Sarah Martin Dressage Teaching the Rider to Feel

At this moment I have a number of students looking to buy a young horse. Young being 1-3 years old. That choice because they would like to find a “nice” horse but can not afford the training cost to get in to a 4-5 year old or higher. They also prefer to gamble on their own ability to train and keep a horse sound than to buy into someone else’s problems.

I sure sympathize – one of the motivations Clayton and I had in buying land here in Colorado was the ability to breed our own mare and raise our own horses here. We spent almost a dozen years traveling to Europe to buy horses for clients, and are keenly aware of the cost of purchasing well bred horses.

The long and short of it, however, is that horses, whether you buy them or breed them, are a gamble. I once told a worried Dad who was looking at a large investment on a horse for his daughter, to only spend the money if he was comfortable throwing the money out the window of a speeding car. He looked as though I had slapped him, but it is true. Horses come with 100% no guarantee other than that it costs money to buy one, it costs more to keep one, and you are extremely likely to have unexpected costs and issues along the way. Farrier, vet, nutrition, training- there is one direction the money goes, and it is not into your bank account!

For breeder’s, it is truly the harshest gamble of all. When you look at a young horse, you can rest assured that the price of whatever age it is, does not equal what it cost to GET the horse to that age. When I have rider’s upset at the cost of a well trained horse, I have to constantly remind them of the years that went in to creating that horse. Buying a well trained horse is like buying artwork- it is a matter of taste, and your decision what value that “art” brings to your life. It is not possible to say that spending $2500, $25,000 or $125,000 will bring you “more value” or a “better horse”. Just as buying a Jaguar guarantees more time in the shop than buying a Honda, and costs a whale of a lot more up front, it is really important to do a lot of soul searching for truly what it is you are looking for.

Here are some parameters I encourage students to examine:

1. What are your REAL goals? Not dreams- GOALS.

2. How old are you? Do you have time to start a horse and 4 years down the road start another one if this one does not work out?

3. Can your body truly stay with a young horse?

4. What kind of time do you have on a daily/weekly/monthly basis? Young horses need time and attention- will you have it to give? If not, do you have enough income to parse out training time with a professional?

5. Are you willing to take your horse to new environments and just BE THERE- maybe not showing, or riding in the clinic, but just letting your horse get acclimated?

These are just a few elements to consider as you decide what kind of horse you can afford. I personally am a hopeless horse addict and need horses in my life, but I am starting to rethink whether breeding them, or saving all that “trickle out” money and just buying the ones that have made it to “sound and rideable” is not ultimately the better use of time and effort. That is me- how about you?

I just spent two weekends in a row getting to do my second most favorite thing- teach about dressage to riders hungry to learn. [Of course, my most favorite thing is to be at home riding my horse with my husband helping me!]

Whenever I get to do a symposium, I am so excited to see the interest and the enthusiasm that dressage generates in riders, from the most elementary to the Grand Prix. One of the things I really enjoy is pointing out to riders that what they are doing at WHATEVER level they are currently riding, is a stepping stone to the refinement and balance they will carry into the FEI levels of dressage work. I had a rider in my clinic in Texas who did such an amazing job balancing a nervous, very wide bodied and unstable paint mare in canter; that I had to stop her and say to the her and the audience- “Take a moment to digest what you just did, and what you just saw- this was Grand Prix riding on a First level horse.” Really. To get that particular horse to find the degree of balance and self carriage the horse created was truly masterful riding- but when we are working at the “lower levels” and not doing fancy movements, we can lose track of the fact that we are honing our skills, our sensitivity and awareness, that will make it POSSIBLE to execute the FEI movements. It is this endless journey of refinement and awareness that makes dressage what it is. Granted- I got drawn to dressage by the one tempi changes- but once I had ridden them, it was anti climactic- the thrill came in the development of the canter balance, the refinement of my ability to balance and aid with intention and result. I have had rides on my 5 year old that were as exciting and rewarding as my rides at Grand Prix. The difference for me now is that I know enough to recognize “the moment.” I think it is important for teachers to help their students see this. We may not all end up riding one tempi changes, but we sure can learn to recognize “a moment” in our horse or in ourselves that would help us know that the ability is there and growing!

