JAKS Stables, 2608 Rolesville Road, Wendell, NC (2026)

10/22/2026

You don't have to be the alpha to be a leader. One of the concepts from Mark Rashid that has really changed the way I think about horsemanship is his idea of passive leadership. Which- at first glance- made me think "ew"....
But...

We hear constantly that we need to “be the alpha,” “establish dominance,” and make sure our horse knows who's in charge.

Rashid's observation is that the horse everyone else follows isn't necessarily the horse constantly pushing everyone around. The dominant horse may control space and demand submission, but the other horses don't necessarily choose to follow it.

The passive leader is different.
The important distinction is:

Alpha/dominant horse: Rashid describes this horse as maintaining its position through dominance and force. His observation was that other horses often avoid this horse rather than willingly follow it.

Passive leader: This is generally a quiet, consistent, dependable horse that other horses choose to follow. The leadership is earned through consistency and example, rather than constantly enforcing rank.

“Passive” does not mean weak, permissive, or letting the horse do whatever it wants. It's more about how leadership is established.

His underlying idea is that horses are motivated to conserve energy and seek out individuals they can depend on. So the leader they voluntarily stay with can be more influential than the horse that spends all day pushing everyone around.

Rashid applies that directly to people: become the person your horse chooses to follow because you're consistent, fair, quiet, and dependable, rather than trying to convince the horse you're the biggest bully in the room.

Your horse can respect you without fearing you. You can have boundaries without constantly proving you're dominant.

You can correct a horse when correction is needed without making your entire relationship about control.

You don't have to convince your horse that you're the biggest, strongest, most intimidating thing in the arena.

Because leadership isn't about forcing someone to follow you.

It's about becoming someone they want to follow.

10/21/2026

We have a couple left for winter batch! Get on the list now!

10/19/2026

We have pumpkins! 🎃 Swing by M-Th 3-6pm or come to our 11th Annual Halloween with the Horses this Sunday. $5 each

10/19/2026

Awesome weekend for the Jaks crew in TN!

Madison Kerr and Little Jae Cat
Youth Reserve Champion 🥈🏆
Horsemanship 2nd/2nd 🥈🥈
Ranch Riding 4th/1st 🥇
Trail 5th/5th
Ranch Cutting 2nd/1st 🥇🥈
Ranch Boxing 1st/1st 🥇🥇
Ranchmanship 2nd/1st 🥇🥈
Ranch Reining 6th/5th
Working Cow Horse 3rd/3rd🥉🥉
Herdwork 8th/8th

Avery Henault and Cat Stylin Miss
5th overall Novice Youth (20+ exhibitors!)
Ranch Riding 10th/6th
Trail 9th
Ranch Cutting 1st/1st 🥇🥇
Ranch Boxing 1st/1st 🥇🥇
Ranchmanship 7th/6th

Ellie May Julian and One Desireable Kitty
Reserve Champion Lil Buckaroos 🥈🏆
Horsemanship 3rd/3rd🥉🥉
Ranch Riding 8th/5th
Trail 1st/1st 🥇🥇
Flag 6th/4th

Lucy Kerr and Guinness
Lil Buckaroo 6th overall 🤠
Ranch Riding 6th/6th
Flag 7th/5th
(Lucy’s first big show!)

And of course we all had some fun with costumes!

10/17/2026

Let’s talk about falling. I was reading a post in an instructor group recently where someone had posted about feeling bad after their first program fall. They had been teaching for a few years, and for the first time, someone had fallen off. They wanted advice.

The comments were…trash.

I could not believe how many people said some version of “If no one is falling off then you aren’t teaching very well”

I’m sorry? Your definition of good instruction is that they fall off all the time?

If your program doesn’t have frequent injuries, you must be doing it…wrong???

Uh. No.

If students are flying off left and right, that is the very definition of p**s poor instruction. And I’m tired of people acting like it’s not.

Kids that aren’t rushed- don’t fall.
Kids on appropriately trained horses- don’t fall.
Kids that are doing level appropriate activities- don’t fall.

Ok. That’s a generalization. Obviously if you ride horses you’re going to fall off at some point. But- you get the point.

