Looking Back on 2015

This is going to be my last communication with you before the new year; we have been lucky enough to renew our relationship with Horse Sport and as such either I or Sabine will be continuing with the blog (we may alternate a little more going forward) in 2016! I cannot believe that we have actually been able to post so regularly, but looking back it has been a regular journal on a weekly basis this past year. We hope it has brought some value and insight to the table for you (which the numbers seem to substantiate, which is great!)

I really don’t have anything that I want to talk about in this issue; other than to look back and count my blessings to have been able to work with such a great group of dedicated professionals and make a difference in the lives of so many horses and riders. We have added at least another 2000 individual evaluations to our database this past year alone in North America, plus around another 750 in Europe. Over the past 30 years that adds up to quite an impressive number – and it continues to fuel my passion to help as many horses and riders as possible worldwide!

I am starting to get out of the personal evaluations/sales aspect of my ‘job’ with Schleese and am concentrating more and more on the educational speaking engagements. I have a week in Germany coming up in January, then two weeks in Florida, speaking at the Education Summit in BC in March and possibly at Equine Canada in Montreal the same month, then another week in Europe on an international course in April, and a co-project with Russell Guire from Equine Biomechanics in the UK in the works for May. This is what I love to do – the first born son in the Schleese family since the 1700s has always been a teacher, so I am fulfilling the destiny!

I know I have said it before – you can’t change the world by helping one horse, but you can change that one horse’s world by helping him.  That is my purpose in life, and I am always happy to see the effect it has on those clients who have the same purpose when we can make a difference for their horse(s).

We were lucky enough to celebrate our year of successes with our great staff this past Friday and I wanted to share our company picture with you – these are the people who make these wonderful saddles by hand in our shop in Holland Landing, and who deal with our fantastic clients day to day. Thank you to them, and thank you to you! Merry Christmas, Season’s Greetings, and a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year! Thank you for letting me into your lives.

(almost forgot – I was asked to do a quick commercial for my friend Sharma Gaponoff, the endurance rider whose stories I have shared with you in past blogs…)

Looking for that last minute gift? How about the gift of a true adventure story that is both entertaining and instructive? Schleese Saddle endurance rider, Sharma Lynn Gaponoff’s wonderful book “Tevis, From the Back of My Horse” is now available as an EBook. This is a true story about riding the most difficult 100-mile-one-day endurance ride in the world. A great read, a great gift. Go to SharmaGaponoff.com to order, and enjoy the ride!

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