Damn... I finally understand! All this time I have been thinking about the head, and pulling it in with tones of different methods! Because if you ask someone how to get a horse on the bit, that's what they say! I feel I finally understand the concept of "On the Bit" properly!!! More people need to watch this video!!!
RIGHT? The improper things are all too prevalent (though there are small bits and pieces of classical coming back into the picture, thankfully). I found this man last year (almost to the day, actually). He and veterinary expert Dr. Gerd Heuschmann have really helped me in my knowledge of how the horse's body functions and how to properly train and engage a horse. I also recommend finding any of the 50+ veterinary science articles explaining how hyperflexion (in the articles defined as the head being tucked to any degree, slight behind or severe rollkur) is detrimental to the horse's physical and mental health.
The way you get the horse to stretch down into the bit is simple. You reward him for the smallest stretch by giving some on the rein. This means you move your hand away from your body and towards his head. If he keeps giving, then slowly release the rein through your finger tips. If he stops giving or raises his head up, then shorten the reins until you have a little pressure in his mouth and start over. The minute he gives (goes over the back and lowers his head) that is the minute you give him more reign.
This is so helpful. And to those of you complaining about how long it takes- That's the magic of riding. That's why it's different from any other sport- you aren't just responsible for yourself, you have to do your best to help your partner use himself correctly. You can't communicate with words either. It's freakin hard- that's why we dont call it football (:
Guys, when he says it takes a year, he doesn't mean you can't get the horse "on the bit" in one year. You can. He means it will take one year for the horse to develop the muscles properly!
Wow this taught me alot as a new person. And this seems so ethical. They have the pressure of having the head down and raising the back and when they achieve the raising of the back and engagement of the hind end they get to have a raised head. At least I'm assuming just by the pressure and release. Horses are so smart. They figure all this out without treats. Just by consistancy. Time. And clear direction.
Super, showing how to ride forward into the hand rather than pull a horse into frame... Most horses I have tried need remedial work due to people failing to understand hands are not the tools to pull a horse into frame...Thank you for this great video.
Will I must say, as much as I am against all sorts of equine sports and competitions, only for the animal and the countryside, I find your energy positive and clear. You have a clear idea of what good and healthy riding is for you and you can get your message through. Not all trainers/teachers have this ability. I must credit you for making me realize that there are non snob, non stiff-necked and non-haughty minded dressage people around, difficult to find but they're out there...
Really, really good advice. People need to understand that doing it incorrectly, like lifting weight incorrectly, will damage your horse's back. Too many U'd backs in dressage.
I absolutely loved this video, and after a 30minute session for each of my horses, they are both working super well and noses to the ground!! Can't believe how quickly the results happened, so glad I found this video! :)
Finally someone who teaches collection of horse right!!! Most riders, even pro riders, are riding the horses with their head on their breasts whic is so horrible and the horses back is not even working properly....Thank you man❤️
that feeling he talks about when the back is up is the best feeling you can ever have. it bonds you with the horse you achieve it with, especially if its for the first time. i now own the horse i had my first experience on :)
Very nice. No devices or special bits or harsh hands can do this only encouragement to move and stretch and the riders body must be doing the same. I appreciate that it is pointed out that this will create a very buoyant feeling in the rider ( not the tense harsh seat riding you often see) but equally important it takes 1 or more years to develop this.
@@thecheyenneb_ Hi, five years late but never hurts to respond lmao. Raised poles and equiband is a super way to make your horse lift it's back(: Humane and nice for the horse (:
Exactly! Our family pony is 31 and still going strong. We have trained with colleagues of Richard Hinrichs in Germany and stretching the back is everything. Happy horse, happy riders!
I know this video was posted such a long time ago, but watching it today really made me feel more confident in my riding and the process I am in with my horse. I have an OTTB where I really need to help him stretch and develop his top line. When we trot, he puts his head way down and I've been frustrated because I didn't know what he was doing (I knew it was some sort of stretching, but him being my first project horse, I thought he was just testing me and I feel really stupid now lol) . I never really had anyone say "That's good, that's what he's suppose to be doing" like this video has. It's really boosted my self-confidence as a rider...I really though I was doing something wrong so I started digging for videos on stretching. What a great video! Now I've just got to keep him trotting when he puts his head down like this!
Super reminders - I have started my young horse out this way and he is building nicely too. I was just having this conversation with a young lady today who is struggling with all the conflicting information from pony club instructors, etc. I was telling her about exactly this :) Any more to come?
