Sawatzky Equine Services

Brenda has been an Equine Canada Certified English Riding Coach since 2006. Her competitive career began in 3-Day Eventing/Horse Trials. During this time, she coached and trained under Combined Efforts riding club, where Cindy and Roland were also part of the team of riders.

She specialized in beginner rider programs that focused on development of skills and confidence for children and adults, and was known for her exceptional string of beginner lesson horses. Brenda also spent time starting horses for a variety of disciplines with many horses going on to be competitive for the Combined Efforts team of riders in Eventing/Horse Trials.

Brenda's horse life began in childhood while riding her cousin’s horses at a family farm. Her love and affinity for horses followed her into adulthood where she too discovered that better partnerships with horses could be achieved with a more natural approach to horse training. She became a student of many natural horsemanship practitioners and developed her own style of working successfully with horses and people, helping them to have a better understanding of how horses think.

After injuries forced her out of the saddle and away from training full sized horses, Brenda moved into driving miniature horses, competing in Combined Driving events and local driving shows. She became very involved in the local driving communities under the Alberta Carriage Driving Association as a member of the Northern Lights Chapter, and competed up to Preliminary level in Combined Driving.

Brenda brings her unique coaching skills to Sawatzky Equine, which has included an adult ladies’ riding class, weekly jumping lessons, and driving clinics and lessons for the Northern Lights Chapter of the Alberta Carriage Driving Association. She works closely with Melissa Glowinski (daughter-in-law), and together they hold many Obstacle Training Clinics for all disciplines throughout the year.

 

After many years away from being in the saddle, Brenda discovered she could ride again on a very trustworthy horse named Ace, owned and trained by Melissa. The gift of this extraordinary horse allowed Brenda to return to competitive riding in the sport of Extreme Cowboy Racing. Brenda, and her current ride, Rosie, have proven to be a force to be reckoned with, and their partnership is an inspiration to many. Together they're looking forward to another successful race season in 2024!

​