Always use both reins together to steer, especially when jumping. Using one rein only turns the horse's nose - but using both reins turn the horse at the shoulders, which means his body will more accurately follow your chosen line.
If you can keep your horse balanced as you gallop along between fences, you will have less "set up" work to do in front of the jumps. This means that you can be faster, smoother, and more efficient at the fences. Which will help to preserve your horse's energy on course, as well as his overall soundness.
Facebook fan Mo Jackson on teaching riders to maintain a consistent rein connection ~ "I try to teach this with pretending rider and horse are on the telephone. You are talking, oops no connection, talking again, oops no connection. This causes chaos in the horse's mind as he is trying to communicate, to be part of the conversation."
It is tempting to want to repeat something over and over when you feel like you are making some progress on a movement you have been struggling with. But it will be more productive to reward one good effort, give the horse a break, and move on to something else instead. When you come back to that exercise, your horse will remember that you did.
"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 Wofford
If you have truly done the right preparation for a medium or extended trot (or canter), you should need to do very little to actually ask for the movement. You should be able to simply allow it to happen… no mad kicking necessary.
"A lot of riders think that will make their jumping better by jumping as many jumps as possible. They will go and get a jumping lesson, as opposed to a dressage lesson or doing some physical exercises to teach them body awareness skills, and probably the last would help them most." ~ Andrew Hoy
To steady or rebalance your horse between jumps, many times it is sufficient to square your shoulders and stretch up your body in a poised way... opening up kind of like a sail on a sail boat.
The length of horse's neck and his length of stride are directly related. A short, restricted neck means a compromised stride, and a long neck that truly seeks the connection will allow the horse to move to his fullest potential.
"In the half halt that creates carrying power, we are asking the horse to slow down and carry more weight when his hind leg joints are closed and his hind foot is on the ground. The levade, in which the horse sits on his hindquarters, is the ultimate example of this kind of closing of the joints while carrying the weight." ~ George Williams
Sally Swift gives a good explanation about why the best riders are often not the best instructors: "Many of the great riders have the gift of natural balance and coordination so that they never have to question how to do anything with any part of their body. If they know what they want to do, their body will respond. Because of this innate coordination, they have not needed to know how one makes a leg move, or how one breathes, or how one balances. It just happens. Therefore it is usually difficult for them to explain to the rest of us less-coordinated mortals how to move some particular part of our bodies."
When training a young horse, you should be fairly single minded. Your main goal should be to build your horse's confidence in you, so that they think of you as a fair but strong leader.
Relax your aids as you ride by that scary spot. Many riders unconsciously hold or even clench instead. And this sends the horse the message that the scary spot really must be dangerous!
"After the horse has, for a certain period of time, been lunged in the appropriate way, it will not be very difficult to ride a twenty metre diameter circle." ~ Dr. Henri van Schaik
Lunging must be done absolutely correctly to attain this, or any other benefits really.
"One of the most important things when the horse is being naughty is that it does not feel that you are in a hurry. There was a hunter who would not go through a particular gate, and the owner tried every way possible to force him, and finally gave up and sold the horse. The new owner packed a lunch of sandwiches and something to drink, and rode to the gate, and waited until the horse wanted to go through it." ~ Kyra Kyrklund
If you don’t ride and train in such a way that your horse learns to listen to your seat, you will usually find that you have to use a lot more hand to get things done.
The horse usually tries to compensate for the lack of strength in his back and haunches by seeking support in the rider's hands. So if your horse does this, you might want to consider adding some strength training to your horse's regime.
"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 Wofford
"The quality of the [rider's] seat determines whether we can even speak of 'riding', or whether the horse simply has to 'deal with' the load on his back." ~ Kurt Albrecht
"You need to have a good seat to be able to use a spur correctly. You should not use them unless your horse is in front of your leg. They are not to be used to get your horse forward." ~ Hazel Roberts
When you do a lengthening, whether in trot or canter, you should move up to your lengthening within a few strides. Then maintain that exact level of lengthening until the end of your line, where you take just a few strides to (clearly!) show your transition down.
Notice that the stiffest tree is the most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending in the wind. Think about how this concept applies to both horse and rider...
If your horse struggles to maintain a consistent rhythm, think of using your breathing to help him stay regular. This is one reason why counting is so useful, as when you count, you will breathe in that rhythm.
Jimmy Wofford on galloping a horse: "Picture this: some 4 foot 11 waif of an apprentice jockey is living on 1000 calories a day to keep his weight down to 100 pounds so that he can make the weight in cheap claiming races. He canters happily down the track, talking with friends, standing in a two point - and all the while he is controlling 1,000 pounds of testosterone crazed stallion....and his hands are quietly fixed at the withers....and he is poised like a feather above his horse's back....and he is not kicking and pulling."
Always keep your spine stretched upward when riding. When you slump, your head and shoulders will become heavy, and your horse will likely become heavy in your hands.
It can be hard to get a horse truly fit in an arena. You need to use varied terrain and footing to build a strong athlete that will hold up to the rigors of Eventing.
As you are about to come down the centerline of a dressage test, briefly think about something that you know will make you smile. You and your horse will both relax, which will make for a happier performance. The judge will see the difference!
"Only use the spur to correct. The spur is not intended to ride a movement. It cannot just support the gait or the movement. Make a clear correction with the spur. If you are constantly giving your horse an aid, he will get numb to it. " ~ Steffen Peters
It is not wise to add pressure to the situation when the horse is already tense. Use quiet, soothing exercises that the horse is already familiar with, rather than pushing for anything difficult, to help him relax.
When preparing for a jump from a galloping position, one should always sink down into the heel before any touching of seat in the saddle, and only THEN should you touch the horse's mouth if necessary. Taking back on the reins first will almost always cause resistance.
From Facebook fan Amanda Fought Pierce ~ "Your legs should have a neutral position. A place where they do nothing but be there ready to use. Your horse should have gait control in all three gaits where they go without you pushing. When you find neutral, and they find speed control, then you can start to shape the position with your legs in either a driving leg or lateral leg aid. You cannot collect, extend or get lateral work until you have those two qualities. I won't lie, it's tough!"
What you do with your seat when you ask for the canter will affect the quality of the canter transition. If you stiffen your hips and back as you ask for the canter (as many riders do when they ask for the canter too strongly,) the horse’s movement will be stifled. If you allow your hips and lower back to be supple and follow the horse’s motion while you are asking for the canter, the horse can respond with more active hind leg engagement in the transition.
Riders are often incorrectly told to lean back and against the reins when their horses get strong. Not only will this not work, but it will usually make the horse even heavier in their hands.
Longitudinal suppleness (which is what gives them the ability to collect easily) is only possible when the horse is laterally supple. Don’t take a horse that is laterally stiff and ask him to collect! You have to improve his lateral suppleness with judicious use of lateral exercises before he will be able to give you true collection.
"Stretching is important in every schooling session, but don’t let your horse think it is a break from the work. Stretching is not supposed to be associated with quitting." ~ Christine Traurig
The more impulsion you have at any given moment, the more submission you need. And submission is not the same thing as subservience. Submission is the willingness of the horse to follow your instructions. This is why you shouldn't ask for more impulsion when your horse is already against your hand.
"Riding the upper levels becomes less and less about who is the most naturally talented ... It becomes more of who is the best mental competitor. Who can take the competition down mentally, and have the ability to stay focused on the task at hand regardless of what happens, that's what true upper level talent is." ~ Stephanie Shepherd Ezzo
To help your horse make a softer, more balanced canter depart - set him up for it, and then think of allowing him to canter, rather than asking strongly. If you push too strongly, your horse is more likely to push hard with his hind legs into the canter, and begin the transition on the forehand.
Since the various available lateral movements all work to supple the horse's body in a slightly different way, it is a good idea to use bits of all of them in your training. Don't just do your favorites.
Everyone talks about engaging the horse's inside hind leg - but the key to a good quality canter is sufficient engagement of the outside hind leg… as that is how each canter stride begins.
I find that many riders are using bits that are too BIG for their horse’s mouths (too long, from side to side.) While certainly better than a bit that is too small, when a bit is too big there is too much movement of the bit sliding back and forth in the horse’s mouth. Horses want the bit to be still in their mouths, they don’t want it sliding left and right all the time.
