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~Lesley's Corner~

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A series of educational articles written by Lesley. If you have any requests for topics, please send them to admin@myvirtualeventingcoach.com

Recent Entries

  Leg Protection For the Event Horse
May 22, 2013
Leg Protection For the Event Horse    boots for the event horse


I often get asked what my opinion is on boots for the Event horse. Do I use them every ride? What kind do I prefer? Well, here's the scoop: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Getting the Most Out of Riding in Clinics
May 20, 2013
Getting the Most Out of Riding in Clinics    riding in a clinic


Clinics are meant to be a fun, relaxed, and interactive group environment, where riders can learn new theories, techniques, and exercises to take home and add to their training programs. They are also a great opportunity to give your horse more experience and exposure out and about. And as they often require a good sized commitment of both time and money, you will want to make the most of every minute! Here are 10 things to think about to make sure your next clinic is as worthwhile as possible: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Introducing Flying Changes
May 14, 2013
Introducing Flying Changes  flying change



Most horses perform flying changes easily on their own in the field, but to do them upon request with a rider on their backs can be a very different story! Especially when we are looking for a change that is "correct" in Dressage terms, meaning both the front and the hind legs make the change simultaneously, and the horse stays straight in a balanced and rhythmic canter. First you need to make sure your horse is ready to do the flying change. Otherwise you are just setting yourself up for frustration and possible failure.

A horse is ready to begin training for Dressage quality flying changes when he... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  What to Do After a Refusal on Course
May 7, 2013
What to Do After a Refusal on Course   refusal



No one plans to have a refusal on course. So when they do unfortunately happen, riders are often surprised - and many times become flustered. I often see riders who are so rattled after an unexpected stop or runout, that they don't think clearly about what they should do next! Their competitve nature may cause them to... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  How to Ride a Galloping Jump
May 1, 2013
How to Ride a Galloping Jump   


By definition, a galloping jump is one that can be jumped out of a flowing, forward gallop. What constitutes a galloping jump? Any obstacle that is... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Rider Position When Jumping a Drop Into Water
Apr 22, 2013
Rider Position When Jumping a Drop Into Water  


landing in water



Nothing quite tests the strength of a rider's position like a drop into water. There is a reason the crowd usually gathers near the water jump on cross country day... they know there is a good chance that some riders are going to fall off and get very wet! Read on to find out how to make sure that doesn't happen to you! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Impulsion Defined
Apr 17, 2013
Impulsion Defined  throughness and impulsion


The word impulsion is a very common term used in the worlds of Dressage and Eventing. But if you don't know what it means, it might be hard to attain - as you won't know what you are striving for. In a way, impulsion is both a mental and physical state. The horse must... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Build a Strong Lower Leg!
Apr 9, 2013
Build a Strong Lower Leg! strong lower leg position


"All good riders I have ever seen had one thing in common: an excellent lower leg position." This quote from the great Jimmy Wofford sums it up nicely. The strength and position of your lower leg is the key to success when riding. Your leg is your base of support, and if that is strong, everything else will be surprisingly easy! Here are some ways to make your lower leg strong and secure! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  An Exercise to Improve Your Ability to Sit the Trot
Apr 7, 2013
An Exercise to Improve Your Ability to Sit the Trot  


                      sitting trot



If you are like many lower level riders, you may find that you struggle to sit your horse's trot well. And if you are not moving as one with your horse as you sit, any aids that you might give will likely be muddled and unclear - and therefore will not work as well as you would like. The reason it is so hard to learn to sit the trot, is because you have to discover for yourself the precise muscular effort and technique involved to do it well. It's all well and good having it explained to you, but the only way you will really know how to do it is to... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Jumping on an Angle
Apr 2, 2013
Jumping on an Angle       angled line


As you move up the levels in Eventing, you will find there will be more and more  situations where you will be jumping fences on an angled line. Whether you are faced with an angled complex on the cross country course, or you are jumping a fence at an angle to better set up for another jump, or you are merely trying to save time by making an angled approach - you will need to have practiced this skill beforehand to be successful, and to help your horse understand what is required.

