Jessica Bryce

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  • 4 Keys to Feeling Like a Winner, No Matter What

    and not letting anyone else’s expectations over-ride your success

    How do we get from “green as grass” to a calm and reliable riding partner that you can take anywhere?

    It can feel like such a long journey that you’re missing out on doing the things you want to because your horse isn’t ready yet. Or maybe you thought your horse was ready so you gave it a go but it didn’t work out and now it feels like you’ve gone backwards, or stuffed it up, and don’t know how to get back to good.

    Pictured below is a horse I’ve been working with for the last few months, called Polly. She’s not a young horse (in her teens, in fact) but had been out of work for several years and we didn’t know if she’d been to Club rallies ever before.

    I wanted to take Polly to a clinic with one of my favourite trainers, but it was an expensive clinic, a long way away (about 3 hours drive) and we’d have to camp overnight there. It was a big commitment of resources to get us there and I didn’t want to “waste” my time and/or money if Polly was too stressed to be able to participate in our lessons, or not settled enough to take on new learning while we were there.

    The Test Run

    Here’s what I did: I booked us in for a lesson at my local Riding Club, and planned my schedule to allow the whole day for it, so we wouldn’t be rushing to get there on time, or needing to get home again to do something else (aka set myself up to be calm and present).

    I made sure we arrived really early, so Polly would have plenty of time to relax in the yards and take in the busy atmosphere, and for me to walk her around the grounds before our lesson time to let her become familiar with the environment. (aka set my horse up to be calm and present)

    Before our lesson started, I explained to the coach my intention was just to give her a positive experience out and about and be able to ride calmly in the arena, and that we weren’t all that fit and may not last the full hour. (aka pre-set the expectations with others involved).

    I reminded myself to listen to my horse as she showed me how she was feeling and how equipped (or not) she was to take on this kind of outing. I reminded myself not to get caught up in wanting to achieve anything in particular, and not to compromise on my horse’s wellbeing for my own ambitions. (aka. pre-set my own expectations).

    As it turns out, Polly was a superstar; she stood calmly in the yard munching from her hay bag, and she was calm enough walking around the grounds that I felt it would be okay to get on and attempt the lesson.

    Polly was somewhat distracted by the horses showjumping in the next arena while I was riding, but otherwise took everything in her stride. We didn’t finish the lesson because I felt she was getting tired and becoming resistant to moving forward (which she never is at home) so I politely excused myself from the lesson at that point.

    Success! We went home feeling like winners! Feeling like it would be okay to book in for the clinic away from home, and feeling grateful for the experience and that I stayed true to my principles and held my horse’s wellbeing as my highest priority even while expecting her to cooperate and participate in activities that were fulfilling my human ambitions!

    How to not let other people’s expectations over-ride your success

    Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t all rainbows and lollipops, during the lesson when Polly was constantly looking to the outside of the circle/arena to see what the jumping horses were doing, the coach was trying to get us working on inside bend…

    Afterward, back at the yards, another rider said to me, “Gee, you didn’t last long out there.” (No doubt you can imagine the tone.)

    But by measuring our success by my own scale, by my own pre-planned expectations and intentions, and by being okay with the fact that neither achieving inside bend on the circle, nor lasting the full hour in the arena were a) not part of what I set out to achieve that day b) not required for success in my eyes… and by remembering that the opinions or observations of anyone not in alignment with the principles and philosophies that I train by, are simply an example of what I don’t want/need that serves to remind me to stay true to myself.

    The HOW is much more important than the WHAT that we do with our horses, and finding that harmony between participating in our chosen activities/equestrian sport and respecting our horse’s half of the partnership can be like walking a fine line, not always easy!

    My four keys to feeling like a winner no matter what are:

    🤩 setting myself up to be calm and present

    🤩 setting my horse up to be calm and present

    🤩 pre-setting expectations with others involved

    🤩 pre-setting expectations with myself

    There will always be those who think differently to you (and aren’t afraid to make it known) and there are always those who are relieved to see there’s someone else like them out there (although they may not always make themselves known!) Stay true to yourself and stay true to your horse, and you’ll always feel like a winner.

  • Bi-focal Vision and Environmental Familiarisation

    Did you know the horse’s eye operates kind of like bi-focal gasses? Unlike our human eyes, which have muscles that pull our lenses into different shapes to adjust our focus from near to far, in order for the horse to adjust his focus he has to raise or lower his head.

    By raising his head and looking through the bottom of his eye, the horse uses his long distance focus (think about that “periscope up” impression they do when there’s something way over there that’s caught their attention).

    By lowering his head and looking through the top of his eye, the horse focuses on what’s closest to him. (Think about how they put their heads down and snort when there’s something of concern nearby.)

