20June2013

The Art of Riding with Karen Musson

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Workshop (1/2 day clinic) Formats

 

FEEL & RELEASE WORKSHOPS

 

“Feel” is the natural flow between two beings: it is what your horse goes on, by nature. Feel is the direct line to the whole horse. When you release your horse through feel, his full potential is at your fingertips, whether for competition, to blaze a trail, or both!

 You will leave these sessions with new perspective on horse handling, the mind of the horse, and the way you understand the human/equine relationship!

 

  

WORKSHOP 1: FEEL & RELEASE - A ROADMAP

In this session, we take a look at Feel & Release and what it is about this approach that consistently brings out partnership characteristics of teamwork, connection and heart.

What are the characteristics of a Feel & Release approach?

How does each characteristic contribute to the end result?

How do you know you're on the right track?

We take a look at what each horse presents and ask participants to outline the way they might handle that particular horse in that particular situation. We review together how the presentation offered fits in the context of our Feel & Release roadmap. The purpose of this exercise is to take a lightweight look at "the lovely and the ugly" -- what is helping and what is hindering the connection through feel.

We then explore approaching the situation using Feel & Release, or look at ways to add clarity and finesse (if needed!) for existing students of feel. We note any changes in the horse, what they might indicate and how those changes connect with other aspects of the foundation on the ground and under saddle.

Participants will gain a clear understanding of how to get started with Feel & Release, or gain sureness about where they are in "the journey" and how to stay on the right track.  

WORKSHOP 2: BUILDING YOUR DREAM RIDE

We all dream about the ideal ride. What would it be like? How would it feel? How do you get it? In this workshop series, the philosophy and "mind set" of Feel & Release is explored. Join us to learn to "see the ride" your horse will offer... before you mount. Then, from the saddle "feel the groundwork" that defines the ride. Understand the connection between the two!

Groundwork Session

Riding Session

WORKSHOP 3: FEEL FOR THE FLOW OF YOUR HORSE

The flow, timing and presentation of your requests to your horse to move left, right and straight on the ground will be reflected in his offer, as he performs those maneuvers for you. This flow between you on the ground will be felt in the same maneuvers when you ride. This means the ride you get under saddle starts on the ground! Explore how to add flow to your groundwork and to reap the benefits under saddle. Also discover how certain groundwork pitfalls inadvertently produce common challenges under saddle, and how to avoid these!

Groundwork Session

Riding Session

WORKSHOP 4: DIRECTING THE "LIFE" IN YOUR HORSE

Fear or concern about the "life" in your horse coming up is usually rooted in a feeling of disconnection from the powerhouse under you, or at the end of your rope! However, when that life is connected to your core and intent, it feels different: available and ready for you to shape and direct -- horsepower at your disposal! When you understand the ONE thing needed to restore that connection if it does get lost, you are on the path to handling "life" with sureness.

Groundwork Session

Riding Session

More of these coming! Have a suggestion or interested in hosting a workshop at your barn, or with a few friends? Contact Karen!

Mark Rashid

RashidBookCover

"I see an 'opening' as anything that allows us to help guide, however briefly, an individual in the direction we ultimately would like to go. An 'opening' can be, and often is, a very subtle form of communication between horse and rider that can easily slip past us if we're not paying attention. 'Openings' can and do work both ways. [...] It amazes me just how small an 'opening' can actually be, whether working with horses or with people, and how easy it can be to create an 'opening' when one is needed."

Mark Rashid

"I truly believe developing the ability to see and use 'openings' effectively is only one piece of what one might refer to as the 'harmony in horsemanship' puzzle. When this idea of understanding 'openings' is brought together with the understanding of two other simlar ideas - making a connection with another indvidual, and the role distance plays in overall communication - I believe it is then that harmony in horsemanship becomes a much less daunting concept for us."

Mark Rashid

Leslie Desmond

LDaudiobook

"Bill knew about a place I did not know existed, or could exist, between a horse and a human being [...] Bill included each one of my horses in that information exchange. Over the course of many months,... he took each one by its lead rope and, later, by the bridle reins. Using what he called his 'better feel', Bill showed me and each of them exactly what he meant by what he did [...] It was not long after I made the switch from force when needed (often) to always customizing the feel I offered to a horse, that two tough horses I had misunderstood for years developed into my most reliable mounts."

Leslie Desmond

“The lightest hands carry intent that is recognized instantly by the horse, as seen in the maneuvers he chooses to make with his feet. Whether that horse is ridden or handled, the lightest hands can purposefully influence the speed, direction and sequence of each foot with accuracy, in a manner that is reflected in the horse's body and on his face.”

Leslie Desmond

Bill Dorrance

bilsbook

"The Real Masters Understood Feel [...] For example, De Kerbrech, (French officer in the cavalry of Napoleon III) really understood horses. He had it fixed up so the horse could succeed. [...] The first time I read Beudant's book was in the 1950s. The way he explained things, there was no doubt in my mind about what a person needed to do to get these little things working for them and their horse."

Bill Dorrance

“Feel, timing and balance: sometimes it’s best to talk about feel, timing and balance separately, and to learn how to apply each thing separately on the start. But when you apply these three things a little later in your training, then you see that each one of these things supports the other. They are interconnected and all three are real important. You really can’t get along without all three.”

Bill Dorrance

Faverot de Kerbrech

FaverotBookCover

“...plus le deplacement du poids est facile dans tous les sens, plus l'equilibre est parfait. En vertue de ce principe, on dit que le cheval est 'en equilibre' quand de simples indications suffisent au cavalier pour modifier a son gre la disposition du poids sur ses colonnes de soutien”

Faverot de Kerbrech

[Translation: ...the easier it is to shift the weight in any direction, the more perfect the balance. By virtue of this principle, the horse is 'in balance' when a simple indication from the rider is sufficient to modify the distribution of weight across the columns of support (four quarters) accordingly]

Duke of Newcastle

CavendishBookCover

"You must in all Airs follow the strength, spirit, and disposition of the horse, and do nothing against nature; for art is but to set nature in order, and nothing else."

William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle

"A confrontational approach ‘Astonishes the Weak Horse […] makes a Furious horse Madd; makes a Resty Horse more Resty […] and Displeases all sorts of Horses’. The alternative however is not ‘to Sit Weak […] but to Sit Easie’, in the understanding that ‘The Horse must know you are his Master’"

William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle

 

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