Mary started her business Sharp Performance Horses officially when she was only 18 years old, and it has been going strong for the past 23 years. Not without its challenges and difficulties, but Mary has kept to who she is and her mission all of this time.
In the earlier years Mary devoted the majority of her time only training horses. The horses would learn a lot from her, but once they were returned to their owner/rider the horses wouldn’t react near as well with them as they did with Mary. Mary realizing this breakdown in communication between rider and horse she switched her mission statement and overall direction of her business.
Mary responded saying, “I want to improve horse and rider communication.”
Mary says, “I see myself as a translator between humans and horses.”
Mary’s confidence in training horses and helping riders understand them comes from her many years of experience and also her degree in teaching. She believes her degree and schooling has really allowed her to stay at the top of her game, and make the communication between horse and rider that much better.
When I was watching Mary give lessons, it was very obvious that her degree in teaching really allowed for her to communicate well with the young riders she was training that morning.
She truly is a talented trainer and Due West Ranch is very blessed to have her as a friend and trainer.
We visualize our relationship with Mary to be a great one, but does Mary see the relationship the same way?
When asked this question Mary had some really positive and nice things to say.
When transitioning over to Due West Ranch Mary brought over some horses that were not treated well and were malnourished. One of the ways Due West Ranch stepped up and why Mary is very grateful for our relationship is Due West Ranch took the horses and helped bring them back to full health, and gave them a safe place to be.
After having been around Due West Ranch for a little bit of time she says, “I have never been to a facility that has taken such good care of me, my horses, or clientele. A place that is so attentive to detail, safety, a welcoming attitude, and a place that is truly family friendly.”
Even further into the future Mary thinks like I believe a lot of us do. Hoping that one day she will be able to quit her day job and do what she loves all day, every day.
It was a great privilege to spend the morning with Mary and learn about her life. If you ever get the opportunity to be around Mary Sharp you should not let that pass!
For more information about Sharp Performance Horses visit: www.sharporsekc.com
For more information about Due West Ranch visit our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/duewest.ranch