You need to decide that, from this day on, your horse will respond to light aids. If you don't expect him to, and don’t consistently give him appropriate feedback, he probably won't ever be as attentive and responsive as you would like him to be.
"One of the good things about our sport is that while getting older might slow your reflexes down, the knowledge you have enables you to continue to improve, and handle the challenges better." ~ Shane Rose
When doing lateral work, every time your horse steps nicely under his body with his inside hind leg, you should feel him stepping up into the connection of your outside rein. Be sure to make good use of that opportunity to soften your inside rein. Every single time.
Whenever you are nervous about something during your ride, make a very clear plan of what you are about to do in your mind. Then put your focus on the execution of that plan to override your nerves.
"I try and have the feeling when I sit on a horse that I sit in the saddle, and my legs aren’t gripping around the horse - they just hang. At the sitting trot everyone wants to stop themselves from bouncing. What you have to do is let yourself go with the flow of the horse." ~ Charlotte Dujardin
"Concentrate on the transitions, forward and back, build the activity from behind. When you bring the horse slightly back, you still have to push her forward to the hand, you can keep riding as long as you can feel the hindlegs in your hand." ~ Susanne Miesner
Horses that tend to rush or hurry often do best when ridden at a slower than ideal pace until they are rhythmical and relaxed, and are no longer trying to hurry.
Whether on or off the horse, the lower your center of gravity is, the easier it is to balance. So what does this mean to your riding? Keeping your balance point low, by keeping your seat close to the saddle when up off of your horse's back, and your weight sinking well down into your heels, will make you more secure.
When working with horses, always be mindful of the feedback you are giving your horse at any given time... whether intentional or accidental. When your horse misbehaves, make sure you don't give him an accidental reward by stopping to regroup (which to him is a rest and a reward.) Keep moving, get the horse to do something (anything) well, and THEN stop to regroup if you must.
Quote from Bert de Nemethy: "When I think of the rider's aids, I am reminded of an anecdote that is told about one of the world's great pianists, who was asked how difficult it was to learn to play the piano as he did. ‘It is really not difficult at all,’ he replied. ‘You only have to figure out which fingers go on what keys, and for how long. Then you practice for the rest of your life so that you can do it up to tempo.’ Communicating with the horse is about the same."
"Unless he is standing still, then from the moment you get on him, the horse is in a rhythm – it can be regular or irregular – but everything in riding has rhythm to it. Rhythm is a very integral part of horsemanship." ~ Tad Coffin
If you want to develop a nicely shaped crest (the top of his neck muscling) on your horse, you have to make sure your horse is truly seeking the connection - reaching into the bit, rather than backing away from it.
"Since the criteria of a correct seat are the same as the criteria of good posture in general, being constantly attentive to one’s bearing when standing or walking is excellent training. A correct vertical posture of the head and the trunk on horseback is not a special posture applicable only to riding." ~ Kurt Albrecht
When trying to find your balance, whether for posting at the trot, jumping a fence, or anything in between - you will always be in one of three positions: Either ahead of the motion (too far forward), behind the motion (too far back), or exactly with the motion (perfect). If you have a strong tendency to be in one of the positions other than perfect… say you are often a bit too far forward, don't be discouraged if you find yourself going the other way (too far back) when trying to break your bad habit and make a change. It is a perfectly normal part of the process of finding your balance. Riders will almost always teeter back and forth over that line…. sometimes a bit too far forward, and sometimes a bit too far back, before they find that perfect middle ground.
"Many people think, what is piaffe, piaffe is something the top riders do in Grand Prix – no, no, no, that is not right. Piaffe is something you use to train your horse, to make the horse more together and more balanced. You can start the piaffe right from the beginning, even with a five year old horse, you can start to do it in the hand on the ground, or also when you are riding, and that helps make the steps of the horse more controllable, and out of that you have a much more beautiful stride forward, and a much more beautiful stride sideways." ~ Rafael Soto
"Every horse is different, but you learn to compare, what to do in this moment with this particular horse, and that takes time. Dressage doesn’t go fast, this is the difference between our young riders and our more experienced riders." ~ Reiner Klimke
"I never really work a horse for longer than four or five minutes [at a time.] I want to take a quick break, and then we go again. Any of you who’ve worked out know how much a break of 30 seconds can help. It gets some oxygen back into the muscles." ~ Steffen Peters
"I want any rider approaching any jump to concentrate on rhythm. They should concentrate on HOW they get there, not where they get to." ~ Jimmy Wofford
"Beware of the modern day notion that a person can 'invent' a new horse training method. There are no quick and easy ways. Truth is that the training of a horse is a study, a craft, an art. Training takes patience and the knowledge develops over many years. Many of the principals by the horse-masters are principals that are not ready to be understood until they have been experienced. The experience takes many years to acquire and many different horses to acquire it from. The principals can be built upon and expanded and explained with different nuances of the language, but it cannot be reinvented." ~ Xenophon
Remember that even a COW can jump a 3 foot fence from a standstill... if it wants to. So never worry about whether or not your horse has enough scope to do lower level eventing or jumping. The bigger issue is whether or not you can keep him balanced at the canter.
The key to a successful transition back into a working trot after a stretching trot is to ride forward as you are adjusting the reins, while maintaining the bend. Note that "forward" does not mean faster! Read all about forward here.
Riding out in the fields over undulating terrain helps a rider to develop a good, solid seat much more quickly than riding around and around in the ring.
To be the most successful when dealing with horses, you need to be a fair, calm, and confident "herd leader" to them, whether in the saddle or on the ground.
"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
It can be more difficult for a rider to improve their jumping when they only have one horse to ride. Since it is not usually a good idea to jump a horse more than a few times a week, it is smart to take advantage of the many ground pole exercises available to practice the many skills that produce good jumping.
From Facebook fan Jennifer Stankiewicz ~ "When your horse loses his 'go', try sitting lighter, not deeper. I find on my mare, when I'm loosing impulsion, I'm gripping or riding too deep and when I just relax my legs and drape them and use my hips more, my horse goes forward. Sometimes that means standing for a split second and readjusting my seat to get lighter but it works!"
"The horse will work out the distance if the line looks sensible to him, so ride a good line, in balance, and don't try to overly manage the stride length." ~ Chris Bartle
If your horse is not honestly in front of your leg, every single movement will be negatively effected. And things like "throughness" and collection will never happen for you.
Varying the degree of your half pass can improve your horse’s suppleness from all angles, as well as increasing his responsiveness to your aids within the movement. In other words, while going in half pass across the diagonal, half halt, and do a few strides with a steeper angle (more sideways than forward), then go forward again.
"The horse must perform from joy, not subservience. Praising a horse frequently with voice, a gentle pat, or relaxing the reins is very important to keep the horse interested and willing." ~ Klaus Balkenhol
Some horses find it easier to make a smooth transition into canter from the walk rather than the trot. If you have a horse like this, it's ok to practice mostly walk to canter transitions at home for a while (even though lower level horses always go from trot to canter in the Dressage tests.) With repetition of quality walk to canter transitions, the horse will become stronger and better balanced in both walk to canter and trot to canter.
"I often tell my students that the outside rein is like the vinyl wall of an above-ground pool; elastic, stretchy and flexible, but enough of a boundary to keep the 'water in the pool.'" ~ Elise Vandover
"A horse which doesn’t relax the mandibular and the tongue muscles cannot be entirely relaxed. That is why it is so important that the horse accepts the bit, and the sign of that is the actively and relaxed chewing." ~ Christian Thiess
"The better my dressage transitions are, the better the thoroughness, it means the horse can go from very fast, to very balanced and collected on the hindquarters, energy from behind, through – no argument with the bit – because the transition is through and fine, the horse can focus on the jump." ~ Ingrid Klimke
From Facebook fan Joan Dunlap ~ "You must conquer your own fears, lack of knowledge and short-comings before you can even start to help your horse with theirs."
It takes an experienced instructor to know whether a rider who has lost their confidence needs to move back to smaller jumps and more simple exercises, or if that rider instead needs to be shown the exact techniques that are going to fix their problem, and then pushed hard, so they can see how easily they really CAN do it.
"Do your warm up trot sets with shorter stirrups in a two point instead of posting. If you listen closely, you can hear me laughing… most of us cannot trot in two point for three five minute sets, much less stay there for our conditioning sets. Even though you will probably fail, stick with it. Make a project of your fitness while you condition your horse." ~ Jimmy Wofford
While the distance in between the jumps is a big deciding factor in the speed and length of stride that you should approach with... generally approaching a combination or complex off of a shorter, bouncier stride will give you more options.
