Recent Articles

You have to have your core muscles engaged when riding, so that the horse's movement doesn't displace you.

"A horse's energies are gathered up from behind and by yielding on the reins and giving him the room to step through to the center of gravity, the neck will shape to reflect the activities in the haunches. Trying to achieve collection by working on the horse's neck cuts the horse off in the front, confining him and preventing the hind legs from lifting, suspending and powerfully supporting the rider's balance." ~ Charles de Kunffy

Success isn't about how far you get, but the distance you traveled from where you started.

"Sit on your pockets like you got a million bucks in there." ~ Unknown

Technically it isn't correct to be sitting all the way on your back pockets. This can, however, be a good thing for a rider who has a tendency to lean too far forward to think about doing!

Forward and speed are two different things. And balanced speed is not inherently dangerous. But if there is a fundamental problem in the horse or rider's basics, speed will make it more apparent.

"Riders of all levels must allow their horses to make their own decisions when jumping, as even good riders don’t always get it right." ~ Eric Smiley

The horse's jaw unlocks when their back muscles relax and begin to swing with the movement.

"The main reason that I'm 150% behind mares is that they will give you 150% in return once they trust you. I think they will work harder for you, because once they learn to trust you they develop a bond with you that's completely unlike any other bond with any other rider. You become their person." ~ Rebecca Rigdon-Blake

"Young horses are like a blank slate. In my experience they naturally give you the right answers often, especially when you first start riding them." ~ Bridget Hay

"I think riders can very easily lose the ability to comfortably ride out in the open at more than a walk if they lock themselves into a dressage arena. I feel so strongly that the horses need to be allowed out of the arena from time to time." ~ Lauren Chumley

"Ask often, be content of little, reward always." ~ Nuno Oliveira

"All equestrians, if they last long enough, learn that riding in whatever form is a lifelong sport and art, an endeavor that is both familiar and new every time you take the horse out of his stall or pasture." ~ Jane Smiley

"A horse will never tire of a rider who possesses both tact and sensitivity because he will never be pushed beyond his possibilities." ~ Nuno Oliveira

"You get that horse to really operate as if he's your legs and you can take that anywhere you want. You can dress up in any kind of clothes you like. You can be a jumper, dressage rider, trail rider, cowboy, anything." ~ Buck Brannaman

"Just as experience dictates to the ballet teacher the length of time necessary to train his students, so the horse, too, needs time to mature into a great four legged dancer." ~ Alois Podhajsky

"There is no secret so close as that between a rider and his horse." ~ Robert Smith Surtees

"The goal of all dressage riding should be to bring the horse and rider together in harmony...a oneness of balance, purpose, and athletic expression." ~ Walter Zettl

"Far be it from me to force anyone into either chess or dressage, but if you choose to do so yourself, in my opinion there is only one way: follow the rules." ~ Lars von Trier

"The basic techniques, or what they call basics, are more difficult than what comes later – this is the Trap of Dressage. Correct basics are more difficult than the piaffe and passage." ~ Conrad Schumacher

"I couldn't imagine not working with horses. I think if horses didn't exist, I would have invented them." ~ Klaus Balkenhol

"In training we must be encouraged to first establish the principles and only then to tackle the details." ~ Reiner Klimke

"We must be fully aware that a lifetime isn't long enough to come to know all about horsemanship." ~ Egon von Neindorff

"Through gaining competence, we gain confidence." ~ Erik Herbermann

"The art of riding was like entering a convent. It was a full dedication." ~ Nuno Oliveira

"Treat every mistake as a training opportunity." ~ Steffen Peters

"What must the hand and arm be able to do? Yield, sustain, resist. What they do not need to do is pull, because no rider has ever won a pulling contest with a horse. In order to sustain and resist, the hands must be supported from the rider’s elastically braced back and, to the necessary degree, from the support of the upper arm against the side." ~ Bill Steinkraus

"I often wonder why people think they have to kick and pull a horse who can feel a fly land on his neck." ~ Jimmy Wofford

"What is Feel? Feel is the invisible quality in every good rider who is communicating with her horse in harmony. She can perceive where the horse is during every step because he accepts the rider’s seat, leg and rein aids through the connection. The rider can then communicate with the horse in a stable, sensitive and relaxed manner." ~ Sarah Geikie

The rider's elbows should at all times act as a hinge, following the horse's movement much like the rubber donut in side reins. 