HI Everyone,

This is Tara writing a post on Sarah’s blog. This weekend is going to be the second “Teaching the Rider to Feel” symposium and it is turning into a really great event.  We did the first symposium in Colorado.  A big  difference in this event versus some auditing you may have done is that the audience is being educated directly.  Sarah has created an outline for the morning lecture, hand-picked applicable videos to highlight her points and then uses the demo pairs to link to the topics of the morning.  The audience is encouraged to ask questions and take copious notes.  The goal is to provide all attendees information to enhance their current riding programs and inspire them to develop deeper connections with their horses.  When you’re ready to schedule one of these awesome events in your area please contact Sarah at ahd@indra.com or myself at taranolanhorse@live.com.

Here is a clip of Sarah talking about Western Dressage at the Teaching the Rider to Feel Symposium in Colorado.

Good Riding,

Tara

Author, Out of the Saddle: 9 Steps to Improve Your Horseback Riding

Sometimes good riding is complicated. Sometimes good riding is just incredibly simple. The hard part, especially as you are learning, is figuring out which day is which. I had a great day with one of my Adult rider’s yesterday on her well trained FEI horse who was not acting at all well trained, and was persuading her that even walking on the bit was out of his physical capacity. I met this rider a year ago and she was one of the most crooked rider’s I have had across my field of vision in a long time. She also had been pumped full of a lot of poor information about her riding ability, and she had read a lot about what was correct riding. When I first met her, what struck me the most was her drive- this was a person who wanted to learn, would put massive amounts of effort into it- but who had no idea how to organize the information she was being given, in her body or in her mind. She was also in her early 60′s, if age strikes any of you as a factor!

Yesterday she was sitting on her horse straight. Her legs were not bunched, her seat was connected- and her horse, desperate to find a way to delay the work day, rounded somewhat and looked slightly to the outside, setting up a nice comfortable LEAN onto his inside shoulder. I like to ask my students to observe what they are seeing/feeling in their horses as they warm up so I can help them learn to see the “fatal flaw” and ignore the “symptoms”. My rider started very accurately describing all the symptoms…but seemed to be missing the fact that her horse was not LOOKING where he needed to be going- i.e. was not flexed in his inside jaw. I let her go on for a bit, then pointed this out. I told her if he stopped looking, to use the rein to put his head back, then leave the rein alone, but don’t drop it. Tell him to let it go- and then stay in the box of her aids. Simple. Bless his well trained heart, after one lap of testing constantly, he gave up and she had an awesome 30 minutes of walk, trot and canter balanced and co operative- one of those million dollar rides where you can’t believe dressage can be this easy! Just keep that inside jaw flexed…

But who are we kidding? A LOT of detail in both the horse and rider went into that 30 minutes of heaven. I know very well that 30 minutes is unreal- 3 strides is sometimes a highlight! I am one of the most “guilty” in terms of giving my students information- a LOT of information- so that they can ride on their own and troubleshoot for themselves. But sometimes- sometimes, when your body is co operating – just try riding with correct equitation, correct weight distribution within that equitation- and don’t do anything fancy, just go around the arena with consistency and balance until your horse says “Really? Just this?” It can make a great day for both of you- enjoy the ride!

Just when I thought I had straightness figured out, a new understanding has been shown to me by my horses. The two in the moment are Belle, my coming 6 year old mare doing second level work, and Donzer, a coming 10 year old gelding working on cleaning up his flying changes and learning to do tempi’s- where the changes come in a specific count.

To start with Belle- being the “daughter of the trainer” I am sure is like being the oldest in the family- even as your parents try to treat all kids alike, there is the undercurrent of “but you should know better” put on the eldest. That got pointed out to me this winter/spring by Belle. As I have shared on Facebook, she started getting cranky in her work, which was a huge concern to me. This mare loves to work, and loves the feeling of power in her body. It has been my hope to keep that joy in her work without getting planted along the way. This winter she discovered a fast duck to the right accompanied by about 3 huge bucks when we would canter a 10 meter circle to the right. Not the “enjoying the power of her body” I wanted to cultivate! Without going through every grimy detail, suffice to say that between Regumate, excellent body work and a serious contemplation of my riding, the problem appears to have been diffused. What I realized with my riding is that I had been asking TOO MUCH straightness from Belle in the canter- and was blocking her ability to lift and jump through in the range SHE needed. This was exacerbated in the canter to the right, as she is a “lefty” and hence led to her exploding out of the narrow path my seat was demanding- without me consciously realizing I was demanding it, I might add!!!!

So after scratching our shows, x raying her withers, repairing her with body work and stabilizing her hormones, I have also relaxed my seat that I did not know needed relaxing, and Belle is working in the best self carriage I have ever elicited from her- by, of course, getting out of her way, and allowing a very slight drift in her shoulders- it allows her the room she needs to feel free to move!

