Wellington, FL (January 23, 2012) Johnny Rob- JRPR, Inc– World famous Dressage trainer Walter Zettl joined Natural Horsemanship expert Linda Parelli at Sho Clothes recent “Shop Talk,” and the duo not only drew the largest crowd in history to Sho Clothes but many of the audience members drove from hours away to have the chance to sit and learn from some of the greatest trainers in the equestrian community. Linda’s husband, Pat Parelli, also spoke at the event and kicked off the amazing evening by introducing Walter and his wife.
While Natural Horsemanship and Classical Horsemanship may not seem like an obvious match to many, Parelli and Zettl explained that the two go together like a cake with icing. Natural Horsemanship is the foundation of a horse’s training, like the cake, and the discipline you train the horse in – whether dressage, hunter, jumper, western or pleasure – is the icing. The cake needs to be made first, before the icing can be added!
“It was a fabulous evening and I still can’t believe how many people came. It was certainly the largest crowd we have had in ‘Shop Talk’s’ history and Walter, Pat and Linda certainly didn’t disappoint the audience,” said Michele Hundt, owner of Sho Clothes. “Their analogy about the cake and the icing was great and everyone learned so much. And during the evening we also gave away great prizes, including Walter’s “Matter of Trust” DVD’s, which the audience loved. It was the icing on the cake!”
Donated and produced by Premier Equestrian, Zettl’s “Matter of Trust” DVD’s are a five-volume instructional series which includes Zettl’s lifelong work of teaching riders the art of dressage combined with communication with the horse. “We were only planning on giving away one set of Walter’s DVD’s but the audience got so excited that we gave away two sets,” Hundt said. “We also gave away a Back On Track Saddle Pad and two copies of Linda’s “Game of Contact.”
Zettl and the Parelli’s spoke at “Shop Talk” following a busy weekend in which they took part in the USDF Trainer’s Conference in Wellington featuring Christoph Hess. Zettl and the Parelli’s were in high demand during their Wellington visit, with Hess working with Zettl during one of Linda’s lessons and Pat and Hess working with dressage rider Caroline Roffman at her Lionshare Farm in Palm Beach Point. Pat also worked with dressage trainer Betsy Steiner while in town.
The action-packed evening was sponsored in part by the Gold Coast Dressage Association and Hundt said it would go down in history as the dressage boutique’s most memorable “Shop Talk.” “We love supporting the dressage community and ‘Shop Talk’ has proven to be a successful way for dressage enthusiasts to gather and learn. The popularity of Walter and the Parelli’s speaks volumes because of the size of our audience. It was a great night and very educational.”
Sho Clothes specializes in the latest and most fashionable dressage apparel for show and play. The Sho Clothes Sho Room is located at 3220 Fairlane Farms Road in Wellington and boasts a wide variety of the finest dressage riding clothes, apparel, jewelry and dressage accessories available. For more information on Sho Clothes or “Shop Talk,” visit their website at www.shoclothes.com or call them at 561-319-2121.
