36/ JUNE 2017 THE RIDER If you would like to Palm Partnership Training™ Building a Partnership with your Horse


“Western Dressage: Warm Up Routine”


By Lynn Palm A good warm up rou-


tine is valuable, whether you are about to school your horse for your latest test in Western Dressage, or are just heading out for a trail ride. Your horse needs


a pre-exercise


warm-up routine to help loosen and limber up his muscles. A warm-up also prepares the horse’s mind for the work you will be asking him to do— whether it is schooling, trail riding, pleasure rid- ing, or showing. Start the warm-up by


letting your horse walk on a loose rein. The warm-up pattern should include very large circles, large turns, and straight lines. The horse should be mov- ing forward, but in a re- laxed manner. After warming up at the walk, ask the horse for the trot or jog. The trot is the best gait to limber up the horse. At this point, the rider


should not be worried about the horse being “on the bit.” Instead, he should be allowed to move for- ward on a loose rein with


the rider guiding him to stay on the circle, large turn, or the straight line. Spend equal time going in both directions. Change directions often to loosen up both sides and to keep the horse’s interest during the warm-up. Post


when


trotting/jogging during the warm-up period, whether you are using an English or Western saddle. This gives the rider an opportu- nity to warm up and to use her own muscles. As the rider begins to loosen up, she will notice that her muscles respond better and her coordination improves while her thinking slows. The rider begins to relax as her warmed-up body al- lows her to better follow the horse’s movement. As part of the warm-


up, the rider may try taking her feet out of the stirrups to get down in the saddle and closer to her horse. As her body loosens up, she will find she is able to fol- low the horse’s movement and stay in balance even without stirrups. There is no set


amount of time for a


warm-up routine. Usually, the colder the weather is, the longer and slower the warm-up should be to loosen up cold muscles and joints. It must be long enough to physically and mentally warm up the horse, but it is not intended to wear him out or bore him. Enough time should be spent in the warm-up so that both sides of the horse are equally loosened up. A good gauge for the


rider is that she should feel the same balance and re- laxation without stirrups as she feels with them. She also should feel her mind slow down and focus, and she should feel positive about the upcoming riding session. Once this has been achieved, it’s time to proceed from warm up to the actual lesson, training period, or pleasure ride. We would love to


have you come ride with us. We love to share our dressage backgrounds and knowledge with you. You can join us at our Ocala, Florida, farm or at one of our Ride Well Clinics on our USA Tour at a location near you.


train with Lynn & Cyril at home with Western Dres- sage, take advantage of the following supportive train- ing materials: Books: Head To Toe Horseman- ship Western Dressage—A Guide to Take You to Your First Show A Rider Guide to Real Collection DVDs: “Dressage Principles for the Western Horse & Rider” Volume 1 Parts 1-5 “Dressage Principles for the Western & English Horse & Rider” Volume 2,Parts 1-3 “Let Your Horse Be Your Teacher” Parts 1&2 For more information


on these training materials and more, as well as clin- ics, please visit www.lyn- npalm.com or call us at 800-503-2824.


Rolex Continued from Page 34


third year in a row, the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event was won by Michael Jung of Germany aboard FischerRocana FST. Second went to Maxime Livio and Qalao Des Mers of France, with England’s Zara Tindall and High Kingdom taking third.


and complete results, visit www.rk3de.org.


Rider / Horse / Owner / Score 11th / Selena O’Hanlon / Foxwood High / John & Judy Rumble / 70.6 12th / Hawley Bennett- Award / Jollybo / Hawley Bennett-Awad / 77.2 17th / Jessica Phoenix / Pavarotti / Don J. Good / 83.7 18th / Lisa Marie Fergusson / Honor Me / Lisa Marie Fergusson / 86.6 26th / Holly Jacks-Smither / More Inspiration / Bruce Smither & Holly Jacks- Smither / 105.9


Three-Day Event also fea- tured overall team standings through the Dubarry of Ire- land Nations Team Chal- lenge, where Team Canada finished fifth overall. USA took first, New Zealand sec- ond, and a combined team of Australia, Germany and Great Britain was third. For more information


The Rolex Kentucky


18th place on a final score of 86.6 penalties was Lisa Marie Fergusson from Lan- gley, BC and Honor Me, her 11-year-old Welsh Sport Horse gelding sired by Bry- narian Brenin. For a record-breaking


phalian gelding owned by Don J. Good. Together, they finished in 17th place on a total score of 83.7 penalties. The highlight of their per- formance was the dressage phase, where they were in the lead on a score of 43.1 penalties after the first flight of horse-rider combinations finished on April 27, and finished the phase in sixth place overall following the second flight on April 28. Following Phoenix in


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