Many riders think too much about stopping in downward transitions... meaning they won't be truly riding forward. This will likely cause the horse to brace against the hand, and/or to lose the activity of the hind legs. Instead, try thinking of changing gears without losing any of the energy and activity in the hind legs.
To help keep your horse uphill when spiraling in on a circle, imagine that you are going up a spiral staircase. With each stride inward on the spiral, grow taller and think about going up an imaginary step.
Always keep in mind that you need to engage your horse's brain to get him to truly think forward. Your goal should not be to merely get his feet moving, but to ignite the area of his brain that makes him decide to want to move forward. Only when your horse really wants to go forward do you truly have a forward horse... no matter how fast you are actually traveling.
Eventers need to make sure that the saddle that they use for cross country is truly suitable. The flap needs to be forward enough to give you room to easily push your feet out in front of you for security whenever necessary (such as galloping downhill, drop into water, deep mud on a downhill landing, etc.)
If you are riding any transition on a curve, do not forget to maintain your inside bend and flexion throughout the transition. This will help you to keep the horse straight (aligned to the curve), balanced, and connected.
When your horse is not being as responsive as you'd like, pushing harder is never the answer. In fact, that only makes the problem worse. Instead, go back a step and remind/re-educate your horse about being hot to the leg aids.
Many horses actually like and do well with a little bit of rein contact throughout the jumping effort. But there are some that are so sensitive, that any amount of feel of their mouth at the top of the jumping arc will cause them to either jump with their nose tucked to their chest, or try to fight the rider’s hand in the air. Both of which will ruin the quality of the horse’s jump.
"I do a lot of cavaletti work also with my dressage horses because then I can really make them active behind, over the back, stretching into your hand, and really supple in the back." ~ Ingrid Klimke
The more spirit the horse has, the more difficult he may be to train. But once you have developed a good partnership with the horse, this same spirit will make him a tremendous competitor, who will fight for you when the chips are down.
Pay attention to exactly how you release your aid after your horse responds. The key is to relax and release the aid in a smooth and subtle manner, with finesse.
From Facebook fan Deena Cahill ~ "If your horse is really tense when riding him, try riding while having a short conversation about happy things with someone else. You will be surprised how relaxed your horse becomes when your body naturally relaxes!"
"Look for a genuine coach with real coaching skills rather than a rider who may know how to do something, but not how to teach it. Also, find someone who has solid experience of working with riders of your level." ~ William Micklem
"The hind legs are brought far enough underneath the center of gravity by the rider’s legs, where they are gradually burdened with more of the combined weight of horse and rider for brief moments, which flexes their joints more. Like coiled springs, they push off with much greater elasticity afterwards than unflexed hind legs. This energetic, springy forward swinging creates a very characteristic feeling in the seat (you feel the work of the hind legs as well as the swinging of the back that it creates very clearly, yet pleasantly), which is typical for a gait with impulsion, and which signals to the experienced rider: „Now he is moving!“ He despises, on the other hand, a wishy-washy, unclear trot feeling under the saddle which is caused by dragging hind legs that hardly push off and consequently don’t make the back swing – whereas others seem to love it. De gustibus … No, this is not a matter of taste. One is correct, the other one is wrong! Thrust may be there naturally, but impulsion must be worked out - or better: into – the horse by cultivating the thrust." ~ Alfred Knopfhart
"Before starting the work of teaching the flying changes, the quality of the canter should be well established. The horse should be thinking forward, should accept the slowing and collecting aids and should be laterally submissive. The horse should be straight in the canter." ~ Chris Bartle
"The most repeated mistake is the riders' weight taking off before the horse and often with catastrophic results - The rider that learns to look after the Engine, Line and Balance of his horse on the Approach and allows his horse to make the decisions about where he takes off, repeatedly puts in a smooth and confident performance." ~ Lucinda Green
"It worries me when riders 'clinic hop' or switch from trainer to trainer in search of the magic bullet for making everything go well. Correct training is a three way relationship between a horse, a student, and a trainer, and students have to take some responsibility for their own growth and learning. You can be passively lectured or you can be an accountable student who listens, interacts with her instructor and finds homework to do between lessons." ~ Jane Savoie
"The quality of the flying changes is reflected in the expression, the length of the change, the straightness and the quality of the canter before and after the change. When we talk of changes having expression, we mean that during the stride of the canter in which the change is executed, the canter has a definite moment of suspension. This enables the horse to bring the new inside hind well under the body and to reach out with the foreleg. Expression should not be confused with tension." ~ Chris Bartle
"This might sound too simple, but I am convinced that the most important factor in keeping the horse's will to work day by day is allowing him to live a life as close to nature as possible." ~ Uta Gräf
"It is most important to realize that the topline is not one muscle from the ears to the hocks. There are different muscles that you have to train – the neck, the wither, the back, the loins, the croup and the hock. The muscles of the hind legs are connected directly behind the horse’s ears, if the topline muscles are not trained, the hind legs cannot move correctly." ~ Johan Hamminga
Think of that girth tight against your horse's side… after a while he tunes that out and barely notices it. The same will happen with your legs if they are always tight and clamped on his sides.
The quality of the contact that the horse will give you is largely dictated by the amount of hind leg activity at that moment, and how much the energy from that activity is able to flow in an uninterrupted way through the horse's supple and permeable body into your hands.
"They asked me at the Seminar, how should a horse look when it is coming towards you? I said to them, if you meet someone and they are looking you in the eyes, a little bit proud, nose up, not arrogant, but someone coming to you, giving you their hand, with a very positive attitude. That’s the way a horse should come to you – when he enters the arena, he should say, hello, here I am." ~ Sven Rothenberger
"I find it better to often have short, intensive moments – ten or fifteen minutes – not longer, then a break to allow the muscles to recover. If you want the horse to carry more weight, then you need time for muscle recovery." ~ Johan Hamminga
"The horse should understand 3 things from the rider's leg: forward, bend, move over. Until the rider understands this the horse can't, so they can't get inside leg to outside rein. Most riders/horses only understand using a driving leg." ~ Susan Moessner
"The forehand is not to be raised by the rider's hands ! This mania of trying to ride a horse with a 'Grand-prix neck', a horse who moves with Training level hindquarters, is abominable." ~ Charles de Kunffy
"Riders just worry about the horse’s head – but the horse has a hindquarter, a shoulder, and a head and neck. The rider’s lower leg controls the hindquarter, to a certain extent the shoulder is positioned by the legs and hands, and the head and neck are controlled by the rider’s hands, the horse has to think forward and straight." ~ Vicki Roycroft
"One can never, I believe, strive for a lack of criticism in riding – because I don’t think that there is such a thing as perfect riding. I don’t think anybody’s performance is beyond some sort of criticism." ~ Tad Coffin
"Nevertheless the freedom of the shoulders in all gaits is always only the result of elevation, and this in turn is the result of the hindquarters carrying the correct weight." Gustav Steinbrecht
"For what the horse does under compulsion… is done without understanding; and there is no beauty in it either, any more than if one should whip and spur a dancer." ~ Xenophon
"Riders make it so complicated, and they end up with mental overload. If at any stage you have difficulties in your riding, if you take it back to that basic drill: Can I go forward? Can I stop? Can I turn right? Can I turn left? Is the horse responsive to my leg? Am I actually feeling what is happening underneath me through my seat and then responding correctly?" ~ Andrew Hoy
A strong back is necessary for the horse to be able to achieve and maintain self carriage and collection for any length of time under a rider. Asking for too much too soon can cause your horse to resent his work.
The half pass helps to develop the brilliance of the medium and extended trot, by increasing hip and stifle flexibility, and freeing up the horse's shoulders.
The rider who keeps their weight too far forward at the gallop will cause their horse to gallop on the forehand. When the rider's weight (center of gravity) is correctly above the center of the saddle at the gallop, the horse will be able to more easily gallop in balance, with free shoulders. And it is of course more easy to elevate the horse's front end for an upcoming jump coming from this position.