    What does this mean for your horse when you take him somewhere new? The horse’s first concern is always for his own safety, and as flight-animals safety comes from being able to run away. From being able to spot danger at a distance, so that you can either get a head start on the running away, or avoid it completely by running away before it gets here.

    One of the things we always do at my Young Horse Social Days is allow time for arena familiarisation. For some of the horses who come along, this is their first outing away from home, and we want to make sure they’ve had ample time to explore and become comfortable with the arena/work space, before we try to do any groundwork or riding.

    What we often see is that the horses are first very interested in looking out of the arena. Many stop to look out the open side of the indoor, or are looking around at the other horses to see what they’re doing.

    It’s counter-productive to try to ask anything of our horse while he’s in “giraffe mode” because he’s far to consumed with being on watch for danger to be able to focus on anything else. What he needs in this stage is just time. Time to take it all in, time to process the new environment and time to reassure himself that he is safe.

    How much time, you might wondering? It can really differ from horse to horse, depending on all the obvious things, like how used to going new places he is, how many times he’s been to this venue, or how the other horses are behaving around him. It also depends on what baggage he’s carrying, his personal history so to speak, and the relationship he has with the handler. (Like children, horses will often behave differently with someone they don’t know, than someone they know well.)

    (It goes without saying that we always need to maintain our own safety, and measures can be taken to keep the out-ward looking horse under control and handler safe, that is a given.)

    After a while, we begin to see during the arena familiarisation time, is that the horses start to bring their attention and focus closer to themselves. Investigating the arena itself, sniffing the dressage letters on the wall, stopping to check out the mounting block, or pawing and sniffing at the sand.

    At this stage, when the horses have satisfied themselves that the larger environment is free from danger, and they’re feeling safe enough to lower their heads to adjust their focus to their immediate surroundings and things that are close by; that’s when we can successfully begin to ask the horse to bring his attention to the handler’s requests.

    We can now start to ask the horse for some simple tasks to see if he’s ready to move into a frame of mind that’s open to receiving learning/training.

    The value of arriving early enough to give your horse plenty of time for environmental familiarisation cannot be underestimated. It also includes workspace familiarisation time if the arena and yards/stables/float aren’t close to one another.

    For horses that are well-travelled and seasoned competitors, the process of going from high alert to a calm and ready to work state may only take a few minutes. For the young/green or nervous horse, allowing him enough time to go through the process at his own rate, before expecting any kind of work from him, can make the world of difference to his (and your) experience having an outing away from home.

    Understanding the horse’s bi-focal style of vision helps us be more patient and compassionate when our four-legged friend is going through his process. It develops the bond and trust between us and shows the horse that we see him, hear him and are willing to work with him.

  • Recognising Insecurity in the Young Horse

    and 3 principles for growing self-confidence

    Horses are herd animals… there’s safety in numbers… we’ve all heard this so many times that it’s easy to brush over it, without considering the practical implications in our everyday horse handling. Could It be, that some of the things we think of as “normal” or “basic” or “not-that-hard” could actually be making the young/green/anxious horse feel extremely vulnerable and insecure?

    It’s easy to take the simple things for granted, especially if we’re used to more seasoned horses who already know the job. Standing quietly in the tie up, lifting their hooves on request, being groomed, leading safely through gates, being washed… the list goes on. Any one of these “normal” every day tasks that we expect a riding horse to do routinely, can be a big deal for a youngster. Signs of insecurity are sometimes mistaken for naughty behaviour, and we sometimes miss the message and get frustrate d or cross with the horse, right when he needs us to be his rock of support.

    Here’s an example, I’ve just started working with a 3yo gelding I bought last year, who has been hanging out in my paddock being a horse in the herd for a while ,and is now ready to begin his foundation training. I won’t start him to saddle until he’s 5yo but there’s plenty we can get going with now that will help that process go smoothly when the time comes.

    For the past week, I’ve been bringing 3yo Oliver out of the paddock (where he lives in a herd of 5) and up to the stable/yards for familiarisation sessions. On the first day I made sure he had an equine support crew in place; our 28yo grandfather of the farm was in the yard to one side, and the dominant herd member from Oliver’s paddock on the other side. I knew both of these horses would be calm in the stable, and happy to munch on some hay without getting rattled by little Oliver’s nervous behaviour between them.

    In situations where there’s no equine support crew available, the human support crew become a critical source of comfort and leadership. By leadership I mean, example of calm and confident behaviour. Showing the young horse that you’re not worried; that you see his concerns but don’t join him in them. That you’re grounded and reliable. Staying nearby is important, so the horse can see you all the time and doesn’t feel like he’s been abandoned all alone in an environment he’ feels uncomfortable and in.

    Picture this: you’re a horse who relies on his flight response, long legs and speed to keep yourself safe. You’re used to having your horse friends around you, and you pretty much live in the same paddock/property your whole life, without any opportunity to explore new places or see new things. (There’s a lot of “same old, same old” in the lives of modern horses!)

