Tip/Quote of the Day # 854"Use a repetitive process to help young horses learn. You may have to repeat an exercise many times but it will be worth it." ~ Eric SmileyTip/Quote of the Day # 853Do not make the mistake of always practicing over perfect distances at home. Sometimes practice meeting a jump on a half stride on purpose... and learn to do it well. This will make you and your horse a safe pair out on cross country. Guest Blog post # 63: "Trick or Treat" by the Bad Eventer!
Have you ever ridden with a coach who raises the jumps when you're not looking? (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
First off, congrats on your young horse doing so well at his very first competition! That is awesome! I have to say I am rather surprised to hear this comment from the Dressage Judge.... and what I am wondering is... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 851When you have an awkward fence on course, more often than not you were losing some quality of the canter on the approach. Keep the quality of the canter the same, and all of the jumps on your course will ride in a similar manner.Tip/Quote of the Day # 850“It’s so important that these horses enjoy every day of their work. Our routine is that we train in the school four days a week. On Monday and Tuesday they work, and then on Wednesday they go hacking on the road, and that means every horse—every horse in the yard hacks. Then Thursday and Friday they do schooling sessions, probably not longer than 45 minutes. Saturday they hack again, and Sunday is a complete day off. They all go in the field, even Valegro. They all have a normal life; we don’t wrap them up in cotton wool." ~ Charlotte DujardinTip/Quote of the Day # 849When working with a horse that does not have a great natural lengthening, make sure that you don't ask for too much too soon. Compare this to a singer who is training their vocal cords… they gradually expand their range until they hit their limit. This helps to prevent them from overextending themselves, and builds up confidence in their abilities. Question # 267: My horse used to be a very bold and confident jumper. We competed to Training level very successfully. Then I took a year off because I had a baby. And now that I am back to riding, I feel like I have a different horse.... ...He doesn't take me to the fences anymore, and I have to ride really aggressively or he feels like he wants to stop. I haven't taken him to any competitions since I brought him back, since I don't like the way things are going. I tried using the whip to make him more forward and positive at the jumps, but that only seemed to get him nervous and spooky. I can hardly believe that this is the same horse that used to practically drag me to the jumps! What would you suggest I do? (Alice)
Hi Alice!
You don't say how old your horse is, but it may be a good time for a thorough exam by a good lameness veterinarian. There are many soundness issues that present in a way that the horse isn't actually outright lame, but their performance is negatively affected. Especially with bilateral lamenesses, such as when both front feet or both hocks hurt equally. In this case, the only way the horse can "speak" about his issues is to try to avoid things that cause him to hurt. So when a horse that was previously forward thinking and a willing jumper, begins to not enjoy his work... pain issues defintely need to be ruled out.
Since your horse was out of work for a year, all of his supporting structures would have likely become weaker. Which can mean that all of his joints would take more of a pounding while you are bringing him back into work. How much time did you take to bring him back into jumping work? At any rate, get him thoroughly checked out physically. And you might also want to check your saddle fit - as if your horse's shape has changed significantly, your saddle might be giving him pain and causing your problem. If everything checks out physically - then let's move on to fixing this problem from a training standpoint! (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 848"Don’t set the horse up when cantering over a pole — allow the horse to make mistakes and learn to adjust its own stride to negotiate the pole." ~ Eric SmileyTip/Quote of the Day # 847“We get the horses as loose as possible before we ask them to do more work in their bodies. if they’re not loose in the beginning, they’re not going to be loose and supple in their proper work.” ~ Charlotte DujardinTip/Quote of the Day # 846Your weight or seat aid trumps your leg and hand aids at all times. So if you are unconsciously giving conflicting aids with your weight/seat and your legs or hands, your horse will usually not do exactly what you expect him to do.Guest Blog post # 62: "In For a Nickel" by Bill Woods
Here and there you'll run across a Total Dressage Masochist--a nose to the grind stone sort of rider whose horse's hooves will dig deep and perfect 20 meter ruts in her arena. More often among recreational riders there's a tendency to practice the stuff that's fun and save the difficult issues for "tomorrow." Give this person a schoolmaster and the situation is magnified tenfold. What's fun? Flying changes and extended trot! Did I hear anyone say transitions? I thought not. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
Give your brain something positive to think about when you are worried.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 840Always introduce new exercises in a slow and progressive manner, so you are building confidence and not inviting problems.Tip/Quote of the Day # 839“When you circle the arena to go in, think to yourself, 'Here I come Mr/Mrs Judge – just you watch this’ " ~ Heath RyanBrianna's Blog Post # 12
Who has the ride away?
