| Next to having lessons ourselves, the best way to learn is to watch - whether that's top riders working their horses and competing, or watching others having lessons. Horse Hero has filmed a number of lessons including dressage, biomechanics and jumping with top trainers and aspiring students. Whatever level you ride at, there are pearls of wisdom in every video that can help you! Laura and Dr Bechtolsheimer teach dressage, Shane Breen teaches jumping and top American trainers teach biomechanics. Plus Horse Hero's Fiona Price gets a taste of polo and polocrosse! Learn to sit the trot, improve your position and jump a grid, all from the comfort of your armchair. Then put the learning into practise! |
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Laura B trains Claire Gallimore to lengthen Gigolo's frame |
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| British Pony team member Claire Gallimore reveals why Gigolo is called 'The Beast' and tells Fiona Price her aims for the lesson with Olympic dressage rider Laura Bechtolsheimer. Laura says Claire's body position must only influence Gigs positively and riding with too short a neck is like riding with the handbrake on! Claire must lengthen the frame by letting the neck out in front of the saddle. She also has to use her seat to hold Gigolo in rhythm and let go with her hand. The pair practise walk-trot transitions using bend to get Gigs even in the contact, and Claire is surprised by Laura's explanation of extended walk! (First of two videos.) |
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Laura B does lateral work with Claire Gallimore |
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| Having focused on holding Gigolo with her seat in the first part of this lesson and allowing the neck out more (the subject of another video), Claire works on the half pass with Olympian Laura Bechtolsheimer. Laura provides a crystal clear explanation of how to apply the aids and ride the movement, so that Claire doesn't block Gigs or give him anything to 'get stuck' on. "The neck needs to be longer to allow the hind leg to step under and the front end to come up more", says Laura. "Imagine you are riding travers against a wall on a diagonal line". Claire and Laura also work on walk pirouettes plus canter where Laura wants to see a living, breathing contact. |
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Laura B trains Jenny & Dinky on relaxation & suppleness: Part 1 |
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| Seven year old Dinky (who is working at Medium) is nervous in new places which makes him tense. Top British dressage rider and WEG silver medallist, Laura Bechtolsheimer says "relaxation comes from the brain and the body", so it's important not to hold him together. Laura shows Jenny a variety of simple techniques, including flexion within the transitions, to stop Dinky from setting against the hand. "The emphasis is on giving not holding" Laura says, which may appear counter-intuitive with a horse that rushes! Having softened the neck, lateral work softens Dinky behind the saddle. "It's about finding ways of making it easier for him." |
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Laura B trains Jenny & Dinky on relaxation & suppleness: Part 2 |
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| Laura Bectholsheimer asks Jenny to use the walk break to practise test moves, including medium and extended walk and pirouettes. She tells Jenny to "march the front end around the back end to make the pirouettes tighter" and encourages her to work on a square, riding a quarter pirouette in each corner. In the canter, Jenny works towards simple changes focusing on getting bend in both directions and collection, in the first instance. To make a transition to walk, Jenny must have engagement, control, balance and straightness. When Dinky starts to take over, Laura says "if it doesn't feel right, don't do the transition". |
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Laura Bechtolsheimer works on collection with Kim & Robin |
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| Laura Bechtolsheimer trains Kim Seaby and her 8 yr old mare Robin on collection, in preparation for flying changes. Laura asks Kim to give with her inside hand in the trot-canter transition to avoid Robin taking a big first stride. Moving forwards and back in the canter, Kim needs to do more with her seat and less with her hand. "Ask Robin to wait but allow her forwards", says Laura. In collection Laura explains that each part of you is doing something subtle and slightly different to help the horse. She tells Kim to "soften, collect and give". To prepare for a change, the horse must be collected, forwards and straight. (Another video follows with the rest of the lesson.) |
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Laura Bechtolsheimer teaches Kim & Robin the zigzag |
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| Continuing on from the first part of Kim's lesson which focused on collection, top British dressage rider Laura Bechtolsheimer works on trot half pass building up to a zigzag, a new move for Kim and the 8 year old Robin. Rein-back helps to engage the quarters and Laura stresses the importance of an accurate halt. She then asks Kim to ride a more 'grown-up' trot which is active, steps up to the contact and has more cadence and expression. Shoulder-in, followed by a small circle and travers sets Robin up for an impressive half pass. The trick in getting a good change of direction in the zigzag, is to slow things down and carefully manage the bend. |
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Fiona Price has a dressage lesson with Hannah Biggs on Beans |
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Amateur event rider and Horse Hero Managing Director, Fiona Price, has a dressage lesson on Hannah Biggs' Prix St Georges horse, Demaskus (Beans) in '08. Fiona says, "My eventer is a thoroughbred who is progressing in his lateral work but we are learning together. I wanted to feel what half-pass was like on an established, uphill dressage horse, as well as changes!" There's lots in this video which will be of interest to riders who are working up to medium level with some real insights from Hannah and a few 'light-bulb' moments from Fiona! |