I don't know how long it took me to figure out how to get the horse to stretch down and seek contact, but now that I've finally figured it out, my horse has taken to it like a duck to water. Down there with his head is his favorite place to be.
This is such a great method! I have a 20 year old Arabian mare who was trained with martingales and draw reins since she was 3 or 4 (I bought her at 11) and a 5 year old half-Arab gelding I trained myself with just a 3-piece loose ring snaffle. My mare has done well at shows but her neck is usually very tense when I ask for collection because she was rushed into training as a filly. I used this method on my gelding, and now when I shorten my reins he flexes at the poll and is relaxed!
How I wish Will Faeber was my trainer, I LOVE his energy and his way of explaining things, unfortunately I live on the other side of the planet, but man he is cool!
This video is very well done! Saw it a couple months ago and I keep referring back to it. I pick something else up every time I see it! Really has helped me understand what my trainer has been helping me with! She teaches this way and now I see why it is taking so long for my horse to step under correctly. So I just need to continue with patience. Thank you for taking the time to put this video together!
This is such a great video, we need soooo many more trainers in the hunter jumper world who put down the draw reins and focus on taking their time to properly develop muscles with patience. I wish this guy could give about 90% of trainers in the h/j industry a clinic. If I see one more neck stretcher or draw reins on a horse in the schooling ring I may just call him up haha
Agree 100%! My old trainer always taught the "head down always and by any means necessary", and its always a fight to get him to keep it down. This video made so much sense, i'm excited to find some exercises for tomorrow!
I enjoyed this short video. To the point. Most important point, I found, was when he reminds us it takes ONE YEAR to bring the top line up. I think too many riders are in a rush and need to be reminded of this. There are no short cuts.
beginning dressage for me with Felisa Richards...so much to learn but my horse, TB mare, Raiderette is a natural...she is so very very intelligent and oh so sweet!
One of my favorite videos! I always go back to it as a reference to see if I am achieving the goals with my horse as a represented on the video. Thanks!
Descente de main doesn`t mean to descend on the hand but rather to not use hand aids for a short moment in order to proove if the horse remains in the same frame without giving aids constantly.
WOW this makes so much sense, we are taught to pull the head in to get collection, my horse loves to trot with her head right down and i thought this was wrong, when she does an extended trot her head is almost on the floor, ive been trying to pull it up which breaks the trot, this makes perfect sense to me now!
I agree 100%. If I can stay dedicated to a sport for 15 years (and I'm only 18), I'm not sure why adults can't do the same... I'm training my 5 year old Half-Arabian who I bought as a barely-broke 4 year old, and riding definitely takes patience and dedication to be done correctly. I hope to be a trainer like you who encourages their students to do the same!
@TheSolwyvern i absolutly agree with you. i had a discussion where a girl was upset about rollkur and didn't believed me when i told her, that her way of riding hunter/jumper with high horse head is as harmful for the horseback as rollkur.
Indeed. So it's actually not about going down litterally, in itself, since the hand can stay in place. But it means that as soon as the horse do well, you stop acting so that the horse understands that he's doing well and can find its own equilibrium.
Good point, I absolutely agree that the back should be working and no rider should pull down his horses neck. However, the downside of the shown method is that the horse puts way too much weight on the forehand which may lead to premature wear and tear of the front legs. That is the reason why I would not call this method "classical". There are other - really classical - trainers who achieve the same "connected back" by methods that do not burden that much weight on the forehand.
Thank you so much for this. I have a young TB who's been put in an outline too early and has a lot of tension as a result. I'm taking her right back to basics and this video is enormously helpful! Keep up the good work =]
Its kind of like magic. My trainer has me just keep my hands steady, resting my hands on the horse's withers. You gradually shorten the reins, "sneakilly" as my trainer would say, so the horse doesn't tense up. Then you work them from inside leg to outside rein doing lots of circles, figure-8s and changes of direction.Once they feel soft and light,like they are working off the outside rein, slowly let your reins out and your horse should follow the slack out and go long and low.Hope it helps.
I just got my young horse about a year ago, a due to a saddle issue, he had to be out of work for a good while, and people are wondering why I am not showing him this year. Well, he simply is not ready. If I take my horse to a show, I expect him to be working to the best of his ability. We havent reached that yet. The people I know take their horses to show and wonder why their horses didnt place well. Its because they weren't ready. Take your time. There really is no rush.
