"The nature of the sport across the hunters, jumpers, eventers and equitation today is precision. If you don’t practice precision, you’re out." ~ George Morris
What makes for a smooth show jumping round? Balance, rhythm, andrideabilitycome to mind. If your horse is rideable, he is responsive, obedient, supple, and in balance at all times. This is, of course, usually a work in progress! As much of our daily training is aimed at developing our horse's rideability, and it can take many years to achieve! Here is a great pole exercise to help you improve your horse's rideability on course! (Click on Article Title above to read full article)
I hate to hear instructors who just yell, "Push, push, push!" to the riders on lazy horses who need more energy in their gait. To me, this shows a huge lack of experience on the trainer’s part - as this is NOT a productive way to produce forward in a horse, and only makes them more and more dead to the rider’s aids.
Don't assume that just because a Dressage trainer has ridden through the upper levels, that they are riding and teaching correctly. There is a lot of incorrect, "front to back" riding going on out there, even at the top levels. Look for an instructor who rides and teaches in a true "back to front" manner - with quiet hands that receive the energy, instead of being used in a "busy" way to keep the horse's head down and nose in.
"Horses have taught us that progress in learning takes place in an environment of contentment. Fear and tension block success. Boundaries must exist, be clear, and be consistent. Within those boundaries our horses are encouraged to express themselves." ~ Steuart Pittman
Forward and speed are two different things. And balanced speed is not inherently dangerous. But if there is a fundamental problem, speed will make it more apparent.
"If one induces the horse to assume that carriage which it would adopt of its own accord when displaying its beauty, then, one directs the horse to appear joyous and magnificent, proud and remarkable for having been ridden." ~ Xenophon
Grimm's second lesson is one that I will be learning for the rest of my life -- and it was such a hard lesson at the beginning that he needed back-up. That's where Heather came in. With Heather acting as a sort of Rosetta Stone to bridge the gap between us, I learned that, first, I will never be done learning to listen. Second, Grimm has taught me so much more than just how to be a good partner for him; he's taught me to really, truly strive to understand. Every horse I've worked with since meeting Grimm has given me something new to listen to and try to figure out, something about what they need, what they fear, where it hurts, how they think, what they want me to tell their rider. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
Since most horses are more narrow in their shoulders than in their hips, you need to be thinking about a slight shoulder fore positioning whenever along the rail or wall. If you allow their left shoulder and their left hip to be the same distance away from the wall on your left, for example, the horse would be traveling with his right hind leg further towards the center of the ring than his right front.
"It’s normal to lose momentum when pursuing goals. Sometimes this happens because we’re not truly committed to our goals. Other times, it’s because we struggle to hold ourselves accountable for doing the necessary work… but it’s time to re-focus, re-energize, and re-align with your goals and dreams so you can achieve greater success and finish off the year strong!" ~ Jack Canfield
If you want your horse to stay awake, alert, on the aids, and thinking forward in the halt, you have to train him to think that way. And if you have not yet achieved this, don't be surprised if you lose some of these qualities, and the quality of your connection, after every halt.
Think of your leg, seat, and rein aids as communication with your horse. You don't physically push or pull him anywhere, you give him subtle signals. And if he doesn't initially respond to your subtle signals, you need to teach him to - EVERY horse can learn to respond to light cues, if taught properly.
"If we ask novice riders how much of their focus is on the horse’s head, most of them, if they are honest, might say 80 percent. But the head is perhaps 10 percent of the horse’s body, so be sure you are not using 80 percent of your focus on 10 percent of the horse. Ride his body and influence it." ~ Kyra Kyrklund
It is possible to have contact without a real connection (in fact, it is quite common unfortunately), but a true connection always involves good contact. The connection involves the horse's entire body… with energy created in the horse's hind legs traveling through the horse's supple body, and into the rider's hands.
The Box Exercise is one of my absolute favorites for both Dressage and Jumping riders. This clever exercise will ensure that your horse is listening precisely to all of your turning aids, and you can use it to teach your horse to listen to the lightest of aids. It will also teach you how to ride truly accurate figures, and by doing so will naturally improve the balance and carriage of your horse's gaits. This one is suitable to riders at all levels because of the many different possible levels of difficulty. Read on to find out all about it! (Click on Article Title above to read full article)
Longitudinal suppleness (which is what gives them the ability to collect easily) is only possible when the horse is laterally supple. Don’t take a horse that is laterally stiff and ask him to collect! You have to improve his lateral suppleness with judicious use of lateral exercises before he will be able to give you true collection.
Always strive to keep the feeling that two thirds of the horse is in front of you. This means staying behind your horse's shoulders, and allowing the horse to have as long of a neck as possible. This allows the rider to have a greater amount of security, and gives the horse the best chance to stay in good balance.
"The greatest hindrance to driving the horse properly comes from riders stiffening their legs…. The horse cannot monitor tight legs as aids and will sour to the pressure, which he will interpret as a meaningless second girth." ~ Charles De Kunffy
There’s one truism in dressage – if you wait around long enough, you’re always going to find someone with the opposite opinion of what you’ve been led to believe. When you are young and/or starting out, the only thing to do is hitch your belief system to someone who is known to be credible and stick with them. There is nothing worse than ping-ponging back-and-forth from one person’s advice to another’s (and another’s and another’s). (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
"The forehand is not to be raised by the rider's hands ! This mania of trying to ride a horse with a 'Grand-prix neck', a horse who moves with Training level hindquarters, is abominable." ~ Charles de Kunffy
Hi, my horse spooks seeing a cow/peacock when we are practicing and sometimes even bolts. I've fallen during some of these occasions. My fear now is if he spooks during competition, its going to be a problem, Pls suggest (Sukh)
Sukh – One of the greatest challenges I face as a sport psychologist is to explore the fine line between a horse training problem, a riding skill and experience issue, and a rider’s psychological challenge. In the circumstance you describe, my instinct is that the initial focus should be on the horse and working on the spooking issue. There are many talented horse trainers that could help you with your horse’s reaction to distractions on the farm such as cows and peacocks. In this way, you may face fewer dangers from spooks at home as well as in competition. (Click on Question Title above to read full answer)
When you look down, your shoulders follow your eyes and begin to drop downward and forward. This makes it much more difficult for you to communicate correctly with your horse through your seat - often causing you to need to use your reins more than you should.
