I've been a quiet fan of Manolo Mendez's for some time and always look forward to seeing him write about the art of dressage. You might enjoy his perspective on the health of your horse's topline and what it says about your riding & training.
Source: Manolo Mendez Dressage
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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.
In looking around, there seems a great wealth of images and video, articles and books, media and marketing; all of which demonstrating the use of the horse for human gain and purposes. The focus, the mindset, the intent is control and consumption of the horse – we ride, we travel, we tour, we compete, we battle, we seek to impress.
Maybe I’m not being clear, but if time after time I’m being cut off, interrupted, my thoughts summarized incorrectly, then it is safe to assume the listener is no longer trying to listen. Of course at the pace our society moves who really has time to sit down and fully listen to another person…? Or do we and we’ve simply allowed ourselves to get caught up in a pace which requires us to constantly repeat ourselves?
When we are in the pursuit of knowledge, attempting to glean it from every viable source, it helps always to know whose definition of equitation we are gleaning that knowledge from. For many they answer number one to different reasons – money, ego, curiosity. What is the *best* definition of equitation?
Always interesting to me, is the riding that comes out of the Cadre Noir, and this is no exception. The segments that show riding really highlight the kind of power and explosiveness that becomes available…
Inspired by the video of Wonderful I shared yesterday, here are some additional videos of stallions from various State Studs for your inspiration. All of these videos are excellent visuals, demonstrating forward moving horses, and using…
I’m not perfect, and I avoid expecting perfection, although I do aim for “personal best”. As equestrians and horseback riders we give critique constantly, while often being oblivious to the critique we’re receiving. From the moment we…
This post couldn’t have come at a better time – I’ve recently taken on a very green and out-of-shape 7 year old and I’ve been searching for a guide that will help me monitor the development of muscle tone and ensure that we’re heading in the right direction. This is really great advice and I’ll definitely be using these ‘tests’ to measure how we’re getting on and which areas need more focus.
Wonderful to hear Zoe! I’ve really enjoyed watching Manolo ride and all of his horses have beautiful gymnastic development all around so this article in particular I think is very useful. 🙂
Good luck with your new horse, send over an update on your progress if you like!
Cheers