I have been really concentrating on my riding recently. Bonitao is a very good teacher. He will respond to my aids readily but only if I get them right. If I get them wrong he does nothing bad which is also a bonus and, after my fall last year, is very confidence building.
As the title suggests I have been concentrating on riding with just a rope halter and 12 foot lead rope. I am determined to continue this practise until I have developed all the good body language cues needed to ride with just the one rein. In order to give a focus for myself I have been using a variety of patterns, both Parelli ones and an excellent one from Stacy Westfold. The purpose of a pattern is two fold.
Horses like consistency and they are good pattern learners. As a result as they begin to understand a pattern the cues the rider gives get less and less and if the pattern is mixed up a bit then at each potential turn point they start expecting a cue and become more responsive.
For a human rider a pattern gives that all important focus. Remember that one of the responsibilities of a human is to "Use the natural power of focus". Riding randomly in a large area it is very difficult to keep a focus as there is little to focus on. Put a few cones in that arena and the featureless desert become studded with focal points. It is important to use the cones as guides however. Yesterday I made the mistake of focussing on the next cone itself, instead of into the distance past the cone. The result was that Bonitao obediently went to the cone, stopped looking very pleased with himself and asked for a treat for getting the task right. He received one of course because he had done want I asked, just not what I had intended !
The cues I am working hardest on are transitions and turns, both direct and indirect reins.
The walk to trot transition is achieved by bringing up my energy, lifting the rein and smiling with all four cheeks. This means a squeeze of the buttocks. If there is no response I allow a wave of squeeze to travel down my legs to my feet. If there is still no response then I create a little commotion on his back by flapping the end of the rein/lead rope on my own back. If this still fails then the lead rope touches his hind quarters. As you can see I use deliberate phases of pressure in a strict sequence. By the end of yesterday he was doing a nice transition to trot at the squeeze of the buttocks.
James Roberts uses the phrase "prepare to position to make the transition". This is important as I have found out. I have learned to prepare the transition. Make sure it is done at an appropriate part of the arena. There needs to be space in front as there are a lot of phases to go through, initially, which take time. Organise my hands on the lead rope so when I need to flap the end I can rather than fumbling for it, and mentally rehearse the steps so when they happen they are consistent and smooth.
Similarly with the turns I am finding that with one rein I have to be very very disciplined to get them right. Riding with two reins it is too easy to find that one has made a mess of the early phases and just grab the reins and pull. A very bad habit. Using one rein this is not an option so if the body cues have not worked it is probably because I have got them wrong. There is no fudging with a little squeeze on that rein, the result is there for all to see. I intend to do many hours of one rein riding, and once solid I will allow myself two reins, but return to one rein regularly to check on progress.
One additional advantage of having one rein is that it improves my balance. I cannot use the reins as a balance aid. After all if I put pressure on the one rein to hold myself upright he is going to turn, probably sharply, making the balance problem worse. Thus riding with one rein (and eventually none as my confidence builds) should truly give me an independent seat.
I fully expect there to be at least 100 hours in the saddle before I feel I am good enough to use a bit. Not the way riding is traditionally taught I know, but a method that I feel will give me a much more solid base to build on.
As the title suggests I have been concentrating on riding with just a rope halter and 12 foot lead rope. I am determined to continue this practise until I have developed all the good body language cues needed to ride with just the one rein. In order to give a focus for myself I have been using a variety of patterns, both Parelli ones and an excellent one from Stacy Westfold. The purpose of a pattern is two fold.
Horses like consistency and they are good pattern learners. As a result as they begin to understand a pattern the cues the rider gives get less and less and if the pattern is mixed up a bit then at each potential turn point they start expecting a cue and become more responsive.
For a human rider a pattern gives that all important focus. Remember that one of the responsibilities of a human is to "Use the natural power of focus". Riding randomly in a large area it is very difficult to keep a focus as there is little to focus on. Put a few cones in that arena and the featureless desert become studded with focal points. It is important to use the cones as guides however. Yesterday I made the mistake of focussing on the next cone itself, instead of into the distance past the cone. The result was that Bonitao obediently went to the cone, stopped looking very pleased with himself and asked for a treat for getting the task right. He received one of course because he had done want I asked, just not what I had intended !
The cues I am working hardest on are transitions and turns, both direct and indirect reins.
The walk to trot transition is achieved by bringing up my energy, lifting the rein and smiling with all four cheeks. This means a squeeze of the buttocks. If there is no response I allow a wave of squeeze to travel down my legs to my feet. If there is still no response then I create a little commotion on his back by flapping the end of the rein/lead rope on my own back. If this still fails then the lead rope touches his hind quarters. As you can see I use deliberate phases of pressure in a strict sequence. By the end of yesterday he was doing a nice transition to trot at the squeeze of the buttocks.
James Roberts uses the phrase "prepare to position to make the transition". This is important as I have found out. I have learned to prepare the transition. Make sure it is done at an appropriate part of the arena. There needs to be space in front as there are a lot of phases to go through, initially, which take time. Organise my hands on the lead rope so when I need to flap the end I can rather than fumbling for it, and mentally rehearse the steps so when they happen they are consistent and smooth.
Similarly with the turns I am finding that with one rein I have to be very very disciplined to get them right. Riding with two reins it is too easy to find that one has made a mess of the early phases and just grab the reins and pull. A very bad habit. Using one rein this is not an option so if the body cues have not worked it is probably because I have got them wrong. There is no fudging with a little squeeze on that rein, the result is there for all to see. I intend to do many hours of one rein riding, and once solid I will allow myself two reins, but return to one rein regularly to check on progress.
One additional advantage of having one rein is that it improves my balance. I cannot use the reins as a balance aid. After all if I put pressure on the one rein to hold myself upright he is going to turn, probably sharply, making the balance problem worse. Thus riding with one rein (and eventually none as my confidence builds) should truly give me an independent seat.
I fully expect there to be at least 100 hours in the saddle before I feel I am good enough to use a bit. Not the way riding is traditionally taught I know, but a method that I feel will give me a much more solid base to build on.
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