    Suddenly the human, who you mostly like, but sometimes gives off confusing messages, takes you into the tie up/yards which is an unfamiliar and often changing environment. (Think rugs hanging up that might be there one time and not the next etc). You get tied up, which makes you feel vulnerable because now you’re in an unsettling situation and your normal method of keeping yourself safe has been taken away. (Flight response.) Then your human disappears into the tack room out of sight and now you’re feeling insecure and all alone.

    Can we blame the young/green horse for pawing at the ground, chewing on whatever he can reach, panicking and pulling back, fidgeting, calling for his friends, refusing to pick up his hooves (can’t give away control of my legs when I might need to run away any moment now!) and not being able to “behave” or stand quietly, or cooperate or receive training, in this situation?

    My 3yo Oliver has been coming into the stable every day for a week now, and that’s all it’s taken for him to be chilled out and okay in there on his own now. He’s eagerly waiting for me at the gate each day, comes in to hang out and munch on some hay, then goes back to the paddock again. Low-fuss familiarisation session in areas that will later become your work space are a great place to start for any horse, even with less young or less green horses that you’ve just bought and have come to live at a new property.

    Using these three principles of environmental familiarisation, equine support crew, and human support crew, we can help grow our horse’s self-confidence so that he can learn to be calm and independent in the work space. These principles can be valuable for all kinds of scenarios, big and small. Only a calm horse is ready to listen, learn and receive training, so there’s no gain in trying to work with a worried or insecure horse as the work won’t sink in, and both parties will feel dissatisfied with the situation.

    Taking the time to monitor and manage how your horse is feeling is the main ingredient to any successful horse training recipe. Being a grounded and reliable human support crew, someone who doesn’t get rattled or become stressed about the horse being stressed, takes practice and intention, but it’s well worth establishing the habit and the relationship you have with your horse will flourish for it.

  • 5 Reasons “joining up” Doesn’t Work With Every Horse

    Picture this: your kind young horse that has been going really well under saddle so far, and seems to be taking everything in stride, suddenly starts having explosive “tantrums” and freaking out, even when you’re just trying to lead him. You don’t feel comfortable going into the paddock anymore, let alone trying to saddle up for a ride.

    This is exactly what happened to one of the riders I coach, when her young Thoroughbred went from being an easy, straight forward horse that was a pleasure to work with, to something her owner didn’t feel safe to be around.

    The rider asked me about “joining up” with the horse in the round yard, because her friend had suggested it as a solution, a way to get the horse respecting her and listening to her again.

    (If you’re not familiar with joining up, you may have heard it referred to in another way, as many trainers use the technique in their own terms. The underlying concept comes from emulating wild/natural horse behaviours, where a dominate herd member will drive another horse away from the her
    after it displays anti-social behaviour; only allowing it to return to the safety and comfort of the group when it shows signs of submission. Signs that include following the dominant horse and matching its movements, which can happen with a human too).

    5 Reasons “joining up” doesn’t work for every horse

    1. Horses know we aren’t horses

    We, humans, have complex brains with fast-moving thoughts, that we often get distracted by. How many times have you ended up thinking about one thing while doing another? Our horse recognises when our focus has gone elsewhere, when our attention is no longer with him, and he can seize the opportunity. In these moments we’ve dropped the connection and we no longer “mean what we say” because we’re busy in our heads, rather than staying present with the horse in every moment.

    2. Horses that are used to being worked on the lunge/long line

    The concept relies on the driving pressure making the horse feel uncomfortable, and his desire to stop moving becoming the motivation for him to adopt the submissive behaviour. “please let me rest and return to the herd, I promise I’ll be good, see how good I am!”

    For horses that have been trained and exercised on the lunge or long line, there is an understanding of this as “the job” they have to do in this situation, and they may just drop into autopilot and carry on going around for ages without any attempt to do anything differently to normal.

    3. Movement is easy for horses

    Horses are made for sustained movement, while we, two-leggeds, can tire out well before our four-legged friends do. The effort required on our behalf, to keep the horse moving in a manner than is uncomfortable for him may be unsustainable. As soon as we take the pressure off the horse knows we aren’t serious, and that our follow-through is gone.

    4. We may feel uncomfortable being that assertive

    All kinds of reasons exist why we may not want to apply significant pressure to the horse to make him uncomfortable: we have an emotional attachment and want the horse to see us as a friend. We’re still kind of scared of being so close to a fast moving horse. The horse is valuable and we don’t want to risk damaging his legs. We’re worried about stuffing it up and don’t want to create more problems, or make the horse fearful. It doesn’t align with our beliefs, or just doesn’t feel right.