This is such a good video! If only more people were educated correctly, instead of pulling there horses nose down, with the use of 'training aids' . Great video! :)
Dear 1Osalo, the horses you see in this video were all learning this for the first time. The footage was shoot over the two days of a clinic. In all cases they were horses who had been going hollow with dropped backs for years. If we achieved a supple swinging back in that short of time, I'd say we're doing pretty well as everything else comes from that. The back and it's ability to lift can only be developed over time and over the entire length of the top line at the same level of muscular
I agree with never2love2... My mare lifts her back by herself without contact with the reins and I have cues in my seat that help her lift more than the reins. They can literally be sitting across her withers and she'll keep herself round if I use my seat.
Wonderful video :) I can only agree with every word, as I went through every step myself! Sadly one often sees horses who don't engage their back, even in the highest dressage competitions...
Hi Kathryn I do understand the importance of stretching . . . I had just never heard anyone say it would take 2 years of riding everyday. I do not plan to ever compete with my horse, but I do the stretching exercises every time I ride and in ground work, knowing it is important. Just thought that personally, that statement was very discouraging. As in, all or nothing. Thanks for responding.
Yes! I still agree this is the only way to properly train a horse! My mare is a sweetheart but her headset was trained with force even as a filly, and we still have some problems from that "training" now that she's 20 years old. On the other hand, I bought a 4 year old gelding in 2011, and a couple of my friends helped me teach him this type of collection. He's so relaxed and light on the forehand! I see a lot of forced training, especially at the Arabian shows I go to, and it's very upsetting.
I (as a trainer) would tell you, This is a sport that takes time, dedication and discipline, if you are not willing to be dedicated to it, its better you realize this now, than ruin a horse trying to acheive it in too short a time.
I really really want to start getting my horse to lift her back and become connected, but I'm not 100% sure how to do that. I'm ready to commit to a year of almost daily riding but I do NOT want to do the wrong thing for a whole year and then have wasted my time. From my understanding, and please correct me if I am wrong, you give the horse a loose rein and allow them to stretch down, praise when they do, and use your leg to get them to move forward into that contact. Is this correct?
xLunai I’m a little late but from what I understand, you always give when your horse stretches. When they stretch their neck down you let the reins slip through your fingers so they can stretch and that loosening of the reins is the reward. However, as soon as their head goes up tighten your reins to get contact back and do it all over again. Takes patience
Very helpful, because it's true you see people riding and all they want to do is get the horses head arched that they're behind the vertical, and you can still see how the horse is so tense. My horse lowers his head like I seen some of the horses do in this video. Which is good because that means I'm allowing him to stretch out his neck. But the problem I have now is when I am cantering with him, his head is very low, and its hard for me to sit back in the saddle to balance him.
Will, this is a great video and I've included it in my recent blog post and posted it on my facebook fan page. There was a lot of video production work to make your education clear and I really like the side-by-side correct/incorrect display. I hope to meet you one day. Tara :)
not all "forward down" will be below the withers. The point is to have a horse that is ALL round from tail to poll, with an elongated neck and nose reaching for the contact. That can happen with a lower or higher neck set depending on the horse's comformation and level. The easiest way to teack forward down is in-hand. Marjke de Jong is one of the trainers you can look up for step-by-step instructions.
you can try letting the horse realize that when there's contact, it's soft and light and pleasant. when he tries to fight it, it's hard and unpleasant. this is just what helped my horse, maybe it might work for you!
Hi! I produced the video and feel compelled to respond to jgerl100. I believe what Will was saying is that it's important to become educated - for the sake of the horse. Most people haven't learned the art of stretching but once you do understand - and hopefully, can work with an experienced trainer, you can influence the topline. But it takes a long time. Thanks for watching! Kathryn, Padma Video
Yeah it is, you can do it on pretty much any horse, it has to be done correctly and regularly over a long period of time so its hard to achieve on horses ridden by lower level riders...
