In many parts of the country, this is the beginning of the show season. This message goes out particularly to young professionals who are about to feel a little under appreciated and might think their work is going to be unnoticed.
"Too many people assume that they have the right to ride the horse without respect for some proper communication. They have the right to this authority without granting any authority to the horse; without any reverence for the process; without any willingness to be ordered or changed by the horse.
Barry Lopez wrote, "What we do to animals troubles us - the horror of laboratory experiments, trophy shooting, factory farming - and our loss of contact with them leaves us mysteriously bereaved. If we could re-establish an atmosphere of respect in our relationships, simple awe for the complexities of animal's lives, I think we would feel revivified as a species.
Richard Watjen, who has been considered to have sublime position once said, "No fault in rider position was ever corrected by suppleness. Suppleness is the result of riding in the correct position for years."
Judging from my mailbox, dressage riders seemed perplexed about how competition judges are currently evaluating some horses’ piaffes at the international level. What is high quality and what is faulty? In this article, I will address two major faults in piaffes of popular riders that have appeared in recent performances, and seem to be confusing viewers.

 

In every dressage competition test, at every level, in every country, the horse and rider will start and finish the test with a halt. The beginning of the test may read, “A: Enter working trot. X: Halt, Salute. Proceed collected trot.”

I think many people make a big mistake when they initially seek instruction in any field. Whether the person is an adult looking for help for themselves or a parent looking for lesson for a child, the logic usually goes something like this: I'm just testing the waters to see if I really like music lessons.
In an article recently published by the Royal Veterinary College, University of London, a question is framed in bold type: “Should we redefine equine lameness in the era of quantitative gait analysis?” The article begins, “An international team of researchers, including [some] from the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) in London, have strongly advised on the need to discriminate clearly between “asymmetry” and “lameness” when assessing a horse’s gait.”
We have selected a few of Paul's past lectures from old recordings to share with you that illuminate Paul's extensive research, knowledge and philosophy of riding horses. In many cases, these podcasts have been converted from tape recordings, so we ask for the listener's patience if the quality suffers at moments.
Just released in 2018! At the core of this book is a series of 'state of the art' experiments in which the author participated, designed to establish whether certain classical ideas about true collection could be scientifically proved.
Have you been dreaming about coming for a short course to study with us to improve your riding position and technique, further your understanding of theory, and observe firsthand horses in training from green to Grand Prix?