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Hannah Biggs trains Fiona & Buddy Holly on leg-yield |
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Grand Prix rider Hannah Biggs sees the 3 year old Buddy Holly for the second time. Fiona Price has had Buddy for 3 months and he now has a greater understanding of the aids, is more balanced and fitter. Hannah discusses a suitable plan for a session with a youngster. The warm-up in walk is on a long rein and the aim in trot is to establish a good swing, progressing to control of the shoulders and an outline. Fiona makes a number of 'nearly transitions' to get Buddy anticipating what's coming next. In leg yield, Hannah gives Fiona an exercise to ensure she has complete control of the movement. |
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Hannah Biggs trains Buddy Holly to stay in front of the leg |
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Grand Prix dressage rider Hannah Biggs rides three year old Buddy Holly during Fiona Price's lesson. The emphasis is to get Buddy in front of the leg in all paces and transitions, as he is inclined to drop behind, become heavy in the hand and a little dead to the leg. Using a regular tap of the whip (which caused him to buck with Fiona!) and lots of encouragement, Hannah rewards Buddy for any forward responses. She then works on controlling the shoulders. Finding the correct lead in the canter proves tricky and "Buddy's huge canter is a little untidy, but fitness and practise will improve it", says Hannah. Fiona finds it all very illuminating! |
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Fiona & Norris have a 'tune-up' with Hannah Biggs before eventing |
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Fiona Price and her eventer Norris have a 'tune-up' with Grand Prix dressage rider Hannah Biggs before their first outing of the season. Norris is a big horse and Fiona finds it hard work to get him collected and on the aids, but the key is frequent transitions and keeping him in front of the leg. Hannah asks Fiona not to anticipate the upwards transitions with her body and says she needs to "press the button and trust Norris to carry himself from the walk into canter". She adds, "when half halting, it's important to keep his shoulders up and imagine you are carrying a magic ball on top of his withers". Fiona is delighted to discover the key to a better medium trot! |
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Fiona Price learns how to ride the walk on Active Walero |
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| Horse Hero's Fiona Price (an amateur eventer) takes up the challenge of riding and competing the dressage Olympian, Active Walero. Nicola McGivern starts Fiona on the walk, which is not to be underestimated. Packed with information, Nicola gives Fiona mantras to help her understand Walero, such as "Contact to go, give to slow" and "I take, you give, I give". Nicola explains how to stop Walero looking like a 'nodding chicken' and without mincing her words, tells Fiona to forget her legs, do something completely wrong, stop looking like she's about to do a maths test and start whooping! Who said riding a finished Grand Prix horse was easy? |
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Nicola McGivern helps Fiona sit Walero's huge trot! |
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| Having established the correct walk (in a previous video), Fiona progresses to trot and canter. Nicola explains how to ride the transition to trot and then helps Fiona sit with loose legs to Walero's enormous trot. Fiona quickly discovers the meaning of the word relaxation! Moving into canter, the main challenge is riding a good corner. Using mantras such as "ride your seat into your hands" and "inside bottom to outside bottom" Nicola gets animated to put her message across! Fiona learns to "stand behind Walero" to achieve real collection and the ultimate accolade is when Nicola tells Fiona she is starting to look like a dressage rider! |
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Dr Bechtolsheimer teaches Lara on the 5 year old Pammy: Part 1 |
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| Dr Bechtolsheimer teaches yard rider Lara on the 5 year old homebred mare Pammy, sister to Horse Hero star Teddy. After the warm-up, Dr B works with the pair on a circle in both trot and canter. He says, "rhythm is the most important thing for a young horse to learn". He explains this must be established before moving on to more difficult lateral work. Lara works on correcting the flexion before doing transitions. Careful preparation and clear body language from Lara ensure perfect rhythm and balance moving Pammy forwards and back within the pace. Dr B says, "Pammy's rhythm must be like the pendulum of a Swiss clock!" |
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Dr Bechtolsheimer teaches Lara on the 5 year old Pammy: Part 2 |
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| Having established rhythm in Part 1, Lara and Pammy move on to lateral work. Dr B tells Lara to limit the angle of the shoulder-in so Pammy can maintain it for 15-20 metres. In travers, Dr B asks Lara to get straight and have Pammy looking down the track before moving the quarters away. "Half pass is often ruined in the transition", says Dr B. So he breaks down the preparation to make it clear. "Take the bend out of the corner, go straight and move the quarters in the second or third stride". Lara then rides an Elementary test to link the moves. Dr B says "like children in kindergarten, it is important not to apply too much pressure!" |
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Suzie Peacock works on biomechanics with Sally Goodwin-Davies: Part 1 |
