A Legacy of Legends: Feb 2012 Vegas REPORT!

[Elaine]

We are going to watch Buck B, Martin Black, Melanie Smith Taylor, Jaton Lord, Betty Staley & Peter Campbell teach in Feb 2012.

Full clinic report to follow. To hear all the latest news first, join us on facebook: www.facebook.com/IrishHorsemanshipSociety



Preserving the Legacy of Tom Dorrance & Ray Hunt

Clinics will be organized and presented featuring students that exemplify the spirit and ability to communicate a level of horsemanship introduced and taught by Tom and Ray. The Foundation’s goal is to generate funding for scholarships to deserving students in pursuit of a higher level of consciousness in conjunction with the horse. These clinics will be organized and promoted in the spirit of harmony between horse and rider with emphasis on preserving the dignity and wellbeing of the horse while encouraging the rider to achieve a higher level of horsemanship. The clinics will be presented to the public in a teaching format to continue to generate information and experience to those individuals who have embarked on this style of Horsemanship.

[Elaine]

Off to Vegas tomororw, will try to do facebook updates each day. Nothing packed yet!!

[Elaine]

Just over, complete with a wedding and a standing ovation. Absolutely brilliant and 64 pages of notes taken. Would anyone like to read them?

[Elaine]

Ok folks here's the deal... There are 331 people on our facebook page. When it gets to 340 people I will start posting my 64 pages of lessons in horsemanship, dressage, reining and jumping from the worlds best horsemen.

So it's up to you....9 more people join and everyone gets 3 days worth of FREE lessons!!! Good horsemanship should be available to everyone so help me share the knowledge. Thank you!

[Elaine]

'Americas horse daily' legacy of legends review: americashorsedaily.com/a-legacy-of-legends/

EXERCISE 1:
Buck, on doing groundwork with a horsemanship flag and the difference between using the flag to get the horse used to the sensation and using it to ask him to move out:

“The deal is, if your leading hand is offering for him to go, well then, that’s when that flag ought to have that kind of meaning. If your leading hand is in neutral,... then he ought to understand how to separate that out and realize that you’re just kind of waving that flag around.

“Try to be a little careless with it. Try to find some place to touch him with it that he doesn’t like it. Get that worked out. With the flag, you can be a lot handier, you can get to places that you might not be able to get to with your hand or with your saddle blanket. Really work that cinch area; get him where he can stand that. Now ask him to move his feet. You’ve got to keep going back to the cinch area when he’s moving his feet.

“The way you move that flag toward him, it ought to be easy for him to separate between you just waving it around and you needing him to go. It ought to look different to him.”

GOAL: So you want your horse: 1. Confident around flags WHILE HE'S MOVING (!) and also the horse to move without the flag, from a feel - i.e. a lead rope WITH slack still in it (don't pull on your horse with lead rope!). Have fun & report back!

[Elaine]

The "GREAT CLINIC WRITEUP" from Las Vegas. Proving that what happens in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas!!! ;D

ok - full word doc in a good few days, but nice one-liners here as I write them up!

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You can’t get a horse too nice at the end of a leadrope. Buck.

Be smooth & efficient – not quick. (Buck on colt saddling)

‘You don’t get on a horse from the fence because you’re old or pathetic’. Buck

Some people try to push the horse through things. Instead start from where the horse is at.’ Peter Campbell

Settle for the smallest change and the slightest try. Peter Campbell

Do not pull on the horse as it will only teach him to pull back. Peter Campbell

Don‘t let the horse learn he is stronger than you. Peter Campbell

Don’t let the try get buried. Peter Campbell

Day 1 colt starting: Have an idea and then go with this idea when it becomes the horses idea. This really is breathtaking to watch, both human & horse truly of the same mind. (Peter & Megan)

When a horse offers a turn, accept it. With a youngster, don‘t be critical. Peter Campbell

Peter was at one of the biggest horse operations in the country. The boss knew nothing, but Peter didn’t know he knew nothing. 20 years later, he happened to be back there. Nothing had changed, the guy was still doing it all the old way - Peter Campbell

Softness doesn’t come from your hands, it comes from your heart. From inside - Peter Campbell

[Elaine]

“Let the horse move his feet if he needs to, but do it in a useful way”. Martin Black

“I don’t want to make him lope (canter). I just want to get him ready to leave the trot”. Martin Black.