"When you think you need a half halt, try releasing first....then aha, there's your real half halt. Don't let the status quo be a heavy hand!" ~ Devan Cottrell
When doing movements like turn on the haunches, pirouettes, haunches in, and half pass, even the most experienced riders have to remind themselves to sit over their inside seat bone throughout the entire movement. Consciously thinking about stepping into the inside stirrup every couple of strides during these movements is necessary to avoid any tendency of the rider's weight slipping to the outside.
The old masters learned early on that riding accurate arena patterns is the key for improving a horse's balance and straightness. Always keep this in mind in your training.
I've had so many near-misses when hacking I now fear it more than I do a round of jumps. My horse is as safe as any horse can be on the roads and I know it's good for him to get out of the school but I get to the point of being physically sick at the thought and I'm tense the whole time we're out. Can you give me any advice on getting past this? (Meghann)
Meghann – When we have strong emotional reactions to situations that we know are reasonably safe (or perhaps better stated as situations with acknowledged risks that are well within a range of risk we are willing to accept), problems often arise when we get too far outside of our comfort zone too quickly. The strategy for tackling fear and anxiety is simple and straightforward. Find the edge of your comfort zone. Step slightly out of it. Stay there until you get more comfortable. Reward yourself for your courage. While simple, this strategy is often very difficult to implement. It is especially difficult in riding because the traditional riding routines, along with other riding culture pressures, do not easily align with the pace, timing and patience needed to transform our experience. (Click on Question Title above to read full answer)
"The rein connection should be like a solid handshake. Don’t have a wimpy handshake. You know what a bad feeling you get when someone gives you a creepy handshake, so don’t give that icky feeling to your horse." ~ William Fox Pitt
A strong back is necessary for the horse to be able to achieve and maintain self carriage and collection for any length of time under a rider. Make sure you don't ask for too much too soon. And be diligent and proactive about strength training and conditioning.
I recently took over the ride on a talented but fairly willful Half Arab, a breed that's a bit outside of my wheelhouse having always owned and ridden OTTB's. He's a dream to jump and is light and responsive over fences, but is the complete opposite with flat work.
He did not have the best start, being jammed into a false frame with a kimberwick and pelham from 3-5 years old, so now at 6 I have quite a bit of undoing to do.(head tilt and all) He's making progress in straightness and leg yielding, but he's a total crab about it all. He'll try all the evasions(above the bit, behind the bit, the occasional rear) to get away from actually using himself before he realize I won't give up, then he grudgingly does what I ask. It is getting easier as time goes on, but I worry about making him sour, but I also know that I need to get him through it, So I have to find that balance of insisting he do that work and but not over doing it.
So I guess my question is do you have any strategies for a horse with a defiant personality like this? Any exercises that you could recommend blending to together that could mitigate his dislike of flat work? I have started to end my flat sessions with just a few jumping lines to remind him that we have fun too.
I'd love to know your thoughts. (Amy)
Hi Amy!
This sounds like a good challenge for you! Every horse has something to teach you, and it sounds like this horse will have plenty of things to teach you. :) Have a look at this article, which discusses dealing with horses that are somewhat dominant or defiant by nature. You say that since he likes to jump you let him end your flat sessions with a few jumps... But what I would try instead is... (Click on Question Title above to read full answer)
"Don't delude yourself into thinking that you have light, soft hands, if you ride with loose, almost dangling reins on a strung out horse. That can be done with insensitive hands as well. A soft hand requires the rider to feel whether the horse is softly on the bit, chewing, and whether it responds to a light pressure, in other words, whether it has an active mouth. If he rides with loose reins, the horse can have a dead mouth, which will only show up when you use the reins to stop or to shorten the strides, as it will either let you pull its nose onto its chest, or it will invert, and in both cases it will open its mouth." ~ Oskar M. Stensbeck
If you have a refusal at a cross country jump that offers an easier option, it can be a good idea to take the easier option on your next attempt. You are likely already out of contention with the 20 penalties, so don't try to be a hero, and instead make sure that your horse has a good, positive experience on the rest of the course by taking your time, and choosing the easier options if there are any. Adding more refusals can easily demoralize both horse and rider, causing a setback to their confidence for future events.
Think of your leg, seat, and rein aids as ways to communicate with your horse. You don't physically push or pull him anywhere, you give him subtle signals. And if he doesn't initially respond to your subtle signals, you need to teach him to - EVERY horse can learn to respond to light cues, if taught properly.
Remind yourself to breathe before and after every difficult exercise. Of course you need to breath while riding each exercise as well! But thinking about checking your breathing before and after is a good first step.
Riders can benefit SO much from discussions about their riding. Riding is as much cognitive as it is physical - both aspects need to be exercised to truly improve!
"When xc is ridden properly it doesn't look like show jumping. They need to stop teaching kids to count strides and start teaching them to use their eyes and their leg." ~ Jules Stiller
"Have you reminded yourself lately that horses are wonderful? No matter how haphazard or awkward our efforts, horses seem to figure out what we want them to do and happily do it." ~ Jimmy Wofford
"I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don't do things half heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half hearted results." ~ Michael Jordan