This is really good & very clear I understand it. This is what I'll be doing with my 6 year old arab as it will also help when I do jumping coz she wont have her head in the air :)
I would really love how to start this technique on my 3yo. He is green broken. This video makes alot of sense and is very logical! But I don't even know where to start I have alot of years in the saddle but there all cattle work, I have no experience in this kind of work .. If you could give me some advice on how to start I would be very thankful :)
@scotchb29 wrong. You connect the horse with your seat and leg, not your hand. You can make a horse round completely tackless if you use your leg and seat correctly
Great video, but you got something wrong here. Descente de main is not actually the horse descending to the bit. Descente de main actually translates to "descent of the hand", and is used after lifting the horse up with a demi arrêt for example. Philippe Karl or Jean-Claude Racinet explain the concept very well in their books.
I wanted to add the same comment! "Descente des mains" occurs every time you reward your horse for the right attitude by stopping your aids and going into "neutral" position so that ultimately lightness can be achieved. Same thing with "descente des jambes". Général Decarpentry explains it well, too.
Damn... I finally understand! All this time I have been thinking about the head, and pulling it in with tones of different methods! Because if you ask someone how to get a horse on the bit, that's what they say!
I feel I finally understand the concept of "On the Bit" properly!!! More people need to watch this video!!!
RIGHT? The improper things are all too prevalent (though there are small bits and pieces of classical coming back into the picture, thankfully). I found this man last year (almost to the day, actually). He and veterinary expert Dr. Gerd Heuschmann have really helped me in my knowledge of how the horse's body functions and how to properly train and engage a horse. I also recommend finding any of the 50+ veterinary science articles explaining how hyperflexion (in the articles defined as the head being tucked to any degree, slight behind or severe rollkur) is detrimental to the horse's physical and mental health.
The way you get the horse to stretch down into the bit is simple. You reward him for the smallest stretch by giving some on the rein. This means you move your hand away from your body and towards his head. If he keeps giving, then slowly release the rein through your finger tips. If he stops giving or raises his head up, then shorten the reins until you have a little pressure in his mouth and start over. The minute he gives (goes over the back and lowers his head) that is the minute you give him more reign.
This is so helpful. And to those of you complaining about how long it takes-
That's the magic of riding. That's why it's different from any other sport- you aren't just responsible for yourself, you have to do your best to help your partner use himself correctly. You can't communicate with words either. It's freakin hard- that's why we dont call it football (:
omg finally someone who explained it this thoroughly and easily understandable!!! thank you so much!!!!!!
Guys, when he says it takes a year, he doesn't mean you can't get the horse "on the bit" in one year. You can. He means it will take one year for the horse to develop the muscles properly!
So excited to find someone that not only gets this but can teach it!!!! BRAVO!!!!!!
Wow this taught me alot as a new person.
And this seems so ethical. They have the pressure of having the head down and raising the back and when they achieve the raising of the back and engagement of the hind end they get to have a raised head.
At least I'm assuming just by the pressure and release.
Horses are so smart. They figure all this out without treats. Just by consistancy. Time. And clear direction.
Super, showing how to ride forward into the hand rather than pull a horse into frame... Most horses I have tried need remedial work due to people failing to understand hands are not the tools to pull a horse into frame...Thank you for this great video.
Brilliant! Classical but MODERN! Surprised to see this when there are so many people out there seeking but not finding... Very impressed.
Thank you so much for explaining this not only in words, but in pictures and also in how it is supposed to feel!
Will I must say, as much as I am against all sorts of equine sports and competitions, only for the animal and the countryside, I find your energy positive and clear. You have a clear idea of what good and healthy riding is for you and you can get your message through. Not all trainers/teachers have this ability. I must credit you for making me realize that there are non snob, non stiff-necked and non-haughty minded dressage people around, difficult to find but they're out there...
It is the difference between competitive dressage and classical dressage --this guy is a classical dressage trainer.
Really, really good advice. People need to understand that doing it incorrectly, like lifting weight incorrectly, will damage your horse's back. Too many U'd backs in dressage.
I absolutely loved this video, and after a 30minute session for each of my horses, they are both working super well and noses to the ground!! Can't believe how quickly the results happened, so glad I found this video! :)
Your videos really are educational and easy to follow too.
Such a valuable resource.
Thank You! I finally understand why its important to have the horse lift his back and Then his poll! THANK YOU!!!!
Finally someone who teaches collection of horse right!!! Most riders, even pro riders, are riding the horses with their head on their breasts whic is so horrible and the horses back is not even working properly....Thank you man❤️
that feeling he talks about when the back is up is the best feeling you can ever have. it bonds you with the horse you achieve it with, especially if its for the first time. i now own the horse i had my first experience on :)
Very nice. No devices or special bits or harsh hands can do this only encouragement to move and stretch and the riders body must be doing the same. I appreciate that it is pointed out that this will create a very buoyant feeling in the rider ( not the tense harsh seat riding you often see) but equally important it takes 1 or more years to develop this.
