Welcome to The Art of Riding with Karen Musson

Horsemanship Through
Feel and Release

Enjoying a true connection with our horses so that they can offer their best is not so complicated: all you really need is the exchange of clearly understood, reciprocal feel. The gift of feel is in each of us.

My goal is to help you help your horse understand how to give you his best and to offer it to you. Contact Karen here.

Welcome!

NEW! See new article by Karen: "The Feel of Release: Riding CALLE" in which she relates her experiences riding Leslie's horses during her apprenticeship, in particular CALLE, whom she found to be quite an excellent coach!

NEW! Visit Karen's Blog, where you can see Photo Tips, Video Clips and occasional news

NEW! Those tree-Line ROPES / MECATES that are so hard to find in a suitable length for 'feel and release' are now available here

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DESIGN YOUR OWN Clinic or Workshop (select from Karen's most popular focus sessions)

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If you are seeking coaching, or a clinic please contact me here. You can also check out my background or read an article about my full story  at www.lesliedesmond.com under Recommended Trainers or you can view it on this site

Need help? Have a question? I’d love to hear from you!

"Bill’s book ["True Horsemanship Through Feel", by Bill Dorrance and Leslie Desmond] makes so much more sense after seeing how we are working with my horse." a student and first time horse-owner told me after her first few lessons. "My horse is getting so clear in his understanding now, compared with pressure/release used before. It’s very exciting!"  It is: it touches and lifts the spirit to see how the horse opens his mind and his try.

The Art of Riding: Horsemanship Through
Feel and Release

Offering true feel means to bring your full presence, sureness and clarity to the moment with your horse.  Horses are masterful readers of body language and intention – they've had to be, in order to survive as the hunted in the wild. Horses constantly “read” us, and respond in the moment to how we present ourselves. The response we get from our horse will mirror what we offer from the inside, because this is the true feel the horse operates from in his natural state.

We decide to 'own' a horse and ask him to accommodate our ideas on what we would like to be doing. It is up to us to offer our horses a meaningful connection based on respect and trust. Otherwise, why would he put energy into offering us his best?

And then there is the holy grail of lightness... Horses all have it, just look at them in the pasture. We can only expect lightness under saddle if we preserve his natural balance and 'life' - by shaping the kind of life you see when he frolics out in the field, not dulling that life. This is achieved through lightness in our riding and meaningful flow between horse and rider through feel, with variety of activity and purpose.

As we understand and build in these ingredients of true feel, we see how it touches the horse's whole being. He’s sure, he’s proud, he knows he is safe and he sees value in your partnership. In this state of mind, he is freed to offer all he has without hesitation or brace. This is the hallmark of working with true feel through just “release”, without the escalation of pressure. It is about horses performing with heart.

Why The “Art” of Riding?

The Art of Riding is about:

  • the art of reading horses
  • the art of offering sureness with quality
  • the art of refining skills progressively
  • the art of relaxing and having fun!
  • THE ART OF DEVELOPING FEEL, through RELEASE

Working with horses through 'Feel' depends on our ability to be present in the moment, with a clear mind and open senses. Thinking about being with horses as an art form opens the mind to the spirit of a wonderful creature, and reconnects us to our own natural senses, that are so often dampened in the hustle and bustle of life.

Enjoy your journey!

Karen

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