32/ MAY 2019 THE RIDER Here are a few rules


Palm Partnership Training™ Get Results You Can Use


Training Outside The Box “Training Outside


the Box” is just in time for spring training. The “box” refers to those con- fined areas, such as are- nas and paddocks, where many riders have spent winter


training time.


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Let’s get out of the “box” and learn to train outside for more fun, but always with safety in mind. This newsletter series is going to help you and your horse do just that! Why train outside?


In 1976, I trained my first National and AQHA World


Champion


“Lecanto Raider” on the trails surrounding the beautiful Northwood community of Eagle River, Wisconsin. He was trained 85% on the trails, and only 15% in an arena. There are three im-


portant reasons for train- ing outside: (1) It helps maintain the horse’s awareness and attitude because he has new envi- ronments to experience; (2) It helps keep both the horse’s


and the


rider/trainer’s interest be- cause being outside adds variety to lessons; and (3) If the rider needs to teach a horse to go forward, es- pecially a horse that gets lazy and lethargic easily and requires effort to ‘stay forward,’ training outside is the best thing to do! The most common


question I am asked re- lates to training and trail riding outside. Riders are


concerned about losing control of their horse, and what to do if the horse is disobedient, bucks, or rears. The rider gets fearful and apprehensive about getting hurt. We want to avoid these is- sues so riding and train- ing outside remains fun and safe! The answer to pre-


venting these problems is recognizing and exercis- ing the horse to release what I call the horse’s “inner energy.” Many riders do not realize that when they take their horse into a new environ- ment, they will almost al- ways experience their horse being overly sensi- tive and being higher strung in new surround- ings. Riders tend to ex- pect that the horse will work and perform in new surroundings in the same way as he does at home. They do not realize that a horse will nearly always be different in a new and different environment. This is especially true of horses that are not ‘sea- soned’ - - those who have not become experts in going different places and traveling many miles over many years. Just as importantly,


many riders do not real- ize that any healthy, fit horse will have some level of ‘inner energy’ that must be released be- fore he can concentrate on the task at hand. The level of ‘inner energy’ can vary among horses,


but it is always there in high strung or sensitive horses, and lazy horses as well. When a horse has not released his ‘inner energy,’ he will be think- ing ‘fast.’ Remember: You will be safe and you can teach a horse only if they are thinking ‘slow.’ You can recognize that a horse is thinking ‘fast’ if he is turning his head fast, moving his ears fast, and his movements are fast.


One of the best ways


to help the horse release this inner energy is through what we call “forced exercise.” There are 3 types of forced ex- ercise: (1) lunging, (2) liberty work, and (3) ponying. Of these three, the most important to master is lunging. (If you need a review of how to lunge, see Palm Partner- ship Training™ Newslet- ters #56-60.) Personally, I feel lunging is the most important form of forced exercise because you can use it anytime, at home or away. All you need is a good fitting halter, a cot- ton longe line, and a lunge whip. The lunge whip should have a min- imum length of 3 feet with a tassle that is 1-2 feet longer than the whip part. The whip should end in a little “snapper.” This strong woven mate- rial helps make a snap/pop noise to encour- age the horse to move away from it and to move forward.


to follow when lunging. If the horse is already bri- dled and needs to be lunged, simply fit the hal- ter over the bridle. At- tach the lunge line either over the nose (for more response) or under the chin. A lunge line that ends in a chain will be more severe than a sim- ple cotton line with a snap end. Before lunging (with a bridle on), it is very important to secure the reins so the horse cannot get them over his head, step on them, or get a leg between them. I’ll cover this issue in the “Your Next Step” section of this newsletter. Before we start


training outside the box, it is important to recog- nize and learn how to read a horse to determine if his inner energy and playfulness have been re- leased. We’ll cover that in the next article.


Your Next Step… When lunging with


bridle on, always secure the reins. Place the halter over the bridle. Attach the lunge line, with or without chain end, to the horse’s halter. Do this by either threading the lunge line over the nose, to give more response, or under the chin. If riding in Western


tack, tie reins under the pommel bringing them through the hole under the pommel and tying a knot in them. Loop the knotted end over the sad- dle horn. Make sure that the reins are not secured so loose that the horse could put his head down with his nose on the ground, or get a leg through the reins. Be equally careful not to tie the reins too short, either. It will restrict the horse’s head carriage. If riding in English tack, the easi- est way to handle the issue of the reins is just to take them off.


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