If you are interested in learning more about horses, have you been listening to the Equine Industry Experts on Horse Chats? Dr Andrew McLean discusses ten training principles for interactions with horses, based on his research and standing as non-negotiable obligations for trainers to maintain optimal welfare and optimal training efficiency in trained horses. Or his brother Jonna McLean giving a series on training foals from initial handling through to leading, loaning and stress free weaning . . . keep listening as he continues the series through to riding and training the competition horse. If you would like stories with a difference, learn how David Simons left school to work on a cattle station where he rode up to 12-14 hours a day, breaking in seven-year old horses and some … [Read more...]
Have You Been Listening to This?
7 Tips to Increase Horse Riding Confidence
If you don’t seem to be as motivated as you once were, or have simply lost confidence then here are seven quick tips to get you going again Only ride nice horses Be easy on yourself. If you are not looking forward to riding, it may be because your horse is not the right one for you. Know your horse on the ground first Confirm that your horse can go forward, backwards and sideways, canter on the correct lead and pop over a jump. Horses should have a basic understanding of these requirements before you ask them when you are riding Set Goals Setting riding goals and realising exactly what is possible might just give you the motivation to ride Mindset & visualise Once you have set your goal, visualise it. Don’t just visualise it once, … [Read more...]
What Do Vicki Roycroft, Monty Roberts and Dr Andrew McLean have in common?
If you guessed that they are all world class professional horse people, you are right! Vicki holds the record for the first female Olympic athlete to compete in both showjumping and eventing, Monty travels the world teaching his Join-Up method and Andrew is another international expert who has used evidence based scientific research to improve horse training and welfare. All are Equine Industry Experts and these three are all guests on the 'Horse Chats' podcast. If you would like free education from world class trainers, click on the link below and subscribe. https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/horse-chats/id1291293396?mt=2&i=1000392871574 Make sure you subscribe, there are more international experts coming your way! Happy Riding, Glenys :) … [Read more...]
Horse Steps, Strides, Gaits and Paces
Do you remember how complicated it was learning about horse steps, strides, paces and gaits? Just when you thought that horses could walk, run and gallop you learned that when horses ran it was called trot and somewhere in there was canter. Great, now you know the four natural gaits of the horse, or are they called paces? So you consult your trusty horse book only to find that horses have... wait a sec, the other trusty horse book said there were four natural paces of the horse and now this one has included stepping backwards. You read a little more and find that a horse has steps in the walk and trot and strides in the canter and gallop. Is that right? In human terms a step is putting one foot in front of the other and a stride is a longer decisive step. Yet the stride in horse … [Read more...]
Ten Reasons Why You Should Look Up When You Ride
There was an old poem that my grandmother used to tell me about holding my head high and always looking between the horse’s ears when I rode. While I can’t remember the poem (and I don’t agree with ALWAYS looking between the horse’s ears), I do agree that the habit of looking up is certainly one that will influence riding ability. Listed below are 10 reasons why looking up will positively influence your (or your students’) riding ability. To see other riders and horses Have you ever been at a competition or riding in a crowded area and had to avoid riders who are looking down. They are probably lucky that you have been considerate enough to avoid them, but watch for long enough and they will have a collision or near collision with another rider who is looking down. … [Read more...]
Great Horse Riding Instructor
22 Qualities for Becoming a Great Horse Riding Instructor – Your Code of Conduct … [Read more...]
Interview with Jen Hamilton
What type of philosophy do you have about riding and training your horse? We make many choices . . . like if we should ride English or Western or if we choose to jump or not to jump. We also choose our training philosophy which could be adopted by our coaches and mentors. In this interview with world renowned equestrian coach Jen Hamilton, she talks about her coaching philosophy... Glenys Hello, today we're going to talk to Jen. Jen Hamilton is one of the highest qualified coaches in the world, equestrian coaches, and Level IV Coaching Canada. Jen, just briefly, could you tell me a little bit about your coaching philosophy? Jen Very simply I believe that we as coaches, it is our responsibility to make the riders and horses into the best athletes they can be. We have to isolate … [Read more...]
I Have a Good Excuse!
Do you have a good excuse why you didn’t win the last competition, or why you haven’t ridden lately? The thing is that everyone HAS a good excuse! No-one wins all the time. But those who win more often and progress to higher levels don’t dwell on their excuses! They work out what went wrong, how they can improve and get on with fixing things. We are all born into different situations, some brought up in families where they could choose what horse they rode, had the best instructors and started competing in big competitions at an early age. Then there are others who had to ride their bike for miles just to get to the nearest riding school. They would work all weekend and be rewarded with a short ride if it suited. It doesn’t matter where you started, it matters where you are … [Read more...]