"When you look at two horses in an arena, on one side the big Warmblood that finds it hard to be short and quick, but has a power jump, or you have the beautiful Thoroughbred that finds it easy to be short and quick, and if you can just get that Thoroughbred to use its body more – get over its past – one is definitely the easiest to ride, one is definitely the more athletic, and that’s the good Thoroughbred. The good ones have that extra leg under them, they are very quick to be able to take that extra distance, they can use the back." ~ Michelle Strapp
"I want to re-emphasize my point that the x-c galloping position I teach is based on scientific research, not on opinion or intuition. Although we are suspended above the ground by the strength and power of our horses, we do not suspend the Laws of Physics when we step into the stirrups. Secondly, one reason given for galloping with a straight leg was that it was "easier for the rider." I find that statement hard to accept. The legendary horsemen that I still strive to copy were dedicated to the well-being and comfort of the horse, not the rider. Finally, there was some mention in the article of finding a visual role model who has the same physiotype that you have. While this is excellent advice, I urge you to choose someone to emulate that rides correctly as well as being of a similar size and shape. Copying incorrect mechanics will lead to mistakes in your technique...and mistakes in our sport can be fatal." ~ Jimmy Wofford
"Correct dressage training, is, therefore, a natural gymnastic exercise for the horse, which hardens its strength and supples its limbs. Such exercise causes the strong parts of its body to work harder in favour of the weaker ones. The latter are strengthened by gradual exercise, and hidden forces, held back because of the horse’s natural tendency towards laziness, are thus awakened. The end result is complete harmony in cooperation of the individual limbs with these forces, enabling the horse to continuously and effortlessly perform, with only the slightest aids from the rider, such regular and beautiful movements as it would demonstrate on its own only fleetingly in moments of excitement." ~ Gustav Steinbrecht
"Suppleness means that the muscles contract and de-contract, and this has to go through the entire horse, it cannot be blocked in the middle of the back, and it also has to go through the rider." ~ Susanne Miesner
"'Losgelassenheit' means suppleness combined with looseness and the complete absence of any tension. It is the prerequisite for any advancement in training. Together with regularity, it is the primary goal of the initial, familiarising, phase." ~ Christoph Hess
The bigger the jump, the more the horse must rock back and lift upwards on the takeoff. Therefore as the jumps get bigger, it becomes even more important that you are poised and patient with your upper body off the ground.
"The legs bring the horse to the seat, and the seat brings the horse to the hands. When the teacher says 'shorten the reins' it needs to be translated into: 'engage the hind legs, sit on them, and then take the slack out of the reins', because if you shorten the reins from front to back, the horse will only resist." ~ Thomas Ritter
Most horses jump their best when riders set them up before hand with a balanced canter at the speed appropriate for the exercise, and then leave them alone to let them do their jobs. No micromanaging!
When it comes to equestrian training, it is almost always faster in the long run to take the time to do it right the first time, instead of having to go back and fill in the holes you missed in your basics. This is true for both horse and rider.
The balance and design of the saddle that you are using will make or break you as a rider that is striving to improve! Once you have become very confident and quite solid in all your skills, you can probably ride well in just about any saddle. But when you are trying to find your balance, trying to learn new skills, and trying to grow into a really solid rider you NEED the saddle that is exactly right for your conformation and what are trying to achieve.
Big horses very often need to learn how to do a shorter, more active canter for the show jumping ring. Make sure you have achieved this before you start cantering courses!
"A significant portion of the art of dressage lies in your ability to differentiate between the positive tension of focused athletic effort, and the negative tension of resistance, fear, and anxiety." ~ Katherine Bateson Chandler
"Riding cross country is against the clock, but this doesn’t mean that you have to go fast. It means that you have to take good lines. Every extra ten feet, or three and a half metres that you travel, costs you one second. So if you can save half a metre on the approach and half a metre on the landing, and there are thirty jumps on the course, you come in half a minute quicker than someone else." ~ Andrew Hoy
"Re-schooling a horse with vices and sending it back to its owner is not enough. The vices will return with unguided riding. Only by retraining both horse and rider can the problem be solved." ~ Firn Hyde
"Is the rider able to ride all the movements with a long rein, long with contact, then as long as possible? It is possible to ride piaffe on a long rein when the rider rides 100% with a balanced body, and the horse is on his aids." ~ Christoph Hess
"Jumpers in Europe use a lot of dressage these days in order to maintain balance and rhythm around technical courses. They need instant reaction to have a hope of doing well." ~ Stephen Clarke
"When the horse is straight, he is in the position of shoulder-fore. Shoulder-fore position is when the horse’s outside hind leg tracks directly behind the outside front leg and the inside hind leg tracks between the two front legs. The horse’s inside hind leg is narrowed stepping toward his center of gravity and can then be in a position to carry the horse’s and rider’s weight." ~ Kathy Connelly
"The inside leg to the outside rein is ancient history. One of my friends is very interested in ballet, and he said to me last year, George, it is opposition in the dance that creates balance." ~ George Morris
Just because you can't see your grass growing doesn't mean it's not, and the same can be said of your progress as a rider. Much of the time it is not noticeable until you stop and look back at where you came from.
"Keep your thumbs together so you know where your hands are. Your elbows loose and more elastic by your side. Stand in your stirrups, stretch down and think about your lower leg being there all the time. Toes out a little, stretch your heel down." ~ Chris Burton
It is possible to have contact without a real connection (in fact, it is quite common unfortunately), but a true connection always involves good contact. The connection involves the horse's entire body… with energy created in the horse's hind legs traveling through the horse's supple body, and into the rider's softly receiving hands.
"I teach riders to adjust their reins within three strides on level ground (after a drop), and I want them seated between elements of a combination. This will give the rider more stability plus a wider and more sophisticated range of aids." ~ Jimmy Wofford
With many horses, it can be helpful to take a deep breath and exhale in a sigh as you begin the walk portion of your Dressage test. This can help to dissolve any tension that the horse may be holding, that might otherwise make for a "jig" step, or an accidental transition into trot.
The outside rein is the key rein in downward transitions and half halts that are used to rebalance the horse. Many riders are well aware of this for Dressage and Jumping. But not everyone realizes that this is even true when you are galloping in a straight line!
Which rein is the outside rein when you are galloping in a straight line? It is relative to the canter lead. If you are on the right lead, the left rein is your outside rein. And if you are on the left lead, it is your right rein.
I hate to hear instructors who just yell, "Push, push, push!" to the riders on lazy horses who need more energy in their gait. To me, this shows a huge lack of experience on the trainer’s part - as this is NOT a productive way to produce forward in a horse, and only makes them more and more dead to the rider’s aids.
"There is one test that has the advantage over all the others, in that it can accompany the horse throughout his entire development… Showing the horse the way towards the ground. It is important that before the rider makes any attempt to perform the exercise, he makes sure that the horse is moving forward with impulsion at the selected pace, in good rhythm and contact with the bit. Then, while maintaining the forward driving aids, the rider should begin by giving slightly with the outside rein by moving the hand forward. As the horse responds by stretching his neck downwards and seeking the bit, the rider should offer the inside rein and again the horse should search to maintain the contact. The rider can then begin to lengthen the reins slightly by allowing them to slip through the fingers. Providing the horse is still being driven correctly from behind he will maintain the contact as he chews the bit towards the ground." ~ Christian Thiess
If you don’t ride and train in such a way that your horse learns to listen to your seat, you will usually find that you have to use a lot more hand to get things done.
"I cannot over emphasize that the rider must keep a soft contact with the horse’s mouth throughout the exercise [stretching down] and never just throw the reins away!" ~ Christian Thiess
"Essential to collection as well is the complete lack of resistances, as well as the maintenance of superior impulsion, and absolute submission." ~ Nuno Olivera
The purpose of transitions is not just to get from one gait to the next. But to do so in a way that further gymnasticizes the horse, and improves his carriage.
"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 Dujardin
"The better the rider’s balance in the saddle, the better the communication. There are two things the rider must be – balanced, and supple. The less good the rider’s seat, then the more often the rider is in the saddlery shop buying new saddles, new stirrups. The rider has to find his balance in the saddle, not being held in position by a saddle in which you cannot move." ~ Christoph Hess
Lateral work can be used to steady and improve the regularity of the rhythm of your horse’s gaits. Particularly with horses that want to rush and/or become irregular, asking for a little shoulder in, leg yield, or a few steps of spiral in or out, can help them wait and find more cadence in their stride.