(Sunny and a much younger me)
It seems somehow time has allowed me to forgot that at one point my summers consisted of gathering up the gang, rounding up those sorry school horses and swinging on bareback for an onslaught of games from “cops and robbers” to “tag” and racing each other across the arena. Riding was simple then. It was merely to borrow the freedom of a patient school horse. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)Tip/Quote of the Day # 838Keep your elbows to your sides to help your horse feel your seat aids through the reins. This will also help you to use your core properly.Introducing the Counter Canter
Counter canter is simply one of the most beneficial exercises you can do for your horse in the canter! In addition to building strength, improving balance, and increasing hind leg engagement, it also improves the horse's ability to be straight in the canter. All of which will improve your regular canter!
Let me first talk about at what level you should be at, and what prerequisites should be firmly in place before you attempt to use this exercise in your training program. And then I will go on to discuss how to best introduce this movement to your horse. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
I am so sorry to hear about your fall! You are certainly not alone however, as most riders go through a significant confidence crisis at some point. What you need to do is... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 835"If you want flawed results, go ahead and ask for collection before your horse is relaxed. This is a pretty certain way to produce a horse who needs his mouth strapped shut." ~ Jimmy WoffordQuiz # 27: Multiple choice question!
Let's say you are galloping along between jumps on cross country, and you are approaching a fairly steep downhill slope. The best time for you to change the balance in your horse's gallop for the big terrain change is:
A. Before the downhill begins
B. Right at the edge where the downhill begins
C. Only after the horse has begun down the hill, and is showing signs of losing balance
D. Don't make an effort to change the balance, let the horse figure it out
(Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to answer, and to read this educational discussion)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 834Both horse and rider need to be fit for this sport, as "Fatigue makes cowards out of us all."Tip/Quote of the Day # 833"Indeed, in most horses, it is only one part of the 'machine' that is working, i.e. the limbs – the neck, the back, the loins, the croup remain uninvolved, because they are braced and stiff. Is it a surprise under those circumstances, if the horse wears out his legs early on?" ~ J.-C.Dubois BoisgilbertTip/Quote of the Day # 832When working on flying changes, don't be tempted to ask for the change on the diagonal just because you are coming to the end of it and therefore running out of room. Always try to wait until you feel that your horse is balanced, straight, and ready to change. It is better to stay in counter canter than to ask for a change when you know your horse is not properly set up for it.Guest Blog post # 61: "Yesterday's Gone" by Bill WoodsYesterday's Gone
This is a great question! The answer is... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer) Tip/Quote of the Day # 830“The worst mistake a rider can make is to fail to discover and accept a horse’s personality. By oversimplifying horses and lumping them all together the rider risks ‘breaking’ them and taking away their spark.” ~ Klaus BalkenholThe Return to the Track in Counter Shoulder In Exercise
This exercise has many benefits. It reinforces the rider's outside aids, teaching the horse to be more responsive to the rider's outside seat bone, leg, and rein coming through turns. It improves the horse's straightness on curved lines. And it can help to increase engagement of the outside hind leg, which is particularly useful in improving the horse's carriage and balance in the canter - leading to increased collection. Read on to find out how to do it! (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 829When turning in the air over jumps, don't start your turn until the horse is at the top of the arc. In other words, once the horse has lifted both shoulders fully, and the knees are up, it is safe to turn. Turning before that moment can cause a loss of balance, and make the horse jump less cleanly.Discussion # 136: Let's look at this entire sequence of photos, of a rider jumping through an Intermediate water complex...Let's look at this entire sequence of photos, of a rider jumping through an Intermediate water complex. Who can tell us what happened to cause this otherwise very solid rider to fall forward after landing in the water? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 828"Only a horse that goes on a light contact can be attentive..." ~ Steffen PetersTip/Quote of the Day # 827"Never ceases to amaze how many riders think they can get the neck forward by tweaking and twiddling with the reins." ~ Peter DeCosemoTip/Quote of the Day # 826"You are going to meet a fence one of three ways - short, right or long. Therefore you want to meet it on a stride that the horse can work from - a bouncy energetic canter - then he can add if he needs to and pat the ground, or say thanks for getting me here right." ~ Jimmy WoffordTip/Quote of the Day # 825"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. StensbeckThe Use of Patterns in the Training of Dressage
Patterns can work either for you or against you in the training of your horse! You have to know what kind of horse you have, and must be able to accurately assess your horse's mindset at any given moment. This will allow you to make the right decision, in what kind of pattern to use... and most importantly - how long to stay on it. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 824"Good riders land over an obstacle, go the the next jump and make a good arrangement. Great riders land with their horses already arranged for the next obstacle." ~ Bill SteinkrausTip/Quote of the Day # 823Your horse should always be "ready" for a halt as you canter along between jumps. If he is low and heavy, and you know it would likely be hard to stop him smoothly at any point, then you really need to halt and fix it. Show him through the action of reinforcing them that he should not ignore your subtle half halts. Tip/Quote of the Day # 822On jumping around from trainer to trainer, "Any system beats no system." ~ Jimmy WoffordTip/Quote of the Day # 821“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 HoyosTip/Quote of the Day # 820
Cross country riders always need to have a "plan B" in their heads while on course. And sometimes a plan C and D as well.