When the tail is up the rider stays down. When the tail is down the rider goes up. Tom Dorrance.

“It’s not how much you do, its how little you can do to get the job done.” Martin Black.

“It’s about getting them to accept everything.” Martin Black.

Martin Black colt starting EXERCISE: Asks for a bend in the horse’s neck. Keep it light & just wait until the horses feet move. The hind foot is to step out. This is time well spent. Then change rein, and ask the other hind to step out. The goal is to straighten the neck using the body, not to straight the body using the neck.

For the 1st colt session, Wade & Martin had a very happy chilled out colt, ended up doing walk, trot & canter, and the WAY Wade went with the horse & waited until his idea was the horses idea, just made them riding together (FIRST RIDE!!!) look like a perfectly balanced EFFORTLESS dance. Took my breath away, honestly. Such a superb rider & horseman.

“No matter what happens it won’t be wrong.“ Martin Black on colt starting.

When your horse wants to turn, take advantage of it. M BLack.

SHOWJUMPING: Buck was riding an unknown experienced showjumper. The horse was spooky, doesn’t bend & pulls away on the lead rope. Buck reckoned he was missing a lot of the basics.

SHOWJUMPING: This experienced showjumping horse was more scared of the flag than the "1 hour colt" Buck had worked with the flag for the first time that morning.

SHOWJUMPING: The western saddle goes on the showjumper. The horse doesn’t know how to work off a feel on the end of the lead rope. So he’ll never move off a feel in the saddle. Horse obviously used to being lunged, his nose was stuck to the outside on a circle & was worst on the left rein, the side most of the work by the human had been done on.

SHOWJUMPING: Draw reins are for more leverage, to try & overpower the horse. The worst thing you can do is let the horse find out he is stronger than you. It shouldn’t be a matter of strength, but a matter of feel. BUCK

SHOWJUMPING: The showjumper had his head 10 feet in the air to be bridled. Buck said that was ‘disgusting’. The horse was never taught to put his head down. That should have been taught.

SHOWJUMPING: The trainer teaching Buck was Melanie Smith Taylor. Melanie became one of only two riders ever to win the “Triple Crown of Show Jumping” by winning the American Invitational, the International Jumping Derby and the American Gold Cup. Melanie was part of the USET’s Gold Medal team at the 1979 Pan American Games in Puerto Rico. At the “Alternate Olympics” in 1980, Melanie won the indivi...

On using mounting blocks: Do not pick up an inanimate object, and place it beside an animate object. Buck B.

SHOWJUMPING: (well the warmup before it!) Buck asked for a backup – nothing there. Ask, wait until you get a try then release. The horse had learned to ignore people (riders) who were hanging off his mouth. The horse is trying to push his way through pressure.

SHOWJUMPING: A horse can’t get soft until he is forward & light. You have nothing to direct until there is a willingness in there. Buck.

SHOWJUMPING: (still the warmup): Now getting nice canter to halts. The horse has a much softer backup. The horse is now much lighter / faster to go forwards. Lovely walk to canter. Much less bracy. Horse not totally soft yet but he is trying.

Sometimes people do enough to be annoying, but not enough to be effective. Buck.

SHOWJUMPING: (still the warmup): Buck asked his horse to stay in trot but to also get soft & light - then the horse got it – WOW!

SHOWJUMPING: (still the warmup): Lovely backup to trot depart.

