AUGUST 2019 THE RIDER /19


The Science of how Horses Think & Learn Taking poles in stride. Part 2


fundamentals is about as fun as a commute on the 400 highways without power steering or brakes! I like these wise insights from an Olympic


show jumper on the benefits of installing lateral “buttons“ on competitive horses, while “jumping as little as possible.” “I do lots of flat work. A work a lot of poles


on the ground to replicate the same kind of train- ing that’s required for the course, but over a rail on the ground instead of having a jumping effort. It just minimizes the impact on the horse. I have a dressage trainer who works with me full-time… [lateral movements ] make my horses really in tune with my aids. They become really responsive off the legs, and that’s useful for what we do.” U.S Olympian show jumper, Kent Farrington. Last month we covered the fundamentals of


loping and cantering poles. As long as you get your horse to the pole STRAIGHT, in the right LENGTH OF STRIDE, with enough CADENCE – the rest is your horse’s responsibility. And now, the final tip…


By Lindsay Grice, Equine Canada certified coach and show judge.


Taking poles in stride Part 2 Jumping is fun. Competitive trail is fun. Funda-


mentals and flat work…less so. I know that makes me a “less fun” coach at times, but being on course or riding in a crowded warm-up ring on a distracted horse without


DEVELOP YOUR “EYE”. To cross poles cleanly, your eye, tuned to recognize the take-off spot , is your greatest tool. In other words, when loping rhythmically to an obstacle, you’ll sense whether you need to shorten or lengthen the stride a bit in order to meet the obstacle smoothly. See- ing this take off spot several strides away will en- able you to make small adjustments on each of the strides preceding the rail and avoid the last minute, adrenaline-raising, “chip in” or “big


Club Finals on Oct 25th and 26th held indoors at Ancaster


Fairgrounds.


www.ontarioxtremecowboy.ca/ 2019 OXC Board of Directors


President Vice President


Secretary/Treasurer Past President


Youth Director


Susan Caldwell John Hodgson Shelley Newton


Chuck Ornstein


416-529-5425 613-859-3260


705-930-1603 (after 5pm)


705-445-3524


Regional Director - West Samantha McFadyen 416-799-5090 Regional Director - West Karen Dallimore Regional Director - West Ellie Ross


Regional Director - Central L. Paige Swanson Regional Director - East


Sheila Toll


Regional Director - North Erika Peckover Fundraising Committee


Leianne West


Franny Galvin-Hynes 705-977-2957 519-855-1127


519-742-4000 705-977-0650 613-646-0186 705-622-1400 519-270-8958


ontarioextremecowboy2012@gmail.com WANTED! Horses for the


First Ever Ontario Extreme Cowboy Futurity !


Calling all 3 and 4 year old horses! Be sure to get


your $25 nomination deposit in by September 1st, 2019 and get practicing! The event will be a part of the OXC


Your horse can only bene- fit from this exposure so get practicing on obstacles! The class is likely to in- clude things such as simple bridges, gate, basic maneu- vers and other obstacles approved for green horses. You will also have a chance to win a most stun- ning custom made silver belt buckle from Texas and the nomination funds go towards


the PRIZE


MONEY! Got questions? We have answers and are more than happy to help! So what are you wait-


ing for? Start practicing and get your nomination fee in!


The month of August


is super busy for OXC with 5 events happening across the province. • August 10th - Peterbor- ough Exhibition and is al- ready sold out • August 11th - Cowboy Classic


Event


Williamstown Fair • August 17th - Vankleek Hill Fair • August 18th - Laird Fair • August 25th - Regional Race at Capital Fair


For a full schedule, be


sure to check out our web- site at http://ontarioxtreme- cowboy.ca/


. We host


events across the province of Ontario and we would love to introduce you and your horse to our incredi- ble sport! Try out Extreme Cowboy! We have a divi- sion that will suit you!


lurch.”


COUNTING STRIDES. Start with canter- ing single poles, scattered around your arena, at distances far enough away from each other that you have time to think in between. Ap- proach each pole at the correct stride length, on a perpendicular path, with your horse’s body aligned straight. See if you can count three strides before


each pole. If you miscalculate, ask yourself if you should have lengthened or shortened the stride, and file that in your mental computer for the next pole. After loping hundreds of poles, your brain will start to make automatic decisions, just like it learned to do when driving a car.


PUTTING IT TOGETHER.When your eye is correctly finding the distance to single poles, Eng- lish riders can canter over crossrail courses. West- ern riders, start loping multiple poles, boxes and fan shapes. I like to set up a grid, combining rails in squares and rectangles that I can approach from any direction – lengthwise and crossways. Build the grid gradually, adding one pole at a time so as not to overwhelm your horse.


I encourage riders to be decisive with their


eyes, identifying the crossing points on the rails and on the line of travel, without wavering. Where you will look you will go! When I get “soft” with my eyes, I start to make mistakes.


About Lindsay Grice. A horse show judge and certified rid-


ing coach with a special interest in equine behaviour. After 25 years as a competitor and horse trainer, Lindsay enjoys teaching clinics and travelling to Ontario farms as a freelance instructor. She’s taught the science of equine behaviour and learning for horse associations, courses for University of Guelph and therapeutic riding facilities. Lindsay judges many disciplines and


breeds and serves on an EC judging com- mittee


Why do horses do what they do? “In the horse world, our traditions and evi- dence sometimes collide – I love to help rid- ers solve their horse puzzles with logic, patience and equitation science.”


www/lindsaygriceridingcoach.com


at


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