"The criteria of a good rider is a rider that we cease to notice, and we only watch the horse." ~ Nuno Oliveira

"First, [the rider] has to be ambitious. Mentally, he has to be well balanced and consistent. He has to be tougher on himself than on the horse. If he gets after the horse too much, he will not get far. One must really be able to push oneself harder than one ever pushes a horse. Then, success will follow." ~ Ernst Hoyos

"Make him proudly independent of you so that he understands his job so well you merely walk the course and then show him the way. Tell your horse what you want him to do, and then allow him to do it." ~ Jimmy Wofford

The best way to build self confidence is often to do what you are afraid to do.

From Facebook fan Joan Dunlap ~ "Every barn should have an Emotion Bucket for riders to deposit their bad vibes before handling a horse."

"When you are in the Comfort Zone, you can ride without thinking. In the Stretch Zone, you are working on something you can’t do by habit. In the Panic Zone, you can’t think clearly and are paralyzed. These zones apply to both horses and riders. If both horse and rider go into the panic zone, they lose control, and it spells trouble for the future. Some horses go into the Panic Zone very quickly. They need riders who are comfortable." ~ Kyra Kyrklund

"To become a rider it is not enough to be able to sit elegantly on a horse. Even a good seat and balance does not make you a ‘rider’. To be able to ride you must be able to influence your horse and to extract the best performance from him." ~ Christian Thiess

"To ensure correct bend in the haunches-in, imagine wrapping your horse’s body around your inside leg." ~ Charlotte Bredahl-Baker

"The volte is one of the most important movements you can ride. It is teaching the horse to bend in his ribcage, within his body, and then to maintain a rhythm – in the future this movement will become a half pass. We are working on control over the balance of the horse so that it is learning to maintain a rhythm." ~ Ernst Hoyos

Rows of small bounce fences are a great way to build strength in your horse's canter. 

"The goal of our training is to build the horse's mind and his muscles. Suppleness and relaxation require adequate muscle strength. strengthening requires both contraction and relaxation. Blood flow and oxygenation occur when the muscle relaxes. If the muscle is kept in a constant state of contraction, it loses power and strength, and actually becomes smaller. Frequent rest periods, especially for a young horse at a free walk on a long rein, are necessary. The rest periods are not for a rider's fatigue, but to allow the horse to stretch and relax his muscles. The rest breaks will give you a completely new horse. This is the systematic gymnasticizing of the horse." ~ Klaus Balkenhol

"Routine becomes even more important when you are somewhere that you’ve never been." ~ Tonya Johnston

When you hurry a horse's training, you just get to the wrong place more quickly.

"Land in your feet from every jump to avoid tipping forward." ~ Chris Bartle

A horse has to be straight to have true impulsion. Any stored energy leaks out where the body is crooked, changing the energy in the stride from impulsion to merely forward momentum. 

A correct inside bend in the horse's body is truly evident only when there is a soft, almost loose inside rein.

"The most important thing is for the horse to be thinking on its own. Unless you’re Michael Jung, you make mistakes and things go wrong. You have to teach the horse the stride isn’t always right, the line isn’t always right, and that’s why we start from trot." ~ William Fox Pitt

It is very important that your horse does not learn how to run out on skinny jumps or corners. Because once they have learned to associate either type of jump with running out, it can be very difficult to correct. Do not take the schooling of these type of jumps lightly, for this reason.

The extra thrust created by lengthenings will solidify your connection if it was correct to begin with. The extra impulsion created can then be turned into real collection.

"The goal is not to raise the neck, it is to lower the hips." ~ Decarpentry

"Counter canter teaches the balance, and confirms the aids, and that balance means collection and self carriage." ~ Waldemar Seunig