Tip/Quote of the Day #548Great advice from member Kate Pacey Saulle! ~ "When you let go of the fear, the fear lets go of you. I am ( after a few years of struggling with it) fear free when faced with jumping. It is so overwhelming wonderful. So, my advice, don't give up! How did it happen? A little background, I am a lifelong rider. In my mid-late 30's I had an erosion of confidence. Too much riding alone, green horses, no trainer to help. A mess! I moved, started fresh, found a dressage/eventing trainer. Still something was not right, more erosion. Nothing I knew was right and unknowingly I was not making the forward progress I needed. So, enter the beginning of the solution. This is where it gets good! Find someone to ride with. Not a trainer, a good, steady confident rider. Someone who has your back. Someone that at the drop of a hat would pony you, hop on your horse, turn around and start home because your nerves are shot . Very important here, get out of the ring! Go ride terrain. Go up hills, down hills, through woods, creeks . Do it at a walk, then trot, then canter and finally fast. Next thing, this one is hard to swallow for many, ride the right horse. This might not be the horse you own. You will not conquer your fear if you fear your horse. I gave my young, I spent too much time on being afraid of horse, to a talented young rider and I got myself a horse I can be successful on. It has been life changing! Final step: jump. I have many straps to hold onto but with the right horse and the fitness gained from riding terrain, I jump stuff without fear. It is so much fun, I am addicted. So, ladies, it can be done but some hard decisions and choices must be made. Good luck."Discussion # 107: Let's discuss the apparent contradiction of these two major riding concepts!Many trainers preach "Ride every stride!", and yet others say "Cease the aids - let the horse perform on his own until you need to make a change." On the surface, these appear to be contradictory statements. But are they really? Do you think there is a way that they both can be true? In which instances would each be more appropriate, in your opinion?Tip/Quote of the Day # 547I can tell much about the level of rideability you will have at the jumps by watching you perform simple changes of lead through the trot.Tip/Quote of the Day # 546The more you can leave your horse alone through gymnastic work, the more he will actually learn from it.Tip/Quote of the Day # 545Proper hand position will help you to remain loose and supple in your arms. Deviating in any way from the perfect hand position will immediately cause your arm muscles to tighten.Firn's Blog Post # 5Why Ride?
Clients closing their stables for the holidays + ALL my horses having downtime due to vaccines that require rest after administration = very little riding for this Horse Mutterer’s apprentice. In fact, I am down to one poor little grey horse to ride; the Mutterer’s white gelding. Luckily, he is a pleasant ride and can jump and do outrides, so I’m able to keep sort of in practice, but I’m down from 4-6 hours of saddle time daily to that many hours a week. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)Tip/Quote of the Day # 544When you realize that you are meeting a jump on a half stride, it can be challenging to keep a calm, clear head! Give yourself something constructive to think about, and tell yourself to just stay still and keep riding your horse's hind legs all the way till the takeoff. Tip/Quote of the Day # 543Many riders place their saddles too far forward! Make sure that the solid parts of the saddle are behind the horse's shoulder, to allow for freedom of the shoulder.Tip/Quote of the Day # 542Many riders have a tendency to throw away the rein contact when asking for an upward transition. All that does is encourage the horse to make the transition by throwing his weight forward onto the forehand. Stay still, and make the transition by asking the horse to step up INTO your contact from behind to start the transition. Tip/Quote of the Day # 541A trick to help you find your "bearing down" core muscles when riding is to cough quietly.Quiz # 25: Should you maintain inside flexion and bend on a canter lengthening or medium canter that goes in a straight line?Should you maintain inside flexion and bend when performing a canter lengthening or medium canter that goes in a straight line?Tip/Quote of the Day # 540The more well trained the horse is, the more often the rider can sit in "neutral", with no aids on whatsoever. Guest Blog Post # 46: "Vending Machines" by the great Bill Woods
I must have been traveling too often, staying in too many hotels....
You know how down by the ice machine next to the elevators they always have vending machines? The ones with a big Plexiglas window and a whole mess of snack items—Sun Chips and Fritos and Ring Dings and Lorna Doones—each stacked on copper spiral holders all in rows and columns? And you put your 75 or 85 cents in the slot, the machine blinks READY READY READY, and all you have to do is “Select.” Punch B-4 and grind grind fwoop, out the slot at the bottom comes your Snickers. E-6 and fwoop, here are the Cheetos. In other words, once you’ve made the preparation, the machine is equally, universally prepared to deliver you anything on its menu.