    5. Our expectations of how it works

    How do we know when it’s worked? When the horse follows us around the round yard, matching our movement as we walk, turn, stop etc. But then what? How long does this last? Will I have to do it every day? Will this be the answer to all undesirable behaviours in all situations?

    There are no “magic wand” solutions, and the horse might only behave this way when he sees you as the “biggest bad” in his environment… what happens when you go back to being his friend? or an even “bigger bad” comes along?

    The Pizza Game

    I remember when the joining up concept became widely known in the mid-1990’s, back when Natural Horsemanship methods were taking off in popularity, as a modern alternative to the old school way of “breaking” horses.

    I used it with many horses of all ages, from pre-starting for young ones to re-training difficult horses… until I learned a better way. A classical trainer I studied with in the early 2010’s introduced me to the principles she used, that were based on two-way communication, on reading the horse via his body language and posture, and offering choices as well as giving directions. These principles eventually became the foundations of the “Pizza Game” that I continue to use and teach to this day.

    Don’t get me wrong, I’m not opposed to a concept that helped countless hundreds of thousands of horses and humans learn to work together, back in the times when we were looking for a different way than the traditional methods that came before. Natural horsemanship was a game changer for many people when it came on the scene, especially as it offered a follow-along-at-home system that we didn’t have access to before.

    Like science, technology and social norms, things change as time passes. Newer, more modern, tools and techniques are discovered, taking the place of the ones that came before.

    If you’ like to know more about my Pizza Game just drop me a line at jembriahpark@gmail.com

  • Lateral Work and The Young Horse

    Lateral Work and the Young Horse

    How soon is too soon to get started?

    My answer to the question of ‘can lateral work be introduced to the young horse too soon?’ is: yes! In most situations it most certainly can, but there’s one exception to the rule. Let’s look at the three most common scenarios so that you can make an informed decision about what’s right for your horse.

    Scenario 1: The Traditionally Trained Horse

    Almost all the horses I come across these days have been trained the Traditional way, meaning using methods riders and trainers have learned directly, from in-person experience (lessons/clinics etc) with their instructors/trainers. The ‘tradition’ of riding, and horse training ‘know-how’ being passed down through the generations directly.

    As you know, this usually means sending the young horse off to an expert to be started under saddle. The trainer normally does some groundwork as part of the process, but s/he has the horse for only a short amount of time, often just a matter of weeks, so the focus is on getting the riding happening.

    In this scenario, the education of the horse is entirely left to the owner/rider and there is a lot to cover before lateral work should be attempted.

     Dressage is a progressive training system, meaning key building blocks need to be in place before we can move on to the more difficult movements.    

    Freely forward movement

    The horse must be willing to travel freely forward in all gaits, he must be ‘in front of the leg’ before lateral work can begin. This means when you ‘rev the engine’ you get a response straight away.

    A horse with a good work ethic is one that complies with the rider’s requests with no brace or tension. Tension shows itself in many ways, from the obvious tail swishing, ear pinning, head shaking, napping and baulking, to the much less obvious red flags such as breath-holding, braced back and tense jaw.

    Free forward movement requires an absence of tension in the physical, mental and emotional. This can take a long time; many, many months and sometimes years. In fact, some horse and rider combos never achieve it.

    Acceptance of contact

    In order to sculpt our horse’s body into the shapes we need him to learn for lateral work, the horse must be accepting of our use of contact. Whether bited or bitless, if the contact creates physical resistance in the horse’s body our efforts will be lost before we’ve even got started. How can I influence the horse’s hind leg with my hand? If there’s brace anywhere along the fascial chains from the jaw to the limbs then I can’t.

    The horse’s jaw is intrinsically linked to the rest of his body through chains of muscles. Most riders are familiar with the concept of the dorsal chain, otherwise known as the ‘topline’. These chains are like a string of sausages; each sausage may be its own individual, but they’ll all joined by a casing of facia that allows them to work as one. Any tensions or blockages anywhere along the chain will rob the horse of this ability to move in a whole-bodied way.

    Only when the horse is accepting of the contact can the bit be used for the subtlest form of communication and become a training tool of great refinement.

    Adjustability

    It’s too soon to start lateral work if we haven’t first got the ability to show the horse straightness. Right now I might hear you saying, ‘but, Jessica, true straightness is a long term goal and impossible for the young horse.’ That’s right, but in order to show him what straightness is like we need to have the adjustability to put him back on course when he strays. Not to say that there’s any expectation of him maintain that straightness, just that we can influence it by adjusting his vertical balance.

    Scenario 2: Not a Dressage Horse

    Not all riders have dressage aspirations or even ride the Equestrian disciplines, but the physical benefits of lateral work can help every horse learn to carry their rider in a healthier and less tiring way, keeping them sounder for longer.