"For me quality dressage, not the forced dressage, not where you pull the horse or force the horse to do something, dressage is a dance – you can dance through a test with little aids." ~ Ingrid Klimke
"Give the horse the feeling of freedom when you sit on it, always the feeling that it can move forward. Most riders all over the world use their hands to try and control their horse, the neck starts to shorten and then it all starts to go wrong." ~ Christoph Hess
While a thicker mouthpiece is generally considered to be more gentle than a thinner bit, the horse with a small mouth or a low palate often prefers a thinner bit.
When softening the reins, it is common for riders to mistakenly and unconsciously lean forward at the same time. Avoid this problem by thinking about pushing yourself away from your hands as you give the reins.
"I like to describe riding a course as riding a line at a certain pace, and the jumps are just like speed bumps on your journey. Whereas some riders ride the jumps as their objective. They ride one jump, then look up, and ride the next, and the next. I try to teach riders to ride a line with good balance and the correct pace, and that is their primary objective, and the jumps are their secondary objective." ~ George Sanna
Since the various available lateral movements all work to supple the horse's body in a slightly different way, it is a good idea to use bits of all of them in your training. Don't just do your favorites.
"The horse always tries to run away, that is part of his nature. When the rider uses the bit to stop the horse, that is the rider’s first wrong move. We must always give the horse an open door. When we hold the horse with our hands we take the horse out of its mental and physical balance, and that is the beginning of disharmony between horse and rider." ~ Christoph Hess
"The goal of all dressage riding should be to bring the horse and rider together in harmony...a oneness of balance, purpose, and athletic expression." ~ Walter Zettl
"We want the horse to know, if he gets into difficulties, if he slips, he can just take time with things, so they learn to get themselves out of trouble. If a horse has slipped badly or hit a jump badly, just keep hold of the front end, keep hold of the reins, just sit quiet and try and support the horse. Let the horse find his feet, try and slow the whole thing down." ~ Andrew Hoy
"I really believe that horses are very generous and they are on our side. They can also become frightened, so it is important that we don’t ask them anything beyond their capabilities. You can keep them on your side by being quiet with them. They have to be believers in you, and understand what you are asking. I think that we as riders get too aggressive when something doesn’t happen the way we want. You have to remember that the experiences the horses have, especially if they are bad, aren’t forgotten easily. It takes a long time to work through those bad experiences." ~ Andrew Hoy
"We must be careful when making the horse straight not to bend it in front of the withers. We must not loosen the muscles in front of the withers for we need to build them up on either side of the neck so it is steady in front of the withers." ~ Reiner Klimke
"Riding courses is still all about finding the canter. Every jump in every situation has a canter that is perfect for that jump. Whether it is a very flimsy looking stile, or very strong looking oxer, off a short turn, away from the entrance gate into a double… With the oxer to the double you are really under the pump to get in there nice and strong and get the horse in front of your legs – as opposed to the very delicate stile they can look through, going downhill, towards the gate, where you’ve got to take all the ground speed away from them and sit up and give them an opportunity to read it and stay off the front rail." ~ George Sanna
It’s just as easy to train a horse to be sensitive to our aids as it is to train them to be dull to our aids. Every time you give your horse an aid you have a chance to train (or re-train) your horse to be sensitive to it.
Soften the reins too much at the beginning of a lengthening, and you may find that you lose your stored energy. Which will likely cause your horse to quicken his stride rather than giving you a true lengthening.
"If you are riding a youngster they are definitely tuned into you. So I found that if I rode unconcerned on the trails so were they. Eventually nothing seems to bother them." ~ Manette A Pacheco
"Often one hears riders in whatever discipline say that their aim is to bring the horse to a certain level or to place highly at certain shows. These goals are absolutely legitimate, but we must not forget that they are only a byproduct of what should be our highest of aims: To make our horses more beautiful and keep them healthy through their training." ~ Ingrid Klimke
"If you are riding a youngster they are definitely tuned into you. I found that if I rode unconcerned on the trails so were they. Eventually nothing seems to bother them." ~ Manette A Pacheco
If your horse does not offer to stretch near the end of a workout, there is a good chance that you didn't have him working correctly through his topline during your ride.
"Good riders land over an obstacle, go to the next jump and make a good arrangement. Great riders land with their horses already arranged for the next obstacle." ~ Bill Steinkraus
YOU are the one in charge of your riding. That means making sure that you have the right horse for you, and the right trainer. It also means that you stay motivated to work and train hard, pushing through the inevitable ups and downs of the sport. Others can help you, but ultimately the responsibility is yours.
"Natural ability is handy, but I’ve seen so many gifted riders amount to nothing because they weren’t hungry or determined enough. Someone with high ambitions, commitment and who is hard working is always going to stand out." ~ Boyd Martin
True bending from nose to tail requires that the horse understands all three of these things: how to move away from lateral leg pressure, how to move into the connecting outside rein, and the aids for inside flexion.
"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
To make diagonal lines and center lines accurate in the Dressage ring, imagine that there is a dotted line connecting the letters that make up that line. And plan your turns so that you can accurately get onto that line.
Always remember that your goal with your hand position should be to have a straight line from your elbow to the bit. Hands above that line (which I see far too often!) break the true connection. The horse may feel lighter, but will not be truly seeking the connection. Hands below that line will put painful pressure on the bars of the horse's mouth, which will cause him to either resist or back away from that pressure by curling and dropping behind the bit.
Mental limitations are often much more career limiting than physical limitations when it comes to riding. If things are difficult for you physically, don't give up! You will get there!
"Let us repeat that the two groups of muscles lying on either side of the spinal column which pulsate elastically rather than convulsively must work quite uniformly along a straight line and on a single track. If they do not do so, the horse becomes crooked, with its legs not carrying an equal load on both sides, and we get the impure gait in all its variants." ~ Waldemar Seunig
I always like to see horses jump into cross country complexes like coffins and sunken roads in a catlike way rather than jumping big. This means they are thinking ahead as well, and are preparing to do some good "footwork" between the jumps. Keep this in mind when approaching the first element of these kind of complexes. Maintain a supportive leg, but be careful to not override the first element or approach too fast.
A horse has to be straight to have true impulsion. Any stored energy leaks out where the body is crooked, changing the energy in the stride from impulsion to merely forward momentum.
"A deep seated saddle can limit the freedom of your hips to really move with your horse and you may not even realize how much your saddle is limiting you. Try an old style dressage saddle and you might just be amazed with the difference." ~ Kelly Jennings
While it is important to have a plan when riding, you should always be ready to adapt that plan as necessary. Ultimately, you ride the horse and not the plan!
The concept of collection is often best introduced to the horse in the canter, as that is often the gait that the horse finds it easiest to learn how to "sit" more behind.
Riders should practice jumping corner jumps, skinny jumps, and arrowheads with an approach from every possible angle, as course designers are increasingly setting up situations where your preferred line may be not an option.
"Feel the hindleg in your hand, a steady hand. Today we have this fashion for hand riding, don’t copy fashion, what is important, is correctness. You must have elasticity from your shoulder to the horse’s mouth, a straight line, a steady connection and elasticity of hand." ~ George Morris
"Suppleness means that the muscles contract and de-contract, and this has to go through the entire horse, it cannot be blocked in the middle of the back, and it also has to go through the rider." ~ Susanne Miesner
Any issues you have at the canter are usually there at the walk too, but just don't bother you as much because you're not going very fast. And it's easier to fix things at the walk.
"The most repeated mistake is the riders' weight taking off before the horse and often with catastrophic results - The rider that learns to look after the Engine, Line and Balance of his horse on the Approach and allows his horse to make the decisions about where he takes off, repeatedly puts in a smooth and confident performance" ~ Lucinda Green
"The absence of a correction is not a reward to a horse. The only thing that is a reward is 'good girl' or a pat on the neck or giving them a sugar. You can’t train a seal without fish." ~ Robert Dover
"The more soft and gentle my aids are on cross country the better, then I can really speed up, slow down, turn – a balanced turn – have my horse absolutely under the centre of gravity. That’s what I need in a pirouette, and that’s what I need in a line of fences, where you have a narrow one uphill, down two strides, turn, there the horse must be in balance." ~ Ingrid Klimke
The horse's loin area (behind the saddle) is loosened and suppled with each good lateral step behind. Just one reason of many why lateral steps are a very important part of training horses.
