Innehållsförteckning för July 2015 från Practical Horseman

During the final round of the Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final in Las Vegas in April, I was in the warm-up area waiting to interview the eventual winner after the class. I watched Beezie Madden jump some huge oxers with Simon, her 2013 World Cup champion. After Simon made one particularly great effort, John Madden, Beezie’s husband and a top trainer, said to focus on rideability. Beezie stopped jumping and worked on the flat. My ears perked up at the word “rideability” because it’s a topic we cover often in this magazine. It can be mentioned explicitly, but even if it’s not, the concept is still at the heart of most of our training articles. And here was a great example of it at the World Cup. Another reason…

LISA PIERSON Q I recently bought a 5-year-old Hackney-cross mare. For some reason, she can’t trot. I don’t know if she can’t or won’t. What she does is more like a bouncy, slow canter. Are there any exercises I could do to fix this? AFirst, use a process of elimination to try to determine the source of your mare’s problem. Ask your veterinarian to evaluate her for any possible lameness or discomfort in her body. Then check that her saddle fits correctly. (For saddle-fitting tips, search for “saddle fit” at www.PracticalHorsemanMag.com.) Next, longe her in both directions, with and without tack, to see if she trots normally without a rider. Young horses sometimes have trouble keeping their balance while learning to carry a rider, which can cause problems like your…

Carrying a smartphone or tablet is like having a spare brain in your pocket, one that helps you keep track of all the details in your busy life. At the barn, that device can also help you keep your horse healthy. Health Data in Your Hand The latest tool for this task is Horse Health Tracker, a smartphone app released by Equine Guelph, the horse-focused education and research center at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. It’s designed to help you monitor vital health information for your horse. The heart of the app is the Horse Health Check feature. It guides you through a 16-point health checklist that covers the horse from ears to hooves. Videos show you how to monitor heart rate and other vital signs. You can…

Wouldn’t you love to increase your score from the judges with just a few changes? Of course you would. The best part is that you don’t have to ride like John French, Kelley Farmer or Scott Stewart to do this. You just need to pay attention to some details. Let’s start with your appearance: I can tell you from a judge’s perspective that when a rider walks into my ring and is well turned out, I automatically feel positive and anticipate a good round. Why? Because I assume she is with a knowledgeable trainer who is not only concerned with turnout but good training as well. By turnout I am referring to the appearance of both the horse as well as the rider. First of all, the horse needs to…

The scoreboard doesn’t lie. As the last horse jumped the last show jump at the 2015 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, presented by Land Rover, the scoreboard was flashing in huge neon letters, tastefully outlined with bling and sparkles, “Not competitive yet. Not yet. Not yet.” (Well, I made that part up, except about the bling and sparkles—there was plenty of that around.) What the scoreboard really showed was the usual domination of North American riders by Europeanbased riders, who dropped in at the Kentucky Horse Park and walked away with more than $250,000 of the approximately $280,000 prize money offered. With this win, Germany’s Michael Jung establishes himself as the man to beat anywhere he competes. The KHP does not offer parimutuel betting yet, but if it had, you would…

As riders, we must have an extensive toolbox to deal with training challenges when they arise. In a perfect world, we’d all ride nothing but horses who’d been immaculately handled from day one and raised in a flawless dressage environment. But the reality is that we encounter horses with problems all the time. One that I see regularly is the late flying change. A change is late when the horse’s hind legs change leads one stride (or more) after the front legs. While it’s also possible for a change to be late in front when the front legs change a stride after the hind legs, this is less common, is less of a fault and tends to resolve on its own. Sometimes a horse has a chronically late change behind…

CHEER on top show jumpers at the Spruce Meadows North American Tournament, July 1–5, in Calgary, Canada, which features a CSI***** and offers a wide variety of family-friendly activities for spectators; www.sprucemeadows.com. SHOW APPRECIATION for your hardworking farrier during National Farriers Week, July 5–11. To make your farrier’s visit to your barn more enjoyable, pay him or her on time, have your horse ready and waiting and offer a show of gratitude with a small tip or gift. CHECK OUT the skills of talented young riders in the U.S. Junior Hunter National Championships. The East Coast Championships, July 6–7, are in Devon, PA, and the West Coast Championships, July 20–21, are in Del Mar, CA. More than 700 eligible hunters qualify to compete in the twoday finals, which comprise three…

At first we didn’t see them, but then they were everywhere. On Assateague Island, a barrier island off the coasts of Maryland and Virginia, ponysized horses roam free. I was on the Maryland side of the island on a quest to find them with National Park Ranger Nick Clemons. We spotted one grazing solo in the distant marshes, perhaps a bachelor cast off from his band. Beautiful and tough, the horses graze on beach grass, saltmarsh cordgrass and saltmeadow hay, surviving the sometimes-tough island conditions. You might find horses on the beach, especially in the summer, but we also found them meandering through parking lots and grazing near campsites. Visitors are encouraged not to feed the horses or get too close, and photographs in the visitor center and restrooms show…

Ultimate Summer Show Shirt With its four-way stretch fabric and Opti-Dry Technology, the Noble Outfitters Madison Show Shirt is ideal for summer riding. The shirt also includes back and underarm mesh panels for extra breathability. Unsnap the angled collar and roll up the sleeves to show off the colorful trim. A dropped back hem provides added coverage and keeps the shirt tucked into your breeches. White, powder blue, white/powder blue combination; sizes XS–XXL; $89.99; www.nobleoutfitters.com. Record Your Ride Relive your riding adventures with a T86 Helmet Camera from Trailer Eyes. This action video camera attaches to your helmet with secure, unobtrusive straps and has a wrist remote control for easy access. The camera also offers a WiFi connection so you can download videos directly to your smartphone or tablet. Other…

Fine Riding Based on Solid Foundations with Uta Gräf and Christoph Hess DVD; 43 minutes; Pferdia TV; $45; www.EquineNetworkStore.com Achieving rhythm and tempo, uphill balance and a willingness to work are goals many of us strive for with our horses, no matter the discipline. In this new DVD from Germany, two top equestrians share their basic principles of riding with a focus on keeping the horse relaxed and moving forward. Dressage rider Uta Gräf showcases two horses in a clinic with Christoph Hess, an internationally acclaimed judge and trainer, who describes in detail what he’s seeing in the horses’ performance. While Gräf demonstrates various flatwork movements on her horses, Hess points out how she is achieving the desired results. From his commentary, viewers can learn tidbits about how to work…

First Stallion Wins Badminton Great Britain’s William Fox-Pitt made history at the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials as the first rider to win a CCI**** on a stallion last April. He piloted Christopher Stone’s Chilli Morning to finish the event on their dressage score of 39.0. German rider Ingrid Klimke finished second by just 1.2 penalties on her new star, Horseware Hale Bob. Near-perfect conditions helped riders tackle the course, and though many felt it was less intense than years past, it was still challenging to meet the optimum time. “Congratulations to the designer. It had big fences and technical questions, which were appropriate for four-star level, and it motivated the horses,” said Klimke. Out of the 78 starters, 52 horses had clear rounds with 13 finishing inside the time.…

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