It strikes me that it isn’t a bad idea to think of making your horse a bit like one of those vending machines. This is what I mean: (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 539"When you have really long legs, don't be swinging them around and using them like clubs." ~ Catherine HaddadTip/Quote of the Day # 538"Adopt a classical position, resist all fads and gadgets, and ride the horse quietly and softly between the two straight lines of the stirrup leather and the elbow to the horse's mouth. It's simple. It's just not easy." ~ Jimmy WoffordTip/Quote of the Day # 537Every galloping fence is an opportunity to awaken your horse's initiative, and show him how FUN it is to run and jump - and should be used as such.The Fringe Eventer Blog Post # 11
Perfecting the Halt and Maximizing Your Score
I must confess, I am darn proud of my halts and I think I have earned the right to confess my pride, especially since I’ve worked on them for years. Literally. In fact, I have never dismounted after a ride without asking my mare to halt correctly. That is unless I dismounted involuntarily. Those don’t count. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
One of the most common problems riders face when turning their horses is that of losing control of the outside shoulder to at least some degree. This exercise is a great way to work on getting more control over that outside shoulder, to help make more accurate turns - which will help you to come out of the turns straight and in better balance. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 533Always finish each ride on a good note. Do something your horse does well so he can feel good about himself.Jocelyn's Blog Post # 7Those Closest Can Be the Most Inspiring
Hannah schooling Sol - after many years of working for trainers,and riding horses for clients, Hannah has achieved a life long goal of owning her own horse and farm. I have seen her sit "chilly" on a multitude of horses and watching their progress and the relationship she could build with them always left in awe.
A strange thing happened one morning. I woke up, went downstairs, looked in the mirror, and realized I had no desire to be Buck Davidson. It isn't as though being Buck is an option, or that I have anything against him, or that I wouldn't love to have Petite Flower on my string, or even that I don't want to compete at the upper levels (because I do, someday). But, I don't want to be Buck, or any number of top professional riders. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
At some point, every year, I have to accept that winter has returned. Every year I slowly start adding more and more layers of clothes until the process of getting ready to gleefully skip to the barn through the winter wonderland, is no less that 20 minutes and 10 layers deep. This is life here in Ohio for at least four months. This year I am struggling with accepting this depressing scenario because it has come early...a whole entire MONTH early. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 529From Facebook Fan Erin Kavanaugh Kirkley ~ "If you don't know how to use your core, look up some core strengthening Pilates moves. You will discover the transversus abdominis and your riding will improve in many ways." Tip/Quote of the Day # 528Fall into using loud aids, and you will always need loud aids.Video # 74: This is Jen on her young horse! (Click on Video Title above (in blue) to read the critique of this video)
There are certainly many different ways to train a reluctant horse to go into a horse trailer! And many of those techniques utilize force or threats to convince the horse that he must comply. The technique that I prefer, however, is quite different from the others. I use the concept of release of pressure... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 526Timid horses often love a consistent routine. Bolder/braver horses often need more variety in their training.Tip/Quote of the Day # 525To change behavior, you need to change the incentives that lead to the behavior.Tip/Quote of the Day # 524Generally, the slower you are approaching a jump, the more leg you may need to apply in the final strides.Tip/Quote of the Day # 523The hot horse must learn to control his energy, not do without it.Tip/Quote of the Day # 522
You drive your horse heavily into your hands when you lean back even slightly behind the vertical.
It was sheer luck (or providence) that landed me right in the perfect location for horses. Our little farm is not quite at the heart of true South African horse country, which would be the groomed arenas and small paddocks of Kyalami; but with less than an hour's drive to most of the country's major show venues, we're just far enough to have lots of open space, and just near enough to be able to attend shows quite easily. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)Tip/Quote of the Day # 521"A horse seeks where it's most comfortable." ~ Ralph HillTip/Quote of the Day # 520Always begin each ride with specific goals for that day. Yet be be flexible, and ready to adapt the plan as necessary - based on what you feel at the moment, and how your horse is performing that day.Tip/Quote of the Day # 519Keep the horse's back up into the halt by riding each step from behind into your hand. Tip/Quote of the Day # 518You have to have an organized plan before you can execute one.Tip/Quote of the Day # 517If you and your horse have been having the same problem for a while, chances are the two of you have developed a set of reactions that serve to trigger each others behavior. You will need to figure out what those are to get past it. Tip/Quote of the Day # 516"If the rider can halt his horse in any lateral movement, so that it stands quietly in the same position, or ride straight forward without hesitation, it is proof that the horse was going well between hands and legs." ~ Borries von OeynhausenTip/Quote of the Day # 515Let the turn into the fence be your half halt.Tip/Quote of the Day # 514From Facebook Fan Clarissa Groesbeek ~ "Your job is to ride to the base of the fence, your horse's job is to jump it."Tip/Quote of the Day # 513Too much repetitive motion has a tendency to inhibit muscle symmetry. Always aim to mix things up in your training (whether horse or human), so that you can develop balanced musculature.