    Lateral work has a big role in many working horse disciplines and is a big focal point in Western training as well as in Dressage. Having been exclusively an Equestrian rider myself, a couple of years ago I was surprised to discover there are actually quite a lot of similarities between the highest form of western riding and Classical Dressage. Different gear and different terminology, but physiologically and philosophically the same thing.

    All the same pre-requisites apply to non-dressage horses (free forward movement, acceptance of contact and adjustability) they may just be known by different names.

    Scenario 3: The Classically Trained Horse

    There are a small number of Classical Masters to be found around the world today (if you’re in my neck of the woods you may be familiar with Manolo Mendez). However; the majority of our learning as modern Classical riders come from the legacies left behind from the Great Masters of the (Neo)Classical times; through their books, theories and philosophies. If we’re really lucky we might have access to someone who has been studying Classical Dressage for a lifetime, but many of the living Masters are held closely behind the walls of institutions like the Spanish Riding School.

    If you’re a classically trained rider you will have introduced work in-hand to your young horse well before starting him under saddle. In this case, you can start riding the lateral movements much earlier as your horse already understands the aids and has learned how to carry himself, so all you need to do is translate your ground training to aids from the rider.

    Confidence

    The horse’s confidence in being ridden is the second to last pre-requisite because asking him to alter his balance in this way before he’s truly comfortable carrying the rider and has learned how to adjust himself to a dynamic load is unfair. No matter how well we prepare our youngsters for riding, it is a worrying thing for the young horse in the beginning and he needs plenty of reassuring and short sessions so that we stop before he becomes tired.

    A relaxed rider

    Finally, for our lateral work to be successful in its aims of improving the horse’s suppleness, stability and way of carrying the rider we need to be the kind of rider that’s not getting in the way. A ‘moveable’ rider is one sharing the qualities we desire in our horse of calmness, partnership, suppleness, independent balance and the absence of tension. For example, there’s no point asking our horse to move sideways if our outside leg is blocking the very same movement. It’s a life-long journey becoming the kind of rider that walks the fine line between influencing the horse and giving him room to move freely and I encourage all riders to undertake some form of ‘lateral work’ in their own training regime, such as yoga.

    Conclusion How soon is too soon to get started with lateral work with your young horse? No matter which of these three scenarios is most like your situation, if you’re wanting your horse to perform to a high level you can’t beat lateral work as a building block for your training. I’ll leave it up to you to decide when the time is right for your horse, but if you’re looking for more guidance just reach out to me

  • 5 Reasons Why Your Coach Needs to Ride Your Horse

    In other parts of the world where horses live in stables/Barns the Barn will often have a Trainer (or multiple Trainers and riders) on their staff. Horses kept in stables need to be exercised daily and it’s common for the Trainer or Barn staff to ride/lunge privately owned horses several days per week to assist with the exercising.

    More than just providing exercise, in these circumstances it’s normal for owners to engage a Trainer to school their horse for them on a regular basis. This ensures the constant advancement of the horse’s education and helps it move up through the levels consistently. This notion seems to be a foreign one to most riders in Australia who prefer to ride their horses themselves. Instead we engage an Instructor/Coach to teach us riding skills as most Australian riders prefer to train the horse themselves and practice on their own in between lessons.

    A recent experience I had with a client’s horse has convinced me that they might be on to something the way they do it overseas, and perhaps in Australia a shift in our thinking would be of benefit to us all. Here’s what happened…

    I borrowed a horse from a rider I teach weekly so I could attend a clinic with my Coach. (Yes, I have a Coach and here are my thoughts on why every Coach should have a Coach of their own!) I have been working with this horse and rider combination regularly for nearly two years and know what the horse is like. I have seen her fall in on the left shoulder around turns and circles, and we have worked really hard in our lessons to get her to the point where the horse will lift the left shoulder and rebalance without losing the bend or the line around a circle.

    I am also familiar with her weaknesses in the canter and know that she doesn’t like too much contact. In the week before the clinic I was offered a test ride on the mare and nearly turned it down, thinking “I know how she goes, I’ve seen her often enough to know exactly what she’ll be like to ride.” I decided to take the test ride though, as I thought the owner might like to see us work together for peace of mind before I take her horse 150km across the state for four days! I’m really glad I did, because this is what I learned:

    • Your Coach needs to know what your horse FEELS like to ride

    The interaction of two vastly different bodies that we call horse riding is a very complex thing. The horse’s movement contributes hugely to our ability to ride it, for example a rider may be able to sit to the trot quite easily on one horse but find another’s gait so bouncy they can’t sit to it comfortably at all. Until your Coach has experienced your particular horse, how can she be sure whether you’re rising too high or your horse is propelling you out of the saddle?

    • Horses go DIFFERENTLY for different riders

    I got on my student’s horse expecting to have to support her on the left rein. Having seen the horse fall in on the left shoulder every lesson I thought I would constantly be having to lift the left shoulder and shift her balance over as my student does. However; the horse had no problem going left with me in the saddle at all…and then I changed the direction.

