Grice, Lindsay Articles

lindsay grice horse coach, horse needs a lot of leg, using the whip with a horse, using spurs horse, how much pressure should I apply horse

Who doesn’t love a horse with a laid-back disposition, the unflappable sort, unfazed by snow skidding off the arena roof? The downside of that laid-back horse is that he’s liable to be laid-back about his rider’s aids, too.

schooling horses, lindsay grice, how to practice for horse show, beginners exercises horse, side pass horse, trail obstacles horses, horsemanship, riding coach

Do you ever wander away from the mounting block, still adjusting your stirrups, pondering what to work on in today’s schooling session? Does your coach ever ask (I always do) what you’ve been working on since your last lesson, and you admit mostly logging miles on your horse’s odometer?

how to lunge a horse, lindsay grice horse trainer, should i lunge horse, warming up horse

Just get on and ride! Leaving the lunge line in the tack room seems logical when time is of the essence. Skipping extra steps is compatible with our instant society. For many riders, lunging seems like an unnecessary step, an awkward feeling of having less control than just getting on and “riding the bugs out.” For others, lunging is just plain boring. A misbehaving horse on the lunge is embarrassing at a horse show and a menace to others sharing the arena. And isn’t lunging stressful for the horse’s legs?

Lindsay Grice, horse mounting manners, horse manners, horse, mounting block, how to mount horse, horse groundwork

Perhaps because it doesn’t affect one’s mark on the judge’s score card or change a barrel run time, many riders don’t put a lot of thought into teaching their horse to stand still at the mounting block – that is, until it starts to become a bigger problem. Before you find yourself doing a “Butch Cassidy mount-on-the-fly,” spend some time setting boundaries with your horse.

counter canter horse, cantering your horse, how to canter horse, how to prepare show ring, correcting horse's lead, how to keep my horse straight, lindsay grice

Wrong lead, reposition, relaunch. It’s the two-strides-forward, one-stride-back process of learning leads for riders and their horses. Fast forward a year down the road to see the same rider who once dreaded hearing “Wrong lead!” from her coach now initiating the wrong lead …on purpose. Why? She’s discovered the counter-canter as an essential tool in building a solid training foundation for her horse

Lindsay Grice, horse and winter, bond with horse, getting most out of winter horse, winter horse riding, riding horses in winter, winter trail riding, winter horse training

Although there is no shortage of year round American show circuits to choose from, here in Canada, during the winter months the show season comes to a halt for most people. The benefit is that it gives us an opportunity to assess our goals and make whatever changes are necessary.

canter lead, correct canter lead, horse picks up wrong lead, lindsay grice horse trainer, my horse doesn't canter right, exercises to improve canter

Every Time, Everywhere - Wrong lead! It’s one of the earliest alerts a young rider hears from her coach. One’s heart sinks to hear that same alert from the coach calling over the show ring rail. The novice rider learns the outside leg back and kiss cue to canter but I’ve found that riders are often unsure why they should use this cue. Let’s break it down. We’ll review the phonics of teaching your horse to pick up the correct lead and some hints to help the rider recognize it.

lindsay grice, flat class, how to judge a flat class, how to judge rail class, rules of a flat class, how to prepare flat class, lindsay grice

Riding the Rail - No jumps. No pylons. No letter markers. Unlike classes assessing the accuracy of patterns, the quality of movements in tests, or how the competitor meets each jump on course, flat or rail classes appraise the picture of you and your horse in profile.

schooling horses, lindsay grice, canadian equestrian coaches, horse learning styles, how do horses learn? types of horse training, horse riding lesson plan, communicating with horses

Keys to an effective horse training session. I’ve trained a lot of horses. After nailing up my sign as a “professional horse trainer” several decades ago, I learned quickly that overhead is high in the horse business so you’d better make some hay if you’re going to pay your bills. Consequently, I rode many horses each day, breaking young ones and tuning up show horses.

turn on the haunches how to, what is a horse pinwheel turn, groundwork horse, lindsay grice horse trainer

A turn on the haunches is similar to a western pivot or, when the speed is increased, a spin. It should look like the horse is walking his forehand around his haunches while he keeps his body fairly straight (he will have a slight bend in the direction of travel).

