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Erik Herbermann clinic
These clinics are always an inspiration for me. Words cannot fully describe what happens but I will report some of the key points.
- Never fear to make mistakes.
- Ask as much as necessary; quit as soon as you can.
- Refresh the balance and energy frequently; the horse has no reason to do it on his own.
- The outside rein is not the aid that controls the outside shoulder from escaping, its both reins say halt!
- Keep yourself on the ball and the horse will also be there.
- You don't have to "keep his head down". If you do the right thing, his head will always be just right. (CB used almost exactly the same words)
- Ride for what is under the seat; not for what is in the hand.
- You may notice when things are not great but don't tell the horse that you notice. Its like a nosebleed; just deal with it and move on!
- Keep weeding the garden (for position corrections)
- They are called "aids", not "make'em do its", not "get them to do its" but "help them to do its"
- An indicator light does not turn the car; looking in will not turn the horse.
- The outside leg and seat (pillar) help to channel the energy in the right direction but don't actually turn the horse.
- Elbow, hand, horse's mouth, the forearm truly part of the rein. If the hand bores down it acts like a martingale.
- Look straight between the horses ears, even in lateral work.
- It doesn't take power; it takes finesse. Picking up the right tool for the job.
- Be pleased and grateful for the little things that work.
- If you don't get this right (insert your own particular "this") you will stay at the same level of frustration.
- Cradle the horse between our drive and receive.
- A low poll is more serious than a horse that is up against the hand.
- If you can't get something directly or the horse doesn't quite accept the request, go indirectly. It is like the bridge is closed at Pembridge so go via Marston instead.
Serenity Feeling Participation Harmony
Erik Herbermann - Dressage Clinic at Weston
Once again, Erik focussed on details which make the difference between good and not so good work. Here are just a few points he made during his brief stay.
- Zero Position is the perfect position without actually asking anything of the horse. It should not be tense although if you are not used to it it may feel uncomfortable until it becomes second nature.
- Aiding begins with the passive positive seat attitudes
- Broaden front line
- “ Tip the chair”
- Ride horse and hips through elbows
- Chest through shoulders
- “ Kneel”
Then if necessary use legs.
- After each and every aid, give the hand.
- The seat always rests
- We do not want obedience; we want understanding and willling co-operation
- Ask many little questions of your horse and expect answers
- To straighten your horse use diagonal aids; the leg on the side of the evading croup and the rein on the side of the evading shoulder.
- Only ever bend (to the inside) once the horse has softened to the (inside) rein.
- Good technicalities and good attitudes guarantee good results. To chase after good “ feels” almost always ends in disappointment. (This does not mean that we should ride without feel)
- Accurate riding of school figures is critical to success because it represents your purpose.
If you haven’t already bought Erik’s latest book, “A Horseman’s Notebook”, do it now! It is brilliant.
Erik Herbermann - Sept 06
Once again Erik was in sparkling form. Here are some of Erik's words of wisdom:
Guiding on the buckle shows the horse and rider how simple the aids are. You can guide with the greatest of ease and without power; no holding and hauling. In addition it is a wonderful tool to naturalise a spoilt horse.
It is only by (the horse) reaching and getting to grips with the bridle that he will understand how to work through his body.
You need to bring your whole tool kit to your ride so that you can pick just the right tool for the job
No matter if the horse is going well or badly you should have a contact on each rein. (obviously not when riding on the buckle - SNP)
The moment we think things are body immediately responds and the horse feels the change in the body.
Blanket your horse with your care and your love. Just doing things is not what it is all about. Praise your horse with your heart and soul.
The horse is a blank slate every day. Do not accuse the slate for our inability to write.
Only through calmness will the horse respond through the whole of his body.
Elegance - Rest - Independence - Freedom
Live in the moment
School figure pre-empts everything.
Can Not lies in the graveyard and Will Not lies next to him
Straightening is bending the horse in the opposite direction until he is straight.
To prevent drifting, use unilateral aids or deliberately ask for leg yield.