[Elaine]

SHOWJUMPING: What is most important is the quality and the consistency of handling. Melanie Smith Taylor

SHOWJUMPING: To be able to jump, a horse needs to be able to go forwards, backwards left & right. Melanie Smith Taylor (US Olympic gold)

SHOWJUMPING: Begin with simple gymnastics – forwards, straight & yielding to the leg. Begin on a loose rein. The horse should be relaxed with a lot of energy & be free. Let them move out more freely forward with energy.

SHOWJUMPING: While still on a loose rein, move a few steps left & right – check if there is any stiffness there. Melanie Smith Taylor

SHOWJUMPING warmup: Do shoulder in, shoulder out then walk straight on. Leg yield. Trot around poles, over poles with serpintines, ride through rails for straightness. Use all poles & jumps by going beside / through / etc during all your warmup exercises.

SHOWJUMPING warmup: Three poles are on the ground a few strides from each other. Trot to the first pole, do a slow trot to the second pole, to an extended trot to the third pole. The halt square in a straight line after the last pole.

SHOWJUMPING warmup: Three poles are again on the ground a few strides from each other. Trot to the fort pole. Then leg yield out and skip the second pole. Then leg yield back in again and trot over the third pole. Then canter depart after third pole. Then trot as you pass between two parallel poles. Then canter depart on the other lead. Melanie Smith Taylor

SHOWJUMPING: Buck is now riding in an English saddle & has put the stirrups up two holes

SHOWJUMPING warmup: Canter larger, then shorten canter, then move out & canter large again. Canter over three poles on the ground. Normal canter into pole 1. Short canter into pole 2. Lengthen canter into pole 3. Then trot in the middle of two parallel poles. Then canter on the other lead. Then trot in the middle of the next two parallel poles. Melanie Smith Taylor

At the halt, the horse should be 50% forwards and 50% backwards – i.e. in balance. Melanie Smith Taylor

SHOWJUMPING warmup: Bring your horse to the fence with the best balance, the best pace and a straight line. Then it is up to the horse to actually jump. So sit quietly & let the horse jump. Your balance point when jumping is so important, as then the horse can focus on the fence. Melanie Smith Taylor

Buck & a girl were jumping, both on experienced horses. Buck ends up jumping higher than the girl, as her horse when faced with a long row of fences & not quite the right stride, gets worried & nervous & loses confidence. Melanie said - when you jumo a big jump, always finish up the session with a much smaller jump to leave your horses confident.

DRESSAGE: Dressage should be the development of a happy athlete through harmonious education. It is n the US dressage rulebook – not always seen in practise but it is the goal. It also says the horse is to be balanced physically and mentally.

Ride with accuracy. Otherwise you don’t know if you are achieving what you want to. Betty Staley

Walk on a loose rein. Most dressage horses can’t do this.

Its about the hindquarters. Walk around, step the hindquarters to the outside, relax and walk on again. Betty Staley

DRESSAGE: Relaxation should be before rhythm in the scale. Sometimes you need rhythm to get relaxation. Betty Staley

DRESSAGE: To achieve downwards transitions, move the hindquarters out. Betty learned this from Ray on her first ride with him.

UNREAL extended trot – WOW!!! The horse has lots of energy. If your horse presents an opportunity, take it. Betty Staley

To ask for canter to trot, instead of pulling on the horse, ask the horse to do smaller circles until your idea becomes his idea. You set it up & the horse chooses the right option.

To get an extended trot, you just ask for the hindquarters. WOW AGAIN!!!

You do lengthening after collection. Betty Staley

Normally Betty has 3 horses saddled. She will ride each in turn. Once she gets a nice change in one, she will switch over to the next horse straight away & keep rotating them then.

[Elaine]

DRESSAGE: Picking up a soft feel is the beginning of collection. Betty Staley

A horse will get sure, then unsure. Then sure, then unsure. Betty Staley

Trot, push the hindquarters out in the trot, then go forward to lengthen. Betty Staley

When you move the hindquarters over, one hind leg steps out and the other hind leg steps under.