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| US Grand Prix dressage rider and biomechanics trainer Suzie Peacock helps Sally Goodwin-Davies improve her position on the Advanced horse Jeremy. Suzie tells Sally (who suffers knee and hip problems) that her left side is 'bossy' and pulls her off centre. Suzie says 'tractioning' the spine creates proper alignment and space between the vertebrae, which gives more mobility. "Our job is to make it easiest for the horse to do what we want him to do" and we need to be more body aware to achieve this. Suzie explains the correct motion of the pelvis to mirror the horse's movement, and bring horse and rider into harmony! |
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Suzie Peacock works on biomechanics with Sally Goodwin-Davies: Part 2 |
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| Grand Prix dressage rider Suzie works with Sally in Part 2, on improving the sitting trot. Using analogies such as "imagine there's a hook on the front of your collar bone lifting you forwards and up" and " let your legs hang as dead-weights," Suzie changes Sally's posture and ensures her hips are moving left to right instead of the more conventional forwards and back. Suzie explains how every part of the riders' body is specific to a part of the horse, so if the horse is blocked the rider must unblock something in themselves. It's all about "not getting in the way of your horse." The difference in Jeremy's movement by the end is incredible! |
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Suzie Peacock helps Amy to be better balanced in the saddle: Part 1 |
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| American Grand Prix dressage rider and biomechanics trainer Suzie Peacock, helps Amy McCormick to improve her balance on the 8 year old Vaz, who is working at Advanced Medium. Starting with 'tractioning the spine', Suzie shows Amy how to stack and stretch her bones into the correct alignment. She says, "when we are tight in our back, the horse is tight in theirs". She explains how Amy can breath with a purpose, "breath in to grow taller and breath out to lengthen and deepen". Suzie explains clearly how Amy should position her seat bones for maximum effect. She says, "be a lazy rider and let your horse do more of the work!" |
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Suzie Peacock helps Amy to be better balanced in the saddle: Part 2 |
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| Following on from Part 1, Amy moves into sitting trot on the very bouncy Vaz. Suzie says that when Amy's hips move back and fore in the saddle, they don't follow the motion of the horse. Her hips need to be like "oars in a kayak". Suzie says, "this will change everything" and the more animated Vaz's movement, the more animated Amy's hips need to be. The difference in Vaz's movement is noticeable! Moving into canter, Suzie tells Amy to imagine the seat of her saddle is a clock, so she can correctly position her seat bones and allow her legs to hang. Suzie also explains when tension in Amy's body is a hindrance to Vaz and when it's useful! |
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Jackie Siu works on body awareness with the Feldenkrais method |
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| Michele Morseth trains Grand Prix dressage rider Jackie Siu to improve Flora’s way of going. Using the Feldenkrais method, Michele demonstrates how when moving one part of Jackie's body it affects another, and ultimately the horse. "By focusing on the relationship between thought and movement, riding is easier and more effective" says Michele. She continues, "Only when you are completely conscious of how you sit and apply the aids, can you ensure you are not detrimental to your horse's movement, but enhance it!" Jackie fine tunes her co-ordination and balance and finds that Flora’s slight but niggling shoulder drift is improved! |
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Fiona Price has a jumping lesson with Shane Breen |
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| Horse Hero's Fiona Price is game for most things and a lesson on a Grade A show jumping horse was definitely on her list! However, Lulu proved a bit more of a challenge than she expected! With the help of show jumper, Shane Breen, the first aim was to overcome Lulu's spooky nature. Then, using canter poles, Shane works with Fiona to shorten and lengthen the stride. A clever grid succeeds in getting Lulu's exuberance under control and allowing Fiona to do some jumping! "A tight turn into a line of fences stops horses from racing and chasing", says Shane, who insists Fiona gets control the landing stride to make the distance. |
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Fiona Price has a go at polo! |
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| Horse Hero's Fiona Price is game for most things, and polo is no exception! After a spot of bother with the knitting (should she opt for the English or Argentine method) and instruction from polo superstar Mark Tomlinson, Fiona and Reddy take to the pitch. Mark teaches Fiona how to do 'handbrake turns' and 'slide stops' and Fiona is surprised at how difficult it is to co-ordinate the right sequence of movements. In the end, the best analogy she can come up with is that after the half halt she 'skies' around the corner. The aids seem unconventional but Fiona throws caution to the wind and improves through the session. She is even persuaded to hit a ball! |
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Fiona Price tries her hand at Polocrosse |
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| Fiona is game for most things and polocrosse is no exception. Jason Webb, natural horsemanship trainer and Australian national team player shows Fiona the ropes. Riding Jason's 'old Doc', Fiona learns that dressage is part of Polocrosse which uses lateral work and pirouettes to 'mark up' the opponent. Jason shows Fiona how to hold a racket and steer, then instructs her to play a game of 'tag'. Fiona first has to get away from Jason, then mark him. Jason is forced to admit that he has no chance! Finally, he challenges Fiona to pick up a ball in canter within five minutes. Can she rise to the occasion and has she missed her real calling? |
