30/ JUNE 2021 THE RIDER


How You Know You Don’t Have Impulsion (Yet)


By Kathy Farrokhzad. Impulsion is the fourth


of six stages on the dressage training scale (German or otherwise) and it is up there for good reason. We speak of impulsion all the time, and I personally introduce it to novice riders fairly early in their career. But this con- cept of increased energy is complex, and it may take years to truly grasp as you progress in your riding ca- reer.


Impulsion affects so


many other aspects of gait quality that it cannot be seen as an entity unto itself. In fact, when you are working on increasing impulsion, in- variably, you are also work- ing on rhythm, suppleness (over the back and laterally), “forward”, quality of con- tact, engagement, collection - the list can be endless. Im- pulsion (or lack thereof) can dictate more than just the speed of your horse’s legs. You can also think of it


as a sort of health insurance policy for your horse. The better the movement (which is highly influenced by im- pulsion), the healthier your horse may be over the long term. And hopefully, healthy movement is something that we’re all aiming for.


What is impulsion? Simply said, it’s en-


ergy. But not all energy is “good” energy.


Impulsion is the type of


energy that makes the gait feel bouncier. It creates a deeper stride in the hind end (therefore allowing for a more uphill balance). It feels bold, powerful, electric. The horse feels like he’ll step into any gait or movement at a moment’s notice. The results of impul-


sion can actually be seen. The horse: • becomes rounder over the top line.


• is more supple in the poll. • maintains a more even contact.


• responds to lighter aids. • maintains a more level or uphill balance. • seems to have an easier time with flexion and bend. • appears more comfortable.


How do you know you don’t have impulsion (yet)? There are actually two fairly easy to spot signs. 1. First, what happens when you use your leg aids? Does the horse go faster? Does the horse change gait? Does the horse pull or root the reins out of your hands and get longer in the body? Does the horse resist, balk, or buck? Any or all of these re-


sponses are signs that you haven’t yet achieved impul- sion. Let’s break it down.


Faster When the horse goes


faster and faster in the new gait? Does the horse trip or take a bad step? Do you feel like you have to haul off and pulllll until the legs finally change gait? All of these signs give


you a strong indication that there was a lack of impul- sion before the gait change. The horse simply doesn’t have the power to “power- down” in a balanced and en- ergetic manner. While we often think of downward transitions as slower, they are anything but slow. It takes strength and energy to change gaits cleanly and without falling to the fore- hand.


faster, you know you’ve put in energy (through your leg and seat aids). The problem here is that the energy is “going out the front door”. To create true impulsion, the energy must stay within the horse’s body, allowing for that deeper hind leg stride, that increased bounce to the gait, that powerful rounding of the back in movement. Faster legs do not impulsion make!


Gait Change The same goes for a


change of gait. Many horses will easily respond to an in- crease in energy by chang- ing from the trot to the canter. It is much, much more difficult for a horse to maintain the trot and allow


that influx of energy into the trot, than it is to just switch the legs. Impulsion does not a gait change make! (Al- though surely, increased im- pulsion before, through and after a gait change will im- prove the transition).


Heavier on The Reins In this case, the horse is


responding by lengthening through the body - front end and likely the hind end. Strung out, anyone? The horse has likely fallen to the forehand and lost balance, putting weight into the reins. The rider has possibly let the reins slip through her fin- gers, allowing them to get longer longer longer. This sort of response happens often with young or unedu-


cated horses and riders. It’s one thing to put in the en- ergy, but it’s another thing to contain it!


Resistances Bucks or balks: I call it


“resistance”, but you might call it “disobedience” or “miscommunication”. Re- gardless, anything other than forward is backward (some people call it “sucking back”). And any backward movement is not impulsion (even if the legs are still moving in a forward man- ner).


