- INSIDE COMMUNITY EVENTS B2 SECTION B 638-7283 Horse whisperer reins in riders - Guru teaches how to think like the herd By SARAH GLEN WHEN Chris Irwin wants a horse to listen to his coni- mands’ he only has to whisper. And he held a clinic to teach riders at Copperside ‘Stables-in Terrace ta do the same thing, The horse whisperer has formed a career: coaching riders on how to communi- cate wilh their horses. “People approach a- horse with a ‘wha’s the boss’ attitude,” said Irwin. “But instead of acting like hunters. moving infor the kill, people must learn to act and think like a horse.” But to do this the rider has to put away an instinc- tive part. of their personal- ity. oo me “Humans are predatory by nature. Horses on the other’ hand are prey animals,” he. said: “That means in order to get a horse to work well with a rider, the rider must be seen-as a non-threaten- ing friend of the horse, pushing it forward without 2 to i violence. “The human must be interpreted as that best friend, thal motivating foree, the body, mind and spirit that was always there to say “Let's po you can’ do it!" but also knew when to back off,” said Irwin. we But Irwin emphasizes thar changing the way n-- ders think takes time, “Learning to think and- act like a horse will ‘not happen during a weekend clinic or by: watching a ‘video or reading a book,” he said. “It takes humility and courage to change the way you think.” Instead - his. clinics, books. and videos and de- signed to introduce people to” horse whispering, or non-resistance training. | “What [horses] need to hear-from us is what many — of us would like to: hear from ourselves,” Irwin said. “They want us lo have a calm, focused as- surance. They want us to be consistent. They want a, us to be both strong and compassionale.” In essence, horses need us to “be our best selves,” he said. “The hard part of horse training isn't really about the horse at.all. It’s all about knowing who you are,” he said: “To teach your horse to stop running and be calm, responsive trusting and brave, you must ‘first acquire (those qualities: yourself,” » And-teaching riders how fo. tap into their “horsepower” has got Irwin national. recagnition. The horse trainer turned clini- cian and author has worked on Canadian rider lan Miller’s horse, Big Ben and has also lectured ‘extensively at colleges across Canada the United States. , “Developing a better relationship | [between horse and rider} is like playing a combination of chess and martial arts — it takes patience and a lot of skill,” said Irwin. ae SHARON LYN CH and Alan Weston both received honourable mentions at a provincial competition for their parts in the Terrace Little Theatre's production of Vigil. All in all, the play took hame six mentions from the competition. TLT production listed one of the province's best A TERRACE Little Theatre (TLT) play was singled out at a provincial competition as one of the four top plays in the pro- vince. Directed by Marianne Brorup Weston, the black comedy Vigil received honourable mentions in six categories, including . best set design, best direc- tor, best play and best technical production at the Mainslage 2000 compeli- tion in Delta. While at times stress- ful, Brorup Weston called the experience “very en- couraging.” The TLT has travelled to the festival ten times in. the last eleven years, first taking part in workshops before breaking into the’ competition part of the festival. “We can be very proud of our acemplishments,” she said, “We were in goad company.” The theatre plans to send another play to the annual festival next year, but it won't be directed by Brorup Weston. “Tl want to go back to the grassroots of it all, which is of course acting,” she said, And her husband, Alan Weston wants to take a break from the stage and start writing, The community theatre is now getling ready for its upcoming production, Bordertown Caje. It’s putting out a call to people who want to get involved ‘ta contact the theatre . Auditions will take place August 15 and 16. CHRIS IRWIN stands with a horse he used to demonstrate non-resistance training at his clinic in Terrace, July 7. Irwin believes that riders must think and act like a horse in order to develop a bond with the animal. Youth XPress needs writers ‘By SARAH GLEN IF SCOTT Brandon gets his way, Terrace youth will be getting a new ma- gazine specifically de- signed with them in mind. Brandon, who's volun- teering for the Terrace Anti-poverty Group-Socie- ty is a Kalimavik member stationed in Terrace until August 14. He picked up the the alternative ‘zine (short form for magazine}, Youth X Press from a previous Katimavik member who was also working at the non-profit society. “Tt has been really hard,” said Brandon. “I had to plunge right in to some one elses work.” But he’s slowly getting the ‘zine back on track. Brandon is putting out a call to all youth, aged 12- 21 to submit poetry, arti- cles, stories and art to the magazine. “We're pretty skimpy on the content right now,” he said. But it’s not just submis- sions thal Branden’s lack- ing — he needs help putting the entire magazine toge- ther, Since he’ll only be in Terrace until mid-August, Brandon is searching for someone to take over the project. “{Scott] needs someone to take over the challenge once he’s gone,” said Helga Smith, executive director of the Group-Soc- iely. While she’s supporting the magazine, Smith did raise concerns over the community reaction to the project, which supports an uncensored, freedom of speech and expression mandate, “Of. course one doesn’t want lo be found in the middle of a battlefield,” said Smith. Anyone interested in getting involved with the magazine can contact Brandon at the Anti-Pover- ty Group-Sociely. ee SCOTT BRANDON is waiting for submissions for his new youth magazine, Youth X Press. He’s hoping to get the magazine up and running with help from local teens interested in volunteering their time. m Gorgeous garden NEL’ BEALLE on Braun's Island was one of eight people to open up thelr gardens for a Terrace Women and Development-sponsored tour July 9, Those who took part enjoyed the creativity, effort and con mit- ment. A taa followed the tour and was held at the United Church.