At Rising K Ranch, we try to sell about three horses per year. Besides taking on outside horses to train, Klay Klemic also keeps in training about half a dozen personally owned horses and sells them after a few years of training. Every horse we sell is safe to ride, even for beginners. However, some of our horses have more talent and ability than a beginner will know what to do with and should therefore go to someone who is interested in using the horse in accordance with his skill.
We are also in contact with several good horsemen, so if you are looking for a specific kind of horse and we are not offering what you are looking for, feel free to give us a phone call and we can help you get in touch with the right person.
All of our horses for sale have spent quite a bit of time being ridden into the mountains, even on steep and rugged trails; but many of the horses we sell are also very good when it comes to working off your legs, working cattle, handling a rope, and some have placed in AQHA reining and/or cowhorse shows. Each horse is treated individually and we will try our best to see each horse go to someone who will use it according to what he is best at doing.
To help you understand how I view the horses we have for sale, I split them up into three separate categories:
1. Trail Horses: These horses are sound, and are not likely to spook at anything. They have been ridden on our trails time and time again, not only by myself and my assistants; but also have been ridden by many first-time horseback riders as guests or clients at the Rising K Ranch trail ride. These horses, being more "bomb-proof" are also going to be more dull when it comes to responding to light leg cues and light pressure on the bit. These horses will not have the slightest idea how to perform a sliding stop, a lead change, a spin, or how to cut a cow; but they will be very good for someone who just wants to have a horse for their child or to ride in the mountains over long distances and through any obstacle nature might hold in store.
2. Ranch Horses: Like the "Trail Horses", these horses are also sound and not likely to spook at anything. They also have been ridden many times into the mountains by experienced and inexperienced horsemen alike, and will also be safe for children to ride. However, this "Ranch" category of horse will also, at a basic level, perform a correct sliding stop, correct spin, correct lead change, work a rope for you if you are doctoring a cow or doing some ranch roping, and will know how to watch and correctly work a cow out of the herd. These horses have not got quite enough sting for me to feel like I ought to show them (or continue showing them) in the NRCHA or AQHA shows; but I may well have showed them in a local club show and done well there and they will certainly excel on a real working cattle operation.
3. Cowhorse: These horses are, of course, sound, but will likely be much more alive and, while they will not truly "spook", an inexerienced rider will still probably feel out of control riding them. If I am selling a horse as a true "Cowhorse", they have a win record with AQHA and/or the NRCHA and will have a very light feel. They will excel in regards to everything that makes a good cowhorse- the stop, spin, lead change, herd work, fence work, and will also work a rope and, like all my horses, they will still have spent a fair amount of time in real-life situations in the mountains and around cattle.
If you have any Questions, call Rising K Ranch
435-590-8428
