40/ JANUARY 2014 THE RIDER
Send us all your coming events!
Horse Riding - Why Walk Is the Most Important Gait for Your Horse’s Performance
wrists, hips, knees, ankles & toes). Keep your core engaged. Your horse will mirror what he feels from you. Maintain a supple, following contact on long reins. If your horse will not go for-
www.themorningfeed.com
By Anne Gage How your horse carries himself
(his frame) while he is being ridden affects his physical and mental state. For him to be able to perform at his best requires that he is supple, bal- anced and has strong back muscles to comfortably carry the saddle and rider without stress or strain. Your horse needs to work in the correct posture or “frame” to be able to per- form at his best. A good riding frame begins
with a good walk. A good walk: • is the most difficult gait to achieve • is the easiest to destroy • has even, active, rhythmical steps with impulsion • can only be achieved with supple muscles, a swinging back and flexi- ble joints. If your horse is stressed or has
tense muscles, he cannot achieve a good walk. To create a good walk, you
must encourage your horse to push forward energetically from his hindquarters so that his hind legs step well underneath him. It is important that you release any ten- sion in your own body. Soften from your neck to your seat bones as well as all your joints (shoulders, elbows,
ward into the contact, hollows his back, takes short “sewing machine” steps or rushes into trot, work him on a 20 metre circle. This way you can encourage him to bend more around your inside leg. Feel and follow the natural swing of your horse’s barrel. Keep your legs gently contacting the barrel and give a stronger push with your inside leg as you feel his barrel swing outward. Ensure your outside leg is soft so that it follows and does not block the movement. The bend helps your horse relax and lower his neck which helps lift his back to level. At the same time, your seat asks your horse to step forward. Be careful not to tense up the
hips or arms as you increase your push. Your hips move in a figure eight pattern following your horse’s natural movement - dropping side to side with the movement of the barrel and moving forward with the steps of the hind legs. Your arms maintain soft, supple contact allowing your horse to stretch. If your horse’s walk is choppy or he wants to rush into trot, add a half halt by taking back your outside shoulder (without pulling back on the rein) as your horse’s outside shoulder comes for- ward. Be careful not to move your elbow back behind the mid-line of your body as this creates a pull on the reins which will cause too much pressure in your horse’s mouth. Repeat the half halt as necessary but only on that one beat. As your horse develops a good,
relaxed walk with impulsion, swing and suppleness on the circle in one direction then work on the other direction. You may find your horse finds it easier going one way than the other. This is normal because horse’s are left or right sided the same as we are left or right handed. If you or
your horse get frustrated or tense going one way, go back to the direc- tion where the work was easier until you get relaxed again. Once you have developed a good walk with some consistency on the circles then you can start to do some work on the straight line coming back to the cir- cle to re-establish relaxation whenev- er necessary. At first you work with your
horse in a long and low frame. As his strength builds, you can gradually ask him to come onto the bit by tak- ing shorter contact as you increase his impulsion. When he has devel- oped consistency in the walk, you can begin to ask him for transitions to trot but only moving up to the trot when he stays level with a lifted back.
Whether you are a pleasure or
competitive rider, if you want your horse to remain sound, perform to the best of his ability and enjoy his job, he needs to develop physical strength, suppleness and balanced movement. His emotional state of mind is just as important. Only if he feels relaxed and confident in your partnership with the proper frame of body and of mind can he truly be your willing partner.
Bio: Anne Gage is a Gold Level trainer certified in the Chris Irwin method of horsemanship. She teach- es adult riders to confidently work with their horses, improve their rid- ing skills and bring the joy back into their riding experience. Her training and coaching methods are based on building mutual trust & respect between horse and human. Anne coaches and trains clients out of High Point Farm near Orangeville, Ontario, Canada and also travels to other locations giving one & two day clinics, workshops and private ses- sions. For more information, visit her website
http://www.annegage.com Article Source: http://Ezin-
eArticles.com/?expert=Anne_Gage
Equi-Bow Canada Graduates
Equi-Bow Canada has announced two recent graduates from the Cer- tified Equi-Bow Practitioner’s pro- gram (CEBP) : Linzi Sally from the Niagara area and Heather Rigg from the Ancaster area, currently residing in Romania. Heather Rigg has been inter-
ested in horses since she was 6 years old living in Zimbabwe. Graduated from the University of Guelph in June 2013 and from Equi-Bow in December 2013, she also holds qualifications as a Reiki
Master and Animal Com- municator. Currently residing in
Bucharest, Romania, teaching English as a sec- ond language at the Lexis School of Languages, she is also helping to develop a Functional Anatomy course
specifically
designed for the Equi-Bow program. Heather is also heading a private Face- book page for Equi-Bow students related to postural and movement assessment. She may be reached direct- ly at
h.rigg@hotmail.com
Linzi Sally is an ele-
mentary school teacher residing in Niagara Falls Ontario. Her passion for horses began the young age of six and has been growing ever since! Her love of animals, particularly dogs, has inspired her to serve on the board of directors with Therapy Tails Ontario and volunteer with her two great danes, Caber and Brogan. Equi-bow has given Linzi a con- nection with horses that she never knew was possible and she now
hopes to expand her knowledge by training to become an Equi-Bow instructor in the near future. She is excited to have completed her practitioners certification with Equi-Bow Canada and is honoured to bring this relaxing touch to the Niagara Region. Linzi may be contacted by email
Equibowservicesniagara@gmail.co m or Phone: 905-246-3228
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52