About

“Many years ago, I took lessons with Katharine, on Freedom. It’s by far the best horsemanship experience I’ve ever gotten. You see, when I started with Katharine, I already thought I knew it all. What girl-who-loves-horses doesn’t? 🤷🏼‍♀️. Well let’s just say, it’s been 10 years, and I am confident that my foundation and roots is all because Katharine took the time to teach me more than just how to sit in the saddle….Energy, empathy, balance, awareness, all the things that help you connect with the horse. Powerful. Meaningful. Intentional.
I am forever thankful.” – Shelly B

About:

Conscious Rider / Austin Riding and Therapy Center and Katharine Turner Mays.

Katharine moved to Austin Texas into a petite ranch in 2000.  Her riding sessions began when a friend asked her to give her riding lessons.  It soon became the highlight of their week, which was when Katharine decided start Conscious Rider and teach others.  Using her skills as a professional empath and psychic she helped clients find their way into a deeper energetic union with their horses.  Sally Swifts’ Centered Riding works well with beginners and once their seat (position in the saddle) is strong Katharine introduces classical dressage which is fun and elating for for both the horse and the rider. 

As Katharine is also a professional artist, she works with clients and horses in the mornings Thursdays to Sundays and paints in the afternoons. 

Katharine’s Horse Story.

‘I loved spending time in my teens riding with my mother, getting our horses fit for hunting, before school or in the week ends. 

My mother got me my first pony, Sir Percival Pink, at the age of 11.  I will never forget us walking through a boggy field one spring afternoon only to come across a beautiful round, 13.2 strawberry roan.  I had no idea why we were there, but the moment I saw him, I fell deeply in love.  He was the kind of pony any horse loving child like myself would dream of having.  In the middle of this large field, as my mother and I stood staring at his portly, pinkness she said these life changing, wonderful immortal words: “This …. is your pony!”

I had many years of wonderful adventures on Pinky.  He took care of me over huge jumps out hunting.  He taught me about courage and he was pure joy.  I went to sleep at night thinking of him in his enormous stable full of hay, loving him deeply and woke up in the mornings the same way.  After some years I grew too big for him, he went to my lucky brother and I got to love and take care of the next pony until I got my first beautiful horse, a hunter jumper called Flint.

As I was born in Britain, brought up in Hampshire, we fox hunted when we could on Wednesdays and Saturdays.  I rode my ponies, first Pinky then Mouse, then Blacky, Dandy and Flint over huge jumps from the age of 11 to 24.  Our hunt was the Hursley Hambledon my mother was a pink jacket and my uncle, was the master of the Silverton Hunt in Devon.  Off season I did Three Day Events (cross country, dressage and show jumping). 

I studied ‘dressage’ on and off growing up and later concentrated on the Baucher system from the classical school of de la Guérinière.  Over the years I have been methodical in learning and teaching his method to both my horses and my clients.

Because my first American horse Freedom, had been traumatized and needed his confidence back I began to learn gentler, ancient ways of interacting with horses and found natural horsewo’manship, this became another deep horse dive and learning curve for the next decade.  I met and studied Parelli and Monti Roberts.

My classical riding back ground helped me to teach people to ride.  The natural (empathic) horsewo’manship helped clients and horses heal from trauma. Typically I worked with clients who could ride but had lost their confidence.  I noticed if a rider had a life challenge it would be mirrored by their communication or lack there of, with the horse, once we got conscious of it the connection and the riding would improve.’ 

About:

Transforming Triggers.

Since 2000 I have developed a method for people to transform a trigger before getting on the horse to keep the horse calm, (‘a calm horse is not a dangerous horse‘- Mia Lykke Neilson).  My method is now a book I am writing called ‘Before Trauma I was Love‘.  I work with people learning to go from fear to stillness and Return To Love. This work has led me to hold groups and workshops with and without the horses to help people learn to transform their fear and stop reacting in anger.

 

About:

Austin Riding and Therapy Center

Equine Assisted Integration.

E.A.I. combines Centered Riding (TM), Conscious Rider and mindfulness:

About:

Special Needs Riding. 

From 2010,  I have worked with neuro divergent and neuro typical children and adults with different needs.  I am able to give gentle, sensitive clients simple exercises using E.A.I. something I developed, by working with clients on the ground with the horses which helps to work through relational and life challenges. 

About:

a Spiritual Shift …

After many years and thousands of hours of meditation in 2016 there was an energetic shift in my demeanor. I noticed I went from a fear based mindset to a predominantly still mind.  This was a change that took some time to adjust to and I took time off to assimilate. 

During this period of integration I began my interest in training horses on the ground using the Mia Lykke Neilson method.   I also, studied Liz Mitten Ryans methods and The Trust Technique, all of which we use in our sessions and the workshops.

“I love helping people integrate classical riding through Dressage establishing a knowledge of lightness and grace while experiencing a deep relationship with themselves as Presence.  I love to help transform peoples triggers and Return To Love.  I consider myself very lucky to do this every day.”

 

Katharine Turner Mays  Facilitator

• Director and Founder of Conscious Rider / Austin Riding and Therapy Center since 2000
• Dressage training
• Hursley Hambledon Hunt 12 years
• Three Day Eventer UK 10 years
• Special needs facilitator and mentor since 2010
• Professional Medium and Psychic for animals and humans
• Classically Trained Artist Portraits of children and animals KatharineTurnerArt
• Kundalini Yoga Certified Instructor

 

Caroline Jackaman Teacher/Guide

• Shoshne Lodge Yellowstone
• Guided trail rides
• Over night pack trips
• Extensive Western horsewomanship
• Conscious Rider 5 years 
• Texas Horse Center
• Camp councillor
• Managing full care of 30 horses

Caroline is passionate about learning and being a strong horse woman. Her ambitions are to eventually be training wild horses and to continue enjoying teaching children and adults in sharing her equine knowledge, understanding and love.

 

Genevieve Kenny Teacher/Guide

• EAGALA Instructor
• Special Education Degree
• Special Education Teacher
• ABA Therapist
• Special Olympics Volunteer 

Genevieve has her own horse riding facility Miercoles Moon in Sante Fe, NM. She has been with Conscious Rider since 2010.