To accurately hold an angled line... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Are You Softening the Rein Correctly?
Mar 27, 2013
Are You Softening the Rein Correctly?  give the rein



Does your horse maintain his balance and self carriage every time you soften the reins? Or does he sometimes become hollow, strung out, or heavy on the forehand? If you lose any of the quality of the horse's movement or carriage when you soften the reins, it usually means one of two things - either you were holding the horse together too much with the reins (meaning your connection was not correct), or you didn't soften correctly. It seems it should be such an easy thing to do... how can you soften the rein incorrectly?? Well, there are some things you can mistakenly do when giving the rein, that would be unfortunately setting you up to fail.

First of all, why should you soften the reins? Softening the reins is both a test, and a way to increase the harmony in your ride. Throughout your work, you should frequently give one or both reins to check for self carriage, and to allow your horse the freedom to really relax and come through over his back. The more often you are able to give the rein, the more brilliance your horse will show in his work. So, now on to how to soften correctly!  (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  A Jumping Exercise to Sharpen Up Every Horse!
Mar 21, 2013
A Jumping Exercise to Sharpen Up Every Horse!    Gem Twist


For every jumping fault a horse may have, there are specific exercises that can be used to improve it. But there are a few exercises that will improve and sharpen up nearly every horse. And this is one of the best! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Basic Suppling Exercise # 1
Mar 18, 2013
Basic Suppling Exercise # 1    basic suppling exercise



There are many great exercises to improve a horse's suppleness - probably hundreds in fact. The best results often come from a training program that utilizes many different suppling exercises, as mixing it up keeps horse and rider fresh, as well as working on the horse's body in slightly different ways. I will be adding basic exercises such as this one on a regular basis, and it would be a good idea to give each one a try. That way you can get the feel of how each exercise works, and can then add a few repetitions to your daily routine now and then.

This first exercise is... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Keep Your Horse in Front of Your Leg in the Halt
Mar 12, 2013
Keep Your Horse in Front of Your Leg in the Halt  halt


Do you sometimes find that you have a great trot coming down the center line, but once you halt and salute, you have lost some of the quality of your trot? Maybe your horse isn't as nicely rhythmicaly forward, or is not as nicely connected as he was before the halt? If so, don't feel bad - it's a pretty common scenario. And it is caused by your horse falling behind your leg in the halt to at least some degree.

If you are truly able to keep your horse active behind and thinking forward into the connection as you perform your halt and salute, you will be able to maintain the full quality of the trot you had before the halt. In fact, it may be even better - because of your well ridden halt. So, how do you keep your horse in front of your leg in the halt? (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  The Busy Mouthed Horse
Mar 5, 2013
The Busy Mouthed Horse     busy mouthed horse



There are many different reasons for a horse to be "busy" in its mouth... chomping and playing with the bit. And while you may not be able to eliminate this problem completely, you will have a better chance subduing it when you know why your horse tends to be this way. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Treating the Symptom VS the Root of the Problem
Feb 27, 2013
Treating the Symptom VS the Root of the Problem     


I often see riders dealing with issues that have an underlying cause. And if the cause of the problem is not addressed, the symptom will keep coming back over and over again. Much like when a person is ill with a fever and an infection - treating the fever with drugs that don't address the infection will only bring a temporary relief of the superficial problem. If the infection is still there when the drugs wear off, the fever will return. In order to knock out the whole illness, the cause of the fever must be addressed. Here are some common examples of symptoms that are tempting to address when riding: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article) 
  Dressage Warm Up
Feb 20, 2013
Dressage Warm Up  dressage warm up


Your warm up routine will often make or break your performance! So it is best to have a good plan - one that is tailored to your individual horse. The goal of your Dressage warm up should be to ensure that your horse is relaxed, supple, attentive, forward, and responsive to all of your aids.

