Breakingthe Mold
Sometimes the greatest thing you can do for a barrel horse is take the barrels away.
Horsemanship is the language of the horse.
We build riders. We build horses. We build competitors.
Paul Humphrey
A drill should have a purpose.
Pressure should have a purpose. Your hands should have a purpose. Everything we do should be building the horse, not simply creating a response for the moment.
Most barrel horse problems don’t start at the barrel. So a Breaking the Mold clinic starts at Ground Zero: Paul evaluates every horse and rider in the arena, no barrels set, and builds from there. The barrels come back once there’s something underneath them worth running on.
- IBalance
- IIConnection
- IIICollection
- IVMovability
- VForward Motion
Next stops on the tour
- Oct 2–42026Clifton, CO
- Oct 52026Grand Junction, CO
- Oct 9–112026Asotin, WA
There is a difference between learning how to do something to a horse and learning how to reach a horse.
Nearly ten years of Paul’s journey were spent under the direction of two legendary horsemen.
“They didn’t teach me to copy them. They taught me how to think like a horseman.”
The greatest lessons of my life never came from winning. They came from the horses that taught me to listen.Paul Humphrey
A lifelong horseman with more than four decades devoted to horses: trainer, competitor, clinician, and the creator of Breaking the Mold.
Three days can change everything.
Horses need time to process, just as riders do. That’s why riding with Paul means committing to all three days, in a small group of riders traveling the same road.
Day One · Discover
Evaluation. Paul listens to your story and watches you work, to see where the communication is breaking down and where the education needs to begin.
Day Two · Understand
Everything begins to make more sense. The groundwork is carried to the barrel turn, one step at a time, so the horse stands up and drives through it.
Day Three · Breakthrough
This is when the changes start to happen, and they can be magical. You leave with a step-by-step plan and the drills to keep building at home.
Ground Zero Horsemanship Clinic
Round pen session & fundamental basics.
A full day built around groundwork and evaluation drills. No barrels, no competition bits, no tie-downs. Just you, your horse, and the fundamentals everything else is built on.
Think Like a Horseman
Volume One · Build yourself. Build your horse. Understand the why.
Paul is putting a lifetime with horses on paper. Volume One asks the question every drill should answer: what is this actually doing for the horse?
The most comprehensive horsemanship clinic I’ve been to. Paul explains the how’s and why’s of what he’s teaching in an easy to understand style. I will definitely be returning to future clinics.
New stops are announced here first
Clinics fill. Get the dates the day they’re set, and hear first when Paul is coming to your area.