Finally, please check our new list of places we will be riding and join us to be on the television show and ride with us. We would be honored to ride with you anytime.

A s always, if I can help you in any way or if you have suggestions of places to speak or produce a television show, you can contact me directly at my personal e-mail, [email protected] or call our office at 540-829-9555.

Tom Seay

Join Us at Events Across the Country

Best of America by Horseback is Proudly Sponsored by Priefert Equine

Priefert Junior Elite is filled with exceptional young athletes that compete in rodeo events across the country!

Keep your horse fit for the trail with the Priefert Horse Walker

Trail riding adds another level of risk because, unlike arena riding, it is an uncontrolled environment so “fear of the unknown” is another factor that looms in the back of your mind. How many of us have been riding along on a lovely sunny day when suddenly a few doe skedaddle nearby and spook your horse? Or a large Egret or Herring flies up out of the brush just a few feet in front of you? So how do you stop worrying about the “what if’s” while on horseback?

In a word; practice! But not just any practice, good practice! Practice balance in the saddle. You don’t “hang on” or brace yourself, you ride with balance. Work to stay in rhythm with your horse by riding without tension in your body. Practice handling your horse when he spooks. Imagine if you were so good at supporting your horse when he spooked that you didn’t fear it anymore! And last, practice safe trail etiquette! You must ride on trails only up to the skill-level of your weakest rider! I’ve seen many accidents occur because of one “yahoo” rider who breaks off from the group and gallops their horse up a hill or canters by a group of slow trail riders who are simply walking. This is reckless and inconsiderate behavior that puts others at risk and in danger. I have chosen to avoid riders who are like this.

Previously owned by radio personality Don Imus and his family, the RFD-TV The Ranch sprawls across over 3,000 acres and is the perfect southwestern getaway. Amenities include trails for horseback riding and walking sport shooting, bass fishing, outdoor games, and a crystal blue pool for cooling off after a long day in the New Mexico sun. There is also a large, family style gathering area in the Hacienda as well as a game room and library.

The Ranch has rodeo arenas and beautifully maintained equine facilities for your own horses, but you can also choose to ride one of the ranch's own horses along the trails. Part of the National Historic Santa Fe Trail runs right through the property.

Reservations should be made with

RFD-TV The Ranch directly.

To book accommodations, simply call or visit

575-421-3506

www.RFDTVtheranch.com

Experience the cowboy way of life on the east coast!

Call our office to plan your next visit to the farm

540-829-9555

For an inside look at Tom & Pat's daily life on the cattle farm that you won't see anywhere else!

If you have an Instagram account, simply scan our name tag on the right with your Instagram camera to follow us instantly!

You can clean your smooth Exotic leather Lucchese boots or shoes in a few easy steps. 

1. Clean – Brush off dirt or dust with a damp cloth or soft brush. 

2. Condition – Apply an exotic leather conditioner to your boots in several thin layers. 

3. Polish – Apply a neutral or matching cream based polish, buff with a soft cloth. 

4. Protect – Apply a non-silicone water and stain protector. 

Note: Go with the grain of the scales when cleaning, conditioning and protecting. Do not polish snakeskin.

You can clean your (leather type) Lucchese boots in a few easy steps. 

1. Clean – Brush dirt and dust off with a damp cloth or soft brush. 

2. Protect – Apply a non-silicone water and stain protector. 

Note : Do not condition or polish suede boots.

You can clean your Distressed leather Lucchese boots or shoes in a few easy steps. 

1. Clean – Brush off dirt or dust with a soft brush. 

2. Condition – Condition with a distressed leather conditioner (silicone, wax and oil free) 

3. Protect – Apply a non-silicone water and stain protector. 

Note : Do not polish your distressed leather boots or shoes.

Lucchese recommends the use of Bickmore's family of products to better protect and preserve the original finish of your boots!