If a horse puts his head up during the transition from trot to canter he is leaving with his front feet, not his hind feet. Betty Staley

A dressage arena has four corners. But you can add your own corners in wherever you need them.

For advanced dressage moves, the horse must be fast on his feet behind. Betty Staley

Being able to do circles and tell when the hind foot is leaving the ground is INVALUABLE.

WOW - just saw the beginning of piaffe there with Bettys young horse.

Soft feel is the beginning of collection. A soft feel has to go from the mouth, through the body, to the feet. Ray Hunt said – to the feet. This part isn’t in the dressage books, but it is THE KEY! Betty Staley

Betty had a young horse, a 4yo, and had put in 30 days work on him since she bought him. She said he had been lunged to the point where the try had gone out of him.

DRESSAGE: With a young horse… walk and move the hindquarter out. Things should start out big & obvious. When the horse gets straight, get soft. Serpentines are very useful. Put corners in the arena where you need them, not where they are. Betty Staley

DRESSAGE: You can unbalance a horse to get balance: Halt, HQ yield and then walk forwards to straightness. Betty Staley

You need to have a mental picture of what you want to achieve.

Most people only get 10% out of their horses. If the human gave 5% the horse would give 95%. But you have to give to take. Ray Hunt.

Next up - reining & cow work woohoo!! And to think I'm still only on day 1 of my notes.........

The horse gallops in, does a sliding stop & then spins – Holy God VERY impressive! Then canters off, halts, does a rollback and canters off again.

A BRILIANT EXERCISE FOR LATERAL WORK: Open & close a gate by backing through it with one hand on the gate the whole time.

Use your environment to help your horse.

Jaton is a third generation ranch-raised horseman born and raised in southern Idaho. Jaton had the unique opportunity to travel extensively with his grandparents Ray and Carolyn Hunt for three years, accompanying them across the United States and as far as Australia and Europe.

You need a soft feel in all discliplines of horsemanship, including reining: "A soft feel is when the horse isn’t pushing on you and you’re not pushing on your horse." Jaton Lord

For this type of work, the main thing is your body position – your knees and toes should be turned out. If you body is tense it will translate to the horse. Jaton Lord

To go from trot to halt, just relax. Use a soft feel & let the horses feet go into the ground. Jaton Lord

If you relax when you ask, the horse will relax when they respond. Jaton Lord

In spins, speed is more of your outside leg. Laos put your inside leg on a small bit. Do slow spins first & take your time. Jaton Lord

End of day 1 notes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Elaine]

CHALLENGE: What do you think was (I think!) the most often used exercise (both on the ground in the saddle over the 3 days?)

COLTSTARTING day 2 (Brannamans): Reata caught the colt nicely. Using the halter & a flag she got the got on a circle, moving its HQ then its FQ to change direction. More life in the horse today, more willing & softer. One minute after catching the saddle goes on. Put the saddle on smooth – don‘t bend press it!

COLTSTARTING: The horse didnt want to be caught, so Reata just roped him instead - first time.

Lateral flexion must have the correct bend: 1. Ears stay level. 2. Nose perpendicular to the ground 3. Poll slightly higher than the withers. BUCK

COLLECTION: You can’t collect a horse with his poll lower than his withers. That will cripple a horse after a while. BUCK

A soft feel is flexion at the poll AND elevation. BUCK

SOFT FEEL & VERTICAL FLEXION: If the poll is below the withers, its not soft feel. If the poll is too low, the head is already vertical, so any more flexion will take the head behind the vertical. If the head is higher, more flexion will not cause the horse to be behind the vertical. BUCK

How to teach flexion: Hold, wait, let the horse explore, release. BUCK

ý2 EXERCISES GW: Do lateral flexion in a snaffle on the ground, on both sides. You can take two hours easily to do this. (It irritates me to see people spend $1000s to shot a horses mouth). On the ground, using two reins ask for a soft feel. Get & try and then release. Do it like you’re hoping it will take all day to get there. There’s no rush. BUCK

RIDING EX: Bend your horse, tap with stirrup to ask how to roll his HQs over, then release. BUCK

GETTING INTO THE SADDLE: Reata got half way up then got off. Then went & sat on the fence. Horse way better at moving over to the fence now from a feel. Reata rubs the horse when near. Reata now in the saddle.

