Showing posts with label riding horses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label riding horses. Show all posts

Improving your Equine Skill Set

Improving your Equine Skill Set


Everything that we do in life requires different skill sets. Unfortunately, when it comes to horses, many folks approach it as an "I bought it, I should be able to do it." But the reality can turn out quite different.


One of the challenges for both pleasure and competitive riders is prioritizing the time and having the mental clarity to build their skill set when it comes to their horsemanship.


Basics of Balance: Assessing your riding behaviors

Rider:
When the rider has the ability to use all of their aids (hands, seat, upper leg, lower leg, upper body, head) independently of one another.

i.e. If you move your left rein does your right lower leg grip the horse's side? If you rise up in the upward motion of the post in the trot, do you tighten your fingers on the reins? When you are trying to turn your horse with the rein and you lean with your upper body towards the direction you were attempting to turn.

Challenges:
A major challenge for folks creating independent aids is a general lack of body awareness in general.

Yes, they are sitting in the saddle. But how? Are their seat bones "plugged in?" Do they understand what part of their body conveys what communication towards their horse? Are they able to offer a variety of energy in their fingers, seat, and legs?

Making Summer Memories...

It is a glorious summer day and I just returned from adventures down back country roads, where folks pull over and fill up water bottles at natural springs; where you slow down and smile as you pass the 1950’s tractor steadily rolling down the road after a hard day of baling hay. It is a place where you wave at the passing train and the engineer honks the horn and waves back enthusiastically… Where you watch elk graze in the early dusk, eagles and osprey soar above the hay fields, and deer help their young cross the road.  Whether it is folks casting their reels hoping for the next great fishing story, families and friends floating down the emerald rivers, or children making memories at summer camp that will influence their future perspectives on life, nature and decisions, nothing holds a candle to watching a group of riders emerge between the same mountains that Lewis and Clark, David Thompson and other explorers have made famous.

It has been unseasonably warm and at 104 degrees F, and as I sat watching the riders make their way down to a creek that intercepted with a phenomenal river, untack, climb aboard bareback, and without hesitation plunge into the waters, was priceless. As the scene before me unfolded, a newly released song came on the radio; it was talking about the “last firsts.”

And often as it seems to be with music, hearing it, along with seeing the horse events unfolding before me, brought me back to my own many firsts I’ve had with horses. I was feeling a bit emotional as I reminisced about how many memories I had that were horse related, and how quickly I could close my eyes and “be” immediately back in a time and place many years before.  I could smell the horse sweat, taste the grit in my mouth, feel the heat of the sun glaring down on me. 

It didn’t matter if it had been years before when I’d been riding in the snow crested peaks of the Pacific Northwest mountings (even in July,) battling a blizzard trailing sheep in tip of the Patagonian mountains, taking a Mediterranean “short cut” crossing via an inlet feeling the power of my horse swimming through the turquoise ocean, trailing cattle through the high desert with giant saguaro cactus towering above, or riding barefoot, bareback and in a halter at the rear of a herd of summer camp horses… whether it’d been 30 years ago or just a few years prior, those experiences are forever imprinted in my mind and emotions.

I’m not particularly a touchy/feely kinda gal; a lifetime of living in a “man’s world” creates an emotional distancing of oneself, a lifestyle of relying solely on yourself creates callouses not only on your hands but in your ability to rationalize decisions and a self imposed “durability” over the years leads to a relentlessness that would overwhelm most folks if they were faced with the decisions I make on a regular basis. But when I think back to those invaluable equine moments, all of my toughness dissolves immediately.

The point of sharing all of this is that as I drove the other day and watched the kids and adults share that bonding moment with their horses, I realized that it was a once-in-a-lifetime moment that they’d never lose.  I find most things that get shared via social media are done so because of the emotional draw.  People who’ve been in major traumatic accidents with horses and yet push through the recovery  with the goal of returning to the saddle again are inspired purely based on their emotions. Those folks who save horses from abuse, potential slaughter or neglect, to those who see colts and dream of their future blue sky potential, (if a person has nothing financial to gain,) the draw is always the emotional release horses offer us humans.

For some reason from the time of marching into battle thousands of years ago with the armies of Genghis Khan to jumping insane modern day obstacles, to the backyard kid, to the die hard Pony Clubber, from the hunter who religiously packs into the backcountry in search of their winter harvest, to the social trail rider, from the Amateur competitor to the rehabilitative experience of just being within close proximity to a horse, these equines continue to give, and give and give to us humans.

