Innehållsförteckning för May 2015 från Practical Horseman

The other day, I climbed the mounting block and got on my horse. As I adjusted my position, he took a few steps. Somewhat sheepishly, I thought of Sharon White’s story about becoming a self-confident leader in the partnership with your horse (page 34). In it, she says that you alone know the plan for your ride, and in that plan, little details count in terms of good horsemanship and riding. To your horse, being trained to stand still during mounting and getting a crisp lead change are similar: You are telling him what you want and when you want him to do it. If you let him wander when you mount, he learns that he doesn’t really have to pay attention to the “what” or the “when” for anything…

We ride and compete because for us there is nothing better in the world than the horse/rider connection. Yet we know it’s not always perfect. I teach many clinics for riders of all levels, and I often need to help students who are passionate about riding but whose enjoyment of their horses is compromised by a lack of confidence. I don’t have a magic formula for building rider confidence, but I have something almost as good: tools a student can use to address just about any issue she is having with her horse. My starting point is that in the competitive partnership that is your relationship with your horse, there needs to be a leader and that leader must be you. Think about it. You’re the only one in the…

Most horses competing at any level wear shoes, which leads to studs being used in almost every discipline where there is grass footing. A barefoot horse has his own natural traction due to the hoof’s shape, but by adding shoes we take away the ability for the foot to flex and grab the ground. A metal shoe does add protection to the sole, but it causes a loss of traction by creating a more slippery, less flexible interface with the ground. General Guidelines Note: When we pick out studs, we commonly set them on a magnetic dish in the way that they will go into the hoof. In the following photographs, when there are four studs in a dish, they are set up exactly as if they are in the…

Hardcover; 192 pages; J.A. Allen; $15.95; www.allenbooks.co.uk As a veterinary physiotherapist, Gail Williams, PhD, works with many top horse-and-rider combinations in Britain and the United States, creating specific biomechanics-based programs to increase horses’ athletic performance and reduce the risk of injury. For her latest book, Horse Movement, she has teamed with illustrator Alexa McKenna, BVM&S, who is also a small-animal practitioner in Santa Barbara, California. Together they have created a valuable guide that offers insight into the functional anatomy of the horse through words, illustrations and photos. Right from the start, Williams makes her book’s purpose evident: An understanding of equine structure and function applied to the way a horse moves can be used to increase his performance and his resilience to injury as well as provide him with a…

I received the February issue of Practical Horseman and, as usual, began reading as I fixed dinner. I have been getting this magazine since high school. (I graduated in 1987.) When I got to the Editor’s Note, I had to sit down to read it. I must be close in age to the editor because we share the same equine idols. To date I have not been talked into a warmblood and still own a Thoroughbred. I am a former hunter/jumper rider and am hoping to get back into showing. Your editorial has given me a shot in the arm, and I feel even more excited about showing my mare. On behalf of myself and all the talented Thoroughbred horses in our country, thank you. Kelly Engdahl via email Practical…

“As the rider who is a student, you want to be learning with someone who makes you feel like you can do this, whatever the challenge of the moment is,” says Sharon White. The teaching/training program at her Last Frontier Farm in Summit Point, West Virginia, is just such a source of encouragement and confidence. Her students’ appreciation is obvious to anyone who has ever experienced the wave of cheers from orange-clad supporters who follow Sharon around the cross-country course. Sharon’s career has been shaped by some of the greats in equestrian sport. Early on, she rode with eventing legends Bruce Davidson and Torrance Watkins. A consistent influence has been international star Jim Wofford, who continues to be a sounding board for her riding and her overall career. “She is…

There are plenty of jumps in your ring, but you’ve just started eventing so you’d like to practice on some cross-country obstacles at home. Moving a bunch of rails onto the field doesn’t cut it, plus the brush pile you’ve been using has gotten tired and your horse isn’t paying attention to it anymore. Happily, there are options for schooling cross country at home. You don’t have to build Burghley in your backyard. Course builder and designer Morgan Rowsell of Long Valley, New Jersey, has tips and ideas for putting together simple cross-country fences of your own without great skill in carpentry or spending a lot. The best fences to start with are portable and can include coops (shaped like an inverted V) and ramps (a flat ascending surface angled…

Almost all people in our society do not move enough, resulting in postural and movement dysfunction. This applies to riders just as it does to other athletes. Almost every rider has muscular imbalances that are the cause of rider weaknesses or faults. One-sided stresses of modern life, incorrect weightbearing, overstressing and lack of —or incorrect—gymnasticizing all lead to continued shortening of muscles that, by nature, are already prone to shortening. It is necessary, therefore, to compensate for this shortening by “lengthening,” that is, stretching, among other things. Inactivity, unused muscle groups and incorrect gymnasticizing lead to increased weakening of muscles that already tend to be weak. Every rider should become aware of these interconnections and ensure—by practicing the respective exercises—that these muscles are deliberately strengthened (revitalized) in order to prevent…

