For people who are visual learners, I use a lot of imagery in my explanations.  “Wearing the cloak” is one of my favorite and most effective visualizations to bring riders’ shoulders back into a supple but strong posture (exactly the opposite of how most of us march through our days!)

I ask the rider to picture the cloak clearly.  What color is it? What kind of fabric is made out of? does it reach to your saddle or stream along your horse’s back and hindquarters? Now, as you ride forward, feel how it flows and billows behind you in the wind.  The more senses you can involve in your visualization, the more effective the results. Go ahead! Try it Now!

Kathy realized that practicing good horsemanship doesn’t always require a horse.  Good horsemanship requires acute body awareness and control. You can hone your awareness and improve that control while walking, driving, standing in line… where ever!

The habits that you carry on the ground carry over into the saddle.  The silver lining in that cloud is that breakthroughs from the ground bring breakthroughs from the saddle.

As you walk the malls in search of the perfect gifts this season, I encourage you to seek your own breakthroughs!

Comment below and share your experiences–we love to hear from you!

Our friends in a neighboring kingdom hosted an SCA medieval equestrian practice. We jumped at the opportunity to play our favorite medieval horsemanship games with great people while increasing our horses’ competencies. We love win-win-win!

Our horses faced new places, new horses, and new challenges…even new outfits! Natural horsemanship laid a solid foundation for acceptance and quick mastery of new experiences. Clicker training accelerated the horses’ comfort level with flailing swords, bobbing lances and billowing costumes.

Lucy, of course, took it all in stride:

I first met Wally the warmblood’s owner, Jeannie, when she was about 10. I had known her mother, Karen, years ago: she boarded a horse at the training farm where I was teenage barn rat. Karen moved her horse and had a child, Jeannie. I grew up to be a horse trainer and riding instructor. Jeannie proved to be as horse crazy as her mother, and started taking horse riding lessons with me.

Jeannie became as addicted to horses as the rest of us. She started out half-leasing a horse from a boarder, then as time went on and her commitment grew, she found a horse of her own. SinJin was a black Thoroughbred, an ex-show jumper. I coached Jeannie and Sinny for years, up through the ranks of Pony Club and through the adventures of 3-day eventing and polocrosse until I moved from CT 8 years ago.

Jeannie is no longer a barn rat but a powerful woman impacting the world. SinJin went to a retirement farm, and Wally, the gawky four-year old, steps into his role.

Generations of horse women and the horses they adore. A legacy of love and learning. When people sign up for riding lessons, little do they know the door is opening to a whole new world, a world that transcends even time.