Do you want a better horse or do you want to be a better rider?
Imagine this . . . you are out on a ride with some new friends and you are really enjoying your ride. They are all more experienced with horses than you, and you think you can learn a lot from them. You are happy they are including you in their ride and hope you will be invited again. As you ride, they show you a few new places to ride including a lovely sandy track where you can all ride along in pairs. Then there is a creek across the track and their horses all happily walk through, splashing and playing. You look in horror! Your horse hates water! What runs through your mind? Or what about this scenario . . . you are at a dressage competition that you know you should do well at. Your horse has either had a win or a place each time you have attended competitions at these … [Read more...]
Horses and Happiness
What type of horse does it take to make you happy? What has to happen to make you feel grateful for your horse? Second Horse To some one who learnt to ride on their first horse, happiness can be a younger, more energetic horse. Teenager To the teenager who has fast growing legs, happiness is a taller horse. Retired Stockman The old stockman who has spent many long days in the saddle when he was younger, happiness could be riding his favorite horse who has grown old with him. Competitor To some competitive riders, happiness could be a horse that was prettier, less resistant, straighter moving, had more collection, was more athletic, was a more accurate jumper or else was a faster, bolder horse. Dreamers While many people are searching for that special horse that will … [Read more...]
Horse Vision – Interesting Facts that Affect Horse Behaviour
What it is about horses’ eyes? Your life can be in turmoil, full of stress and worries and then . . . you look into the eyes of a contented horse, really look into them, and it can have such an amazing effect on your day. A large eye has a much more powerful effect, and horses have eyes larger than any other land mammal. The more we understand the way that horses use their eyes, the easier they are to train and much of their natural behavior is related to their eyes. Blind Spots For instance, they have both monocular vision and binocular vision with a range vision of 350 degrees. Their ‘blind spots’ are just in front of their eyes and behind their head, over their back and their tail as shown in the image at right side*. When we are working around horses, we must … [Read more...]
A Guard Dog Trainer Taught Me About Horses’ Eyes
The guard dog trainer was watching a young excitable horse who was being a bit cheeky while being lunged. The man had previously told me that he had very limited knowledge about horses so I was explained that the horse was not naughty, just being a bit fresh and playful. I explained that once the horse had the initial play then he would be fine to ride. The dog trainer replied “Yes, I can see that in his eyes”. I knew I should listen as I could learn from this man. He went on to explain that although all animals were different, they have very similar expressions in their eyes. He explained that he liked a soft kind eye, the type of dog who thinks that being a guard dog is a game. The type of dog that can play with the kids but on command can also be very protective of them. A mean … [Read more...]
Your Number 1 burning question about horses.
Hi! People from all over the world have told me that they love the newsletters I’ve been sending you. You’re welcome! Now I’d love to ask you a favour . . . Please let me know your #1 burning question about horses, horse business and equestrian coaching Then I’ll answer the most common questions that are sent to me in future newsletters Simply comment to this post with your question… I look forward to hearing from you. :) Happy Riding, Glenys : ) … [Read more...]
Starting Green Horses and Green Riders
The A, B, & C’s So much has been said about the need to of the correct way to start of youngsters to the saddle, with progressive training so the green horses have the right attitude, are well-balanced and able to understand the communication between rider and horse under saddle. This could be called the A, B, C’s of teaching horses to accept the rider. What about correct way and the A, B, C’s of teaching beginner riders to ride the horse? Green riders also need to be educated with progressive training so they have the right attitude, are well balanced and are able to communicate with their horse. A = Attitude Green horses or young horses need the correct attitude. This must be a mixture of confidence and respect. They should have the confidence to trust people, even when their … [Read more...]
Developing an Eye for a Horse
It takes time and experience to develop your sense of vision around horses. There is an old saying... "The eye of the master makes the horse fat". Put simply, the 'master' was and experienced knowledgeable horseperson. An experienced horse person can walk into a stable and in a second and know that a horse is too thin, too fat, lame, sick aggressive or sour as well as many other aspects of the horse's health and personality. An experienced instructor will pick up wrong canter leads and incorrect diagonals in a flash while they are teaching a group of riders. At the same time they will be giving individual instruction to each of the riders to improve their skills. As the riders improve their skills the horses will be working happier and more correctly the longer the experienced … [Read more...]