Always know which is your inside and which is your outside at any given moment
Scales of training - Rhythm, Relaxation, Contact, Straightness - these first 4 take time to establish and all are with forward energy. Impulsion and Collection, (the last 2 points on the scales) assume that the horse is already supple and is only possible with relaxation and energy. Some people put impulsion before straightness with the argument that you must have forward energy to be straight. However, how can you get true impulsion through a crooked horse? Therefore, keep the following three things in mind at all times - Calm, Forward and Straight - most problems occur because one of these cardinal rules has been broken.
Erik’s Piaffe Clinic
I think I started the rot by asking Erik if he would do some piaffe work with Sue Adams and (my) Icaro as although Icaro does piaffe easily from the saddle, he gets a bit confused if I ask him from the ground with someone else riding him. Then of course Joy said that piaffe would really improve Milo, and of course I can’ t resist the challenge of “ I-don’ t-do-piaffe-Meastro” . Johann couldn’ t be left out and neither could Russia so there we were - one horse that could do it, one that had no hope of doing it, and 3 horses that had been put under so much pressure from previous trainers that there was no way they would ever do it again! Thus we had a challenge on our hands. Icaro gave Sue some nice feels and showed us all how easy it could be. Erik rode Milo several times then I rode him and then Joy rode him and between the three of us we had enough energy to inspire him to greater things. The result was that Milo learnt to stay between the driving and receiving aids, (the main object of the exercise), and did a few good steps. Joy was floating about a foot off the ground for days… .! Meastro was not so obliging. He knew about trainers with whips and new just how to deal with them. As Erik commented, “ One can’ t imagine what they did to him to make him react in this way” and then added ruefully “ .. mind you I bet he has intimidated a few trainers in his time!” By mutual agreement Erik stayed somewhere near the centre line while I kept Maestro on the track in shoulder in with a good bend “ for everyone’ s safety” . With this very patient, sympathetic work, Maestro accepted the aids and produced a few steps without going airborne. I cannot think of anyone other than Erik whom I would trust to do this work with me and Maestro even though there were still some very dodgy moments. Johann’ s tactics were very different, he just went slowly into reverse with a few disdainful kicks at the whip. Again, it took very tactful work to gain his trust so that he would offer a few steps. Erik was very clear about the use of the whip and mostly just stroked it down the horses leg with no more than a very gentle tap at most. Sometimes he just lifted it and let it fall and at no time was there any of the frantic shuffling and whacking that one sees so often. On the other hand, when Rusisa reverted to “ pause mode” a well timed flick with the lash was just what was required and I had some lovely trot work as a result!
However, it wasn’ t all about piaffe and here are some points which I felt were particularly useful.
1 The “ One chunk theory” - from just behind the saddle to about 18 inches in front of the wither must be like one chunk and whether it is straight or bent, it must be completely immobile. This confirms correct alignment and I found it very helpful for “ keeping the neck the same” while steering.
2 If you have to hold the outside rein you have already lost the alignment. Likewise, your inside rein is not the corrector of your horses problems.
3 An untrained horse is like raw gold whereas a trained horse is gold fashioned into a beautiful object
4 Adjust and trust
5 Slowing the rhythm - don’ t half halt, just “ dwell” , “ go against the water” for a bit until you get the right rhythm, then drive.
6 The school figure pre empts everything - forward and down while letting the horse drift off the circle is a waste of time.
7 Aid ahead of time, for no apparent reason. It is like putting money in the bank for some future purpose.
8 Always bracket your two track work between good helpings of single track work.
9 If you feel like you have to use a lot of rein it is likely that there is not enough energy.
10 Running is never forwardness
11 Horses read our hearts not our actions
12 Serenity, feeling, participation, harmony
13 If you have good attitudes and good technicalities, the good feels will come.
14 The inside leg says three things - go forward, move off me and it is the pillar around which the horse bends.
15 Dressage is the return of freedom to the horse under saddle.
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