When we talk about developing a performance horse, we tend to focus on what happens once that horse enters a training program. We think about building body control, developing confidence, and eventually preparing that horse for a specific job. But, the learning process starts long before we ever put a saddle on one.

I recently had Shane and Allyson Eliason of Eliason Performance Horses on the podcast. They're fifth-generation ranchers in the high desert country of Utah, where they run cattle and raise performance horses across some pretty big, rough country.

I've had the opportunity to visit their operation, and I'm currently riding a couple of horses they've raised. One of the things that stands out to me is the amount of experience those horses have before formal training ever begins. They're out there learning how to be horses, and I think there's a tremendous amount of value in that.

Here are some of my main takeaways from our conversation.

Building a Ranch-Raised Foundation

The Eliasons raise their young horses in large pastures where they have to travel across rocky, uneven country. They may travel close to a mile to water. They live in herds, navigate fences, learn social hierarchy, and figure out how to handle themselves in an environment that doesn't cater to their every move.

Those experiences might not look like "training" in the traditional sense, but the horse is learning every day. They're learning where to put their feet. They're learning how to respond to pressure from other horses. They're learning to travel, adapt, and become comfortable in different situations.

By the time formal training begins, those experiences have already helped shape how that horse interacts with the world around them.

I've seen that firsthand with the horses I'm riding from their program. When they came to my place, they went right into a pasture with other horses. They understood fences. They knew how to get along in a herd. They were easy to catch and handle, and they already had a solid foundation to build from.

As a trainer, that makes a difference. When a horse already knows how to handle himself, I don't have to spend as much time filling in some of those gaps. We can start building on what he already knows.

Breeding with a Balance of Mental & Physical Ability

We spend a lot of time in the performance horse industry talking about athletic ability. Can the horse run? Can he stop? Can he turn? Does he have enough speed, cow, bone, or structure to hold up to the job?

While those things matter, physical ability is only part of the equation. At some point, that horse has to be able to handle pressure.

Competition is stressful. We're going to haul these horses to unfamiliar places, put them in new environments, surround them with hundreds or even thousands of other horses, and then ask them to perform at a high level. A horse can have all the physical tools in the world, but mentally, he still has to be able to hold it together when we ask him to do his job.

We can't recreate every situation a horse will encounter later in life. But we can give them opportunities to think, adapt, and develop confidence before the stakes are high. That's one reason I think those early experiences can be so valuable. The life skills these horses are learning on the ranch is hard to replicate later in the training process.

Genetics and Environmental Factors That Influence a Horse’s Training Success

The Eliasons’ breeding program began with a few stand-out barrel bred mares, and quickly evolved to integrate a substantial herd of foundation-bred roping and ranch horses.

In 2024, their program expanded rapidly when they had the opportunity to purchase two Riata Buckle stallions and 30 broodmares from the Keslers' Double Dollar program. Those horses were already accustomed to living on the range, pasture breeding, barbed-wire fences, and rough country, which made the transition into the Eliasons' operation pretty seamless.

Since then, they've continued adding to the program and thinking about the crosses they want to make. They have mares with barrel and race bloodlines. They have ranch and rope-bred mares. They're crossing those different pedigrees with their stallions and looking at what each combination might produce—from solid horses for the everyday roper to prospects capable of competing at the futurity level.

But regardless of what's on the papers, those horses still have to grow up somewhere. That's where I think genetics and environment have to complement each other. You can breed for the physical and mental traits you want. Then you have to give that young horse experiences that allow those traits to develop.

Don't Underestimate What a Horse Learns Outside the Arena

Not everybody has tens of thousands of acres of high desert country to turn young horses out on. That's okay.

The lesson isn't that every horse needs to be raised exactly like the Eliasons raise theirs. The bigger lesson is to think about the experiences we're giving our horses.

Sometimes we get so focused on what happens during the hour we're actively training that we overlook everything else that's teaching that horse. Turnout teaches them something. Herd dynamics teach them something. New environments teach them something. Ranch work teaches them something. Learning to navigate uneven terrain, different obstacles, pressure, and unfamiliar situations teaches them something.

Those experiences don't replace good training. They give good training something to build on.

Ultimately, we're trying to develop horses that can think, handle pressure, adapt to new situations, and confidently go do the job we're asking them to do.

That process doesn't begin with the first ride. It begins with the foundation we're giving them long before we ever step in the stirrup.