[Elaine]

I keep a close watch on this horse of mine,
I keep my attention on the horse and I cue in time,
Black Betty moves on the floor the dance is fine,
Because your mine, yields on the line.

Copyright Gorey 2012

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COLT STARTING With the BRANNAMANS: A horse should be able to bend his neck before you put a leg on, otherwise there’s no point.

COLT STARTING: Going from halt to walk the horse is a bit sticky. Ask a little with your legs, but not too much. The horse is only learning what your legs are for. Instead Buck backs up the cue with the flag & the horse goes forwards.

As the horse goes around the round pen, there is one place where the horse consistently is getting a little grumpy, tensing up his body & doing the odd head shake. Buck doesn’t like this. Instead he gets the horse doing more work – walk, 180 degrees HQ yield, 180 degree FQ yield, in time with the inside hind foot, on the same rein as they got the grumpy headshake. Reata does this in trot and the issue starts to disappear.

REATA CANTERING THE COLT: The horse keeps picking up the wrong lead behind on the left rein which is causing the kicking out. Every time the horse gets the correct leads front & back in canter, he is allowed to stop and rest. Nice work.

GOAL: When a horse lifts his withers, his HQs and pelvis tilts up and the back lifts. If a horse’s head is down & low, it actually stretches / tightens up all his back line, and the horse can’t lift his back as easily.

EXERCISE: Backup in the saddle: Halt, ask for backup, when the horses body changes (change in weight distribution) release.

COLT STARTING: PETER CAMPBELL - Don’t try to make it happen. You can’t fix a horse, you direct them. They take care of the fixing part.

You do not correct a horse. You direct. You give discipline before and during. You do not discipline afterwards. PETER CAMPBELL

Tom Dorrance was 85 years old & was walking with a cane. He was leading a big horse, and the horse went to pull away from Tom. Tom bumped the horse under the jaw with the cane. The problem was solved. Do as little as you can, and don’t get the horse or the person in trouble.

It’s better to have some caution than it is to get hurt. PETER CAMPBELL

There are a million ways to work a horse, but there is only one right way. To work from where the horse is. If the horse is ready to go on, then go on or he will regress. Keep it interesting. PETER CAMPBELL

If you get the right feel it will bring you the timing. Put effort in, not speed. Wait and let the horse figure it out. PETER CAMPBELL

CANTER TRANSITIONS: You don’t make your horse canter. You just get him ready to canter. People can have a lot of experience but not a lot of knowledge. Old age can get there before wisdom. PETER CAMPBELL

You will spend your time better working with your horse, than cleaning him up. At the end of the month it’s better to have a better riding horse than a shiny tail. Martin Black

The less you do, the better frame of mind the horse stays in. Martin Black

Get your horse to seek relief rather than give to pressure. Martin Black

Give your horse time to think. Martin Black

TURNING: To go right, keep your weight a little on the left side to push him right. Also don’t block him going to the right. If you want to go right, and you put weight on the right side, it can block that right movement. Martin Black

You shouldn’t be peddling your horse with your legs. If you are, after a while you’ll have to get off and walk for a walk to get a rest. Martin Black

Don’t write cheques you can’t cash. You may not be a good enough rider to copy all you see. Martin Black

[Elaine]

To ask for a HQ yield, in time with the horses feet, use your leg and your hand. Otherwise, if you’re not in time, it will feel to your horse like you’re trying to trip him. BUCK.