2. Second, what happens during a down transition? Does the horse come to


an abrupt stop? Does the horse change gait but go


Impulsion: The Electric Rider


Of course, the rider is


the root of all impulsion. A rider without impulsion does not an energetic horse make! If you ride with impul-


sion, your horse will have impulsion too. The question is - how do you create the energy and how do you con- tain it? Those last two ques-


tions take a lifetime to learn and develop. At first, you may be able to energize but not contain. Then you might go through a phase where you contain but can’t ener- gize. Then you might ener- gize but not be able to stay with the horse as he reflects that energy. Then you’ll likely go


through a balance phase - where you put in the energy, the horse falls more to the forehand, you reduce the en- ergy, the horse loses his for- ward... and you feel like a teeter-totter until you finally find the happy medium. Your horse will likely


go through all these phases with you - hopefully pa- tiently - and if not, then you will have to figure things out a little quicker! But in the end, it’s all so worth it. When you have that


first moment of clear, bold, power that sustains and magnifies the gait, when you feel like your horse just grew an inch, and when you feel like you’re floating in tandem with your trusty steed (that is willing and able to stop and turn on a dime), you won’t ever want to come back to non-impul- sion land. And that is when things begin to get interest- ing!


Bio: Kathy Farrokhzad is an EC coach and author of the Horse Listening book col- lection, Goal Setting For The Equestrian: A Personal Workbook, and the creator of the Practice Sessions on- line program. If you liked what you read here, check out her blog at HorseListen- ing.com for many more arti- cles about horses, riding and life in general.


The Chosen Auction Returns June 13 to 15, 2021


Asse, Belgium - Following the first successful edition of the Chosen Auction, organizers Waël Ezzedine, Damien Haelterman, and Juan Carlos Perez, immedi- ately made it clear that it would not remain a one-off. For the second edition, the team selected 14 “Chosen Talents” that will go under the digital hammer from June 13 to 15, 2021. "We think that the horses we


have selected for this edition will appeal to an even wider public,” said the organizing trio. “We have even added a hunter to our Chosen Talents to meet the wishes of the hunter riders as well.


"Last year, we could already


speak of a successful first edition, but we expect perhaps even more from these Chosen Talents," con- tinued the Chosen Auction organ- izers in a joint statement. "During filming of the promo- tional videos, we were again im-


pressed by the exceptional quali- ties of our selected horses. We have selected 12 young talents, between the ages of four and nine, who we are almost certain will jump at the highest level one day. We think that is the strength of our Chosen Talents: they all have the qualities to jump bigger classes and yet are easy enough for any type of rider. They will get good results with amateurs as well as with more experienced and professional riders. All of our Chosen Talents are very com- petitive because, at the end of the day, every rider wants to win, whether you are a professional or an amateur. "Within our Chosen Talents


there are horses that have a bit more experience and horses that are still green, but all of them are horses that we support 100% and that we would rather not see leave our stables," they contin- ued. "A real eye-catcher is


these horses are true examples of what a modern sport horse should be.


“Mister Gold (Golddigger x


The Chosen Auction is organized by, from left to right, Waël Ezzedine, Juan Carlos Perez, and Damien Haelterman.


Dionne, a six-year-old daughter of Diarado. She catches the eye not only because of her looks but even at a young age you can see that she has all the scope and power in the world. Other horses


that will certainly make their fu- ture owner happy are Pick-Wick van de Kruishoeve (Denzel van't Meulenhof x I'm Special de Muze) and Lamborghini (Grand Slam VDL x Zambesi TN). Both


Pacific) and Christalino GT Z (Cristallo I x Stakkato) are exam- ples of young talents who have a wonderful future ahead of them,” continued the trio. “For hunter competitors, Puickly vd Bisschop (Quickly de Keizer x Darco) is definitely a horse to keep an eye on. His good movement and per- fect technique make him the ideal horse for the ambitious hunter rider. For us, it is difficult to choose a 'favorite' so buyers can be sure that they will welcome an extremely talented horse in their stables if they buy a Chosen Tal- ent."


This sentiment is confirmed


by Swiss competitor, Stella Trümpi, who purchased two horses through last year’s Chosen Auction. "The Chosen Auction team


is experienced in selecting qual- ity horses as was reflected in the 'Chosen Talents' of their previous edition,” said Trümpi. “I am over the moon with the two mares I bought through the auction. They both jumped clear and were classified in the CSIYH classes at the recent Gorla Minore compe- tition in Italy. And let’s be hon- est, that's all a rider can dream of, isn't it? I haven’t seen the Cho- sen Talents for this year yet, but I will be keeping a close eye on the line-up.” The Chosen Auction takes


place from June 13 to 15, 2021. For more information and to view the Chosen Talents collec- tion,


the visit


https://chosen.auction/chosen- talents/ To register for bidding, visit wqebsite


https://bid.chosen.auction/regis- ter


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