To read about this year's winners, visit BestofAmericabyHorseback.com

Submit your nominations for the Annual

Best of America by Horseback Awards

via e-mail to Tom Seay at [email protected]



Please include the nominee's name and the reason you think they should receive one of the three awards, including their services to their community &/or the horse world.

by Carole Herder

As a global Hoof Boot Company, we, at Cavallo , regularly receive hundreds of stories from horse owners around the world. Some are inspiring and uplifting, others are funny or just silly and still others will bring us to tears. We particularly love the story of the 15.2hh, 17-year-old Frodo.

Frodo was a Source of Entertainment

Frodo is quite well known, as there are very few Traditional Gypsy Cobs competing at Prix St. George level. His human companion, Sue Grice , is a British Horse Society Accredited Professional Coach and holder of the UK Coaching Certificate level 3 in dressage. Last year, Sue had three horses concurrently competing barefoot in British Dressage. Their outstanding successes feature regularly in UK Equine events and publications. 

In the beginning, everyone thought Frodo was cute and wondered what a hairy cob was doing in the warm up arena. They quickly grew serious when he broke into a trot. Frodo was lightly agile on his feet. An undeniable avid competitor, Frodo attained honored accolades against any supposed odds!

And then Frodo’s challenges exploded in an unforeseen direction. He developed laminitis. Frodo became very sick and potentially lame forever.

Fast Track to The Show Ring

Sue was shattered, but not deterred. Finally, after 6 months of stall rest, and another year of continued symptoms, they discovered Cavallo Hoof boots. Miraculously, Frodo’s healing fast-tracked and put him right back in the show ring. Discovering the extraordinary comfort, flexibility and ease available to him in his Cavallo Boots, Frodo’s pain was forgotten. He remembered what it was like to move. And this boy really wanted to move. In fact, all horses do. It is their nature.

In a natural environment, horses move 10–15 miles a day foraging for food, running with the herd, finding water and naturally stimulating and trimming their hoofs. Good function of the hoof means that the hoof expands and flexes when bearing weight, to allow the structure of the horse to descend and the hoof capsule to absorb that shock. Healthy hoof function requires that blood circulates freely, providing nutrients to all the live tissues of the hoof. This is accomplished through unrestrained movement, flexion and the pumping action of a natural bare hoof. We call this “Hoof Mechanism” and it is essential to healing and maintaining healthy hoofs. “No Hoof, No Horse”.   

Don’t Let the Wake Drive the Boat!

Frodo re-discovered ease and comfort in his Cavallos. It was the invitation he needed to start moving again. Blood circulation, oxygenation and over-all vitality returned to his body. He kicked up his heels yet again and bestowed gratitude, joy and relief to our dear Sue. Her commitment to her horse transcended limiting beliefs and a fatalistic viewpoint. Sue’s attitude and support of her horse helped erase the pain Frodo experienced, and even the memory of it. He recovered his persona as Dressage contender! This isn’t magic. We can all facilitate healing. It’s a matter of our commitment, faith and purpose. When we commit to a vision of the final outcome and refuse to waiver from it, we are taking charge. A dear friend says, “Don’t let the wake drive the boat”, meaning that when a bad thing happens, we move on to put it behind us without letting it pave our future. 

It is also a matter of what thoughts we allow ourselves to entertain. The more patterns of thought and behaviour are practiced – the more ingrained they become. Neural pathways are like rivers that have increasing amounts of water running in them. When the thoughts are frequent and repetitive, they carve pathways of greater depth and strength. Then these thoughts become ingrained and hard to change. They gain more volume, current and flow. The idea is to let those thoughts that don’t serve your desired outcome dissipate. Choose and then practice new thoughts and believe in desired outcome. Sue Grice held a strong vision for Frodo. She envisaged his success, his vitality and how he would behave when his health returned. She was committed and did not waver. Great athletes do this. They hold images of winning and entertain these imageries daily. Performers visualise crowds cheering while they perform. Golfers envision placing the ball exactly where they want it. They believe and foresee, and it becomes real. Many horses have been healed of laminitis, founder, white line disease and navicular when owners stop letting the past dictate the future. It’s about empowerment – creating a future in a bold new way, free of past practices. Generally accepted diagnosis, prognosis and prescription may even have suggested Frodo’s pending fatality. Sue was willing to look past conventionality, to view the whole, rather than the parts, and to understand the entire horse as a complete system. Prevention is always the first key and can only be practiced with knowledge. Resources are available and, as a horse owner, it is your responsibility to discover them. Sue’s story is a very good example.

