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Guest Blog post # 89: "> or < ?" by Bill Woods
Sitting with Major Lindgren at the Aachen show in Germany one day he jocularly observed that international judges only needed to know four words – “more,” “less,” “faster,” and “slower” to accomplish their task.
Of course that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it brings to mind a very interesting observation that Kyra Kyrklund once made. At a trainer’s conference she was discussing tactical solutions to getting a horse more “through.” She said when you encounter a resistance rather than confronting it head on, there are three things you can do (alone or in combination) to solve the problem. While working out the issue you can ride the horse faster or slower, higher or lower in its frame, or longer or shorter. Finding a comfortable place where the horse can better understand your demands will produce a cooperation that encourages the horse to come through. This then can be extrapolated to a different frame or balance or into another movement.
Over the years I have found this to be one of the most useful single training suggestions that I have ever encountered.
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