From the time she was very young, Ann Kirk knew she wanted to spend her life working with horses. Born to Ted and Ione Simpson on a farm in Eastern Washington, she grew up riding horses for work and pleasure nearly every day. Her family consisted of 7 girls and 1 boy who used the horse as their main source of entertainment. She was riding by herself by the age of 3 and, even after breaking her arm in a riding mishap, she could not stay off for long.
Fast forward to 2005, when Ann introduced herself to us with the statement "I want to be a clinician at Ride the West". That statement has lead us to a long and binding friendship. Ann's incredible relationship with horses....teaching the art of reading the heart....is what she calls it and "it" never ceases to amaze us. Ann attributes parts of her teachings to Pat Wyse, John Lyons and Josh Lyons, and is an accredited Josh Lyons trainer and was a John Lyons Certification Student. But the heart of Ann's program comes from within her, and her ability to teach horsemanship that is duplicatable by the horse owner at home is her priority. Teach the horse, Train the owner. Ann continues to conduct clinics, private lessons, and horse training from her Farm in Elk where she resides with her husband Jim. She also conducts clinics throughout the Pacific Northwest and is available for bookings. Ann and Jim are not only friends, but Ann is my horse trainer of choice. I trust her completely and am so impressed with her horsemanship and teaching skills. See more of Ann's information at
