Posted on July 15, 2006
A student has mastered the walk-trot work and is now ready to start to canter. She does not have the confidence to canter yet and would like some easy excercises to help her succeed in this next step.
First of all it is important to realize that the rider is elastic and moves her arms with the movement of the horses neck in both walk and canter. This is critical to understand because you do not want to ask your horse to canter and suddenly hang on his mouth which will throw him off balance and almost always force him to trot.
The best way to experience a successful canter is to ride a school master on the lunge. That way the trainer can ask for canter from the ground and all the rider has to do is sit and relax and feel the gait.
Next, the rider can ride several trot to walk transitions to engage the horse and confirm that the horse is in front of her aids. Now ask for a half halt as if you want to walk but instead, ask for canter with the correct aid. A common error is for the rider to pitch forward with her upper body and grip with her knees. Always go back to the correct rider postion to set yourself up for success.
Another easy way to ask for canter is to trot a 20 meter circle with a small cavalleti on the track, when the horse trots over the pole, sit and ask for canter. This is almost always successful. Be sure to have a qualified instructor on the ground assisting you in this lesson. They can monitor your position and help you correct any mistakes.
Posted on July 14, 2006
When training yourself and your horse it is important to ride with concentration and focus. Learn to discipline yourself to ride correct transitions and geometry. Always prepare your horse before you ask him to perform anything and be quick to soften the pressure once he complies with your request.
The balance and rhythm of your horse will improve dramatically if you remain focused and ride correctly. Take the time to learn correct circles, the 20 meter as well as the 10 meter circles will continue to help balance and supple your horse.
A great excercise to ride for suppling your horse and learning to ride accurately is to carve out 10 meter circles along the long side. Ride from cirlce to circle maintaining the same balance and rhythm. This is a wonderful test of rider as well as horse.
Posted on July 14, 2006
Two of my accomplished students–Kayla and Joa–have recently qualified to enter Lendon Gray’s Dressage 4 Kids Show in Saugerties at HITS in August. This is a great accomplishment for both students who have recently taken to riding dressage. They have worked hard to master the basics of dressage training and their dilligent focused work has paid off. Now they have to study the written materials and continue training so that they can achieve personal best scores at the event. Good Luck to both of you!
For more information on qualifying scores visit www.dressage4kids.com
Posted on July 13, 2006
Every week you can listen to the Horse Report on virtualhudsonvalley.com. In this weekly report, I discuss many aspects of the horse world and how it relates to the equestrian activities in the Hudson Valley. If you know of any upcoming events or clinics and would like to share this information, please contact me so that I can report on them.
You will also hear from Leslie Land, the garden expert, Alex Tuller, the cooking expert, Ilana with The List, and Dean Temple, our host who will have you laughing every week.
Check out virtualhudsonvalley.com and send us your feedback on the entire program. We are always looking for ways to improve the content for our listeners, so we need to hear from you!
Posted on July 13, 2006
Horses with Charisma, what qualities make a rock star personality in a horse?
Many clients want a horse who oozes attitude,but with that attitude comes a strong character that must be managed and controlled. Some horses actually puff up and love to show off in the competition arena and it is this extra star quality that makes him a champion. The judges call this the “wow” factor and often reward each movement with a higher score simply because of the “je ne sais quoi” quality of the movements. It is much like celebrities who shine in the public eye–they possess star quality.
These horses need extra attention and require an entourage of people to look after their every need. They can be quite demanding. The pay off is that they are true champions–revelling in the spotlight. You can see this quality in many of the world champion horses in the world of dressage, jumping, racing, or any of the other equestrian sports.
Much can be attributed to the relationship the horse has with his rider too, some people bring out the best in their horses–it is a team effort. You often hear about horses that give it all to one person, yet perform poorly for others. That is precisely why the chemistry of horse and rider is so important, as with any great dance partnership.
Not everyone can handle this type of personality and must take that into account when looking for a partner. Some people are better off with a workmanlike personality, a horse who does his job willingly and happily but does not need all the attention.
Posted on July 6, 2006
It is important to understand a horse’s life-stage characteristics in order to fully comprehend what he is communicating. Knowing how a horse matures physically and mentally will help you design appropriate management and training programs.
Consider that one horse year is equivalent to 8 human years until he is two years old, after that, each horse year equals two and a half human years. Thus, the horse to human equivalent is as follows; a weanling is four years old, a yearling is eight years old, a two year old is sixteen years old, a five year old is twenty three and a half years old, a 12 year old is 40 years old, a twenty year old is sixty one and a thirty year old is 85.
The adult prime of a horse is the five to twelve year old. This is when his mental and physical ability is equivalent to a human in their twenties or thirties. They are at their peak for athletic performance and hopefully have many life experiences that have made him more sensible. His nutritional requirements are basic. He can remain physically fit with moderate exercise, and his immune system is at its peak.
The middle aged horse is 12-20 years old and will lose some stamina and muscle tone, however, depending on the breed and quality of training and conditioning can remain healthy and competitive into their twenties.
The Senior horse, at age twenty to thirty, is like his over-sixty human counterpart and will suffer from dental changes that may include lost, worn or broken teeth that may lead to difficulties in chewing and maintaining weight. It is important to switch to a senior feed to maintain the quality of digestion and nutrients. Vision and hearing may deteriorate and should be considered if behaviour changes occur.