It’d be good if I can tell you something not involving timing, but I don’t know what that would be’. BUCK.

Know what lead your horse is on in walk & trot BEFORE you ask for a canter. BUCK

Yesterday the owner of the spooky (and very successful high quality prize-winning showjumper) asked if Buck would solve the problem of his horse being afraid of rosettes. The horse will not accept someone approaching him with a rosette in their hand. Horse also can get confident when ridden and rush fences. The owner says – “I have a rosette for you to use.” Buck, with a wry look, said he wouldn’t need it.

Buck had the horse on a lead rope in the round pen. The horse was as stiff as a board. The horse was also scared of Buck lifting his arm, with nothing in it (never mind a rosette). There was no flexion or softness in the horse.

Buck takes out the flag. The horse gallops away. The horse has learned how to pull away in his past. On a rope, he tips his nose to the outside, gets the right angle on the human & then goes. The horse actually gets away from Buck, which I suspect is quite an unusual occurrence. This horse knows he is larger & stronger than a human. (This is a very bad thing to let your horse find out). This was learned on the end of a lunge line. Buck says ‘get me my horse’.

GW exercise: When you life up the lead rope, with slack still in it, the horse should move. This is called following a feel.

SHOWJUMPING, BUCK RIDING: The horse is MUCH better, softer, more flexible, lighter on his feet, more responsive. Lovely canter to halt. SHOWJUMPING warmup exercises: lengthen and shorten the trot, serpentines, leg yield all around the poles & jumps, like you have a plan. Rub. Trot and canter all around the objects in the arena.

[Elaine]

Exercise: Walk to HQ yield. This is the beginning of engagement and self carriage. Betty Staley

At the beginning, work with one rein at a time, and one leg at a time. When you walk a circle, if you are using two reins and two legs now, you will never progress to grand prix as you’ve used up all of your aids already. Betty Staley

To walk a perfect circle you drive from behind around a circle. You need to be able to do a turn on the forehand (HQ yield). Then it is easy to make your circles big or small. Horse can do all of the Grand Prix work when they are babies. Betty Staley

If something doesn’t work, so what? Set it up again. Betty

Prepare to position for the transition. Betty

Keep looking for relaxation. Betty

You train in walk and trot, and test in canter. Betty Staley

[Elaine]

Slow walk to walk pirouettes. Keep the hind foot there and ask the front foot to go out sideways.

Going backwards does not remove the forwards mindset of the horse. It actually engages them and helps in forwards balance. Engages the hindquarters and flexes the joints. Betty

Handfeeding isn’t loving your horse. Direction and guidance is loving your horse. Otherwise they can start to see you as their waiter! Betty

It’s all about the basics, Get the horse soft and control the body. Martin Black

Before you do any cow work you need to be able to: trot/canter > stop dead > do a fast FQ yield. Martin Black

Cut the cow from the herd smoothly. Beautiful work. When you feel your horse hooked up to the cow, quit. Amazing canter – halt transition. Wade Black

COW WORK: Don’t make your moves too big. Then you won’t have to stop as hard. Sit on your tale bone with your knees out. Always sit in a stopping position.

It’s just words until you experience it. Wade Black

Back gets off his horse & walks over to the colt. Very cute, his own horse follows him over too while loose & stands beside Buck while he checks on the colt.

REATA COLT STARTING: Reata is in the saddle now. Do lateral flexions at halt and HQ yields. Walk, and halt by pushing out the hindquarters. The right side of the horse is much softer now than before. Walk, HQ yield 180 degrees, FQ yield 180 degrees, walk on again in the same direction.

Right now (ride number 3 on colt) think of how the horse should bend in the classical form.

ATA COLT STARTING: Reata & Buck are now out in the large arena on their horses. Reata follows Buck doing FQ & HQ yields. The colt is getting a little nappy with Bucks horse. Reata works on keeping the colts mind with her, giving her directions, work to do. If the colt drifts to Bucks horse, Reata rolls his hindquarters away.