Sue sent in these videos documenting Frodo’s progress. You’ll be very entertained watching these and you will surely have a giggle:

All Sue’s horses work bare foot and wear Cavallo hoof boots. They hack out once or twice a week for around 2-3 hours over varied terrain from forest tracks to moorland and beaches. Frodo also wears his Cavallos when turned out in the field when the ground is hard and frosty, and of course, for any injury or laminitic recurrence. Cavallo Hoof Boots helped save Frodo from a dire fate. Cavallos are the best hoof boots in the world!

What's your favorite trail riding memory?

Trail Club Members are invited to send in your favorite trail riding memory riding with Tom Seay and the Best of America by Horseback family, or regale us with an adventure you took all on your own.

Please include:

With age comes wisdom… and the realization that seatbelts save lives, and even though they are not terribly fashionable, so do riding helmets. Still, most trail riders don’t wear helmets. Did you know that equestrian sports are the leading cause of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)? More brains are injured in the pursuit of equestrian sports than in football, soccer, skateboarding and motorcycle riding combined.

Having a well-trained, “bomb-proof,” dependable mount goes a long way towards insuring your safety on the trail. But what if a turkey blows up right under your horse? Or you ride over a ground bee hive? Some things are beyond our control. So what is within our control?

What we can do to maximize our chances of surviving an accident is to have emergency information readily available on our person and on our horse. If a paramedic arrived on scene to treat you, and you were lying unconscious on the ground, would anyone be able to provide vital medical information about you? Does your friend or even your spouse know what medications you take? What you are allergic to? Your blood type? When time is critical, information can save your life.

What about your horse? If you go off in an ambulance or helicopter, do those left behind know everything they would need to know about how to take care of your horse? What if he’s allergic to banamine? What if you and your horse part ways in the depths of the forest? If he’s found, how will rescuers reunite you?

No one wants to contemplate the realities of having an accident, but by taking a few minutes to fill out some basic information, you could increase your odds of surviving. Paramedics can treat you aggressively without fear of creating unexpected or potentially deadly reactions. ID MyHorse Emergency Identification Tags are designed to provide that critical information. They are lightweight, sturdy, visible and waterproof. They easily attach to a saddle or weave into a mane. They cause no discomfort to the rider when hooked to a belt.

Tom Seay of Best of America by Horseback is a firm believer that emergency medical information should be readily available for every rider. Garry Bass, the BOABH photographer, is also an EMT and he has this to say, “First responders are trained to look for medical alert identifiers. This item is a must for anyone who takes their safety seriously. I use one myself!”

These potentially life-saving tags are available on Amazon … Check them out! Be proactive and take care of yourself!

To book your reservation for any of these rides, call our office

540-829-9555

Interior also includes:

This Lakota Big Horn is Tom's favorite floor plan with the recliner chairs and dinette. Please call Leah Falascino at Lakota of Ohio, 740-426-6737, for more information on this Lakota Big Horn now for sale. If you buy this trailer or any trailer from Lakota of Ohio and tell them you saw this in the Best of America by Horseback newsletter, you will receive a FREE ride with Tom Seay on an upcoming BOABH ride!

LakotaofOhio.com

April 23 - Driving Cattle with Tom Seay

April 25 - Broxton Bridge Plantation, SC |  NEW !

April 30 - Broxton Bridge Plantation, SC |  NEW !

May 2 - River Valley Horse Camp, IA

May 7 - River Valley Horse Camp, IA

May 9 - Horses & History of the Grand Hotel, MI | NEW !

May 14 - Horses & History of the Grand Hotel, MI | NEW !

May 16 - Black Horse Resort Ranch - FL | NEW !

May 21 - Black Horse Resort Ranch - FL | NEW !

May 23 - Hooves Jamaica & Briana Carsey

May 28 - Hooves Jamaica & Briana Carsey

Thank You to This Month's Sponsors