Recent Articles

These two terms are often interchanged, but actually have very different meanings. And since they are two distinct problems (although many times the horse will have both at the same time), with two very different causes, they also have different solutions. You need to know which problem you actually have to know how to fix it.  (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

Corner jumps show up on nearly every cross country course around the nation from Preliminary to Advanced. And they are increasingly showing up at the Training level as well. So it is very important that every cross country rider competing at Training level and above learns how to successfully tackle this accuracy question. They are a great test of whether the rider has the horse balanced, straight, and between their leg and hand. Course designers put corners and skinny jumps on their courses to more safely test those qualities, as if the horse is not balanced, straight, or on the rider's aids, a runout is likely, but usually no one gets hurt. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

The horse that anticipates his rider's cues is usually smart, sensitive, and eager to please, and often also insecure and anxious. This type of horse must be handled very carefully. As any perceived punishment for anticipating the rider's aids, whether intended or not, will tend to make the problem worse. But it can be frustrating to ride such a horse! Rather like the person who jumps in and finishes your sentences for you, they are just not listening to you! Here's how to get the best out of this type of horse: (Click on Article Title above to read full article)

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Changing the rein through the circle is one of the more advanced suppling exercises. It is challenging to perform in trot and canter, as it requires an increased level of suppleness and balanced self carriage in the horse. Done correctly, it will increase the suppleness further, and will increase the engagement of the hind legs. Here's how to do it: (Click on Article Title above to read full article)

We riders spend a lot of time working on making our horses more ambidextrous. But what about ourselves? How can we truly ride our horses straight if our own bodies are one sided? Horses are such generous, adaptive creatures that they can learn to adapt to our unevenness, and still respond to our attempts to straighten them. But it will definitely be much easier for them if we make an attempt to be more even and ambidextrous. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

This means that the distance between the rider's rear-end and the saddle changes a great deal as the horse moves. But I've had instructors tell me that my rear should not move relative to the saddle. That the "air space" between me and the saddle should stay the same. Can you clarify? (Briana)

The term "lateral flexion" is often misunderstood. Many riders attempting to achieve it end up bending the horse's neck instead of getting any actual flexion at the horse's poll, which is the joint between the atlas (C1) and the skull. Imagine a small headlight attached to your horse's forehead. Lateral flexion at the poll involves a slight rotation at the poll to turn that headlight slightly to the side. The horse in the picture above is flexed to the.....(Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

Resistance in the bridle is always related to the state of tension in the back. Sometimes it's hard to say which comes first, kind of like the age old question of the chicken and the egg. Which comes first?? Is the horse's tense, braced back causing him to resist the bit? Or is the act of bracing against the bit causing the horse's back to tighten? (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

The warm up for your show jumping round can make or break your performance. And there are some horses that require very specific strategies in the warm up to perform at their best in this phase. Here are some tips to best prepare different types of horses, and for different types of courses. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

Good dressage training is very systematic, with the horse's physical development taking place in a gradual and logical progression. And in that progression, development of pushing power of the horse's hind legs comes before carrying power. As developing pushing power strengthens all of the structures of the horse's hind legs, which will then allow the horse to carry more weight behind for longer periods of time without injury or fatigue.

Look at the lovely picture above of a Spanish Riding School rider doing a Levade - which is the ultimate exercise in regards to the horse carrying it's weight over its hind legs. You can just see how strong the hind legs must be to do that! Let's discuss what exercises help to build pushing power, and which ones encourage the horse to carry more weight behind. (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

Horses rush jumps for several possible different reasons, and sometimes it's a combination of issues. It is important to figure out what is causing your horse to rush, as each cause needs to be handled slightly differently. Here is a list of possible causes that can send horses rushing to their fences: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

Jumps at the top of a hill can look very daunting to horse and rider! It takes a bold horse to want to go up to the top and jump something that he can not see over until he gets right up to the top. And it takes a bold rider to really give it the forward ride that is needed! Here is how to tackle this type of jump: (Click on Article Title above to read full article)

Lateral suppleness refers to the horses ability to bend easily from side to side. Few horses are ambidextrous - meaning that they can naturally bend as easily to the right as they do to the left. One of the major goals of dressage is to make the horse more even - so that he bends easily both directions. Because only then can he be truly straight.

Here are some very specific exercises that you can use to improve your horse's lateral suppleness, in the order of most basic to most difficult: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)

 


Long before your horse can be expected to understand the aids for extension and collection, the Speed Play exercise should be introduced. It will lay the foundation of understanding for the execution of lengthenings, medium gaits, extended gaits, and collection for the future.

Here's how to do it: (Click on Article Title above (in blue) to read full article)