Tommie Turvey appears to live life on the edge.
He’s a skydiver, licensed hang glider pilot, scuba diver and movie stuntman.
If necessary, he could defend himself with his black belt in Tae Kwon Do.
The phrase ‘Ride Fast … Take Chances’ appears on his promotional literature and website.
And he calls himself an equine extremist.
But Turvey’s idea of extreme is different than one might expect.
“Being extreme is not just physical,” he says. “It is having mental focus.”
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It’s about seeing danger before it happens and being able to deal with it, he explains to the Canadian Western Agribition audience watching him and his paint horses.
For example, at some point all horses will get tangled up in a rope, he said. So he demonstrates how he teaches horses to be calm in that situation.
He also explains how he teaches horses to bow, sit and lie down or stand patiently while a dog leaps on to its back.
Part of his show is workshop and part is performance.
Turvey grew up on a ranch in California where his father was also a horse trainer and movie stuntman.
After high school he began riding professionally with a Florida dinner theatre called Medieval Times. That’s when he realized he was on to something good.
“I could get paid and travel doing this,” he said.
He does about 40 live shows a year and has been in 10 television shows or feature films, including Batman: The Dark Knight and Larry the Cable Guy’s Witless Protection.
He prefers the live venues.
“It’s more fun in front of a live crowd,” he said.
The stars of the show are full-blood paint brothers, Joker and Ace.
Turvey uses paints in his performances because he wants to make a point.
“The horse is pretty,” he said. “But none of my horses are expensive. They’re $2,000 paints that I train to do a lot of cool stuff.”
And that means that others can train their horses to do cool stuff, too.
Turvey said his most expensive piece of equipment is a $20 whip.
Training a horse is more about trust, he said.
At his Equine Extremist Equestrian Centre at Double G Farms in Sterling, Illinois, Turvey offers clinics to help people train their horses for various things. Some want them to do tricks, while others simply want a disciplined horse.
He encourages people to take their time and train horses in small steps. It takes a week or two for him to train a horse to lie down.
Horses should react to cues, he added. For example, he has trained his to step up on a pedestal, but they will only do it if given the proper cue. This is for the horses’ own safety.
Turvey offers DVDs and books containing his training methods. His website is www.tommieturvey.com.