    Going to the right I found the horse less balanced, heavier on the inside shoulder and harder to keep in correct bend. The right is my weaker side as a rider, the left is my student’s weaker side. This particular horse is easily influenced by the rider’s balance and goes differently under different riders!

    Now, as her Coach, I realise I need to focus more on my rider’s asymmetries/posture and less on teaching the horse to shift her balance between the shoulders as that will resolve itself as the rider improves!

    • Your Coach needs to know how your GEAR is influencing your riding

    Another thing I learned while riding my student’s horse is that her off-set stirrup irons were causing her ankles to collapse inward. The collapsing had not gone un-noticed in our lessons but now I realised that it was being caused by the gear, therefore; no amount of reminding (aka nagging) would ever have had a lasting influence on correcting it! Yet once we changed the stirrup irons it was gone, like magic!

    It’s not just seemingly little details like off-set stirrup irons, I have ridden other people’s horses before and found their saddle to be tipping the rider forward and other minor things which we may not notice for ourselves when using the same gear every day. This can be extended to how the shape of your horse can influence your riding. A narrow horse will sit the rider’s hips differently than a wider horse, as will a wider twisted saddle versus a narrower one and this will affect the way our leg hangs from the hip socket and around the horse. All things a Coach can accommodate for if only she knows about them!

    • It will SAVE you time and money

    Say you’re having a particular issue with some movement, your Coach may have two or three tricks up her sleeve that might work to resolve it. If she is sitting on the horse herself she may be able to try each method and figure out the best one for this horse in a matter of minutes; or even come up with something that she hadn’t previously considered.

    If your Coach has to work this out the long way, by teaching you each of these methods one by one and practicing them with you for a while to be sure you’re doing it right before eliminating it as the best solution to the problem this could take several lessons or many months to arrive at the same conclusion. It could also lead to frustration on both sides and perhaps the rider moving on to take lessons with someone else.

    • You can learn from WATCHING (some people learn better this way anyway)

    Sometimes the things we do when riding are so well ingrained and sub-conscious that we’re not even aware we’re doing them. Being able to watch your Coach riding gives you the opportunity to ask questions like, “what were you doing just there?” or “how did you get the horse to do that”. Things may come up that your Coach assumed you knew already or hadn’t thought to mention and that may be very relevant and useful information.  

    Even more simply, a demonstration of something the rider has been working on can really help it to sink in. If I’m teaching a beginner rider to rise to the trot and they’re just not getting it I will often hop on to demonstrate and it suddenly makes sense to them. Not all of us learn best by listening to verbal instructions or explanations, and even for those of us who do there can be a difference in the intended meaning of the Coach’s words and the interpretation of them by the rider.

    Next time it’s feeling like progress is a bit slow, you’re not sure if you’re doing it right or or you can’t ride yourself but don’t want to cancel your lessons, just ask your Coach to ride instead, and see what happens!

  • How bush bashing on a Standardbred accelerated my dressage riding!

    You’re probably already thinking “whaaaaat?” but hear me out, and it will all make sense by the end!

    Over winter I started doing some bush riding (aka trail riding) with a friend on her spare horse and loved it! I loved the early morning, yes it was cold! The crisp air, the birdsong, the smell of the bush and the notion that I was doing this purely for my own enjoyment!

    As an Equestrian Rider with some pretty big ambitions, riding has always been purposeful for me. I’m training this horse (my own or a client’s) I’m working towards that, striving for something… it kinda has a “work” feel about it.

    Riding in the bush is a stark contrast to “working my horse” in the arena… because it’s just for fun.

    As dressage riders we’re quite “busy” and by that I mean, we’re micro-managing the horse. Constantly monitoring his bend and straightness, influencing his way of going, correcting any deviations from the ideal that we’re aiming for.

    As a leisure rider, on a horse that’s never set hoof in an arena, it’s a completely different picture. In fact, it’s the total opposite. As a rider completely inexperienced with bush riding, on a horse that’s being doing it for practically his whole life I had to learn to be the follower in the partnership rather than the leader!

    We “sand dancers” are so finely tuned to feel what the horse is doing under us so we can maintain perfection, that any alterations to equilibrium instantly raise red flags in our nervous systems.

    There is no uphill and downhill in our manicured arenas, we don’t have to think about the next best place for our horse to put his feet as the surface is all the same.

    A good bush horse on the other hand, is constantly “on the job”. He’s watching the terrain, he’s thinking about where he wants to put his feet and choosing the best path. A good bush rider simply has to get out of the way and let the horse do his job.

    During our rides together my friend explained a few things to me, like how to choose the high side of the track where it’s wet as the low side will be more slippery, and how to push off the trees with a soft elbow to protect your knees.