Give the horse time. Direction, not correction. Peter Campbell

Its gotta come from the inside of you to the inside of the horse and back to the inside of you. Peter Campbell

Get him ready to do it. The horse will take care of doing it. Peter Campbell

Cue in time with the horses feet. Peter Campbell

It doesn’t matter what happens. It matters that you know what happened. Be there before it happens. Peter Campbell

Don’t work on your transitions, work on your preparation. Peter Campbell

In trot, think of the inside fore. It is matched to the outside hind. Ask for a lope just before both of these feet are in the air. Peter Campbell

Sit back when doing 180 degrees FQ yields at speed, as the horse will suck back. Be ready. Peter Campbell

[Elaine]

DAY 3: Wade is out working a cow on his colt.

When you turn them out good, they come back in better. When you turn them out bad, they come back in worse. They don’t learn any more but they get more sure about it. Martin Black

The horse decided to gallop at full pelt twice after the cow. It was brilliant. Wades idea had become the horse’s idea. After this the horse lost a bit of interest & looked a bit tired, so they called it a day.

Counter canter is the best canter exercise to develop a balanced canter (a little more advanced), as the horse can’t fall in on the counter canter lead. Melanie

SHOWJUMPING - spooky horse: Bucks works again with the spooky showjumper, from his horse. A few small attempts (just thoughts ready) to take off, but MUCH better. Start where the horse is and try to make a little change. Heaps better. The horse is making a big effort not to gallop away when the flag is near.

SHOWJUMPING: Warmup around obstacles and leg yield. Buck is doing 180 degrees FQ yields. Melanie hates mindless lunging. You want the horse sharp, with energy, not dull and zoned out.

Flying changes: If you lean right, he will put his right leg down first, and this puts the horse on the left lead. Melanie

You are the mind, the horse is the body. Ray Hunt.

SHOWJUMPING: Do flying changes over jumping by feel. Don’t lean or anything to change lead, just use your eyes, look in a new direction and see how it works. Melanie

ý2 identical jumping courses set up now. Buck & girl have to run exactly at the same time as each other. It’s not a race though.

Very interesting lesson with Jaton gets a showjumping lesson! Total change of body position required.

The best riders are usually the best students who listen, try and practise.

In tennis, you want to hit with the sweet spot of the racket. When you jump, that is how you want the horse to feel. When you are in the perfect balance, there is no change in energy.

[Elaine]

On a new horse, first check if they are as light on both sides.

To go from a walk to a trot, pick up the inside rein like a lift, to gather the horse and create impulsion then ask for the trot. Lift your inside hand again to go back to a walk. Also on the ground, Betty lifts her hand & the lead rope to ask for a change in gait (up or down). Walk, trot, canter, slow down. Whether the horse goes faster or slower with the lifted hand & rein, depends on the life & energy in the human. Betty

Sit straight up in the canter. Do not lean backwards or forwards. Do not cross the neck with the reins. Betty

If you are on the right path, you are only going to get better.

You need life in a dressage horse.

Horses should engage upwards and downwards.

The bit is about the feet. It’s not about the headset.

Maybe I’m dumb, but I like it simple.

[Elaine]

COWWORK: Amazing sliding and cantering right beside the cow.

Just ease past the cow, don’t accelerate at speed past the cow, as then it’s harder to stop and turn. Like driving on a motorway. Pass by another car slowly, but still both travelling at speed.

Reining a cow = tracking one, being alongside one, along a cows hip. Running the horse comfortably.

Always ride in a stop position. Give horse lots of time to make a FQ turn. Jaden galloped around in a circle, right beside the cow, stride for stride, amazing!

END OF LEGACY OF LEGENDS NOTES!!!! The weekend ended with a standing ovation

Highly recommend anyone able to think about making the trip to Vegas next year, best clinic ever, teaching + accom + everything else inc. the pool!!!