Practicing movements incorrectly will create an ingrained habit in both horse and rider that can be hard to break at a later date. Make sure you have eyes on the ground (whether that is in person, or virtually through online coaching) to make sure you are on the right track.
With any related distance when jumping, make any needed adjustment early on in the line, and then focus on riding the rhythm and quality of the canter, while patiently waiting for the jump to "come to you."
"And here I say to parents, and especially to wealthy parents, Don't give your son money. As far as you can afford it, give him horses. No one ever came to grief, except honorable grief, through riding horses. No hour of life is lost that is spent in the saddle." ~ Winston Churchill
"You want [the horse] to relax in halt but as soon as you put your leg on, switch on and go forward. When he goes into trot, just give him one more touch with your leg to let him know you really want him to go forward. When you are going forward and coming back, ask yourself was it the reaction I wanted? If you are doing it halfways, then you are always compromising with him." ~ Nathalie zu Sayn-Wittgenstein
"So many riders think only about the physical aspects of training and I hear too many times from riders, ‘well my horse just needs to get stronger’. I ask myself constantly what about the mental part? My idea is that the physical part is 25 per cent and the mental part 75 per cent and I find myself asking each and every day, did my horse really understand what I was asking for?" ~ Steffen Peters
"When you do something too much, too long, it’s called drilling. That’s not a good word with horses. If it’s not perfect it's ok. We have tomorrow, we have next week. Don’t be excessive with the horse." - George Morris
A good contact with the horse's mouth usually only occurs if the rider also has good contact with their seat and legs. When a rider tries to keep rein contact with their legs completely off, the horse will usually resist or try to avoid the rider's hand.
"I really want to emphasize that a rider first rides a horse with the legs and seat; then come the rein aids, as a support to the seat and legs. These three things together subsequently determine the quality contact that leads to the complete harmony and understanding between the horse and rider." ~ Johann Hinnemann
Slipping the reins in the final strides in front of a drop into water must be done gradually and inconspicuously. Slipping the reins too much all at once, or doing it at the last second, and you can negatively affect the horse's balance.
When 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 vocal range until they hit their limit. This helps to prevent them from overextending themselves, and builds up confidence in their abilities.
If you ask for too much angle in any lateral movement (more than your horse can handle at that moment,) you risk impeding the balance and fluidity of the movement, which should be one of your top priorities.
"Lesson quote of the day (in reference to her horse being crooked) - He feels like two men in a horse suit who aren't speaking to each other! (identity of student being protected :)" ~ Carrie Wehle
"Many riders in the name of impulsion, put too much tension in their horses. Others in the name of lightness, have their horse 'abandoned' (without a sufficient connection). The truth of equitation is in between those two extremes." ~ Nuno Oliveira
When trying to improve the activity and engagement of your horse's hind legs in downward transitions, think of a trot in place and dancing your way to the walk or halt.
"One of the goals of dressage is to recreate the natural beauty of the horse’s gaits under the rider, so that the horse moves as beautifully under the weight of the rider as he does at liberty. In order to achieve this, the swinging of the horse’s back has to pass through the seat of the rider undiminished. The back has to be able to rise and fall with the same ease, regardless of the rider’s presence. If the rider merely sits passively, his weight alone can sometimes be enough to diminish the freedom of movement of the horse’s back. In these moments, the rider has to enhance the upswing of the horse’s back with an active contraction of his abdominal muscles, which helps the rider’s pelvis to swing more forward-upward, without tilting forward, however." ~ Thomas Ritter
"The half halt is essential to change the horse’s balance because it creates engagement. Engagement has two parts. First, the horse carries more weight behind by shifting back onto the hind end. Then, because he activates his core muscles, he is able to lift the forehand." ~ Kathy Connelly
"You’re not going to get a quicker reaction by digging in your spur. If you’re standing on one foot and someone comes behind you and scares you, you’re not going to put your foot higher in the air. You’re going to put it on the ground." ~ Robert Dover
Many horses need to be in true self carriage to regularly jump cleanly in the show jumping phase. Meaning that you have to be able to soften the reins in front of each jump without the horse changing their canter.
"The engine has got to be revving, and then you put your pedal to the floor and it will go. Sometimes you have to get the engine screaming." ~ Chris Bartle
The horse shows improved self carriage and more expression and cadence in his gaits, not as a result of the rider doing more, but by the horse doing more and the rider less and less.
In no way does holding a horses neck in a position build up correct muscle. The topline muscles that you are looking for are only developed by the horse using his whole body correctly. Which will not be achieved by using the reins, or a gadget like draw reins, to hold the horse's head down.
Don't confuse being left behind over a jump with a defensive seat on cross country. They are very different. The rider who is in a defensive position on cross country is a nickel behind the motion, while still not interfering with the horse in any way. The rider who is left behind is catching the horse in the mouth and slamming their backs on landing, both the ultimate punishment for the horse jumping the fence. If you are getting left behind often, it may be time to move down a level and work on your basics.
Self carriage isn't just for Dressage. Think of little checks for self carriage when jumping as well - even on cross country. Never attempt to hold your horse up!
"You have to constantly refine your program and train with the best people that you can find so that you’re always growing and staying competitive." ~ Jessica Phoenix
"There is no miracle, there is no magic wand. It is just education, trying to be as clear to the horses as you can. When I give an aid, is the horse going to understand?" ~ Emile Faurie
It is tempting to try to lift your horse up in front when he drops down too low, by giving a good yank upwards on the rein. But that is not a good fix for this problem… as it will tend to increase the horse’s anxiety about the rider’s hands. Which will likely only increase the horse’s desire to drop behind the connection in his work.
"The horse has to have independence, responsibility, and tolerance for a variety of distances because you’re going to mess up and the horse has to be able to cope." ~ William Fox Pitt
Lack of sufficient long and low stretching work often causes sore backs in horses. Their back muscles need to be loose, relaxed, and swinging to be healthy!
Turn on the forehand and leg yield can be used to teach the horse that the rider's leg can mean something other than, "Go forward." The horse must understand this concept in these very basic movements before you will find much success with any of the more complicated lateral movements.
"The absence of a correction is not a reward to a horse. The only thing that is a reward is 'good girl' or a pat on the neck or giving them a sugar. You can’t train a seal without fish." ~ Robert Dover
Riders can benefit SO much from discussions about their riding. Riding is as much cognitive as it is physical - both aspects need to be exercised to truly improve!
"The actions of arm and hand must complement rather than contradict the position and effect of the seat and leg. The inside rein must be shortened sufficiently to allow the hand to maintain the lateral flexion without any backward pull on the rein. In general the inside hand should be kept just in front of the outside hand." ~ Chris Bartle
When bending their horse or performing the shoulder in, it is a common mistake for riders to draw their inside heel up, bringing the inside leg too far back to give the aid. This tends to push the horse's hindquarters out, producing angle rather than actual bend.
Soften and let your horse lengthen his neck, while trying to maintain the feeling that he stays sitting behind, with a lowered croup and well engaged hind legs.
"Most of the riders ride with their upper body very stiff – especially their shoulders. If the stomach is in balance and in the position it should be, the shoulders are allowed to relax, and should relax. You need to be loose in your shoulders. As long as the rider is breathing in the upper body he is going to be too tight, too cramped to get the horse to go forward from a relaxed seat. The rider learns to breathe in the lower stomach and everything will relax. The weight will come into the saddle and the horse moves away from the aid of the weight. But if a rider cramps in the upper body, he cramps everywhere and is effectively unable to ride his horse." ~ Ernst Hoyos
When giving the aid to canter, let your outside leg sink back and down as the last part of your canter aid. If you lift your leg up and back to use it (as so many incorrectly do), you will end up losing your seat to some degree, and may also end up sitting crooked.
"I do not ask the rider to alter the horse’s step in front of the pole because I want to awaken the horse’s initiative. Whether he takes a slightly long step or adds a step before the pole, I am equally satisfied. If he steps on the pole, the chances are good that he will learn from the experience and not do it again. If he continues to step on the poles on the ground, I suggest that the rider find another prospect, as this one is probably too dumb to improve over obstacles." ~ Jimmy Wofford
"Contact is nothing more than the contact to the hind leg, the contact that the rider makes between the mouth and the hind leg. This is the duty of the rider, to put these two together. The moment the horse starts to move, and he moves behind, you have to feel it in your hand, then you have to let it out." ~ Jean Bemelmans
"Since the criteria of a correct seat are the same as the criteria of good posture in general, being constantly attentive to one’s bearing when standing or walking is excellent training. A correct vertical posture of the head and the trunk on horseback is not a special posture applicable only to riding." ~ Kurt Albrecht
The length of horse's neck and his length of stride are very related. A short, restricted neck means a compromised stride, and a long neck that truly seeks the connection will allow the horse to move to his fullest potential.
