Good riding is about creating an efficient and effective system (a horse and rider system). In chapter 3 we learnt that sustainable systems are characterised by strong connections. In the following three chapters we learn how to create and strengthen our connection with our horse, enabling us to communicate with him and improve him.
I believe that to achieve improvement we must
Connect (rider to horse; horse to rider) - establish a channel for communication and keep it active;
Communicate (rider to horse and horse to rider) - enabled by maintaining strong connections; and
Comprehend (both horse and rider) – this is the process of training; of discovery and learning about each other. This requires two things; that we comprehend what to communicate and that our horse understands.
In our human world, to have a phone conversation we need to establish a connection before we can communicate. Once we have a connection, then the quality of the connection affects the quality of communication possible.
It is the same with our horse. We need a connection because we can’t communicate without it. And the quality of the connection will affect the quality of communication possible. So we need to continually monitor and improve our connection.
Many riders think primarily of connection as being about “contact”; the connection in the hand. However, the biggest surface area of contact is the seat (knee to pelvis). The seat is the most intimate vehicle for communicating with the horse. Because it is “hidden”, it gives us the possibility of invisible (and inaudible) communication.
There is an argument that a progression is achieved as the horse’s training advances - from voice and whip on the lunge to leg into hand and ultimately to seat. The belief is that the horse becomes lighter and lighter to the hand and leg and then is entirely in the seat and (perhaps later) some telepathic connection. Paul Belasik advocates a progression like this in his “Dressage for the 21st century”.(7)
I don’t entirely agree with this progression. I prefer the horse to learn to carry himself from the start. This takes longer but the horse never learns to use the rider as a prop. Equally the rider must be careful not to ask for more than the horse can do without leaning on the hand.
Figure 11 Leg and Hand
All my life I have searched for the secret recipe; the Holy Grail of riding. Little did I know that it was always there inside me. So, deep breath, here’s the secret. The ingredients for successful riding are the same ingredients for success in any aspect of life. The only difference is the quantity of each ingredient required and the way that we choose to mix those ingredients.
Creating a quality connection can be likened to baking a cake. I believe that there are two key mixtures in the recipe for our connection cake:
(1)The rider’s ability to connect to the horse and
(2)The horse’s ability to connect to the rider.
Each mixture is made from three other basic ingredients. For the rider, they are calmness, concentration and mind-body connection. For the horse, they are calmness, concentration and mind-body connection. The same things!
The rider is the chef. She decides to ride the horse so she must be in charge of the ingredients. Unfortunately, her ability to influence the horse’s ingredients directly is limited. Instead she must focus on improving her ability to connect to the horse, which in turn means that she has to work on her own three ingredients. As the connection improves she can start to work on the horse’s ingredients. But she must always be conscious of monitoring, retaining and improving her own.