About Steve

I was born in 1971 at Sarina, Queensland where my family ran a cattle station. We moved to Burraga NSW when I was six years old, where dad took on a new job managing another property. We always had horses around and I was like most country kids, in that I just rode for fun and to get places I wanted to go.

All I ever really wanted to do was be in the country working with livestock. On leaving school I got a job in Far North Queensland on a cattle station called “Koolatah”. Although having started a couple of horses when I was about 16 at home, it was at “Koolatah” that I got to give some pretty wild horses their first rides. On this station we rode horses 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, mustering cattle. We would be camped out in the bush for sometimes 6 – 8 weeks at a time. I think this experience set me up for my future years.

Although I really enjoyed working in the cattle industry, my fascination with horses was growing. When I was 22 I decided that if I wanted to train horses for a living that I better get started so I organised some contract jobs on stations I knew in Far North Queensland and went “Breaking-in” colts on “Koolatah”, “Drumduff”, “Wrotham Park”, “Lyndhurst” and “Dunbar”, “Rutland Plains” and “Highbury”.

I was ‘breaking-in” station horses for 2 seasons. The horses where mostly pretty rank and I felt pretty broke at the end of it. I guess the experience was good for me, but I was also lucky not to get seriously hurt or turned off horses all together! During this time I attended a Ray Hunt clinic at Emerald in Central Queensland. I payed $450 for a 4 day colt starting clinic. I had to borrow the money off my brother, which I felt was OK about because I assumed this would be the only clinic I would ever have to attend. Boy, was I naive!

Learning horsemanship

It was Ray that gave me my first glimpse of what was possible between horses and humans. From this point on, I began devoting more and more of my time to learning about horsemanship.

I went back to working on a cattle station/feedlot at Hay in western NSW called “Ravensworth”. Here I started to try and develop my own horses  and began attending Pat Parelli clinics. In 1998 I went to Pat Parelli’s centre in Colorado USA as and apprentice for 2 years. Pat and Linda Parelli helped me to advance my horsemanship as well as taught me the skills involved in teaching. I became a 4 star instructor /horse trainer in the Parelli organisation.

Pat Parelli introduced me to Ronnie Willis, one of Pat’s teachers. Ronnie helped me go to the next level with handling young horses and starting colts. I spent almost 12 months with Ronnie Willis. In 2002 I had the privilege to go and work for Leon Harrel for most of the year. Leon is a World Champion Cutting Horse trainer, and he taught me about riding and training a cutting horse.

In 2003 I conducted my first Colt Starting Clinic alongside Ronnie Willis at Le Cense, Montana, USA. This course went for a duration of 21 days and was 10 years to the month since I attended my first colt starting/horsemanship clinic with Ray Hunt in Emerald, QLD. At the end of the clinic I was having a drink with Ronnie at his house to say goodbye, as I was due to fly out early the next morning. As I said goodbye to Ronnie he asked me to promise that I would come back to teach the following year which I naturally agreed to. That night Ronnie passed away.

I returned to La Cense Montana sooner than expected, and have been teaching colt starting clinics, foundation training and horsemanship until the end of 2005. I have returned to Australia to pursue my life long goals.

Where to from here

 

I am now living at my property "Mt Erin", about 30 kms east of Tamworth. "Mt Erin" has been transformed into my home and my horse training center and I am able to run my horses, some cattle and have plenty of area to ride horses in the hills or in the arena.
I take horses in for starting under saddle, and to train as cutting horses. I also travel throughout Australia conducting "horsemanship" and "cow working' clinics.

I have been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn from and spend time with some of the world’s best horseman. Leon, Ronnie, Pat and Ray have all taught me more about the horse than I ever could have learned on my own, they have been a major influence on my life. Each of them has had their unique effect on me and my horsemanship skills are a reflection of that.
I could write so much on my experiences with them, maybe some other time.

I would also like to mention Craig Johnson, Jack Brainard, Dave Stuart, Mel Fleming and Kate Gwynn, all have taught me so much about horses and people over the past 15 years.

We are all unique individuals that are moulded from the people we spend our time with and from life’s experiences. Through my horsemanship clinics I hope to share with you some of my experiences, so that you are able to obtain what you want from the partnership between you and your horse.

I look forward to meeting you at one of my clinics.

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"Pat Parelli introduced me to Ronnie Willis, one of Pat’s teachers. Ronnie helped me go to the next level with handling young horses and starting colts. I spent almost 12 months with Ronnie Willis.

In 2002 I had the privilege to go and work for Leon Harrel for most of the year. Leon is a World Champion Cutting Horse trainer, and he taught me about riding and training a cutting horse."

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Courses explained  →
Registration info  →
Colt starting  →
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