What Horse Riders Want vs What They Need
As a horse riding instructor there is often a balance that must be maintained while teaching between safety, education and enjoyment as well as the balance between teaching what riders want vs what riders need. A good instructor will say that safety comes first with horses and while I agree to a point, there is a balance. After all if you would like to be guaranteed that a horse won’t stand on your foot, then stay away from them. The same goes for falling off. There are no guarantees. Don't get on a horse if you would like a guarantee that you won't fall off. Speed and jumping usually increases the risk with horse riding, yet we teach, compete and find a great deal of natural adrenaline from jumping and riding in the faster paces. Horse riding lessons should include both education … [Read more...]
What learning style do you use to learn more when learning about horses?
Finding the right horse-riding instructor Knowing and understanding your type of learning style is a great start to finding the right horse-riding instructor. When you find one who understands your learning style and adapts their lesson to match, they you can progress your understanding of horses and riding much quicker than having a horse-riding instructor who teaches uses different techniques to the way you learn best. Simple learning styles When we talk about learning styles and ways to process new information, we can use the simple terminology below. visual verbal (auditory) active (kinesthetic) We can even divide the visual learning style into pictures and words to provide a greater depth of understanding of the types of styles we can use to learn to actively ride and … [Read more...]
7 Tips For Teaching Beginners On The Lunge
People learn to ride in many ways and are instructors have developed many different routines and procedures to teach their beginner riders. The more experienced the instructor is the more the procedures are fine tuned so that the beginner rider remains safe while learning to ride in the most efficient manner. I am a strong believer in teaching beginners on the lunge. They can focus on gaining their balance and confidence while the instructor focuses on controlling the horse in a pace that is most beneficial to progress the skills of the rider. As soon as the beginner rider is able to walk and trot without balancing on the horses’ mouth and thumping them in the back then they can progress to the next stage of riding without the lunge in a confined area. When I teach instructors or … [Read more...]
Teaching New Horse Riding Skills in Four Stages
In the same way that the beginner horse rider learns to mount a horse or rise to the trot, the four stages of competence apply to more experienced riders as well as horse riding instructors as they progress through their training. In this article we look at the four stages a beginning horse rider learns when they rise to the trot and compare them to a horse riding instructor learning how to control group rides safely. These skills can be broken down into four stages of competence. Unconscious incompetence Conscious incompetence Conscious competence Unconscious competence 1. Unconscious incompetence This stage of any skill could apply to the general public who do not have knowledge of a specific horse riding skill (like rising to the trot), do not realize that they … [Read more...]
Where is the best place to be positioned when teaching horse riding?
As you start to become more aware of teaching styles of horse riding instructors, you will probably be looking at the positioning of the horse riding instructor. Some are teaching standing up, sitting down, on a horse, inside the circle, outside the circle, in the arena, outside the arena and many other positions. Many of my trainee equestrian coaches ask the question “Where is the best place to be positioned when teaching horse riding” Before this question is answered, I like to explore the benefits and drawbacks of some different teaching positions with them. Teaching horse riding on a circle Standing in the center of a circle when someone is teaching is great for explaining details, giving immediate feedback and for giving confidence to the nervous rider. However as soon as you … [Read more...]
Frustration From Horses or Passion For Horses?
I love technology when it is working well but find it very frustrating when it isn’t! I can do some of the basic stuff, but if the wrong button is pushed or a misdirected technical genius makes a website go down then I am not interested in fixing the problem and refer it to the Webmaster. Some people are like that with horses. They become frustrated with them and are not interested in fixing the problem. The only problem is that horses aren’t machines. They live and breathe and there is always a reason for doing what they do. If a resistance or an evasion is not corrected immediately, it can become a habit. As much as I am not interested in fixing technology, I am absolutely passionate about fixing horse problems. Last week one of my students bought a lovely horse as a … [Read more...]
How to be a Better Coach
Equestrian Coaches Only! By Glenys Cox and Cristine Hall Do you know what you are doing when you are coaching people with horses? Take a moment to think about the last session that you coached.What happened? What did you learn from that experience? Do you take the time to reflect on how you teach your students in those lessons? Consider yourself a student as well. How do you learn from your coaching? And how can you be a better equestrian coach? Reflective practice has long been recognised as an important phase ofexperiential learning. When John Dewey, philosopher of education, described the impact on learning from an experience, he claimed that the student’s capacity to reflect after an event (such as coaching your lesson!) was most important. This is true, particularly … [Read more...]
