The bend is approaching and you begin preparing both you and your horse to ride straight and accurately through the turn. However, as you ‘shift’ your seat bones into ‘position’ your horse begins, well, almost side stepping… The further you get through the turn, the further your horse is from the path you had planned; in fact, he has derailed…
Have you discovered that your horse is a bit of a maths whizz? He has somehow figured out that if he shaves just a few meters or yards here and there off of the odd corner or three, he has to do less overall in each lesson or schooling session. He seems to have a strong understanding of distance and how to…
There you are, happily trotting around the arena, delighted at the fact that you can ‘post’ correctly; until someone goes and bursts your bubble by pointing out that you are on the wrong diagonal… “Sit for two” they shout your way… And you’re thinking ‘Come again?’! What is the Diagonal in the Trot? Being on the correct diagonal is to…
When we first learn to ride, turning is often explained to us as merely a ‘tug’ or pull on one rein or the other to turn our horse’s head. There’s a general consensus being that where his head turns, his body will go… However, anyone who has ridden a determined pony or horse will know that this is very often…
Riding through a bend is something you will have to do every time you get in the saddle, whether it be the 4 corners of your arena or just the route you take to get from point A to point B. It therefore makes good sense to work on your ability to navigate those bends successfully, without losing balance, rhythm,…