The Paces and basic Biomechanics of the Horse in Motion
$25.00
Product code:Mini01
Have you ever wondered what happens underneath you?
We cant see what is happening, after all we are supposed to sit upright with our eyes parallel to the ground, looking forward.
The aim of every rider is to find harmony with the horse. That means that we move in unison with the horse.
Once we move in unison with the horse we can become one with the horse and riding will become breeze. We can give seat aids that work and do not go against the horse and have an immediate effect.
Look at it from the horses point of view. If we make a lot of unnecessary movement because we are struggling to cope with the horses movement, it will be difficult for the horse identify what is a seat aid and what is us trying to cope with his movement.
The less clutter in our communication with the horse by moving unnecessarily the easier our communication with the horse will be.
I believe that the seat of the rider is the most important of all aids. I believe that the seat overrides all other aids. The seat is a very powerful aid. To be able to use the seat effectively we need to know what happens when the horse going correctly in each pace and what that feels like.
In this Mini Course we also make the connection with the rules in the FEI Dressage Rule Book for those who use this information when competing.
All Mini Courses are supported with video.
The video is important because 85 % of our learning is done with our eyes.
Our explanations of how to are followed with the common mistakes riders make when learning this technique. Here is an example of this:
2. When the fore leg and the hind leg on the same side move almost on the same beat the walk tends to become an almost lateral movement.
This irregularity, which might become an ambling movement, is a serious deterioration of the pace. Lateral walk is often caused by the rider rushing the walk or the horse resisting the bit.
When the horse resists the bit or locks the jaw, the shoulders will not move as freely. When the rider pushes the horse more forward the stiffening of the shoulders causes the walk to become more lateral, in other words: the hoof beats are no longer evenly spaced. It becomes 1-2 then some space 3-4.
When the hoof beats of 1-2 and 3-4 come very close together (almost simultaneously), we talk about ambling. Now the clear even spacing between the hoof beats is completely lost. Real ambling usually occurs when the walk is executed too hurriedly. You can see the horses of stockmen amble when they are walking as they often walk quite fast.
Included in this Mini Course are explanations of concepts we use in dressage. Here is an explanation of the concept cadence.
What is cadence?
Cadence is the most difficult concept. It is often described as measured rhythm, but still a horse can be very rhythmic without cadence. I like to define cadence like this: Imagine a horse doing an extended trot. That horse has a certain amount of energy in that movement. When the horse shortens the stride but keeps that energy, the horse will come higher off the ground, with more bounce and also lifts his legs up higher in a more rounded movement. That is cadence - an energetic, determined and proud way of moving. You could say the horse is showing off. Cadence does not exist in walk as there is no upward movement. It does exists in trot and canter, as they have an upward movement.
