Tip/Quote of the Day # 153"If you’re a typical goal-directed, Type A personality kind of rider, it’s easy to over- focus on short-term goals and over-school the movements your next test calls for. Yes, it is OK for your main concern to be where your horse is in the moment, but you can get so wound up in the “now” that you neglect the bigger picture of your horse’s overall physical and mental well-being." ~ Bill WoodsTip/Quote of the Day # 152An oldie, but a goodie ~ "If you always do what you have always done, you will get what you have always gotten."
Don't keep doing the same thing over and over. If something is not working, try something else.Tip/Quote of the Day # 151When softening the reins, it is common 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.Tip/Quote of the Day # 150Always be ready to stop jumping and do a few minutes of flatwork when you run into a problem. Good flatwork will fix most jumping problems. Tip/Quote of the Day # 149"When you are galloping cross country, there has got to be a give in your position." ~ William Fox Pitt
So make sure you always have some bend in your hips, knees, and ankles - these are your shock absorbers.Tip/Quote of the Day # 148It can be very helpful to keep a journal of your daily rides, and especially lessons. As soon as you get done riding, write down a few notes of things you learned that day, while it is still fresh in your mind. You will then be able to look back on it, and make better use of everything you have learned. Tip/Quote of the Day # 147A running martingale that fits correctly does not come into play unless the horse tosses its head. It should not be used to keep the horse's head down.Tip/Quote of the Day # 146If you are going to make a mistake when jumping, make it coming forward, not pulling back.Tip/Quote of the Day # 145An automatic release over jumps ensures precise yet subtle communication between horse and rider even in the air over the jump - but is especially benefical upon landing. Tip/Quote of the Day # 144Horses that carry tension in their bodies are much more likely to be spooky, resistant, and disobedient. Use suppling exercises to help dissolve that tension.Tip/Quote of the Day # 143A rider should focus on the top rail of the jump they are approaching, until the moment that the horse's head blocks their view of the jump (which is dependent on the size of the jump and the height of the horse's head carriage.) At which point the rider should look to their next jump.Tip/Quote of the Day # 142Jumping from the trot is a great exercise in patience for both the horse and the rider. Tip/Quote of the Day # 141From member and Facebook fan Catherine Norman ~ "I must remember that my hands can go forward without the rest of my body following." Tip/Quote of the Day # 140From Facebook fan Lisa Roberts ~ "Good dresssge, like good coffee, is rich, smooth and well worth the wait."Tip/Quote of the Day # 139Many riders have a tendency to take their legs off when the horse gets excited, but this trains the horse that he can make the rider take the pressure off of him by acting up. Keep your legs on, ignore the nonsense, and keep riding forward.Tip/Quote of the Day # 138The horse usually tries to compensate for the lack of strength in his back and his 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.Tip/Quote of the Day # 137Horses love a routine… it gives them confidence. With the nervous or green horse, develop a warm up routine that you will use every day. And make sure it stays the same at shows.Tip/Quote of the Day # 136“The most important thing that I want to see today is horses looking where they’re going. I don’t want horses to be waiting, waiting, waiting for instruction. I want them to be looking forward, watching how their expressions change and how their ears lock onto the fences." ~ William Fox PittTip/Quote of the Day # 135Always be on the lookout for even the most subtle amount of bulging to the outside on circles and turns, as it is highly unbalancing to the horse. And remember that too much bend in the neck is the number one cause of bulging to the outside. Tip/Quote of the Day # 134Think about keeping your head up and still throughout the jumping motion to help keep your upper body more quietly poised.Tip/Quote of the Day # 133
