Another fun day at Windrock Farm with the kids learning to ride the obstacle course,
Vanessa cantered on Bond for the first time and loved it. Alex and Maddie took turns riding Mr. T with Rex through all of the obstacles. Everyone learned to ride with rhythm, balance and confidence through the cans, noodles, over and under the tarp, the crows and throwing the ball through the hoop.
This horse came to us with an issue bucking and misbehaving. After several weeks training you can see he is overcoming his fears with his rider and walking calmly over a tarp. He became proficient with all the obstacles on the course and gained confidence in his rider who has this to say;
“My five year old Dutch Warmblood developed a serious bucking problem, using
it to avoid working at all cost. He even began bucking while walking on a
lead line, especially if he were tacked up for work. I’m not young enough
to bounce off the hard ground anymore, and it was stressful to handle him,
forget about riding him. A friend told me about Rex, and I decided to
bring my horse to one of his local clinics. Sure enough, on the lead line,
walking around the arena, he began to buck. It was embarrassing, but at
least he wasn’t hiding the problem I wanted to fix. When Rex told me that
in his book, my horse was a “convicted felon,” and that no horse should
ever buck for any reason, I felt relief. I had secretly wondered if I was
just chicken to ride my bucking bronco, but now I knew I was right to get
help. Rex’s partner Cari suggested I bring him up for 30 days of training,
and that they would send him back to me super safe to ride. I have to
admit I was skeptical, but I was also desperate to move past this and start
seriously training this horse. Plus, Cari is a dressage rider, and I knew
she’d understand my goals. After one week, there was a noticeable change
in his behavior. After two weeks, Cari was working him in a dressage
saddle, and I began riding him as often as I could. Trail rides and
obstacle courses gave me an opportunity to push his buttons, while using
the set of tools that Rex and Cari taught me gave me-and my
horse–confidence. He came home three weeks ago, and so far, he’s been
perfect. This is the horse I thought I’d bought last June! He’s calm, a
pleasure to handle, and a joy to ride. He’ll even get “down on one” and
bow for me! I’ve entered him in his first schooling show, something I
wouldn’t have even dreamed of earlier this spring. Rex and Cari did
exactly what they said they would, and I highly recommend them.”
Linda Marciante
A new book to teach you how to ride effectively and safely from day one to day one thousand. Excellent exercises to test your skills as a rider and your horse’s training. Beautiful illustrations by Mary Bridgman and photographs demonstrating clearly how to ride better. Order Whoa Means Whoa! from Blurb now.
Order the book, Whoa Means Whoa! at the web site
This is a useful guide for training kids or anyone how to ride. Simple lessons teach the basics every rider should know whether you are entering the show arena or hacking across country. Beautiful photographs and illustrations help the rider learn the correct position to become an effective equestrian.
Sliding stop illustration by Mary Bridgman.
Come meet Rex at the next clinic at Windrock Farm April 16-17-18 and learn how to do this with your horse.
Subscribe to our youtube channel to view the latest training videos. Click on any one of our videos and you will see a button, subscribe to channel. We have had over 100,000 views of our channel over the last year…and many more fun videos to come.
photography by Glenn Hunt Photography whose outstanding work can be seen at http://www.glennhunt.com.au/
Remember to practice schooling your cross country jumps with rhythm and balance as the basic criteria when approaching a fence. You must also be straight to the jump and coming at it with an appropriate speed. Practice makes perfect, so be sure to take your time and do your homework.