Comment

Comment by Jocelyn on February 17, 2010 at 5:52pm

Thank-you SO much!
I hope everything goes well with your furthur training with Pole!

Jocelyn

Comment by Laura Lorentsen on February 15, 2010 at 9:08pm

Awww thank-you soo much!! Ya my horse and me have been having a rough time lately with some bolting issues that have really shook my confidence but now we are getting bac up there :) the helmet i have is a Charles owen wellington classic really comfortable fit! I had a really hard time finding a fitted helmet due to my odd shaped head and most helmets were HUGE! Hope this helps! And i know what it feels like to be really shaken up or tense beleive me its not fun but you will eventually get over it and your confidence once restored will be alot harder to break hope everything goes well for you!!!

LAURA & POLE

Comment by Jocelyn on February 15, 2010 at 8:21pm

WOW. You're really good.
I know this is probably a dumb question, but what type of helmet are you using in this video? I have a helmet that bugs me SO much. It's huge! And I like the look of yours.
You look like a really confident rider, which is good for your horse. I had a 2 big falls the other week off a horse that kept running away with me, and my last lesson didn't go very well becuase I was riding a 'fresh' horse, and I was really tense.

Anyway, Good Job and Thanks!

Jocelyn

Comment by Laura Lorentsen on August 11, 2009 at 12:48pm

Thankyou very much :) You are very right about the pull means go with tracks horses, to get rid of that earlly training there are actually many ways in saddle or on the lunge in which you can counter it. I am not a trainer though it is my goal to be one, so I can only say what has worked for me and not neceesarily which would work for others. My horse pole had his last race in september and then in march and april he was ridden by a western ridder he had avery skinny strong bit but was ridden on extremely long reins so that when the pull came he would feel this not harsh but strong bit not like it stop and then receive imediate release this is essentially how he was trained out of the pull = speed situation. I did not own him up until last week but from the videos I was shown that is the method that I grasped he now responds to short or long reins on a loosering or eggbut snaffle with minimal difficulty and In the video he was in a happy mouth and it was the Second time I rode him. Another way that this early teaching from the track can be countered is to use side reins and lunge the horse. Essentially you lunge them on both reins with moderate length side reins until they relax into a non rushy gait be it that they only improve to a slow canter they should then be halted the side reins removed walked in hand and heavily praised then put the side reins back on a whole or more depending on the horse and the process repeated. This will get the horse to relax in to a contact and start to break the habit of the pull/run syndrome without unnecesry risk to a rider, be they nervouse, confident, green or experienced. Ultimatly it is up to the horse all horses react differently and some improve faster than others. Do you have a horse? Hope this is helpfull just remember that everyone has different methods some work and some just look like they work. Take Care. Laura

Comment by Shirley on August 11, 2009 at 12:11pm

Laurie, Great riding! With the music your video starts out with, I keep expecting your horse to send you into orbit but you both stick together, neat! I have a question....I've been told that horses on the track are taught to go faster by the pull on their mouth which makes absolutely no sense to me but it seems to be fact or so I've been persuaded to believe. My queston is, how do you ever counter that early teaching?
How do they ever get 'go' out of a pull back and once they do get it how do you undo that to ride normal?
And your horse is beautiful! He does have lots of 'go'. He'd scare me I think but I'm a pretty low key rider and not very brave.
Enjoy your new partner and I hope you develope a great relationship. Shirley