Lindsay Grice horse trainer, how to be a horse show judge, what does a horse judge do? ontario horse show judges canada

I smiled, walking past the airport hat kiosk, en route to a judging adventure at an exhibition in Eastern Canada. I’d be wearing several hats and judging a kaleidoscope of classes at the show — equitation, road hack, reining, Western riding, working hunter, pleasure driving, driven dressage, conformation, showmanship, miniature horses… and more!

lindsay grice, preparing for a horse competition, psychology of riding horses, helping an anxious horse, horse refuses, horse won't cooperate

How to turn mistakes into learning opportunities - If you plan to step into the competition arena, expect the unexpected. Few sports have more variables than riding — a 1,000-pound partner that doesn’t speak or think like a human; judges with preferences; fluctuating footing and weather conditions; various competition venues; required patterns, courses and tests changing with each show.

equine nosebands, equine martingales, horse whips, draw reins, tack allowed equestrian competition, aqha competition rules, equestrian canada competition rules

Sifting through truth, tradition, and emotion - When we think of training tack, we think of whips, spurs, nosebands, and martingales. It’s a divisive topic in the horse industry. Horse show committees, popular clinicians, coaches, competitive and casual riders all differ in their views. In a sport where truth, tradition, and emotions often collide, I’ve had to sift through the issues to form my own system as a horse trainer, show judge, and riding coach. By trial and error, from training hundreds of horses and watching countless horses and riders, I’ve honed my sense of what works and what tends not to.

equine nosebands, equine martingales, horse whips, draw reins, tack allowed equestrian competition, aqha competition rules, equestrian canada competition rules

Don’t Get Caught With Your Splint Boots On! What riding equipment is allowed, and what's not, across the riding disciplines? Now, with a wealth of evidence available to us, we can make our artificial aid choices by analysis, not by accident.

horse nosebands, taper gauge nosebands, tightness equine noseband, lindsay grice, are nosebands on horses allowed?

How to check your noseband for tightness. Technology now allows researchers to peek inside the equine mouth, comparing the effect of restrictive nosebands on bit action and swallowing. Overly tight nosebands, with the leverage they afford, can create measurable damage.

Lindsay Grice, how to enjoy fall winter with Your Horse, meeting your equine goals, explore alternate activities with your horse, horse training, bonding with your horse, winter horse riding, autumn horse riding

Fall fairs, circuit championships, and club awards banquets signal the end of another horse show season. So how did it go? Did your shows, rodeos, or competitive trail rides meet your expectations? For the majority of horse owners, the answer to this question will likely be no. Stuff happens. And so we look toward the next year. But with chilly fall and winter weather looming, we all need some goals to motivate us to get off the couch and out to the arena on those cold nights!

hunter patterns for horses, equitation patterns, showmanship patterns for horses, lindsay grice

Each of us memorizes material in a different way. Knowing your learning style is helpful. Try a number of memorization styles in each of these categories and see what works.

Lunging for Horse & Rider

If done correctly, lunging teaches a green horse to discipline, balance, and organize himself in a frame at all gaits and during transitions, without the added stress of a rider. By going back to these building blocks in his foundation at the start of a session, or in a new environment when he is experiencing sensory overload, will tell the horse to remember those skills he’s familiar with.

Shaping Your Horse's Canter, how to develop a nice canter, how to canter a horse, lindsay grice, horse crosses leg behind, horse won't canter

Q: I have done most of the training on my four-year-old gelding myself. He will yield off my leg, do a turn on the haunches, and collect his trot to a jog. I just can’t seem to slow his canter down. When I try, he just breaks into a trot. How do I keep it together?

Lindsay Grice, prepare for horse show, prepare for equine show, showing a horse, how to show a horse, prepare for a dressage test, prepare for a horse jumper class, prepare for a Western horse class

Seated at the head of the quiet classroom, I watched the students in the classes I teach write their Equine Behaviour and Equine Business final exams, noting the happy faces of smug recognition (“Yes, I studied that!”) and the winces (“Rats, I’d hoped that material wouldn’t be on the test”). I empathize with them. I know what it’s like to sit in the “test seat” – as a student in university and, more recently, writing judging exams. And as a competitive rider, every horse show is a test.

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