Only a few spots are left and Traci said to call her at (254) 433-0806 to get a space. More information on the clinic can also be found at their website by visiting COltTrainer.com Traci recommends those interested to make sure to take their horse out and ride for at least an hour a day to make sure both the rider and horse are in decent shape before the day begins at 9 a.m. She said it would be the most beneficial to coming with an idea of what your goals are for improving your riding. “You don’t want to work your horse for seven hours if they haven’t been ridden in seven months,” Traci said.
