Tip/Quote of the Day!

"In the end it's very important to have a good partnership with the horse. That you know the horse and the horse knows the rider and you trust each other." ~ Michael Jung

Leg and rein aids work a whole lot better with the support of the rider’s engaged seat.

Your mind controls your body. So the stronger you can train yourself to be in the mind, the better you will ride.

"First thing I look at when I buy a horse is paces rather than breeding. Beautiful parents don’t always produce beautiful children. I’m not looking for the flashiest paces, but also the trainablility and rideability. How are you going to keep a big, flamboyant mover sound into Grand Prix? You want an easy mover." ~ Carl Hester

Allow with the reins when approaching a drop into water. Holding too much in the last strides can cause the horse to not use his body fully over the fence into the water - which can cause a stumble or fall on landing in the water. 

"Pick the right patterns, execute them correctly and they will school the horse." ~ Major Lindgren

"The rider's seat is a 'transformer' whose role is to modify the energy emitting from the horse's haunches." ~ Charles de Kunffy

Stiff shoulders can easily cause a rider to have tense, tight hands. To relax your shoulders, take a deep breath in, and exhale... looking for the feeling that your shoulders and elbows drop and become supple.

One of the horse's biggest evasions to suppling exercises, is that of moving his body laterally instead of bending. In other words, watch for the tendency to swing their haunches to the outside to avoid bend, like this "/", rather than this "(".

"Many parents want to be best friends with their kids and don't set clear boundaries. Children and horses will always push boundaries to do or not do what they want to do. When very definite boundaries are set they will respect them. I find with horse this usually starts on the ground with "my space, your space" ~ Susan Moessner

"I used to ride mostly Thoroughbreds. I don’t know if they’re more intelligent, but I find that they think for themselves a bit more than the warmbloods. With a warmblood I find I definitely have to do a lot more, and think a lot more for them. They don’t have the same instinct to get themselves out of trouble that Thoroughbreds do, particularly when they start to get tired." ~ Mark Todd

"The more leg you keep on your horse, the less electric they are." ~ Robert Dover

Check on the symmetry of your position occasionally, by riding straight at a mirror or at a friend with a video camera.

"Chipping in" and coming forward right to the base of a fence are two entirely different things. Horses will always produce the best jump when truly ridden forward to the base of the fence. 

"Keep your thumbs together so you know where your hands are. Your elbows loose and more elastic by your side." ~ Christopher Burton

The sensitive type of horse is always aware of your breathing when you are riding them. Keeping your breathing calm and regular will give your horse confidence. 

"You are not a passenger. You are responsible for your horses ride." ~ Ingrid Klimke

"Correctly understood, work on the lunge line is indispensable for rider and horse from the very beginning through the highest levels." ~ Egon von Neindorff

"Stretch. And more stretching. It's good for him and he will like it." ~ Ingrid Klimke

With an anxious horse that wants to rush, it can be helpful to very deliberately work in a tempo that is much slower than they are naturally offering you. Only when they have settled into a quiet, even rhythm... and are truly waiting for you, should you ask for more energy.

"In every sport, life goes in waves, up and down, keep rowing the boat and you’ll meet the next wave coming up, but don’t jump out of the boat!" ~ Chris Bartle

To make your seat stronger when seated in the saddle, think of using your core muscles in a downward fashion.

"If you ride and train for a living, have something else that you do. Don’t make this your whole life. The bad days - and there are always bad days - will eat you up and spit you out. Have something that you do that has nothing to do with horses, to help put yourself back together again." ~ Lauren Sprieser

"You need to produce a walk. So work at the walk as well as the trot and canter. Get a good feeling of the body working in the walk. The walk is a mirror of the training of the horse." ~ Christoph Hess

The more complex the movement you are riding, the more your basic foundation is tested.

Horses that have first learned how to carry themselves properly in all 3 gaits while on the lunge line will usually have a much easier time learning how to carry themselves properly with a rider on board. 

When schooling a green horse through any complex where the last element is a tricky jump (skinny, angle, corner, etc), it is smart, if possible, to school the last element first. This will set you up for success as you then jump through the whole complex, as your horse will be more likely to put his eye on and correctly read the jump coming out.

You can't force relaxation. You have to help your horse relax.

Studying riding theory will make you a better rider or trainer in many ways. Trainers need a knowledge base broad enough to enable them to apply the appropriate system for each horse/rider combination in front of them. Riders need to thoroughly understand what they are trying to do and WHY.

It is very hard to get a horse truly fit and strong by training in an arena only. You need to use a variety of different footing and terrain to build a strong athlete that will hold up to the rigors of Eventing.