I have a student that fell off last month. She had been riding with me for 6 years. It was her first fall. She’s competing in upper level cowhorse shows. She’s doing well. And had her first fall SIX YEARS IN.

There will always be freak accidents. But in a program of 70+ students a week, we keep it to a few falls total per year.

Why are people bragging about putting peoples lives at risk? We should be doing everything we can to mitigate risk while simultaneously preparing them for it.

10/16/2026

Mm. No thanks 🤠🫣

10/16/2026

“Stop expecting your trainer to fix problems you intend to recreate.”

You want your horse to be less scared, so your trainer spends weeks building his confidence, teaching him to trust, and helping him work through things without panic. Then you get on, lose your patience, and lose it on him for being afraid.

You want your horse softer, so your trainer teaches him to respond to light cues, carry himself correctly, and give to pressure. Then you get on and pull on his face every time he makes a mistake.

You want a horse that respects you, so your trainer teaches him boundaries without making him afraid of the consequences of getting something wrong. Then you get on and make every interaction a fight.

You want a horse that is less pushy. Then you turn around and hand feed treats and let him nudge you and walk in front of you.

Do you see the problem?

Your trainer can put weeks, months, or even years into teaching your horse a better way of going, but if you get on and undo that work every time, you're never going to get the results you're paying for.

And more importantly, it's not fair to the horse.

He shouldn't have to learn one set of rules with your trainer and an entirely different set with you. He shouldn't have to figure out whether a light cue means something today or whether he's going to get pulled on, punished, or confused instead.

If you trust your trainer enough to put your horse in their hands, you also have to be willing to learn how to ride the way they train.

That doesn't mean you have to be a professional. It doesn't mean you'll never make mistakes. It means you have to be open to changing your own habits, listening to feedback, and being consistent with what you're asking your horse to do.

The goal is to build a horse that understands you, trusts you, and can succeed with you. That’s why most trainers require lessons with the training after a certain point. You need to learn how to communicate in the way the horse is being taught.

10/16/2026

It’s. A process.

10/15/2026

Meet Hannah, our Head Trainer and the person behind Jaks. You wanna know, "Why Jaks?" Here you go.

If you’re new here, you might look at this place and think, “It’s a riding barn. There's tons of those around."

Technically, yes. But- I started this when I was 17, and over the years I’ve developed a pretty strong opinion about what I think good riding instruction, and good horse training, should actually look like.

Why Jaks? Here is a list.

1) I won't rush a kid. I won't let them go fast if they aren't ready. I won't let them ride the finished horses if they aren't ready.. We don't rush them into competition or horse ownership. We don't rush.

We start with a solid, and slow, foundation. Students learn to use their seat, legs, hands, balance, timing, and feel. They learn how to communicate with a horse instead of simply sitting on one.

2) Jaks also does not believe that falling off is some required part of becoming a good rider. There is a progression. And that progression matters. But falling should NOT be a *regular* part of any riding program and is usually a result of a poor horse/rider combination and a rushed program. Frequent falls should be considered a red flag. Safety is top priority here. As it should be. (Falls happen- but they should be rare)

3) I'm not just trying to produce better riders. I'm trying to produce better horsemen and better people.
I want our students to understand why we're asking something, not just memorize what to do.
I want them to be able to recognize when a horse is confused, scared, resistant, or simply asking a question, and know how to appropriately respond to each.

I want them to understand pressure and release, body language, safety, problem solving, horse care, loading, handling, and what to do when something doesn't go according to plan.

I want them to eventually be able to get on a horse they've never ridden and figure it out.

And I want them to be the kind of riders who don't blame the horse when something goes wrong. In fact- we are very strict about this. Our standards are clear.

This is not producing kids who can ride one horse really well. This is producing riders who understand horses. Producing horses that are confident, responsive, balanced, and genuinely educated.

Creating young people who are capable, responsible, confident, adaptable, and willing to keep learning.

So-
There are a lot of good barns out there. I'm not going to pretend we're the only one doing things right.

But I will say this:

I have spent the last decade intentionally building Jaks around what I believe good horsemanship and good instruction should be. And I did that because I didn't see it being done anywhere else.

JAKS Stables

10/22/2026

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