Last Sunday I got to ride at Lanolin Farm, and I got to ride Mars again. Now Mars had been on an extended years long vacation due to the arthritis in his knees, and finally Mars got sound enough to ride. Mars does not necessarily WANT to end his vacation, he really likes hanging out with his buddy/girl friend Cider in the cool shade in the one place with a nice breeze. He does NOT want to carry me around in the hot sunshine, doing boring circles around the ring. It took Shannon…

Hi, This week I spotted a great question posted to the 'over 50 rider' group. I've copied it below:



What are you doing to keep fit/get fit, keep supple, improve or keep your balance, stretch muscles or even to control nerves and be calm? And what supplements are people taking, or herbs or meds to keep from feeling pained and creaky before and after…

A lot of riders aren't clear on the difference between flexion at the jaw and flexion at the poll, and how to ask for each of these positions.



Keep in mind that a horse can flex three ways–to the left, to the right, and "in".



When a horse flexes to the left or right, he's flexing at the poll. When he does this, you'll just see his inside or outside eye or nostril. I call this position +1 or -1 because you're bringing his head 1 inch to the inside or the outside of…

When a horse rushes he is running and using the rider's hands as the fifth leg. In other words the rider is trying to support a horse that thinks that it is acceptable to lean on your hands, which it is not.



What the rider must do is to try and be soft in the contact. When the horse starts to go forward the rider needs to bring his body back slightly to let the horse know to readdress his balance, then take quite a strong half halt and soften as soon as the horse starts to…

Hello to everyone at Barnmice! I am delighted to be a part of this community and I hope everyone enjoys my blog! If you have any questions that you would like me to answer in an upcoming post, feel free to leave a comment on my page.





Choosing my horses.... how do I?



I get asked all the time and it is actually quite hard for me to answer as I really have not bought a horse in a very long time. As we breed horses at my property Kirby Park in Hahndorf South…

Last July Debbie (my riding teacher) asked me to ride an Arab mare called Mia who had been abandoned at her stable. She (Mia) suffers from arthritis, and back then nobody was riding her, and as her arthritis got more painful she moved less and less. Debbie figured that I would be more patient with Mia than other riders, and being handicapped myself, that I would have more sympathy for her. Debbie just wanted to get the mare moving again, with a hope of working her up to a lesson…

Hi Guys,



Can you tell if your position is straight and centered on your dressage horse? Or are you collapsing at your waist and sitting crookedly?



Ask a ground person to stand behind your horse.



1. Is your seat in the center of the dressage saddle so that each seatbone is the same distance from the middle of the saddle?

2. Is the distance between your last rib and your belt equal on both sides?

3. Are your shoulders level (i.e. the same…

Why did I choose Courage and partnership as my two themes? Winston Churchill can explain the former...."Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities, because it is the quality which guarantees all others." And Partnership? I believe the Power of Partnership is the key to fulfilling your potential and indeed in some cases to even go beyond what would appear to be possible.



To be either a good coach, student or rider you need to be a good team player because each is half…