The rider's hand should act as a filter, and not as a closed drain plug, which would kill the energy of the hind legs.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 132Whenever a horse jumps in less than ideal form, it is almost always a result of loss of balance on the approach. So fix the problem by improving the quality of the canter on the approach. Tip/Quote of the Day # 131When you hurry a horse, you just get to the wrong place faster.Tip/Quote of the Day # 130Excessive bend in the neck, whether lateral (to the side) or longitudinal (behind the vertical), disconnects the haunches from the rein aids and allows the horse to remain locked up in other parts of the body, such as the poll and hips.Tip/Quote of the Day # 129When you turn your knees and toes outwards as you remain seated in the saddle, the muscles in your seat tighten and pinch your horse's back.Tip/Quote of the Day # 128As your horse brings his body together from back to front into a higher level of balance and collection, if you do not shorten the reins to adapt to the horse's shorter body length, you will tend to lose what you have gained with respect to the "coiled spring" of the hind quarters. Tip/Quote of the Day # 127Land from a jump thinking about what you are going to do next. Don't land thinking about what you just did.Tip/Quote of the Day # 126Quote from Facebook fan Kristin Powers ~ "It takes WAY MORE outside rein than you ever think it does!"Tip/Quote of the Day # 125If you are inexperienced, it is truly invaluable to walk your cross country course with a coach. Due to terrain issues and fence design, there are many details that you are likely to miss if you are walking without a coach, or at least an experienced cross country rider.Tip/Quote of the Day # 124Practice your two point position. A lot.Tip/Quote of the Day # 123"If you go forward and "miss", your horse will forgive you. If you pull back and "miss", your horse will never forgive you." ~ Jimmy WoffordTip/Quote of the Day # 122You should always be just a nickel behind the horse's motion when jumping at speed.Tip/Quote of the Day # 121Transitions act as a test of your connection. If the quality of your connection is lacking as you begin a transition, it will be particularly evident as you execute it. Tip/Quote of the Day # 120If the horse is incorrect in the first stride of a movement, then don’t do the second stride. Abort, fix any connection issues, and start again. Tip/Quote of the Day # 119Train your horse to be responsible for maintaining the gait or movement you put him in, with no nagging from his rider.Tip/Quote of the Day # 118PREPARE for your transitions, don't just do them.Tip/Quote of the Day # 117“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing” ~ Theodore RooseveltTip/Quote of the Day # 116Only the horse with a supple, relaxed back can have true impulsion.Tip/Quote of the Day # 115"It hardly needs to be mentioned that, in order to ride good corners in the arena, you have nothing more to do than to apply the same aids as for enlarging the circle. Just as we don’t need to mention that spiraling out on the circle is a preparatory exercise for shoulder-in and spiraling in on the circle is a preparatory exercise for the haunches-in." ~ KimmerleTip/Quote of the Day # 114"Americans want instant dressage the same way they want instant coffee." ~ Jack LeGoff Tip/Quote of the Day # 113A good jumper is a delicate mix of chicken and bravery. Too chicken and he won’t go, scared to run on down to jumps he is not familiar with. Too brave and he may lose his carefulness - knocking everything down, as it doesn't bother him too much when he hits a jump. The best Eventers have this mix just right, to be good at both cross country and the show jumping. Tip/Quote of the Day # 112Systematic, progressive training is like stacking one building block squarely on top of another, to eventually build a strong, solid building.Tip/Quote of the Day # 111Think 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.Tip/Quote of the Day # 110Most riders don't do nearly enough transitions in their daily work sessions.Tip/Quote of the Day # 109Energy has to be created before it can be shaped or contained.Tip/Quote of the Day # 108A horse can become lazy or unresponsive to the aids within a single ride. Always pay attention to the strength of your aids, and be ready to stop what you are doing for a moment when necessary to focus entirely on increasing your horse's responsiveness to the aids.Tip/Quote of the Day # 107"If we don't ask for a shorter frame and more suppleness, the horse won't offer it," ~ Steffen PetersTip/Quote of the Day # 106"It is not what you don't know that causes problems, it is what you don't know that you don't know." ~ Brian SaboTip/Quote of the Day # 105Ride smarter, not harder. If it starts to feel too hard, look into learning how you can use a more intelligent technique to make yourself more effective. Tip/Quote of the Day # 104Your seat and weight aids "trump" your leg and rein aids every time.