"Having a horse with crazy gaits and an eagerness to please at 5 years old is freaking me out because I’m really feeling the weight of the responsibility to not push too hard, too fast." ~ Lauren Sprieser
"I think it is important to recognize that horses do not just teach us about how to ride and train them... they teach us lessons about our lives, and how to live them." ~ Jimmy Wofford
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 seat and weight aids are supporting aids. They support either a leg or rein aid, or both. Don’t underestimate their significance though. They are important aids, especially in the fine tuning of advanced horses. The leg and rein aids will fail to achieve their full effectiveness without the support of weight and seat." ~ Christian Thiess
"As I grew older, I became more aware of the basic principles of dressage, and the first is soundness. In my country we have vets at the stables 24/7 – it's a red flag, it tells you something is wrong. Why is the horse limping? Because it is not worked correctly. You need dressage for soundness, to build muscle, to get the horse carrying the weight on its hind legs – then you have less vet problems." ~ George Morris
If your breastplate is fairly tight when your horse is standing still, you will be preventing your horse from being able to use his shoulders at all as he moves and jumps. Make sure there is enough room to put a fist between the middle of the breastplate and the horse, or a little less so for breastplates with elastic.
"I’m a big fan of ground lines. I think it teaches the horse to have better technique in front. Everything that we do is connected — the way we start on the cross rail to this, it all connects. We're building through our training." ~ McLain Ward
"So what do we see when we watch these masters at work? We learn what it means to become a good rider. It means to be picky, detail-oriented, motivated for your whole life, paying attention to every stride, having a system but with the flexibility to adjust it. Even before you can control the horse, you have to first control yourself (99 percent of problems with a horse are caused by the rider). Finally, a good rider needs the willingness to say, 'I made the mistake. The horse didn't make the mistake.'" ~ Christoph Hess
Clinics can be great for the overall experience of doing lots of testing exercises, while hopefully getting some new tools and ideas to add to your "toolbox". But private lessons with your trainer are where you establish your basic foundation and understanding of your training system.
"How can the rider expect the horse to have confidence in his hands when this piece of metal is constantly moving in his mouth?" ~ HLM Van Schaik (Dutch Olympic Medalist)
If you want to jump well, make sure you can consistently canter over poles on the ground in a smooth, balanced manner. I am always surprised how many riders are attempting to jump courses, yet they cannot nicely canter over a ground pole.
A Dressage rider’s leg should lie softly on their horse's side like an "al dente" noodle - draped around the horse to allow for soft, subtle, and precise leg aids.
Many amateur riders have a tendency to worry about the fact that their aids may not always be 100% correct when they ask their horse to do something. And therefore they are less likely to insist if their horse does not respond correctly. But just remember that horses can be taught to do just about anything from just about any aid. You can teach your horse to canter on the left lead if you pull on his left ear…. if that's what you want to do. So while it IS important to make sure your aids are as correct as possible, make sure you DO insist that your horse listen to your aids. Even if you don't ask for canter or leg yield the exact same way his last rider did, your horse CAN figure out what you are asking for, if you motivate him to do so.
"The horse is the fastest learner of all domestic animals—including children. If you stay alive by running away, you better learn fast." ~ Robert Miller, DVM
"In the warm-up, I mostly ride curved lines so that I can work on lateral suppleness along with getting the horse relaxed over the back. I spend as much time as it takes for the horse to feel relaxed and willing to lower and stretch from his withers. I do circles, serpentines and figure eights. There is no point in going on with movements if the horse is not supple over his back. I also use leg yields as part of the warm-up to help get the horse responsive to the inside leg and connected to the outside rein." ~ Charlotte Bredahl-Baker
"We try to have discipline and attention to detail in everything we do. Being aware of all these little details gives me an advantage. And if I get a little edge everywhere more often than not I am going to be ahead." ~ McLain Ward
Always keep your spine stretched upward when riding. When you slump, your head and shoulders will become "heavy", and your horse is more likely to become heavy in your hands.
"A Horse(wo)man is someone who constantly seeks to find out what they don't know about horses, horse care, riding and training." ~ Andrea Monsarrat Waldo
"To motivate our horses to travel in a stretching position, I let them chew the reins out of the hand now and then and take care that the horse stays collected behind. I slowly lengthen the reins, ride actively to the hand, introduce the increased stretch to the bit and drive toward it. Ideally, my horse will take the reins out of my hands through the stretch of the neck and the chewing action of the mouth. To take the reins out of the hands means that the horse actively responds when he gets the signal to chew. Many horses deviate from the ideal in that they invert, roll over or go against the hand." ~ Uta Graf
"A true horseman/woman understands the psychological and physical health requirements of their horse just as much as they understand riding and training them. The deeper you look the more fascinating it becomes..." ~ Nancy Zanetta
"It's a wonderful and unusual thing when professionals (and amateurs) who compete 'against' each other are so fantastically supportive and helpful to each other. It makes our sport pretty special. :) " ~ Joan Childs
"After the horse has, for a certain period of time, been lunged in the appropriate way, it will not be very difficult to ride a twenty metre diameter circle." ~ Dr. Henri van Schaik
"I'm very visual. I also am good at making myself into a pretzel. Last night I though of how a skier in slalom changes direction with subtle motion, otherwise they'll bite it. With that subtlety, my mare easily floated back and forth in the zig zag." ~ Annette Gaynes
Horses that have been trained with force often remain somewhat in "prey animal" mode, which means that they will be always looking for a way out of the situation they are in.
"At the beginning, the horse should have a long neck, and be really going into the bit, and that I am able to always have steady contact with a willingness of the horse to go forward. They are a little down at the beginning when I do my warm up, it doesn’t matter if it is a four-year-old or a Grand Prix horse, the first ten minutes are the same. Then when you go to collect, you try to keep them in exactly this position – in front of your leg so the horse is always willing to go forwards, and out." ~ Hubertus Schmidt
As an Eventer, it is smart to do some of your canter flatwork at the gallop, to teach your horse that the extra speed of the gallop is not an excuse to be wild or disobedient.
"In the half halt that creates carrying power, we are asking the horse to slow down and carry more weight when his hind leg joints are closed and his hind foot is on the ground. The levade, in which the horse sits on his hindquarters, is the ultimate example of this kind of closing of the joints while carrying the weight." ~ George Williams
"In matters regarding their nature, it is hardly surprising that horses can outwit the rider with considerable ease – after all, they only need to be themselves to succeed. This is so, because in horsemanship the task lies entirely with the rider to become more horse-like, and not for the horse to become human. But, as we gain better understanding of the creatures and find greater harmony with them, we discover to our delight that they feel neither the need nor desire to outwit the rider, and usually come more than halfway to comply with any reasonable requests." ~ Erik Herbermann
The bigger the jump, the more the horse must rock back and lift upwards on the takeoff. Therefore as the jumps get bigger, it becomes even more important that you are poised and patient with your upper body off the ground.
It is not wise to practice your Dressage tests in their entirety very often. Doing so will only cause your horse to learn the test and begin to anticipate the different movements. If you can get your horse truly connected and on the aids, the tests themselves will be easy. Spend most of your Dressage schooling time improving the connection and your horse's carriage, rather than test riding.
"First thing I look at when I buy a horse is paces rather than breeding. Beautiful parents don’t always produce beautiful children. I’m not looking for the flashiest paces, but also the trainablility and rideability. How are you going to keep a big, flamboyant mover sound into Grand Prix? You want an easy mover." ~ Carl Hester
Even for those of you who already have your flying changes down pat, it is a good idea to sometimes practice simple changes when jumping courses in training. Simple changes of lead are a great way to remind your horse that jumping a course is really flatwork with some jumps in the way.
Make sure that you never sacrifice the quality of your horse's movement when you are practicing lateral exercises. Keep your focus on maintaining an even rhythm and level of impulsion, with a nice relaxed swinging back, quiet soft hands, and a consistent connection throughout. If you start to struggle with any of those qualities, it is best to come out of the movement, and fix any issues before trying again.
