FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. -- While many of their classmates spent spring break relaxing, four Fort Campbell students used the week to learn more about their favorite creatures -- horses.
The Fort Campbell Riding Stables, 11th Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Division roads, hosted Spring Break Horse Camp to teach the basics of being an equestrian for children ages 8 and older.
The last day of camp, a dreary Friday morning, started with a quick quiz of everything they had learned -- anatomy, breeds, colors, grooming and care of the horse, the stalls and their equipment.
They braved the rain to clean the stables and care for the boarder horses, cleaning out two of the stalls and watering most all of the horses. Instructor Jenny Allar quizzed the children again while they carried out the chores, asking them to name the coloration and breeds of the horses in each stall.
Brianna Conner, 11, and Rhiannon Castro, 10, both attended previous horse camps offered by the riding stables, so they said they knew how much work it was to take care of horses. Newcomer Natalie Mowery, 11, said she was surprised.
"I thought they'd be easy to work with," Natalie said. "I thought you could just ride them."
Each child was assigned a horse for the week, but circumstances allowed James Pernula, 8, to work with three different horses: April, Snickers and Sissy.
"I liked Snickers," James said. "He was like a roller coaster that horse."
He started the week with April, but the horse hurt her ankle on the first day and he was reassigned to Sissy for the rest of camp.
Snickers was the horse James rode on the trail ride, because Sissy was being used for Wounded Warrior therapy.
"My dad was kind of shocked. No, he wasn't shocked; he was amazed," James said. "He told me that whenever people who have been wounded ride horses it actually helps them."
Allar explained that horses could be therapeutic because of the way they calm people, just like they relaxed the children.
All of the children had to ride different horses Wednesday because their assigned horses had various therapy jobs that day.
"I did not like the trot on Linda," Natalie said of the horse she rode for the trail ride. "One time my helmet brushed up against a couple branches and she took off like a rocket and I almost flew off the saddle. I was unprepared."
Despite the scary moment, Natalie said she enjoyed the rest of the trail ride.
Allar said it also was important for the children to use different horses because it helped them learn that even though each horse has its own personality, the techniques they use with one horse can generally be transferred to another.
"I grew up around horses, so I know how important it was to my development to be around horses," Allar said. "Especially with animals that are much, much bigger than themselves [the children must] learn how to handle them. Even though they are tall and big and weigh a lot of pounds, they're still gentle animals and that what you put into them they'll give back."
Brianna said working with the horses was fun even though she didn't get to ride as much as she wanted because of the rain the last few days of camp.
"I love horses. I want one," she said.
After a morning snack, the children went out to the riding pen behind the office to practice controlling their horses. Because of the rain, the real horses couldn't be ridden, so instead Allar provided them with hobby horses.
After circling the rail a few times, they played several rodeo games, including pole bending and barrel racing. They finished the competition with a version of musical chairs on the hobby horses until Rhiannon took the top spot.
"I wanted to play that with real horses, but the weather wouldn't cooperate," Allar said.
Allar said she enjoyed teaching the camp because it was fun for the children and something different for her.
"I used to be a riding instructor back in Germany and I used to do this a lot so I really enjoy doing this," she said. "Children that are more introverted learn to step out because you have to let the horse know what you want. If you let the horse walk all over you, the horse will do whatever it wants. We can't let that happen with 1,200 pounds."
They ended the camp by grooming their horses one last time, braiding their manes and feeding them carrots before saying goodbye. Allar invited the children to come back and visit their horses and continue riding lessons.
"They say that once you have the horse fever it will never let you go, so I hope you caught on a little bit of the horse fever and keep coming back," Allar joked. "And maybe you can bug your parents long enough until they buy you your own horsey."
The next horse camp will be an eight-week summer camp through the Fort Campbell Riding Stables. For more information, call (270) 798-2629.
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