I was recently regaled with a few stories from new clients, returning clients and folks I’d just talked to and given advice to over the phone and via email correspondence.  They each came back with these heart-warming stories of the life-changing experiences they’d had recently with their horses based on advice I’d offered or after lessons/training with me. 

The one shared theme as they told of their individual experiences was the emotional release, empowerment and long term confidence they had developed from their journey with their horse. 

Because I don’t “only” work with one discipline, breed, or level rider, I’ve begun to realize a huge part of the inspiration of what I try to offer folks is the ability to “read” the horses, make rational decisions riding in “real time,” and offer them effective tools to clearly communicate.  This all can contribute to them then having those “life changing” moments with the horses. It also allows a mental and emotional "freedom" that I find is rare within the equine world of rules, traditions and restrictions.

Often the conversation one has with the horse, really resonates in all aspects of the person's life, it isn’t “just” about horses or riding.  The horses tend to draw the best and worst out of people; I imagine it has a lot to do with their honesty and black and white interpretation of the world around them.

I’ve found that this summer I’ve been slowing down more, I’ve been watching more, listening more, and more contemplative. I feel that sometimes as I watch the behaviors, I yet again refine my initial interpretations of what I see, to best understand and improve how I communicate with horses and humans alike.  And it all comes out in my lessons, clinics and training.  I can literally see the changes in humans and horses alike.  I believe our journey of horsemanship never ends; there is always more to learn, see, try and do.  Every horse and every scenario is an opportunity for us to learn from, embrace and evolve from.

So, maybe you can take a few minutes and whether you just stroll down memory lane or actually jot something down, perhaps you can practice a few minutes of thankfulness as you explore memories of what horses have taught you, forced you to confront about yourself, and inspired you.  I think if we brought more appreciation to the horse (even the frustrating, challenging and difficult ones) then our partnership with our horses, would have  stronger bonds and increased quality experiences. If we humans spent less time comparing how much “we” accomplished and more time on making quality memories, ironically “we’d” get a lot more done with our horses. 

So please, I encourage you to set out with a smile the  next time you approach your horse, take every unexpected experience as an opportunity to evolve and build upon, and I promise you, it’ll make you a better leader for your horse and emotionally happier.

Sam



Raising the Bar and Becoming the Leader our Horse Needs and Wants

Focusing on the human aspect of what we expect and hold as our own standard directly affects the quality of what we offer our horses.

This week of lessons taught seemed to maintain a theme with me encouraging students to “raise the bar” in all aspects that they interacted with their horse.  I understand that our horsemanship is an ongoing experience, but even if someone is a “student” themselves, they still must be a leader to their horse.  I find that the pendulum seems to swing to extremes from over-confident and undereducated horse people, to those who are learning and realize in the process how much they were unaware of “before” their real learning began, and have therefor become hypersensitive or over analytical in regards to all aspects of their horsemanship. 

In my own teachings I have found some of the top reasons for a delay or lack of clarity in human communication offered to the horse seem to include (but are not limited to)

a.) Hopefulness- where the person makes a compromise within themselves physically in order to “fix” what their horse is NOT doing.

b.)Distraction by the “end” goal rather than the current event.

c.) The person is unclear within themselves of what exactly they want from their horse and yet have already presented a scenario to the horse.

d.) The person is self-absorbed into OVER thinking a situation and “missing” the moment(s) when their horse has attempted to communicate with them asking for direction, help, etc.

e.)When dealing with either a hypersensitive or “mentally shut down” horse and not wanting things to “get ugly, big or dramatic”, etc.

We humans tend to want to continually measure “how much progress” we have made with our horses.  The standard for which you hold yourself and your horse to should not be compared with what your “friend and their horse” can do, nor what you saw someone on a training DVD do, nor with what you used to be able to do with a different horse you used to own.  Instead you need to evaluate where you and your horse are “at” on the particular day of the current session.  The past is the past and the future is unknown.  This allows you the opportunity and “freedom” for forward progression.

“How can I help my horse?”  The most valuable thing you can do is to become a clear LEADER.  Remember horses are herd animals, when you and your horse are together, you create a herd.  There is only ONE leader in a herd.  If you do not make the decisions, your horse will.  Being a leader does not mean you have to be aggressive, micro-managing, an egomaniac or “driving” your horse every step of the ride.  Being the leader also means that you cannot be “hopeful” that your horse will “figure out what you want.”  Being the leader does not mean expecting the “correct response” to something you haven’t presented clearly, or riding in an “after the fact” manner- i.e. not communicating clearly and then correcting the horse after he didn’t do what you wanted, rather than presenting what you wanted fairly in the first place.