Colvin Makes History Seventeen-year-old Victoria “Tori” Colvin did what no rider ever had when she won her fourth consecutive $100,000 WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular, February 14, in Wellington, Florida. It was the third time she rode Betsee Parker’s Ovation to victory in the event, which was held under the lights in the International Ring at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. “I wasn’t sure he was going to be able to come back and win for a third time,” Colvin said of the 15-year-old warmblood. “But he went in and went right around and was perfect.” As she did last year, Colvin also claimed second place in the event. She rode Lyn Pedersen’s 12-year-old Selle Français Small Affair. Brady Mitchell finished third aboard Cassanto, owned by Emily…

My OTTB Cold Smile. I rode him at the Portland Meadows track, winning 10 races out of 22 starts. He was almost unable to be handled—his nickname was Gator because he charged people with his mouth open. I used to share my morning coffee with him, and he would whinny when I came into the barn in the morning. When he retired, his trainer gave him to me. I retrained him as an event horse and we made it to Prelim before I had to retire him. Teri Helgeson, Texas Featured Response As a 45-year-old wife and mother who returned to riding after 30 years off, I was blessed to have owned my horse of a lifetime. Griffin was a 19-year-old Holsteiner and former big equitation star and jumper. He…

Based at Fox Covert Farm, in Upperville, Virginia, Jim Wofford competed in three Olympics and two World Championships and won the U.S. National Championship five times. He is also a highly respected coach. For more on Jim, go to www.jimwofford.blogspot.com. Have you reminded yourself lately that horses are wonderful? No matter how haphazard or awkward our efforts, horses seem to figure out what we want them to do and happily do it. This is something to keep in mind the next time you are obsessing about perfection and the “only right way” to do something. I have watched many different dressage trainers. When working toward collecting the horse, one told the rider, “Drive with your seat bones, press harder with your seat, drive your horse forward while holding a steady…

Part 1 My eventing career, which I dedicated so much time, energy and passion to for more than 30 years, ended abruptly on Saturday, October 6, 2012. I was nearing the finish of the Advancedlevel cross-country course at the Morven Park Horse Trials in Leesburg, Virginia, on Veronica, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare I’d trained to the four-star level. I had already been around once on my 2008 Olympic partner, Mandiba, and he gave me an absolutely fantastic ride inside the time. Veronica and I were having an immaculate round as well until we arrived at a bounce in the woods at the top of a hill just after a gully. As I entered the woods, I slowed way down to give her a moment to adjust to the change…

Growing up in Hamilton, Massachusetts, where the Groton House event was held (and the U.S Equestrian Team had its eventing outpost), Morgan Rowsell felt the influence of the horse world early. His father, a commercial artist, participated in low-level steeplechasing while living in his native Great Britain. Morgan began riding at the age of 12. After attending Western New England College, he got involved with hunting, polo and racing. An arborist by trade, Morgan would “work the trees during the day” and rehab racehorses in the evenings. He hunted them with Myopia Hunt and trailrode them to develop strength before they went back to the track. After he blew out his knee working in trees and was grounded in the winter of 1997, he offered to deliver a truck to…

□ SHINE the julep cups and stock up on mint for the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby, May 2, at Churchill Downs, in Louisville, KY. A field of 20 3-year-olds will vie for $2 million and the winner’s signature garland of red roses; www.kentuckyderby.com. □ SEE elite eventers put to the test during the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials, May 6–10, in Badminton, England. The course will be run in the opposite direction of last year’s competition, presenting riders with new challenges; www.badminton-horse.co.uk. □ KICK OFF the summer show season at HITS-on-the-Hudson, May 20–24, in Saugerties, NY. The popular series runs through Sept. 6 and the Saugerties $1 Million Grand Prix, which is now an FEI CSI-5* that promises to attract top international competitors; www.hitsshows.com. □ TRY a new…

Jumpers, Dressage Horses Become Stars Four of the 10 horses inducted into the Horse Stars Hall of Fame in February come from show jumping and dressage. They were selected by the United States Equestrian Federation and honored during the EQUUS Foundation’s Fete Cheval Etoile, February 20, in Wellington, Florida. Among those recognized for athletic achievements were: Cortes C—Abigail Wexner’s 2002 Belgian Warmblood gelding, ridden by Beezie Madden, was named USEF 2014 International Horse of the Year after earning some of show jumping’s most coveted titles, including a team and individual bronze at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Elis GV—The 2009 Friesian gelding, owned by Beth Kornegay, earned the title USEF 2014 National Horse of the Year. He carried seven junior riders, an adult amateur driver and his trainer, Bruce…

Nike Wear for Three-Day Fans New for 2015: an exclusive line of Nike products for men and women featuring Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event logos. One of a number of shirts and jackets, the woman’s Tour Performance quarter zip is a long-sleeve thermal pullover with an embroidered RK3DE shield on the front left chest and an American flag on the right sleeve. It is made of high-performance polyester for comfort and warmth. Red, white or navy; sizes small–large; $80; shop.rk3de.org. Stylish Boots Made For Muck An updated design gives the Tack II boot for women a slim shape and ensures allday comfort at the stable and beyond, no matter the type or condition of the ground underfoot. Features include a revamped topline for an equestrian look, neoprene insulation, mesh lining and…