The Trainer
Along the spectrum of horse whisperers, the philosophy Tom Estes uses in training is most like that of Tom Dorrance or Ray Hunt. But he stays pretty quiet about it. Each horse is simply treated as the individual it is with a spirit to be nurtured and channeled, never eliminated or broken. He's a teacher who sees the best in his equine and human students before they do. He opens the gate to learning, invites them through, and sets it up so they succeed.

Tom's timing, balance and feel for horses comes naturally. Horses came to him early in life — his first horse for training at the age of 9. Her name was Beauty and she had already foiled two adult attempts to "break" her. Tom used his own approach. His father took note, and soon Tom became his dad's go-to trainer for many of his own American Saddlebreds.

In the following years Tom honed his skills in both horse training and ranch management at several large private estates across the country. After thirty-plus years of breeding and training numerous National Champions, managing boarding and world-renowned breeding programs, and the hundreds of acres, employees, and events involved in that work for others, Tom found Mt. Si Stables—his very own labor of love.

Most of the horses in the photos are examples of Tom's training. The two middle photos are of horses with awards ranging from Top Ten National Champion, National Champion Halter Mare, National Champion English Pleasure Half Arabian Division, and World's Champion Racking Horse. Tom has many stories about the horses in his life, their awards, their successes, and how he guided them in their journey. The stories both impress and delight—and are being added to on a daily basis.

Let your horse's best life story unfold with training at Mt. Si Stables. Tom Estes sees potential where others don't, so naturally, his horses experience success that others won't.