whitebear Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 I've met Chris and Cody, Cody started shoeing before he was 6 years old. Wesley, i was not trying to offend you or anyone else at kentuky. To say to go on competition record in my opinion is ludecris. For the simply fact that it's NOT i'll repeat IS NOT!! everyday shoeing. Guys will train and train and train for competitions, only to fall down into the same everyday rutts they were in priveaously. this is a short paragraph a friend wrote for a school paper years ago: Competition has grown dramatically in the past 20 years. It was once a small group of farriers who got together to practice and has friendly contests. Now it has become an internationally recognized sport, with trophies and different categories and groupings. Although the majority of horseshoers would be of the same opinion on the significance and need for practice and peer critique, few would support the importance of egotistical games intended to make some believe they are superior and others to feel as though their skills are inadequate, and walk away with a disappointment which is difficult to alleviate. Calgary Stampede in Canada is the leading horseshoeing competition in the world. With categorize ranging from basic shoe making, to building and fitting a pair specific shoes within a given time period. Over 5,000 farriers attend from all parts of the world to try their hand at besting the challenger, which is in fact a fellow shoer. Once a large ego sets in to a farrier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianbrazealblacksmith Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Hey, Hammer Kid, Keep doing what you're doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitebear Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Agreed chris, all of this non-sensical banter is jsut a couple peer farriers having a bit of fun! tip for an upcoming farrier...? hmm... study your master...don't jsut watch...STUDY! study the way he moves around the horses, study his working positions, at the horse and at the anvil. study how he carries himself around clients, study how he holds himself at the anvil to be the most effective. study how he sights feet, study how he maintains his tools, study how he uses his tools, study how he keeps himself and his vihichle clean! STUDY EVERYTHING!! the absolute best way to learn this trade is to learn one on one, but not only that but to study a proffesional. ask as many questions as you can think of. and write down the answers so you can STUDY them later on. ask questions ranging from anatomy, to pathologies, to making pritchles and headstamps, to business management. i hoep this helps! Son Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdbrnr Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 to whitebear and all i did not want to offend either i have personaly made a good living at this for a loooong time with a few forays into other ventures i wish hammerkid and anyone else all the best in this buisness and now to make everyone mad if it hadnt been for horseshoers who continued where would blacksmithing be today? isee alot of our blacksmiths kinda look down on horseshoers or adamntly claim they dont shoe horses but when you take a piece of steel and forge and properly apply it to a horses foot what are we but not alittle of both plus alittle vet knowledge doesent hurt !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johannes Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 hey chris, welcom to the club of aprentice farriers! I'v been at it for a while now, and after 2 years of shooling i hope to graduate this june, here in belgium we still have an oficial scholing systhem for farriers. so thats my advice, go find a good school, and lean as much as you can about the anatomy of an hoof, but also practise, practise practise! regards, en all teh luck in the world! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philip in china Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Of course there is always Spike Jones doing the blacksmiths song on Youtube. That could help you a lot. I don't have the link but there is only one Spike Jones so you should find it OK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Poulmas Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 (edited) Chris, Do anything you can to lessen the impact on your body. There are various hoof stands available that can help you. There are a lot of guys who don't like them but they can make a tremendous impact. Losing the tough guy mentality - not that you have it - will help you and your body will thank you. And get a tool cart that isn't near the ground. Less bending. Like blacksmithing done well there is no smashing. Of anything. Intelligence, leverage, finesse. Those are your best tools. Eventually, down the road, go for less volume and higher prices. I prefer to shoe three or four horses a day at top dollar. With a 50 horse barn this won't be possible (volume wise) because they won't want you there all of the time but for the smaller accounts this has worked well for me. Always look good and be on time. If you can't be on time make a phone call. (Have a cel.) I can go on for days but one thing you should consider down the road is raising your prices every year to keep up with inflation. Hope this helps. Welcome aboard. Edited March 5, 2009 by Jim Poulmas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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