I am on the exact OTHER end of the spectrum with Donzer. Having cleaned up his understanding of clean changes behind, I started putting them closer together, on a quarterline, on a diagonal- and BANG he is back to being late behind. Donzer is very strong and very heavily muscled- this is like teaching a football player to tightrope walk- and what I have found is that I have to spend EXCRUTIATING amounts of time suppling, lifting and softening his “thoracic sling”- i.e. shoulder/wither connection- so that he stays soft in his back in the moment of the change. I have to SOFTLY straighten his tendency to jump his right shoulder right- or he is late behind. He likes power, and he likes to swing his body- just an inch is fine with him- then the change happens “his way”.

So- Donzer- straight, with finer degrees of softly straight. Belle- allow a bit of drift to keep her soft. That old training scale is a mighty handy tool, but there are many definitions of relaxation, suppleness, connection, impulsion and straight!!!!!! Use them- and enjoy your ride!

I have just spent the past 3 days with my good friend, Jamie Tanaka. She is a professional photographer, but also well trained in Cranio- sacral work on horses. So between photo shoots she worked on the different horses I have here in training, and what a difference she rendered! I try to help the horses by not keeping them in stalls, and being as thorough as I can be in their warm ups and cool downs, but there is nothing like good, deep tissue massage to really allow the muscles to open up and get blood circulating. Riding addresses the same muscles groups over and over, and obviously this creates a stress pattern of it’s own. Good body work can allow those muscles to be accessed from a different direction, or release places where muscles have started to bind up- riding simply can not do that, even really good riding! I know my own body functions at it’s best when I can not only ride, but cross train, and then getting trigger point myotherapy. It was always amazing to me where the body starts to hold that we are not even aware of. I am so grateful for having this awareness rekindled for my horses!

As I walked [and sometimes ran] around the showgrounds this past weekend, I was struck by all the horses and riders around me, and how, for each one, a show presents it’s own drama. This was a Dressage selection show for the Olympics, so there was a broad spectrum of horses and rider’s going through that drama- the jog, the judges, the flags, the flat tires…The judges had their “aspiring judges” scribing for them, so each was carrying their own drama about being accurate, about being on a panel, about not “messing it up”. Technical delegates have to be sure they do not miss any infractions. Show management has to be sure everyone, and everything, is  in place.

It makes the “open” show feel very laid back by comparison. Drama goes on, however- the rider showing the first time at a certain level, hoping to get a certain score. The horse moving up, or coming back from an injury, or packing a new rider. The up and coming professional on an unruly horse thinking “Why here? Why now?” The established professional on a green horse thinking “Just hold it together through this one, buddy, and you can go home…” The established professional on their trustworthy horse who suddenly sees aliens thinking “Why here, why now?”

I marvel at horses imported from Europe ever getting on a trailer again. I also marvel at horses going to these shows where just walking from  the barns to the warm up means crossing millions of high wire energy vibes being emitted by people and horses alike. It highlights to me how important it is to stay conscious of how you are with your horse- to really work daily on creating trust, empathy and respect so that in that “alien moment” your horse looks to you for guidance. I have an expression that I use with my young mare: “Stay in my room.” I try to get her to feel that my aids are a buffer, a protection from the barrage of energy coming at her, and that if she stays mentally with me she can physically relax. You can teach your horse that the BEST place to be is in the competition arena, where you have it ALL to yourself, if you just look at it that way. How you look at it is how your horse will look at it. So- breathe deep- repeatedly- create “your room” – and remember- everyone out there is writing their story, so be sure to keep a positive spin on yours! Enjoy the ride!

As life has unfolded, two things have become apparent to me- I love horses, and I love teaching. I have, and I continue to, train horses from their first time under saddle to FEI level. I have started rider’s and developed them into FEI rider’s. I enjoy working with kids, and I enjoy working with adult’s. My high is to see the relationship between a horse and rider get better because the rider gets better at speaking his horses language. Not the human spoken language, but the body language of the horse. My low is when I meet rider’s who have invested years and untold amounts of money into being berated, scolded, and made to feel stupid because they can not do what their trainer can do on a horse.

