Dan Sumerel&bsp; will be at Red Gate Farm in Columbus on Friday, Sept. 18 to offer an open demonstration of his unique training system and methods with horses. &bsp;

The donations for this event will benefit the Foothills Humane Society. &bsp;

Sumerel teaches a &uot;simple and natural way that you can become a partner and friend with your horse.&uot; Behavior and physical problems with the horse will be addressed as Sumerel shares his techniques with working with the whole horse and changing the way of thinking and how you relate to your horse. &bsp;

Understanding what you have in the power of your head is always more powerful than what you have in your hand, according to Sumerel.

Sumerel grew up in Miami., Fla. He never had horses as a youngster but dreamed of motorcycles and fast cars.

After the Air Force, Sumerel moved to Denver, Colo., and worked in the motorcycle industry for a dealer and then moved on to the Yamaha motorcycles.&bsp; Sumerel then managed a Ferrari dealership and opened his own upscale hot rod shop. At 42, he says, he wanted something different. He sold the car business and bought a horse named Sunny that changed his life. Sunny was a rogue stallion and Sumerel was a neophyte horse owner.

The Sumerel Training System promotes working with the whole horse. Whatever is most natural to the horse is the better and easier way for controlling and understanding his mind and needs, Sumerel says.

Sumerel wrote a book about his training methods called &uot;Finding the Magic,&uot; which is now in its fourth printing.

Unfortunately, the word &dquo;natural&dquo; has been associated with all forms of bits, sticks, ropes, and equipment that are most unnatural to a horse, according to Sumerel.

&uot;Sometimes the more tack and equipment you use the worse off you are,&uot; says Sumerel.

Sumerel deals with the physical and behavioral problems that horses and owners often struggle with in their training.

Behavioral problems are often associated with pain. Trying to retrain a horse that is behaving poorly because he is hurting is counterproductive. Fixing what hurts and then retraining is a piece of cake. Defining what hurts in the horse according to Sumerel&39;s system and philosophy is simple, efficient, and safe. &bsp;

Understanding and communication are of primary factors for the rider and horse that Sumerel promotes. &uot;If you want to be understood, you must first learn to understand,&dquo; is a principle Sumeral believes in thoroughly in his system with horses.

&uot;Once we understand them and their world they open up to us with ease,&uot; says Sumerel.