Being the leader means that you make clear decisions in what and how you want to do something with your horse, and then you use clear communication whether it is physically or spatially to convey what you would like to your horse do.  It also means that you follow through as your horse is trying; if he doesn’t initially offer or understand what you would like, you are not there to just tell him “NO”, but rather to find a way to help and support him in order  to “get it right.” 

As a leader it is your responsibility to SUPPORT your horse whether he is insecure, worried, unclear, stressed or experiencing any other emotional stress.  It is your job to make the decision in how to take an overwhelming scenario and perhaps present it to your horse in “pieces” or baby steps, so that the end goal becomes realistically attainable rather than overwhelming.  

As a leader your brain must be participative 110% of the time; life, job, family and other personal stress, distractions or issues must be “left at home.”  If you show up at the barn only partially mentally and emotionally committed your horse will sense it in less than ten seconds.  He will also get defensive if you pressure him to offer 100% when you are not completely “present” during the session.

We’ve all heard the saying, “You are your own worst enemy.”  This definitely holds true in the sense of how we can “sucker” our brains into overthinking, and then psyching ourselves out.  I had comments this week from students ranging from national level competitors to “back yard riders” who all realized they have at times psyched themselves out of things that had never bothered them before. 

We’ve also heard the cliché, “Knowledge is power,” but I find many times with students that they can get in “trouble” trying to process too much knowledge in theory, without putting in enough “time in the saddle” to improve their eye, timing, clarity, etc.  So sometimes as much as people can be enthusiastic students and what to “sponge up” all the information they can, it can become too much and then can actually handicap a person from “experimenting” with their horse to find out what works and what does not for their particular abilities and partnership.

I’ll be honest, for those of you who have ever attempted to “take on” reading my website there is a LOT of information to process.  Over the years I have specifically used the site the “sift” through potential students who just wanted a “quick fix” for them and their horse versus those that understood their journey with their horse was going to be an ongoing process.  On the other hand, if people have enjoyed the site, many have said, “Wow, I never knew how much I didn’t know.”  But sometimes this sudden new knowledge can allow a person to “corner” themselves into thinking that they now have nothing to offer their horse because of their realization that their current knowledge is limited.  If you carry feelings of insecurity inside of you, there is no way you will BE a leader to your horse.


Remember, if you’ve made it this far you have SOMETHING to offer your horse.  Perhaps advanced movements or scenarios are not appropriate for your current abilities, but there are always things you can do with your horse both from the ground and while riding that can be rewarding and confidence building scenarios for both of you.

Years ago an amazing horseman was helping me with a difficult horse, for most people the horse would have been considered a serious candidate for euthinization because of his extreme athletic and dangerous outbursts that followed his mental stress…  I had definitely made progress with him over the years, but had not realized that he gently trained ME to learn how to work around his “light switch” personality by being very “quiet” in order to avoid any level of confrontation.  The horseman was watching a scenario where this was occurring and he said, “Embrace the tantrum.”  It was such a bold statement that it took several days for my brain to process what exactly was meant by those words.  I finally realized, if I was going to always “tiptoe” around my sensitive horse, my tentativeness was actually adding to my horse’s stress, fear, and anxiety of the unknown.  But if instead, I directly addressed and HELPED my horse “face his fears,” although he may have a bit of a mental and physical melt down, if I was able to follow through in my support, I’d actually help my horse get to feeling better about life after we got through the tantrum.  So I will add to the initial statement, “Embrace the tantrum, but don’t leave your horse in it.”  This statement also does not mean to “challenge” your horse until he “blows a fuse,” which sadly is a very common scenario in things such as trailer loading, crossing water, etc.

So perhaps in time away from your horse you can begin to think back on past sessions and look for possible “holes” in your own behavior that are creating a lack of believable leadership towards your horse which in turn may have caused unwanted results.  Try and learn from the moments when you were/are clear and how fast your horse responds with an, “Aha” moment of recognition that he can offer you what you want, or when the scenario feels more like the “blind leading the blind,” and you and your horse saying, “I don’t know, what do you want to do?” to one another.

Most people can be the leader their horse needs if they start with believing in themselves.  This in turn will allow you to be the quality leader your horse needs, and you’ll be able to raise the bar and reap the rewarding results of your equine partnership.