As part of the fourth generation raised on her family ranch in Cody, Wyoming, Shelbi was on the back of a horse from a young age. When she was 11, she became involved with 4-H, and was active in Jr. Rodeo. She was introduced to the Method by long-time family friends, Joyce and Lee Cronley. Studying the Cronley’s Clinton Anderson VHS collection and seeing Clinton in person at a tour solidified her horsemanship goals.
Learning how to train a horse and fine-tune her feel and timing consumed Shelbi’s free time and she was eager to learn more. “I wanted the knowledge to be able to handle any training situation and train through the advanced levels of the Method, but there came a point where I was out of knowledge from just watching videos. I wasn’t moving forward and knew I had to get help,” Shelbi says.
She attended the 2012 Colt Starting Clinic in Stephenville and was highly motivated by the results she achieved with Clinton’s instruction. This fueled her passion and ultimately led to her enrolling in the Academy. “The Academy seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to get the in-depth, hands-on help that I wanted. I enjoy interacting with people, so it was a perfect combination of what I was looking for as far as a career. I knew I could turn the opportunity into something,” Shelbi says.
As a Method Ambassador, Shelbi will continue training horses and sharing her knowledge with horse owners, especially kids. She also wants to explore many disciplines in the equine industry to add to her knowledge base and skill-set.