Video Discussion # 9: Awesome video of a clinic with Eventing legend Lucinda Green! Awesome video of a clinic with Eventing legend Lucinda Green! This shows what she's famous for - showing riders how to really keep their horses between their hand and leg by testing them with lots of skinny jumps and arrowheads. You can see how the rider needs to control every part of the horse's body to be successful at these exercises. And that means more focus on the rider's seat and legs to guide their horses, rather than just the reins. And I love her comment, "It's amazing what they will do if you teach them." What are your thoughts on this video? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Discussion #9: What's your learning style?
Most people lean more towards one of the three general learning styles. Knowing how you learn best will help you progress much faster in your riding. Are you a:
Visual learner - who learns by seeing? Do you learn best through demonstration, pictures, and videos?
Auditory learner - who learns by listening to directions and talking about the information until you understand?
Kinesthetic learner - who learns by feeling and doing? (often the self taught type)
"The marriage of the driving aids and the restraining aids makes it possible to bring the horse into a high level of collection. Since the horse is trained to hear and respond to aids that are delicate and refined, he can respond to a driving aid and a restraining aid at the same time, which creates collection."
The key to success in creating collection is being able to effectively coordinate that marriage of the aids, so that your horse will understand and listen to both without resistance.
And even when the rider is capable of finding that successful coordination of the aids, the horse may have a tendency to listen more to either the driving aids or the restraining aids. Meaning that they might not sufficiently hear the other one, which can cause resistance or loss of balance, and a definite lack of success in creating collection.
Which do you feel that your horse listens to less? The driving aids or the restraining aids? And what do you think you can do about it? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Video Discussion # 8: Who can tell us what caused this refusal?Who can tell us what caused this refusal? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Let's say that despite the top hat and double bridle, both of these horses are competing at training level, and you have to judge the quality of their working trots. Which of these trots is better than the other and why? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion) Discussion # 5: Great quote from dressage rider Katherine Bateson-Chandler - "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."
Of course this applies to jumping as well. And along those lines, I feel like one of the hardest things for riders to learn to do is to keep that positive tension (strength) in some areas of their bodies, while remaining relaxed and supple in others. Who can tell me what areas of the body should be "strong" and what areas of the body should be "supple" and "relaxed" when riding? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Discussion # 4: One of my favorite quotes from my trainer, Jimmy Wofford, is "The worst of them sense our fears and take advantage of us, the best of them sense our dreams and take us there."
To me this refers to the amount of "heart" that any given horse has. What does it mean to you when we say a horse has "heart"? Please tell us examples of how your horse has shown this quality! (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this discussion)
Discussion # 3: What do the words "athletic" and "scopey" mean to you?
What do the words "athletic" and "scopey" mean to you? Do you think a horse can have one quality and not the other? How can you tell if your horse has either quality? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Video Discussion # 6: What a fun video to watch! Unusual form of a Puissance competition at an Eventing competition in EnglandWhat a fun video to watch!! This is an unusual form of a Puissance competition using a triple bar instead of a wall. The riders that clear this huge triple bar jump successfully really show the concept of riding forward to the base of the jump. Of all of these very nice, scopey horses - which do you think is the most athletic? What do you think caused the rails down at 5:03 and 5:38? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Conformation Discussion # 1
These are both very nice horses. Which do you think would make a better eventer and why? Which horse do you think will be easier to ride based on their conformation? And which is more likely to stay sound? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read full discussion)
Discussion # 2: Letting the Horse do the Job!
I love this quote from Eventing trainer Eric Smiley!
"The approach to a fence is the rider's responsibility, while the take-off is the horse's responsibility. Therefore there has to be a handover period," said Smiley. "How often have you given someone a job and then done the job for them? From then on they abrogate their responsibility and wait for you to do this job in the future." "You play the game and allow the horse to learn. The rider facilitates the horse's learning by doing nothing, which is the hardest thing."
What are your thoughts on this subject? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion) Video Discussion # 4: The great Andrew Hoy!Lets look at this video of the great Australian rider Andrew Hoy! This is a great example of a rider who is always in perfect balance with his horse. He is always poised and smooth. His horse is in self carriage, and he maintains a wonderful rhythm between and to his fences. This is what we should all strive for! (Although the pom pom on his helmet makes me laugh! We used to all wear them in the 80's - and you don't see too many around anymore.) What aspects of his riding really stand out to you? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read the discussion on this video)
Video discussion # 3: Drop FencesLet's look at this video of part of a clinic given by Eventing legend Lucinda Green! I love the way she focuses on solid fundamentals like having horses calmly walk down drops and over ditches. It is one thing to use adrenaline to negotiate those type of jumps, and totally another to have the horse calmly and quietly understand how to negotiate them.
Notice how...(Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read discussion)
Discussion # 1: Things that effect horses' stride length while jumping
Course designers use a 12 foot stride when measuring distances between related jumps on course. Lets assume that your horse has a 12 foot stride naturally. It is very important when walking your course to keep in mind any factors that may effect the length of your horse's stride, and therefore effect the way the combinations and related distances will ride. What are some factors that may effect the length of your horses stride while on course? And what do you do if your horse does not have a natural 12 foot stride? (Click on Discussion Title above (in blue) to read this educational discussion)
Video Discussion # 2: Dressage test with judge's scores and comments!Here is a dressage test at an event, where you can hear the judges scores and comments. This pair recieved a few comments of "needs more reach over the topline". What do you think the judge means by that? (Click on Video Title above (in blue) to read discussion)
5 and 6 bar competitions are so much fun to watch! Other than the obvious fact that the jumps are bigger, and therefore harder to jump cleanly - Can anyone tell me why this exercise of 5 verticals with a set distance between them gets more and more difficult as they raise the jumps?
What do you notice about how the whole line rides based on the quality of the jump they take at the first, smallest jump? And how can that be applied to your show jumping rounds?
Did you see any moments when a riders position was negatively effecting the horses ability to jump cleanly? (Click on Video Title above to read discussion)
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