Can this guy please be my trainer???
Right? My trainer is great, but no matter what she tells me to do, I can't get my mare to engage her back (round). I need this guy at my barn. xD
same! he seems so knowledgeable and like he would be such a great resource to have around the barn
He has his own channel called arttoride if anyone wants more information. Lots of good stuff on there
@@thecheyenneb_ Hi, five years late but never hurts to respond lmao. Raised poles and equiband is a super way to make your horse lift it's back(: Humane and nice for the horse (:
Exactly! Our family pony is 31 and still going strong. We have trained with colleagues of Richard Hinrichs in Germany and stretching the back is everything. Happy horse, happy riders!
This guy is a genius, and amazing trainer. WOW is all I have to say. Really helped my understanding on this even more!
Came back to watch this video again! Love it! I only wish there were teachers like you in TN!
Great videos! Wish you were still making them
VERY VERY VERY helpful TY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why does this man have to be 3000 miles away! Absolutely perfect video! Perfection!
Great video and easily explained x
Thank you so much for reposting this again! This is the best I've ever seen someone explain and show this on film.
I know this video was posted such a long time ago, but watching it today really made me feel more confident in my riding and the process I am in with my horse. I have an OTTB where I really need to help him stretch and develop his top line. When we trot, he puts his head way down and I've been frustrated because I didn't know what he was doing (I knew it was some sort of stretching, but him being my first project horse, I thought he was just testing me and I feel really stupid now lol) . I never really had anyone say "That's good, that's what he's suppose to be doing" like this video has. It's really boosted my self-confidence as a rider...I really though I was doing something wrong so I started digging for videos on stretching. What a great video! Now I've just got to keep him trotting when he puts his head down like this!
Super reminders - I have started my young horse out this way and he is building nicely too. I was just having this conversation with a young lady today who is struggling with all the conflicting information from pony club instructors, etc. I was telling her about exactly this :) Any more to come?
I don't know how long it took me to figure out how to get the horse to stretch down and seek contact, but now that I've finally figured it out, my horse has taken to it like a duck to water. Down there with his head is his favorite place to be.
I felt my horses back come up for the first time the other day, and omg! its so dramatic like he said!
Excellent video
This is such a great method! I have a 20 year old Arabian mare who was trained with martingales and draw reins since she was 3 or 4 (I bought her at 11) and a 5 year old half-Arab gelding I trained myself with just a 3-piece loose ring snaffle. My mare has done well at shows but her neck is usually very tense when I ask for collection because she was rushed into training as a filly. I used this method on my gelding, and now when I shorten my reins he flexes at the poll and is relaxed!
How I wish Will Faeber was my trainer, I LOVE his energy and his way of explaining things, unfortunately I live on the other side of the planet, but man he is cool!
This video is very well done! Saw it a couple months ago and I keep referring back to it. I pick something else up every time I see it! Really has helped me understand what my trainer has been helping me with! She teaches this way and now I see why it is taking so long for my horse to step under correctly. So I just need to continue with patience. Thank you for taking the time to put this video together!
Very helpful video and I appreciate your honesty by emphasizing that it takes lots of time to perfect this technique.
This is such a great video, we need soooo many more trainers in the hunter jumper world who put down the draw reins and focus on taking their time to properly develop muscles with patience. I wish this guy could give about 90% of trainers in the h/j industry a clinic. If I see one more neck stretcher or draw reins on a horse in the schooling ring I may just call him up haha
Agree 100%! My old trainer always taught the "head down always and by any means necessary", and its always a fight to get him to keep it down. This video made so much sense, i'm excited to find some exercises for tomorrow!
Awesome Video...so many people need to watch this!!
I enjoyed this short video. To the point. Most important point, I found, was when he reminds us it takes ONE YEAR to bring the top line up. I think too many riders are in a rush and need to be reminded of this. There are no short cuts.
Makes sense, thank you. Had no idea the training would take 1 year to get horse's back up and 2 years for collection.
This man is just simply amazing!!
beginning dressage for me with Felisa Richards...so much to learn but my horse, TB mare, Raiderette is a natural...she is so very very intelligent and oh so sweet!