A healthy muscle in your horse's body is pliable and feels a little like a beef roast. It should continue to feel pliable, without tensing up, when you palpate it.
Always challenge yourself to use as little hand as possible in riding any exercise or movement. The more freedom your horse has up front, the more expressive his movement will be.
"No matter if you are a horse, a rider, a dancer, or even a tennis player, tension is your enemy. Suppleness means that the muscles contract and de-contract, and this has to go through the entire horse, it cannot be blocked in the middle of the back, and it also has to go through the rider." ~ Susanne Miesner
If you quit on the right note when working on a difficult concept during training, many horses seem to ponder the concept, and come out even better the next day. Those that say horses do not think deeply are decidedly mistaken.
"A lot of riders think that will make their jumping better by jumping as many jumps as possible. They will go and get a jumping lesson, as opposed to a dressage lesson or doing some physical exercises to teach them body awareness skills, and probably the last would help them most." ~ Andrew Hoy
If you have truly done the right preparation for a medium or extended trot (or canter), you should need to do very little to actually ask for the movement. You should be able to simply allow it to happen… no mad kicking necessary.
When trying to find your balance, whether for posting at the trot, jumping a fence, or anything in between - you will always be in one of three positions: Either ahead of the motion (too far forward), behind the motion (too far back), or exactly with the motion (perfect). If you have a strong tendency to be in one of the positions other than perfect… say you are often a bit too far forward, don't be discouraged if you find yourself going the other way (too far back) when trying to break your bad habit and make a change. It is a perfectly normal part of the process of finding your balance. Riders will almost always teeter back and forth over that line…. sometimes a bit too far forward, and sometimes a bit too far back, before they find that perfect middle ground.
Once your horse is fairly solid at first level Dressage, a good thing to ask yourself regularly while riding is, "Could I easily go into shoulder in at this moment?"
If your horse is balanced and straight, and stepping up into your outside rein, you should be able to promptly and easily create a quality shoulder in at any spot in the arena, no matter what gait or figure you are currently riding.
"Anyone using their spur every stride, should be yellow carded and kicked out of the sport. Use your whip, get a response, then ask again with your leg, and get a light response." ~ Christopher Burton
Think of Dressage training exercises as physical therapy for your horse… similar to the strength training that you might do at the gym. Do a few good reps of a particular exercise, and take a break, or move on to something else. Overtraining any particular group of muscles can be counter productive, often doing more harm than good.
You can't assume that a horse with a low head and neck is on the forehand, any more than you can assume that a horse with a high head carriage is truly collected. You have to look at the whole picture.
When your horse is impressed by a jump, and gathers itself a bit to "look" on the approach, you have a free half halt. Do not get caught taking back in this situation, or you may cause your horse to stop. Think "keep the hind legs moving" all the way to the base of the jump to ensure that you maintain sufficient forward energy as the horse looks. Yet don't push them out of balance by trying to run at the jump.
"I want any rider approaching any jump to concentrate on rhythm. They should concentrate on HOW they get there, not where they get to." ~ Jimmy Wofford
"What is essential is not to tighten the legs during the dressage training, but rather to use them without effort while allowing them to hang softly near the horse’s sides." ~ Nuno Oliviera
Remember that even a COW can jump a 3 foot fence from a standstill... if it wants to. So never worry about whether or not your horse has enough scope to do lower level eventing or jumping. The bigger issue is whether or not you can keep him balanced at the canter.
The better the rider's seat, the more easily the horse can understand the rider's aids. So make working on developing and maintaining an independent seat a top priority!
"Sometimes doing the small things that others think is like watching paint dry, like taking the time to warm up at the walk, will give you a better foundation in which to improve upon your trot & canter work." ~ Joan Dunlap
Varying the degree of your half pass can improve your horse’s suppleness from all angles, as well as increasing his responsiveness to your aids within the movement. In other words, while going in half pass across the diagonal, half halt, and do a few strides with a steeper angle (more sideways than forward), then go forward again.
To achieve the lovely feeling of jumping "right out of your stride", you have to have the right canter for each situation. If you don't know what kind of canter you need for a particular jump… or are unable to create it exactly when you need it, you will be more likely to meet the jump awkwardly. This has less to do with the rider's "eye", and more to do with the awareness of the quality of the canter.
"Riders who lean back are driving the horse down in front. If they sit too strong, behind the vertical, then they are pushing the horse down, through and into the hand." ~ Carl Hester
"The absence of a correction is not a reward to a horse. The only thing that is a reward is ‘good girl’ or a pat on the neck or giving them a sugar. You can’t train a seal without fish." ~ Robert Dover
It is a good idea to ask yourself regularly throughout your rides…. "Am I working too hard here?" If you are, your aids are probably WAY too strong. Go back a step, and work on more finesse.
"What we want to start creating in these horses is an engine that is always running, where we don’t shift gears until we want to. It’s like revving your RPMs and waiting a moment before you shift up into that higher gear. But if you don’t have that energy in the lower gear, you might stall when you go to send them forward." ~ Laura Graves
"Every downward transition perfects the half halt. You don’t have to have a driving leg for the downward transition, you need a sustaining leg." ~ George Morris
"I’m not sure if it is chicken or egg, but the riders who sit in the middle of the movement, in the middle of their horse are the ones with the self-carriage." ~ Chris Hector
"The position and length of the horse’s neck, through its many anatomical interconnections with the trunk, has a direct biomechanical effect on the back. If the head is placed unnaturally deep or the neck is unnaturally shortened it will inevitably lead to movement faults and eventual health problems." ~ Angela McLeod
"Self carriage is really easy to see. The best thing you can do for self-carriage is the give and re-take of the reins. It is amazing how you forget to do that when you ride on your own." ~ Carl Hester
"I'm very visual. I also am good at making myself into a pretzel. Last night I thought of how a skier in slalom changes direction with subtle motion, otherwise they'll bite it. With that subtlety, my mare easily floated back and forth in the zig zag [half passes.]" ~ Annette Gaynes
You have to think about how you can get into your horse's head, to win him over to your side, rather than trying to muscle him around. Horses usually seek where they are most comfortable. Always keep that in mind.
It takes an experienced instructor to know whether a rider who has lost their confidence needs to move back to smaller jumps and more simple exercises, or if that rider instead needs to be shown the exact techniques that are going to fix their particular problem, and then pushed hard, so they can see how easily they really CAN do it.
"When a correctly positioned rider is viewed from the side, her whole leg will lie flat against the horse in a relaxed way with the knees and toes pointing forward. In order to achieve this position, you must develop the ability to stretch the inner adductor muscles in your thigh." ~ Sarah Geikie
"The greatest hindrance to driving the horse properly comes from riders stiffening their legs…. The horse cannot monitor tight legs as aids and will sour to the pressure, which he will interpret as a meaningless second girth." ~ Charles De Kunffy
"When the horse is forward, when the horse is using his hind leg more under the body and the neck falls down from out of the wither, then it doesn’t matter if the nose is a little behind the vertical if there is no pulling by the rider." ~ Johan Hamminga
A great instructor is always thinking and learning about new ideas and concepts, and is always looking for new ways to impart those ideas to their students. The minute one stops learning, one stops growing - and can become stagnant.
"Imagine hanging a wet towel over your horse's back. The pressure of your leg aids needs to be similar to the pressure of the towel on the sides of your horse. Your horse should go on his own with this passive leg aid, and if he does not, you need to give him a firmer reminding aid." ~ Steffen Peters
"The key to successful half halts is, first, to have a very clear idea of what you want to achieve: Do you want your half halt to create more balance? More collection? More flexion? Self-carriage? Roundness? Second, you need to recognize--with listening aids--when your horse responds correctly so you can soften or give at the right moment. During your softening moment within the circle of aids, your whole body rewards the horse and tells him, 'That's what I wanted.' The horse feels this instantly. The quicker you notice your horse's positive response, the better trainer you are." ~ Oded Shimoni
It is perfectlynormalto feel nervous at times, but you DO have the ability to control and redirect your thoughts. Like anything else, it is a skill that you have to work at.
"Usually, the half halt should be invisible to the eye--not only because it looks good, but also because it doesn't disturb the rhythm and flow of the horse's movement." ~ Oded Shimoni