    The most profound things I learned though, I learned from the horse.

    From getting out there and experiencing it.

    Letting the horse pick his own path was completely foreign to me, letting go of the responsibility of steering took a whole lot of getting used to! Trust in the horse, I told myself, he won’t put himself at risk, and in looking after himself he will look after you.

    Let him use his judgement and trust in his judgement.

    It’s so much bigger than just handing over the rights to the reins though, it’s about what I now think of as “rider self-carriage” or “riding like a feather”. Being free enough in your body that when the horse needs to take an extra large step, to avoid standing on a wobbly rock for example, that this unexpected bigger movement is permitted by your nervous system and your body just goes with it.

    Instead of getting left behind, or the sudden movement causing your hips to tighten up or your legs to grab on, you just go with it. You let the horse move you; unconditionally.

    You are then no longer a burden to the horse because you’re taking care of your own posture, your own self-carriage, and you’re not getting in his way. You’re sitting and riding in such a way that allows you to sign your pelvis over to the horse and let him move how he needs to move without putting the hand-break on him.

    It’s not dissimilar to what we are of our horses, to be honest. We expect them to hand over their free will to us and to let us dictate their every movement. Moreover, we expect them to do it calmly, consistently and without objection. Can we offer the same in return?

    I see many riders with holding hips in the canter. They aren’t able to relax their hips and allow the full movement of the horse to travel through their bodies. Instead they grip on with their legs, often losing their stable lower leg position and even then stirrups; knees creeping up and drawing the heels up with them.

    It disturbs the horse; it interferes with his balance and he has to try to compensate. It creates worry for both parties. Many riders have fears around the canter, particularly the transition, and many horses are “naughty” through canter transitions too.

    Next time you’re sitting on your horse, I extend the challenge to you, to think about to riding “like a feather”. Think about letting go of all the tension in your legs, hips, lower back. Think about breathing and releasing all the tension in your pelvis and legs while maintaining your posture and self-carriage through your torso. This rider self-carriage is critically important; it’s what provides the stability that allows you to hand control of the pelvis over the horse.

    It’s what gives great riders that impression of effortlessness on the horse’s back, and it’s what allows our weight aids to become so meaningful that they’re all we need.

  • Disappointment

    a horse rider’s silent stalker

    Yesterday I rode my horse for the first time in the New Year… and it was a real letdown.

    I’d been really looking forward to the ride. I’d barely had time to do anything with him lately. We’ve just come through the longest spring I can remember and I’ve been thoroughly exhausted from the strict regime of laminitis prevention management enforced upon pretty much all of my horses, due to the seemingly interminable grass growth we’ve had. (What a hay season though!)

    The beginning of a New Year is my favourite time of year. It’s a time of hope, planning and looking forward with renewed enthusiasm.

    Enthusiasm beware, because disappointment is silently stalking.

    It’s lurking just around the corner, watching and waiting to ambush you when you’re not looking. Sometimes you’re expecting it; as riders we all get those gut feelings. We’re taking a gamble with the unknown when something just could easily go one way as the other. We accept that the illusions of safety or success can be gone in the speed of a horse’s heartbeat.

    Yet, sometimes the veil of disappointment settles over us completely unannounced.

    The last time I rode was our best ride so far, and the time before that was too! I’d been pretty consistent for a few months with our Equine PT exercise program and the results were impressive.

    While I hadn’t been riding my horse I sure had been learning! I’ve been gobbling up a Classical Dressage book by one of the few trainers in the world making the highest levels of dressage training accessible, and I’d watched him giving lessons through online streaming of a clinic with his regular (and very accomplished) pupils.

    I was full ideas, things that I wanted to try and things that I’d read about and was keen to see if I could feel too. To complete the picture of understanding.

    I get on my horse and in rolls disappointment. It’s been a while since it last visited, but it’s still a familiar feeling.

    Once again we can’t bend to the right, and we’re so far down on the forehand that I feel like I have to hold the horse up myself. Goodbye lightness. Farewell balance; it was nice to have you but now you’re gone.

    All I can do is start the re-building process. All over again.

    Hello square one. Well, to be fair it’s probably square two, because at least this time we can still bend to the left!

    This is what happens when your horse is on grazing restrictions and has been living in small paddocks and yards for months on end… and you haven’t been walking him.

    I’m disappointed for my riding goals, but that’s the least of it, really. I’m disappointed in myself, because theoretically I knew this would happen but didn’t realise in time to do anything about it. I’m disappointed for my horse because his body has stiffened up again, and he has to live in that crooked and tight body every day.

    I can’t dwell on these feelings though, no sense indulging in self-pity. I’ve already booked my favourite equine therapist to come to see him and I’m hoping that with what I learned the last time we went through the process that the results will come quicker and easier this time.