One of my favorite videos! I always go back to it as a reference to see if I am achieving the goals with my horse as a represented on the video. Thanks!
Thank you so much my horse is now building strength and collecting
Awesome I shared with my riding students. They really needed to understand what this means.
I started feeling my horse stretching up unto me with his back when we changed his bit. :D It's awesome now!
brilliant video. I finally understand how to get my horse on the bit.
Descente de main doesn`t mean to descend on the hand but rather to not use hand aids for a short moment in order to proove if the horse remains in the same frame without giving aids constantly.
WOW this makes so much sense, we are taught to pull the head in to get collection, my horse loves to trot with her head right down and i thought this was wrong, when she does an extended trot her head is almost on the floor, ive been trying to pull it up which breaks the trot, this makes perfect sense to me now!
I managed to do this a couple days back, and oh my god it felt good.
This is the way my old master taught me. Then he retired, and my new one just got me a sharper bit... looking for a new one right now, lol.
I agree 100%. If I can stay dedicated to a sport for 15 years (and I'm only 18), I'm not sure why adults can't do the same... I'm training my 5 year old Half-Arabian who I bought as a barely-broke 4 year old, and riding definitely takes patience and dedication to be done correctly. I hope to be a trainer like you who encourages their students to do the same!
And he did train with Nuno Oliveira - I have trained with him and have had amazing results!
@TheSolwyvern i absolutly agree with you. i had a discussion where a girl was upset about rollkur and didn't believed me when i told her, that her way of riding hunter/jumper with high horse head is as harmful for the horseback as rollkur.
Indeed. So it's actually not about going down litterally, in itself, since the hand can stay in place. But it means that as soon as the horse do well, you stop acting so that the horse understands that he's doing well and can find its own equilibrium.
Good point, I absolutely agree that the back should be working and no rider should pull down his horses neck.
However, the downside of the shown method is that the horse puts way too much weight on the forehand which may lead to premature wear and tear of the front legs. That is the reason why I would not call this method "classical".
There are other - really classical - trainers who achieve the same "connected back" by methods that do not burden that much weight on the forehand.
Thank you so much for this. I have a young TB who's been put in an outline too early and has a lot of tension as a result. I'm taking her right back to basics and this video is enormously helpful! Keep up the good work =]
very nice
THANK YOU for this clip!
Its kind of like magic. My trainer has me just keep my hands steady, resting my hands on the horse's withers. You gradually shorten the reins, "sneakilly" as my trainer would say, so the horse doesn't tense up. Then you work them from inside leg to outside rein doing lots of circles, figure-8s and changes of direction.Once they feel soft and light,like they are working off the outside rein, slowly let your reins out and your horse should follow the slack out and go long and low.Hope it helps.
I just got my young horse about a year ago, a due to a saddle issue, he had to be out of work for a good while, and people are wondering why I am not showing him this year. Well, he simply is not ready. If I take my horse to a show, I expect him to be working to the best of his ability. We havent reached that yet. The people I know take their horses to show and wonder why their horses didnt place well. Its because they weren't ready. Take your time. There really is no rush.
Great video, very easy to understand thank you!
This is such a good video! If only more people were educated correctly, instead of pulling there horses nose down, with the use of 'training aids' . Great video! :)
Brilliant! Thanks for this video!
Great info, concise video, well done!
I love your videos!
Paulo Bastos - right on!!!!
Dear 1Osalo, the horses you see in this video were all learning this for the first time. The footage was shoot over the two days of a clinic. In all cases they were horses who had been going hollow with dropped backs for years. If we achieved a supple swinging back in that short of time, I'd say we're doing pretty well as everything else comes from that. The back and it's ability to lift can only be developed over time and over the entire length of the top line at the same level of muscular
I agree with never2love2... My mare lifts her back by herself without contact with the reins and I have cues in my seat that help her lift more than the reins. They can literally be sitting across her withers and she'll keep herself round if I use my seat.
Wonderful video :) I can only agree with every word, as I went through every step myself! Sadly one often sees horses who don't engage their back, even in the highest dressage competitions...
and THIS is the video that I found Will Feaber
Same here. He's amazing, I want to train under him one day.
Hi Kathryn
I do understand the importance of stretching . . . I had just never heard anyone say it would take 2 years of riding everyday. I do not plan to ever compete with my horse, but I do the stretching exercises every time I ride and in ground work, knowing it is important. Just thought that personally, that statement was very discouraging. As in, all or nothing. Thanks for responding.
