Fun Facts
News
Jumping with Jen and Tanner
I try to keep my jumping philosophy fairly simple – the rider is charged with getting the horse to the fence on a good line, with the correct balance and the right amount of energy to jump the fence in question. Once at the fence the rider should allow the horse to jump. If you are in a decent half seat and jumping relatively small fences, that doesn’t involve a great deal of folding at the hip – allow the movement of the horse to fold you.
Too many riders don’t have the horse in front of the leg – and then when they get to the fence they throw their upper body forward, just as the horse is trying to lift his forehand to jump. This puts the rider in a precarious position and increases the chances that the horse will refuse.
In the short video with this update, Jen is jumping over a small fence. Tanner’s conformation is somewhat downhill, so we worked on balancing him more on his quarters in the canter and keeping an even rhythm. In his enthusiasm to jump, Tanner can dive at the base of the jump – so it was important for Jen to make sure he stayed balanced on his hind legs in the last two or three strides coming into the fence – and that she didn’t get in front of the movement when it came to the jump.
A Lesson with Aries
I recently rode Aries in a lesson with Jean Paul Paré. I take a lesson every six weeks or so with him to make sure I am keeping the on track with my own training. This spring, we've been working on improving Aries' strength and balance - focusing on increasing the engagement of the hind legs.
This week we paid particular attention to getting Aries to work his right hind leg - his weaker leg. We did this by working the trot on a 20-meter circle with a slight counter bend to the outside on right rein and maintaining a slow rhythm while asking for more impulsion. If done correctly, the counter bend to the outside, will compel the horse to really work his inside hind leg. You do have to be careful though, that you don't just allow the horse to fall in on his inside shoulder. Asking Ears to step more deeply underneath his center of balance with his hind legs while keeping a slow rhythm, grounds each hind leg for a longer period of time - thus increasing each legs weight carrying time - and building impulsion.
As Aries started to work deeper and increase his self carriage, we introduced some canter work. We ended the ride with some lateral work at the walk - shoulder in, renvers, travers and even a bit of half-passé. The focus at the moment is to continually improve the quality of his basic gaits while introducing the aids for new more advanced exercises like the half-passé.
Featured Lesson
The Disconnected Horse
by Tim Lewthwaite
Do you have a horse that hangs on the bit and feels like he is pulling you around the ring?
Does he get strong when you canter? And do your shoulders or arms end up aching during and after a ride? You may even have considered getting a harsher bit to get the horse out of your hands.