Working Student Needed
Are you looking for a live in working student position in a horse business? This is an opportunity to train for Horse Riding Instructor qualifications with OnlineHorseCollege.com including ‘hands on’ training and assessment for all practical components on your course. For further information, please click on the link below http://www.birsaddleclub.com/working-students … [Read more...]
Your Gift ‘On Horsemanship’ by Xenophon
At Online Horse College, we are partnering with a PhD student to develop courses for Equine Assisted Learning courses. As part of her research, she would love to survey you about your coaching and learning styles and as a reward for your input we have a gift for you! Xenophon is one of the earliest riding masters, training horses through kindness and reward. Topics include his teachings on selection of a young horse, breaking colts, selection of the older horse, care of the horse and grooming, handling correctly and safely, mounting, riders position and training the rider, advanced training of the horse including jumping and cross country and much, much more... If you would love a copy of this book, simply complete the one page equestrian coaching survey on the link below to … [Read more...]
Teaching Styles in Equestrian Coaching
Equestrian Coaches Only! Think about this for a moment! You may know what you coach or why you coach but have you considered how you coach? As a coach you can use a variety of teaching styles in your lessons with students. You could be more familiar with the words coaching or instructional styles or even facilitative methods or approaches depending on your discipline and training. Many equestrian coaches use a more direct style of teaching in their lessons where the coach gives commands or demonstrates and the students follow their cues. Take the survey here about equestrian coaching styles Think of one of your lessons where you say: Whole ride, trot and the whole ride trots on or you say: Everyone, come in here and everyone comes in together to the designated place. … [Read more...]
When You Choose, Always Think Of The Long Term Outcome
As a business consultant to the equine industry, people ask me “What if I train my staff to gain a qualification and they leave?” My answer is “What happens if you don’t train them and they stay?” When you make choices, continually think of the long-term outcome. You owe it to your clients to deliver to them the best possible outcome for them and their horse and part of that is to continually train and monitor your staff to serve your customers needs at a higher level. Not only will you gain a great reputation from your customers for delivering the best possible outcome, but you will also gain a reputation within the industry for meeting the needs of your staff. This second reputation will mean that you can attract potential employees who are looking for a career within the … [Read more...]
Strategies for Settling Competition Nerves
In a highly competitive environment, it is easy to become very critical of others “How could THAT horse win, didn’t the judges see that all the changes to the left were late behind” “She couldn’t sit to the trot to save herself” “Who owns that umbrella? It is scaring my horse!” Instead, we would remain in a far happier state of mind if we were more appreciative of other horse/ rider combinations “I liked the way he rode when he corrected that resistance/ evasion” “Every time I have seen that combination they have continued to improve” “Wow it is raining, what a great opportunity to expose my horse to wet conditions” If you tend to get tense and nervous at competitions, try using these strategies Remember that people have different reasons for riding at the … [Read more...]
Three Rewards for Your Horse
Have you ever noticed how when people ride their horses and reward them all the time, the horses go well for them? There are other riders who are always angry at their horses and give them a hard time. Keep a diary of everything that went well on your ride today, just the best three things and what you did to reward your horse. It could have been a softening of the reins allowing them to have a stretch and a break, a walk break or to finish the work session. When you focus on what went well and the rewards you give your horse on a regular basis, you look forward to your riding and training so much more. … [Read more...]
Your Equine Priorities
If one of your high priorities is to ride your horse, gain an equine qualification or make more profit in your horse business and you haven’t done anything about it in the last twenty-four hours then you may need to re-organize your actions! Research has consistently shown that ‘Overnight Successes’ have been taking continuous action steps towards their goal (of becoming a success) over the preceding months or years. So if you have a horse business that should be more profitable, have been thinking of studying towards your horse career or need to ride your horse more regularly, then make sure you take a step towards that goal every single day! Remember to live your dreams, Glenys :) … [Read more...]
Equine Meditation
Do you enjoy early morning rides with your friends? Then on the day you wake up and realize that your alarm clock didn’t go off and you are now running quite late for your ride? Did you go into a panic, trying to get everything done as fast as you can? Throwing things around, speaking fast or yelling only to forget where you put your boots or keys and then arrive late and blame it on your alarm clock? How does your horse react when you are like this? Do they get upset refusing to co-operate and generally behaving out of character? Or do you focus on working efficiently? Do you ask yourself what absolutely has to be done to be ready on time? Do you plan each move ahead so you know where everything is minutes before you need them? Do you focus on your breathing so your … [Read more...]