Yes! I still agree this is the only way to properly train a horse! My mare is a sweetheart but her headset was trained with force even as a filly, and we still have some problems from that "training" now that she's 20 years old. On the other hand, I bought a 4 year old gelding in 2011, and a couple of my friends helped me teach him this type of collection. He's so relaxed and light on the forehand! I see a lot of forced training, especially at the Arabian shows I go to, and it's very upsetting.
I (as a trainer) would tell you, This is a sport that takes time, dedication and discipline, if you are not willing to be dedicated to it, its better you realize this now, than ruin a horse trying to acheive it in too short a time.
I really really want to start getting my horse to lift her back and become connected, but I'm not 100% sure how to do that. I'm ready to commit to a year of almost daily riding but I do NOT want to do the wrong thing for a whole year and then have wasted my time. From my understanding, and please correct me if I am wrong, you give the horse a loose rein and allow them to stretch down, praise when they do, and use your leg to get them to move forward into that contact. Is this correct?
xLunai
I’m a little late but from what I understand, you always give when your horse stretches. When they stretch their neck down you let the reins slip through your fingers so they can stretch and that loosening of the reins is the reward. However, as soon as their head goes up tighten your reins to get contact back and do it all over again. Takes patience
Very helpful, because it's true you see people riding and all they want to do is get the horses head arched that they're behind the vertical, and you can still see how the horse is so tense. My horse lowers his head like I seen some of the horses do in this video. Which is good because that means I'm allowing him to stretch out his neck. But the problem I have now is when I am cantering with him, his head is very low, and its hard for me to sit back in the saddle to balance him.
Thanks a lot! that was very eye-opening for me. Now I understand where I made my mistakes :D
great
Will, this is a great video and I've included it in my recent blog post and posted it on my facebook fan page. There was a lot of video production work to make your education clear and I really like the side-by-side correct/incorrect display. I hope to meet you one day. Tara :)
amen !
Nice - thank you!!
learned a lot from watching this, works well! thank you :)
not all "forward down" will be below the withers. The point is to have a horse that is ALL round from tail to poll, with an elongated neck and nose reaching for the contact. That can happen with a lower or higher neck set depending on the horse's comformation and level. The easiest way to teack forward down is in-hand. Marjke de Jong is one of the trainers you can look up for step-by-step instructions.
Wow this is really interesting!!! Love it :)
Hope to train my horse this......once I get my own horse that is....
you can try letting the horse realize that when there's contact, it's soft and light and pleasant. when he tries to fight it, it's hard and unpleasant. this is just what helped my horse, maybe it might work for you!
Exellent.
very useful!
love it
Hi! I produced the video and feel compelled to respond to jgerl100. I believe what Will was saying is that it's important to become educated - for the sake of the horse. Most people haven't learned the art of stretching but once you do understand - and hopefully, can work with an experienced trainer, you can influence the topline. But it takes a long time. Thanks for watching! Kathryn, Padma Video
Yeah it is, you can do it on pretty much any horse, it has to be done correctly and regularly over a long period of time so its hard to achieve on horses ridden by lower level riders...
This is really good & very clear I understand it. This is what I'll be doing with my 6 year old arab as it will also help when I do jumping coz she wont have her head in the air :)
need this trainer!
I would really love how to start this technique on my 3yo. He is green broken. This video makes alot of sense and is very logical! But I don't even know where to start I have alot of years in the saddle but there all cattle work, I have no experience in this kind of work .. If you could give me some advice on how to start I would be very thankful :)
@scotchb29 wrong. You connect the horse with your seat and leg, not your hand. You can make a horse round completely tackless if you use your leg and seat correctly
Excelent.
You should go to Art 2 Ride's website - there are many instructional videos including a green horse!
Cheers Ill do that :)
Great video, but you got something wrong here. Descente de main is not actually the horse descending to the bit. Descente de main actually translates to "descent of the hand", and is used after lifting the horse up with a demi arrêt for example. Philippe Karl or Jean-Claude Racinet explain the concept very well in their books.
I wanted to add the same comment! "Descente des mains" occurs every time you reward your horse for the right attitude by stopping your aids and going into "neutral" position so that ultimately lightness can be achieved. Same thing with "descente des jambes". Général Decarpentry explains it well, too.