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  Discussion on Training Discovery on my Arabian related to Tack
Author Message
Member:
corinne

Posted on Monday, Sep 10, 2007 - 10:31 am:

Hello all. As you all know I ride an Arab and Arabs can sometimes be frustrating to train. It has seriously made me doubt myself lately because I truly work very very hard and sometimes it’s a just a constant fight.
Anyway we have been having bit issues these past two weeks since our clinic. Our clinician said he hates the French link loose ring because it hit the palate of his mouth and also my bit was too small. We then ordered a KK Ultra in a size I thought appropriate, one size up, but that too pinched, we went bigger, still pinching. My trainer is in Europe so last evening after a particularly hard ride (Demetrius wanted no part of the right reign) I got off and checked his mouth....rub again. We have a show this weekend. So I said...well darn I am putting the first bit back in, the one we have had in the last three years and am going to confirm if the bit we had in (the KK) was the problem. Well I know my old bit was too small (confirmed by the clinician) but he was never resistant and it never pinched until recently when we really started to ride on contact, so I put the JP korstell french link loose ring back in just to see if it were slightly better as I was at a loss and put on a bare back pad to see if the KK was the issue as I didn’t have time to tack up fully. Now I have never ridden bare back truly (other than once or twice on lunge line and I couldn’t stay upright and fell like I was going to fall off each time) but I was still a somewhat new rider then, so when I took him to a trot I was surprised that he gave me such a nice place to sit (he could feel my legs) and I felt so balanced and he was so balanced and took such wonderful light contact that I decided to do a test. Now we have mirrors in the indoor so I could see how round he was to the bit and I did not bounce even once, we even sat the mediums as I was too tired to post without irons…..NO BOUNCE. We were in perfect harmony. It was the most exhilarating feeling I have ever had. After the ride I immediately got off and went to the house and got my trainer's husband (a twice Rolex rider) to prove to him what a wonderful horse we had and to ask if in fact with my short legs could he feel my legs with the long saddle flaps on my Passier? And with the combination of the bit issues was this a communication problem all along? And we determined, with the amazing ride I put on for him, that instead of having a difficult horse, like we had always thought, I may not have a difficult horse, you should have seen his transitions they were beautiful and effortless, rich foam from the mouth and I had contact enough to feel but he was not fighting and in fact, having never ridden bareback and because the ride was so beautiful, I am confident in my skills now which I have not been feeling lately with all his fighting since we started schooling second level. And son of a gun, all this time I know in my heart we have just been unable to communicate with each other because of tack. I don’t even want to think where we would be if I had discovered this a couple of years ago. (And yes Holly I spoke to him like the Barbier tapes say and Demetrius confirmed this!) LOL.
Now I just ordered the only size bit I have not tried the 5.5 in the JP korstell with the oval piece in the center...like the KK, a 1/8 of the price so I have something to use this weekend. And I would get a new saddle with shorter flaps but that's not an option now. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can get him to feel my legs better though long flaps. I had had to bring my heel up to get him to feel anything which is not correct riding. I want him to feel my calf. Will bareback riding a few times a week, then riding in the saddle help any? I want that feeling back but unfortunately can't change the expensive tack at the moment. Any suggestions? I am beyond thrilled.

Corinne
Member:
hwood

Posted on Monday, Sep 10, 2007 - 11:16 am:

Corinne, were there stirrups on the bareback pad?

If you haven't tried a Wintec, you can borrow mine to see if that will help.
I feel like I am very close to my horses with it. Unfortunately, Wintecs are becoming so expensive and their compsition has changed over the years so that the ones I really love are not made anymore . . . and the new ones look just like leather saddles with all the flaps and padding.

Maybe you should consider starting an Arabian Riding School???? and different "tests;" an entirely different venue . . . as you know, the riders do tons of bareback and get the horses to perform wonderfully!
Member:
dres

Posted on Monday, Sep 10, 2007 - 11:19 am:

good discovery.. its never to late either..

My appy mare was as stiff as could be on the lateral work.. I figured she is green and just learning.. then one day i put a different saddle on her.. OMG, night and day.. she was supple and relaxed.. so right away put the 'other' saddle on her.. she became tight and resistant.. the SADDLE was holding her back, she was guarded..

OK, now to your question.. Are you draping your legs around his barrel? Do you have a light contact with your calves not heals at all times? Are your legs in the correct position BEHIND the girth line?
Try riding in Two Point a few circles to get your leg on his sides in the 'back' position.. come back down to the saddle without moving your leg .. do you feel anything different??
Draping your leg with light contact is a must.. I know so many of us.. want to take our leg off once we 'feel' we have ''connection'' but in doing that we LOOSE it .. you have to ride every stride.. don't be a passenger..

Hope this helps in some way...

On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with spots.
Member:
gailkin

Posted on Sunday, Sep 16, 2007 - 7:15 pm:

Corinne, I assume the reason you need to keep using the saddle is because you want to show and it is required. I had the same experience with my older arab who continually had to be encouraged with leg to keep up his trot in dressage work. When I finally was a good enough rider that I started riding bareback, he literally flew around the arena at a wonderful trot for 45 minutes with no continual leg. He loved it and still does. My younger arab was alway ridden bareback by my trainer and still loves it also. I now ride bareback almost all the time. I maybe use a saddle once every other month. It is easy, fun and more comfortable for me and my horses. If you show and need a saddle, try positioning your leg around the horse's belly like you are riding bareback. Also don't use the stirrups and ride in the saddle to see how he responds. My younger horse really likes connection and we can both feel each other's every movement. I just have to learn how to jump bareback as I keep trying to teach my younger guy to walk over tree trunks, etc. but he would rather jump over. I would just ride bareback as often as you can and he may not be so resentful at the times you have to use a saddle. And what about a simple snaffle. I rarely use a bit and my boys are very well behaved. Sometimes if you can stop the fussing and fighting and get your horse to relax and enjoy what he is doing, then you can go back to training after that. Do you and your horse do rides that are fun for both of you and not just arena work? I think it is important that both of you enjoy the rides to form a better relationship. Good luck. If you want advice on bareback pads, I've tried them all!
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