Parelli Question

[HorseJunkie]

Hi everyone!

I am looking for some Parelli people to help me out... I love NH and the methods and everything, and I got the new Level 1 pack. I have a problem though; I can't stand Linda! Now, now, I know people love her, and I don't want to be rude. I really can't focus on the training having to listen to all the little stories and examples, it drives me crazy and I end up fast forwarding through her and the Dr Burns segments.

I want to move on to Level 2, and I was wondering if the OLD Level 2 pack was just Pat. I love watching the work with horses. Does the old pack have more of the hands on? I would rather get the old pack and skip all the blah, blah, blah...

Thanks everybody!

[CMR]

I have the new Level one and two, and I'd definitely have to agree with you about fast forwarding. Some of the stuff Linda is teaching is valuable to some people, but not me. I'm the type of learner who likes to do things from just reading the little booklets, and if I run into problems then I go back to the videos. You can definitely fast forward through Dr. Burns without missing anything important because all she is talking about is "learning," and is saying nothing about horses. Before I bought mine, I borrowed an old Level 1 and I'd say I liked it a lot more. There is only one tape to show you all of the games, and the rest are the booklets. Although I'm not sure of the old Level 2. I do have to say that if you are looking to get qualified in the Levels, you might have a little bit more difficulty with the old Levels, because they have changed the tests(but it is mostly the same)

[99E]

I think the savvy systems as a concept is a great idea - a complete home study programme that tells you everything you need to know.
Cool.

But a lot (!!!) of people get LOST on the journey from Gunsil to Savvy Horseman.
Why?

Because using the Savvy System means you need to...
...learn something new - and rather difficult.
...read quite an amount of text in English (not too easy if English isn't your forst language, believe me!)
...understand the text - and Pat Parelli chooses his words carefully! You have to actually understand the difference between "cause" and "make" and know what a Humble Pie is. (I imagined some kind of syrup-pie, but THAT didn't ake sense so I looked it up in a dictionary...)
...understand the philosophy and the principles - in the old L1 ONLY by reading the Pocket Guides & Theory Book.
...motivate yourself - to actually get started, to move on, to finish off the Level or the Task.
...work your way through frustrations, fears, feeling like a failure and lack of fun (maybe even lack of funds).

What I have seen the OLD Savvy Systems do is turning well meaning horsepeople that wanted to take a more natural approach to horses into EITHER really good horsepeople OR extremely Task-focused Carrot Stick-Whip-whacking (dressage-nazi) dictators that didn't know how to be Firm And Friendly And Fair.

So - it used to be quite easy to get lost on the way.

So, what do the new Savvy Systems take care of?
Stephanie Burns is in charge of the preparation of people that need more support as learners than the old Savvy Systems provided.
That is, in my opinion, great.
Being an adult learner is not always easy!

Linda's putting more focus on the "Read the Horse"-part - great too.
A lot of people forget that the horse has a vote too!

Also, the new Systems do not put as much focus on the tasks - but more on quality of what is shown, on understanding of the horse and the philosophy of the system.
Is that a good thing?
YES - why shouldn't it be?! :rolleyes:

What do you do if you REALLY want the old L1-pack?
Contact the Danish Parelli-booking office at www.patparelli.dk - I'm sure Guarn will be MORE than happy to get rid of the last old ones...

(Do I miss Pat Parelli on the Savvy Systems too? Yes. What's to do about it? Get moving, get to L3 - that's still the old package... Until then: Be a member of the Savvy Club and learn to live with Linda...)

[Naturally]

Guess you can't please all of the people all of the time ;) People used to complain that they didn't like Pat.

It doesn't matter who it is delivering the information, the information is important if you want to follow PNH.

I completed level 1 about two years ago now, on the old pack. I have recently purchased the new level two pack, so I could keep udated and on track, but then went back and bought the new level one pack. There is sooo much more information in it for the student.

It's been said time and time again, that this program is about teaching humans how to be with horses, not about teaching horses. So if you want to study PNH, I'm afraid you need to listen to the information, regardless of who is delivering it.

I do understand where you are coming from, I prefer to watch things in action, i.e. the parts where they are using the horses in demonstrations, but it never ceases to amaze me the little snippets I pick up regardless of how much I think I know.

Try listening to the bits you find tiresome while you're doing the ironing !! :p

[Naturally]

I forgot to add, that there was good reason for the updating of the packs. Many students missed some pivotal principles in the old packs, so the new versions are much more detailed and much more demonstration. It is made infinately easier this way.

But to answer your original question, the old videos were just Pat showing you what it should look like at the end, and the booklets supplied the "how to". Hope that helps

[janet hakeney]

I agree you have to get past the 'Linda is irritating' bit and focus on the information. I do think it is a shame they have sacked Stephanie, she was a very valuable asset to them.

[Jacquie]

I've got the old L1 and L2 which only have Pat feature in them (I haven't watched the new L1 or L2 packs yet).

I must admit though, when I went to the 2004 conference I couldn't help but stiffle my yawns when Linda did her slot on saddle fitting. Now don't get me wrong, I think she's great and could watch her all day when she's demonstrating fluidity or working with students and/or their horses.

But...where Pat certainly has the charisma to turn even a conversation about watching paint dry into an interesting topic - Linda doesn't seem to have that ability and can tend to be a little tedious when only discussing a subject.

[HorseJunkie]

I appreciate everyone's comments, but I think this thread turned into something I didn't intend... I don't mean to bash anyone at Parelli! I was just wondering about the set up of the old Level 2.

I don't intend to take the certification tests, I just use it as general all around knowledge. I am a big book learner, and I am a little dissapointed that they didn't show so much horse interaction. I think it would be really interesting if they came out with a DVD on horse behavior and psychology SHOWING the horses, instead of just talking about them.

Thanks for all your comments!

[Francis Burton]

I think it would be really interesting if they came out with a DVD on horse behavior and psychology SHOWING the horses, instead of just talking about them.
Maybe Equine Ethology could do that (esp. given their name). While there are lots of books on horse behaviour out there, there's a gap in the market for a DVD.

[Naturally]

Well the L2 pack has a fair bit of equine behaviour shown in it, but I don't really understand what you want to see. If you want to watch equine behaviour, go observe your horses. If you want to understand it, it's far more than can be put into any single DVD. If you want more than one DVD, is called a "pack" and comes with a host of other information, which I suppose you can filter at will.

Really, since every horse is different, if they showed how horse A responded to a certain thing, it would not necessarily be how horse B would respond, so you need the books and supplimentary information to understand the horse and read the behaviour for yourself. This is how the program is for the human, not for the horse.