Training with Jamie

This week Jamie has continued to ride and train Ben for me. It's been really nice to just sit and watch them work together and learn from the ground her quiet and patient ways. Some of the things she's been working on have been riding effectively through the corners and giving with the reins. When riding through the corners she lifts her inside hand and taps Ben's inside hind each time she would rise in the trot. This encourages Ben to reach under himself more with his hind leg and in turn lift his back and give with his neck. It all allows him to relax more and work in a proper frame.

She has also been riding with her hands much higher than you would normally ride with but in Ben's case you have to give with you reins and over compensate for his fear of you pulling on the bit too much. By saying to him, "I'm not going to pull on you," hopefully he'll quit pulling against the rider, relax and come round on his own.

Like Gerd Hueschmann taught in his clinic, Jamie insists, "Don't even think or worry about the horse's head." It's not yours for taking and forcing it "on the bit." Rather, when the hind end is working properly and the horse is using it's back correctly, the head will come on it's own. The key to remember: Encourage natural movement from behind and don't force the horse's head down with your hands. It's a bad habit, but one I'm thankful that Jamie is helping me to break.