    Obviously some of the goodness has stuck as we can still bend to the left, and I’ll take whatever small victory I can get right now! These feelings will pass and I’ve got the whole rest of the year ahead of me, including winter which is always my most productive season with my own horses.

    Time to do what we all do when the silent stalker strikes… pick myself up, dust myself off, and start again.

  • There’s a problem with high level coaches

    3 reasons why elite coaches struggle to help lower level riders

    I remember back in 2015 talking with a fellow student on our lunch break at an Equine Massage Course, and she was showing me photos of a fancy Warmblood horse they were about to buy for their 20yo daughter.

    She said something in that conversation that has stayed with me forever. Has that ever happened to you? When someone says something so powerful that you never forget it?

    The daughter had done really well with her riding, she was working with a Pony Club coach and had moved up through the levels quite quickly on her Thoroughbred. She was serious about her riding and highly competitive, she wanted to go all the way to the top, but had been told the Thoroughbred would never make it.

    The mother was telling me once they got the fancy new horse they’d be looking for a new coach too. I asked, what about the Pony Club coach who brought her up through the levels so successfully?

    This is what she said to me, “Oh, but she’s never ridden Grand Prix. We’re putting all our savings into this horse, we only want to go to a coach that’s already at Grand Prix, and already winning.”

    Less than 12 months later I saw that very same horse advertised for sale, the ad reading “selling as rider getting out of riding”…

    there’s a problem with elite level coaches, and there are 3 huge reasons why they struggle to help lower level riders.

    #1 A professional rider might ride as many as 12 horses a day, spending up to 40 hours a week in the saddle. (Read that again to let it sink in… 40 hours a week in the saddle!) They’ve reached an expert level and riding comes so instinctively to them, through muscle memory, making hundreds of tiny unconscious adjustments that they do it with such a an effortless ease. You can spot a rider like that from a mile away, they’re just magic to watch.

    What this means for them as coaches though, is they can’t relate to their students. They can’t explain exactly HOW they do something as it’s become so automatic that they can’t put it into words. For sure they can tell you what to do, or what they would do in the same situation but as for the “how to” you’ll need to be a mind reader!

    #2 They are elite athletes. They’re incredibly fit, with super strong cores, amazing posture, and have a cat-like finesse over their fine motor skills. When their coach tells them to “put your leg back” for example, they do, and they can, and it stays there, and it’s effective.

    When a novice rider is told “put your leg back” first they have to wonder how exactly they’re going to do that, and when they do it de-stabilises them so they tighten the muscles around their hips to re-stabilise. This makes them tip to one side, so they have to brace their back to compensate, and that makes them start bounce in the saddle…

    which takes them to the point of total loss of balance they have to bring that leg forward again to save from falling off!

    All the while the elite level coach is thinking, “come on; it’s not that hard, just get on with it!”

    #3 They aren’t afraid to push a horse. The elite level coach is used to riding big moving horses, powerful horses with huge strides and explosive transitions. They aren’t afraid to push the horse because they can ride extravagant movement; a Grand Prix level collected walk-to-canter transition can have the same kind of power to it as a horse bucking, so when the horse does buck it’s not even a big deal.

    Lower level riders have a much smaller comfort zone, and for those with frayed nerves even getting close to the edge of that zone triggers alarm bells! Which bring me to my 3rd Rule of Horse Training.

    Never push a horse to a place beyond what your are capable of riding

    (Which for me, as a coach/trainer extends out to “never push a client’s horse to a place beyond what they are capable of riding when you give it back to them!”)

    I don’t know the full story of what happened with the 20yo daughter who “outgrew” the coach that had guided her to such success with her previous horse. I don’t know who the new coach was once they got the fancy Warmblood, and I’ll probably never find out, but I can guess what happened, and why in under a year this up and coming rider was “getting out of riding”.

    What I do know though, is the best coach for any rider is one who knows what they’re going through and how to help them in the place they’re at now, with the issues they’re facing in this very moment.

    Personally, bringing on young and green horses carefully, and setting them up with the solid basics that the need to become calm and reliable riding horses is my specialty. This is where my pupils will get the most out of me as a coach, as this is what I’m doing daily.

    Jump to the Young Horse page to see more.

  • Equine PT

    I’m hugely excited to announce the launch of my brand new program! It’s called The Equine PT Program, and you can visit the Facebook Page here.

    The Equine PT Program is a low-impact, strengthening and suppling exercise program for healthy horses. It combines the concept of Sustained Walking with various activities designed to activate the horse’s core and improve mobility.

    Membership to The Equine PT Program is available now. The Program is delivered as a six-week online course, but you can continue using it after the initial six weeks as well, the knowledge is yours to keep.

    For more information on how to join the program please be in touch via admin@jessicabryce.com.au