Author: Erica Franz

I've been riding since I was 9, and in love with horses from the day I was born. Living in Washington with my horse and 5 dogs.
Edward Gal rides Moorlands Totilas in Rollkur Hyperflexion at the walk
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Edward Gal Uses Rollkur – Updated

48 Comments

My neck gets sore just watching. It is only during a poorly developed (read spoiled) walk that Edward Gal allows any freedom of the neck to his horse, and during the rest of the ride he keeps him round, round, round. Keep in mind that not only FEI rules but also Classical Dressage Masters have noted that the position of the horse’s face should be anywhere between 45 and 90 degrees depending on the horse’s individual conformation, this horse is well beyond 90 degrees.

Woman feeding bay horse a treat by hand
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Association Is More Powerful Than Reward?

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Many times as equestrians we overlook the habitual actions we make with our horses. Even more common is to behave in one way with one horse and another way entirely with another. We lack personal consistency and self-awareness to our actions and that inhibits our ability to understand fully our own horses’ reactions and actions.

English rider lays over her horse's neck while her horse stands lazily closing his own eyes.

Are You An Idle Equestrian?

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“Therefore, ideleness which is the cause of so many evils must be hated by all good men. Even if idleness were not a deadly enemy of good customs and the cause of every vice, as everyone knows it is, what man, though inept, could wish to spend his life without using his mind, his limbs, his every faculty? Does an idle man differ from a tree trunk, a statue, or a putrid corpse?”

Rapa das Bestas

Our History Predicts Forceful Horsemanship

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We see political leaders make the same claims – it is always some other factor which dictates why their decision was forced rather than their own inclination. Horse culture has inherited this long-standing tradition, afterall we are only human; and it is not new. It still trickles down that we are a “dominant” species over the horse – therefore we are all wise and knowing and the horse should respond to our directions as a result of his lesser intelligence.

Statue of horse and rider with a 'dunce' traffic cone on his head

Procrastinating

I don’t know about you, but I am a really great procrastinator, coupled with an uncanny ability to rationalize EVERYTHING. That just spells disaster. With that in mind I’d like to share a few points from a list of “99 Excuses”. I have found that planning to accomplish one MAJOR task (i.e. greater than washing the laundry, etc.) each day really helps to kick procrastination in the pants and grease the wheels of motivation.