Memories of my early days at the local riding school include eager young equestrians falling off. Yet we riders were advancing faster than our understanding Anxiety rises and riders fall when they try to skip steps. And riders, when anxious, don’t really enjoy the process.

Describing research into rider falls, an article headline read: The risk factors surrounding many falls may be preventable.  Makes good sense to me. And it lines up with what I’ve noted as a judge and riding coach over the years. While wearing protective gear – helmets and safety vests – do prevent the severity of

Would you say you’re always aware of what you’re saying to your horse? Riding techniques may vary but if we can put our riding aids into words we’re likely communicating clearly to our horse. And are we more intentional about the signals we send to horses we ride than the words we speak in casual (human) c
conversations?

A horse will tend to hide behind the bit if his rider’s hands are noisy or inconsistent. If it works, behind the bit becomes his default whether or not the threat is still present. This is “Avoidance Conditioning”. We do the same – once hurt we tend to protect ourselves from further hurt by avoiding a person vs. forgiving them, self-protection vs risking again.

Training your horse to work a gate teaches skills that will spill over into other other dimensions of his training. As a horse show judge, I assess and score riders working gates in several riding disciplines.

Reliable brakes – not just for reining horses.
I’ve been thankful for horses that know “whoa” before they step on the reins, unseat a novice, or collide with an oncoming horse in the warm-up ring. A reliable way to stop a horse’s feet is essential when his tension’s rising, and BEFORE he hits flight mode!