The geriatric horse of over thirty years might be physically impaired, however, under the proper management and care, he may be useful and happy for many years. My favorite horse, Fella, lived well into his thirties, his spirit remaining strong until the end. In his last years he enjoyed free range of the farm and spent many afternoons napping on the freshly cut lawn.
Posted on June 30, 2006
When competing at a dressage show, it is important to observe certain rules of behaviour. Most of these points are common sense and should be considered when attending a competition.
When entering the warm-up arena, take care not to cut off another rider. Slower gaits should take the inside track.
Pass left shoulder to left shoulder and look where you are going at all times to avoid a collision. When overtaking traffic in the same direction, pass to the inside with care and plenty of clearance. Better yet, make a circle or cut across the arena to avoid passing.
Keep at least one horses length from any other horse.
Plan halts in the center of the ring.
When turning, check your “rear view” first.
Be careful how you use your whip.. Other horses may react more enthusiastically than yours.
Fractious horses should be removed from the area immediately.
Make way for ring maintenance crews in the warm-up arena. Some competitions post a ring maintenance schedule so take care to observe them.
School your horse in a positive manner, do not school after a test if you are angry. There is no place for anger around a horse. Perform your warm-up routine with a purpose. Stick to your plan.
Always be polite. Foul language is never tolerated.
Horses not entered in the competition do not belong in the warm-up area.
Young riders have a wonderful opportunity to learn and test their skills at Lendon Gray’s Youth Dressage Festival, visit www.dressage4kids for details.
Posted on June 26, 2006
Last Saturday night, I attended the concert of Faith Hill and Tim McGraw at Madison Square Garden in New York City. I have never been to a country western concert and had no idea what to expect. There were more cowboy hats in one room than I had ever seen, including at Quarter Horse Congress. Many generations of families came out to experience this unique concert of a superstar couple performing their many hits.
Although I knew some of the one hit wonders like Breathe, Live Like You Are Dying, and Firefly, the other songs were new to me. I was amazed at how the audience sang every word of each song with incredible devotion t0 their favorite group. Looking around the arena at over 35,000 people loving this music was a very powerful experience. We were seated in the fifth row on the floor between 2 sections of the stage so that we could see the performers from 10 feet away. Both performers are charismatic and beautiful people, extremely gracious to the fans. The almost 3 hour concert had no break, with the couple performing a song and then Faith performing for one hour followed by another duet and finally Tim taking over until the end. They paced themselves throughout the performance, moving in and out of the audience to make contact with the fans. They did not seem to care that the fans wanted to touch them and shake their hands.
In the end Tim tossed out his guitar pick into the audience where it sailed though the air– landing under my chair. As I picked it up and noticed his signature on the pick, I felt some good luck wash over me. If you ever have a chance to go to their concert, I would highly recommend it.
Posted on June 24, 2006
The rider must influence the horse effectively with clear communication from the saddle. When the horse does not perform correctly, the origin of the problem is almost always with the riders postion. Therefore it is important to understand the correct position and how to fix any misalignment. The rider’s postion should also make the timing and coordination of the aids easy and harmonious with the movement of the horse. Some common faults are:
The arms are too straight which results in a loss of flexibility in the elbow joint.
The elbows fall behind the riders back, or the reins are too long resulting in the loss of flexibility in the shoulder.
The shoulders are raised and pushed forward resulting in the loss of flexibility in the shoulder joint.
The elbows are sticking out causing loss of flexibility in elbow and shoulder joints.
The head is pushed forward losing alignment with the spine.
The waist is weak and wobbly creating loss of straightness in the back, as well as overall strength in the vertical postion.
Gripping of the knee causing loss of flexibility in the hip and knee joints.
The lower legs are too far back causing loss of balance and flexibility in the hip and knee joints.
The toes of the inside foot are pressed down against the iron and the heel raised, to give more strength to the leg aid and allow the use of the spur causing loss of flexibility in the knee and ankle as well as losing the lateral postion in the saddle.
The outside of the foot is lower than the inside, the ankle bulging outward causing loss of flexibility in the hip, knee and ankle joints.
By now it is clear that the riders position in relaxation and alignment is critical to effective communication with the horse. Check your position the next time you ride and learn to experience when you are out of balance or out of alignmnet. Without a doubt, your horse will perform more effectively when you correct your position.
Posted on June 23, 2006
Fly season is upon us. It is time to protect your horse from the onslaught of the black menaces. Did you know that there are over 16,000 fly species are found in North America, and of those, 300 are horesfly and deerly species. Fortunately, only a small number of these are likely to menace you and your horse. The species you are most apt to encounter depends on the region of the country, in our area, the worst toublemakers on the trail include the horsefly, deerfly, blackfly and on occasion, the horn fly. The most annoying of these are the biting deer flies which suddenly disappear in September.
There are many fly sprays out on the market, so take care that you test them on your horse as some can cause an allergic reaction to your horses skin. In some cases, sensitive horses will develop many bumps which can be cleared up easily by treating him with various drugs you can aquire from your vet. If your horse tolerates garlic, feed him a supplement with each meal. You can also mix lavender, lemon, skin so soft and rub on your horses ears and face to repell the nasty menaces.
A correctly fitting fly mask is a must for horses turned out in open fields.You can also use a light fly sheet to protect the body of your horse.
Flies are day time biters, most active on sunny still days. So if possible ride at the end of the day or first thing in the morning…happy trails!