In my opinion, a trainer’s job does need a degree of definition. At the racetrack, trainer’s get to train. Jockey’s get to ride. Owner’s get to WATCH. In the Dressage world, we do not enjoy that kind of job description. Not every trainer can teach well- and not every instructor can ride well. Some can- and you, as the aspiring rider who WANTS to learn and IS WILLING to pay, have to sort through what is out there and try to figure out if you are being given good information, correct information, timely information that is appropriate to your level of riding- and your horse’s level of training.

What are indication’s of a good trainer? In my experience, good trainers have happy horses that make progress in their work. Good trainers can explain why a horse is a certain way, what it is they are trying to teach them, and they do not mind explaining why a resistance has come up and how they are going to resolve it. That doesn’t mean they never argue with or confront your horse, but they do not LIVE in a state of arguing and confrontation. Good trainers have a sense of methodology that they apply to your horse, and therefore should be willing and able to explain to you. Good trainers are willing and able to answer your questions. They are also willing and able to answer your HORSES questions. A good trainer rides your horse in such a way that YOU can ride it- or can explain why, in this moment, that is not possible. A good trainer is not afraid to be honest about what they do and do not know. A good trainer is not threatened by you talking to your friend’s, reading articles, or seeking advice from other good trainer’s. A good trainer may at times tell you your friend’s are wrong, an article you read does not apply to what your horse is doing at this moment in time, and may warn you that riding with another good trainer at this point in time is going to generate confusion. But they can tell you why.

Good teacher’s are in the same boat. Just take the word “horse” and substitute “rider” or “student” and the same attributes apply. Good teacher’s are willing to confront you- but not brow beat you. Good teacher’s can identify where you are now, and can outline where you are going. Good teacher’s are willing to allow you to get upset, but they do not keep you in a STATE of upset. Good teacher’s will stabilize you- and push you. Good teacher’s will encourage you to educate yourself. They will try to protect you from mistakes, and just like good parents, they will forgive you when you insist on making the mistake anyway[unless it involves hurting or confusing your horse, in which case a good teacher will risk standing in your way, and telling you why.] Good teacher’s have that mix of tolerance and impatience that encourages you, but motivates you to try harder. Good teacher’s come at all levels, and the best teacher’s are the ones who know when they have taught you what they know, and encourage you to move on. Good teacher’s are secure in their area of expertise, and don’t feel they have to be expert at everything. Good teacher’s, good trainer’s and good rider’s all share a common trait: the ability to balance what they know, and to communicate it to you and your horse.

horse on March 17th for the Rocky Mountain Dressage Society in Parker, CO. This symposium is focused on giving exercises and specific visual cues that allow a rider to start to understand the influence of their aids on the horse. Any style of riding is based on our ability to influence the horse’s balance, and particularly in Dressage we keep fine tuning our horse’s response to very minor shifts of our weight and balance to create a relationship with our horse which results in a harmonious picture of two bodies working as one. Dressage does not have the ONLY say in this department, however, and it is fun to illustrate great equine/human examples of communication and balance with videos of Domo Vaquero and Stacy Westfall as well as our fantastic dressage riders, Steffan Peters and Heather Blitz.

It has long been my contention that understanding how to create this communication is not limited to a talented few, but is an open door through which anyone can walk if they have the interest and the desire to do more than just get on their horse and boss it around. I know that the majority of rider’s would prefer to get along with their horse, and that the struggle to understand how much, in what order, is what really confuses any training session. Riding well is truly a journey- sometimes you have to focus on yourself, and your body, other times you need to focus on your horse and his understanding. All the time you have to steadily build the ability to observe both your own body and your horse at the same time. If you do not have an organized approach to this, everything you have to remember starts swirling around in your head, and no matter where you focus you think “this is wrong! This is not good enough!” Horse’s can not separate what we think of ourselves from what we think of them, so sessions can deteriorate into “criticism’s” instead of “building block’s”. In this symposium I am able to help rider’s see and feel their influence on the horse, see and feel his response, and start to give them a clear “order of aids” that make sense to the horse and the rider. The result is two bodies that start to operate in balance, with an understanding of  how they got there, and what to do when that balance falls away. For riders and horses alike, frustration is the by product of “ try”  without a clear sense of the answer. Confidence is created when both a horse and rider understand what is being asked, and how to respond- and when that answer enhances a greater balance in the horse, both the horse and rider gain in their confidence.

It was pure pleasure for me to get to share this clear process with so many interested riders- some on horses and some just taking the day to study and to learn. As we all take the time to look more deeply at what it is we are asking of our horse, and take the time to learn how to understand their answer, our ability as rider’s and communicator’s increases. That is what “Feel” is all about!