To achieve that goal, different horses may require slightly different approaches. But with almost all types of horses I start with... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Do You Brace Against Your Stirrups?
Feb 12, 2013
Do You Brace Against Your Stirrups?       braced leg


Have you ever noticed how much easier it is to sit the trot or canter without stirrups versus with them? This is because when riders have stirrups, they have a tendency to brace and push against them to some degree. Why is this a bad thing? (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  How Horses Learn From Mistakes
Feb 6, 2013
How Horses Learn From Mistakes  horse head



Have you ever wondered why horses sometimes seem to make the same mistake over and over? Why they seem to not be learning from the mistake they made? For example, say your horse rushes into a jump, ignoring your desperate attempts to slow him down, gets in too close, and hits the rail hard, knocking it down. And instead of learning from the last attempt where he whacked his shins on the rail, and listening to your attempt to slow him down the next time - he gets even more frantic, and runs even faster up to the fence, hitting it again! Why is he not learning that he will hit the fence if he runs up underneath it? (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Help Your Horse to Better See the Jump in Front of Him
Jan 30, 2013
Help Your Horse to Better See the Jump in Front of Him  





When I was young I took some lessons from an instructor who deduced that since a horse was the most balanced and under the rider's control when "on the bit" - that we should take advantage of the access to all that controlled power by approaching our fences that way. So she had us frantically trying to hold our horses noses on the vertical line all the way to the point of takeoff. And the result? (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  The Scale of Compression
Jan 23, 2013
The Scale of Compression     spectrum


Think of the spectrum of possible frames that a horse can be in, on an imaginary scale from 1 to 100, from fully compressed to fully extended. Let 1 be a horse that is so collected that it is on the spot (trotting or cantering in place), and 100 be the full out strech of a racehorse galloping at top speed. Where on this scale do you want your horse to be when jumping? (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Forward First!
Jan 16, 2013
Forward First!      dressage canter


So often I hear riders talking about trying to achieve collection, or even simply a "round frame" with their horses - yet the horse is not traveling with energy behind, or thinking forward. Any attempt to balance or collect your horse before you have truly created energy in the hind legs will likely be met with  resistance. At the very least, you will be unsuccessful. By definition, you are riding from front to back - which will never result in a real connection or throughness in the horse's body.

Since the only way to truly improve the horse's balance is to... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  An Exercise to Help Your Horse With Trot Lengthenings
Jan 8, 2013
An Exercise to Help Your Horse With Trot Lengthenings 

trot lengthening


Some horses have a natural ability to lengthen their stride at the trot. Others need some help to understand exactly what you want when you ask for more trot. In addition to the tips mentioned in this article, this exercise can be really helpful to show them how to increase their push from behind rather than simply rushing and getting quick. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  Do You Have Trouble Keeping Your Feet Forward When Jumping?
Jan 3, 2013
Do You Have Trouble Keeping Your Feet Forward When Jumping? 

lower leg falling back




If you have the very common problem of a weak lower leg that swings back behind you over jumps, leaving you in an unstable, insecure position on the landing side - you have probably been told before to push your heels down and your feet forward. But you have probably also found this quite difficult to do... and that is because there is a secret! A rider will not be able to push their feet forward when their... (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
  One Thing at a Time!
Dec 27, 2012
One Thing at a Time!     

All good things take time to create. I think riders should remind themselves of this often. Riders are often impatient with themselves, and with their horses. Often I see riders set themselves up for frustration by expecting too much all at once. It can take quite a few repetitions for a rider to master a new skill, and quite a long time to develop strength and balance. And horses learn best when riders present new concepts one at a time. 

Often I see riders making it hard for their horses to learn what they want them to learn because they are stacking concepts on top of each other before the horse understands them individually. For example, (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
 
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