Tip/Quote of the Day!

"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

Everyone knows that we need our horses to be relaxed to perform well. But that starts with our own relaxation! A rider must be relaxed to give clear and precise aids to their horse, and to set the tone for the horse to be able to relax.

Horses with back or sacroiliac issues often do best with a canter very early on in their warm up routine.

When seated in the saddle, strive for the feeling that there is more horse in front of you then behind you. 

When 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, by telling yourself to just stay still and keep riding your horse's hind legs all the way till the takeoff. 

Dressage is natural for horses, but that does not mean it is always easy for them. Since we cannot explain to them why we are asking them to do things that require increased effort, and go against their natural instincts to do things in the easiest way possible - we must handle any inevitable resistances that might show up with patience in a quietly persistent manner.

"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

Don't underestimate the value of simple lateral work in hand as a suppling tool, especially with very green or stiff horses.

A rider's rigid elbows will cause the horse's back to become correspondingly rigid.

"Competitive toughness is an acquired skill and not an inherited gift." ~ Chris Evert

Work on a horse and that horse gets better. Work on yourself and all your horses get better.

"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

"The true joy for the good dressage rider is found in watching a horse develop mentally and physically through successful training. I have seen some amazing transformations in horses. For instance, a horse with poor conformation - one that has an under neck and a back that drops away from the saddle - can be completely changed by developing the right muscles. After proper training in self-carriage, his outline can be beautiful." ~ Felicitas Von Neumann-Cosel

"A spur that is constantly touching the horse's sides does not drive the horse forward but on the contrary, it will make the horse sluggish." ~ Nuno Oliveira

"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

"You can't ride rhythm into a horse – they have it – you can only ruin rhythm by bad riding. When you let them loose in the paddock, you see that they move well. When you ride, because there is an argument here or there to get the frame or whatever, you can get bridle resistance and that can create unevennesses, and the loss in the rhythm and the tempo. Only a totally submissive, loose horse can really show perfect rhythm." ~ Clemens Dierks

When you ride with a stronger bit, your goal needs to be to use it as little as possible.

"As a rider you always want to go on the good side. But you have to do a bit more on the bad side to make it as good as the good side. How many riders want to work the bad side? When I’m teaching, I see everyone wants to go on the easy side. But you don’t want to do so much on the bad side that you then upset your horse." ~ Charlotte Dujardin

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

"You do not need much skill to maintain a good position... if your horse is not moving." ~ Jimmy Wofford

"I want to make the horse shorter because he is rounder, not because he is shorter, squeezed, and jammed." ~ Miguel Tavora

"Give. Give so that he offers, so every touch of your leg goes through the whole body of the horse and doesn’t get stuck. Make him carry himself, then after the half halt, you can give again." ~ Stefan Wolff

Groundwork can help build a better relationship between horse and rider. The trust and respect built during work in hand will carry over to your under saddle work. IF you approach it the same way.

"There is one principle that should never be abandoned when training a horse, namely, that the rider must learn to control himself before he can control his horse. This is the basic, most important principle to be preserved in equitation." ~ Alois Podhajsky

"You've chosen a sport that requires you to be motivated by failure." ~ Kyle Carter

"Your horse's desire to go forward must be greater than your need to remind him. But he must stay calm in his mind and loose in his body." ~ Christine Traurig

If you don't give your horse something to do, they might give YOU something to do. Always have a plan for each ride, and keep your horse's mind engaged with YOUR plan.

"Tell a man he is brave, and you help him to become so." ~ Thomas Carlyle -- This can work with horses too :)

The true sign of a champion (which applies to both horse and rider) - The harder things get, the more they rise to the occasion. 

"Flexibility and self-carriage are the source of the horse's agility. Good turns, which develop its agility, are obtained only by making the horse flexible, putting it into balance, and thus giving it self-carriage. This involves not merely the lateral flexion of the entire spinal column but more so the flexibility of the hind legs. Only the latter enables the horse to perform quick and reliable turns under the rider, since the forehand is able to turn and change direction easily without danger for the health of its limbs only from the always secure support of the hindquarters." ~ Gustav Steinbrecht