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Classical Training: The origins of classical training lie in the natural ability of the horse and
its movements in the wild. Most modern definitions of classical training state that the goal is to have
the horse perform under saddle with the degree of athleticism and grace that is naturally shown when the horse is “free”.
When horses perform naturally they use the concept of collection when they are playing, fighting, competing and courting
each other. When trying to impress other horses they make themselves look bigger. They
achieve this by pumping up the chest, raising the neck and making it bigger by flexing the poll, while at the same time transforming
their gaits to emphasize more upwards movement. When fighting, the horse will collect because in collection
it can produce lightning speed reactions for kicking, rearing, spinning, striking with the front feet, bucking and jumping.
This classical type of training evolved from cavalry movements and training for the battlefield, and has since developed into
classical riding meaning the art of riding in harmony with, rather than against, the horse. Correct classical
riding occurs only when the rider has a good seat and a correct and well balanced body position, moves with the horse’s
motion, and gives and times the aids correctly. This
natural ability to collect is visible in every horse of any breed, and is what probably inspired early trainers to reproduce
that kind of behavior in more controlled circumstances. This origin also points out why, according to most Classical Trainers,
every healthy horse, regardless of its breed, can perform classical movements, though it may perform them a little differently
due to the build of its body.
Show Jumping
– Also known as “stadium jumping” or “jumpers”, is a member of the family of English riding
equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at
horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes shows are limited exclusively to jumpers, sometimes
jumper classes are offered in conjunction with other English-style events and sometimes show jumping is but one division of
very large, all breed competitions that include a very wide variety of disciplines. Jumping classes may be governed
by various national horse show sanctioning organizations, such as the United States Equestrian Federation in the USA. International
competitions are governed by the rules of the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI).
Cross Country – Equestrian jumping is an endurance test and is one of the three phases of the sport
of eventing. It may also be in competition in its own right, known as hunter trials or simply “cross country”.
These tend to be lower level, local competitions. The object of the endurance test is to prove the speed, endurance
and jumping ability of the true cross country horse when he is well trained and brought to the peak of condition. At
the same time, it demonstrates the rider’s knowledge of pace and the use of this horse across country.
Speed Events – Games or timed events
on horseback. These games can be anything as familiar as barrel racing and pole bending to less familiar races that
simply have a starting point and a finish line with some sort of obstacle to get through, around or by in a timed fashion.
Eventing
– An equestrian event which comprises dressage, cross country and show
jumping. This event has its roots as a comprehensive cavalry test requiring mastery of several types of riding.
It has two main formats, the one day event (ODE) and the three day event (3DE). It has previously been known as Militaire,
Horse Trials and Combined Training.
In Hand/Free Style - Horses are shown in hand or free style to allow the judges to view the horses
in their most natural state.
Musical Freestyle or Musical Kur: is a form of movement setting the horse’s
"dance" to music. Movements and figures are choreographed to meet the technical requirements of the particular level
with carefully chosen music that highlights the horse/rider combination. Musical Freestyles are entertaining and offer great
audience appeal. In the United States the tests are offered from First to Fourth levels through the United States Dressage
Federation and at Prix St. Georges for Young Riders, Intermediate I and Grand Prix through the Fédération Equestre
Internationale (FEI).
Team roping:
also known as heading and heeling is a rodeo event that features a steer (typically a Corriente) and two
mounted cowboys or cowgirls. The first roper is referred to as the "header," the person who ropes the front of the
steer, usually around the horns; the second is the "heeler," who ropes the steer by its hind feet. Team roping is
the only rodeo event where men and women compete equally together in professionally-sanctioned competition, in both single
gender or mixed gender teams.
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Here are some of Phantom's imported
horses
Chocolate Bar
Germany
1994
Tonights
the Night
Italy
2001
Gettin Fancy Europe
2003
Go for the Win Brazil
2004
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Cutting – An equestrian event in the western riding style where a horse and rider are judged on their ability to
separate a calf away from a cattle heard and keep it away for a short period of time. The sport originally evolved from
cattle ranches in the American West, where it was the cutting horse’s job to separate cows from the herd for vaccinating,
castrating, and sorting. Eventually competitions arose between best cutting horses and riders in the area. Rules
were added and in 1946 the National Cutting Horse Association was formed, which today is the governing body of the sport.
A horse that instinctively knows how to keep a calf from returning to the herd, and is trained in a manner to be shown competitively,
is considered a cutting horse. In the event, the horse and rider select and separate a calf out of a small group.
The calf then tries to return to its herdmates, the rider loosens the reins, puts his hand down in the parlance and leaves
it entirely to the horse to keep the calf separated, a job the best horses do with relish, savvy and style. A contestant
has 2 ½ minutes to show his horse; typically three cows are cut during a run, although working only two cows is acceptable.
Dressage – A French term meaning
Training, is a path and destination of competitive horse training, with competitions held at all levels from amateur to the
Olympics. Its fundamental purpose is to develop, through standardized progressive training methods, a horse’s
natural athletic ability and willingness to perform, thereby maximizing its potential as a riding horse. At the peak
of a dressage horse’s gymnastic development, it can smoothly respond to a skilled rider’s minimal aids by performing
the requested movement while remaining relaxed and appearing effortless. Dressage is occasionally referred to as “Horse
Ballet”. Although the discipline has ancient roots, dressage was first recognized as an important equestrian pursuit
in the West during the Renaissance. The great European riding masters of that period developed a sequential training
system that has changed little since then and classical dressage is still considered the basis of trained modern dressage.
Hunters/Jumpers
- Many people are unfamiliar with the difference between working hunter classes
and jumper classes. Hunters are judged subjectively on the degree to which they meet an ideal standard of manners, style
and way of going. Conversely, jumper classes are scored objectively based entirely on a numerical score determined by
whether the horse attempts the obstacles, clears it and finishes the course in the allotted time. Jumper courses are
often colorful and at times quite creatively designed. Jumper courses tend to be much more complex and technical than
hunter courses, because riders and horses are not being judged on style. Hunters have meticulous turnout and tend toward
very quiet, conservative horse tack and rider attire. Hunter bits, bridles, crops, spurs and martingales are tightly
regulated. Jumpers, while caring for their horses and grooming them well are not scored on turnout, are allowed a wider range
of equipment, and riders may wear less conservative attire, so long as it stays within the rules. Formal turnout is
always preferred, and a neat rider gives a good impression at shows. Hunters and jumpers are equitation classes, sometimes
called hunt seat equitation, which judge the ability of the rider. The equipment, clothing and fence styles used in
equitation more closely resemble hunter classes, though the technical difficulty of the courses may more closely resemble
jumping events.
Driving – In most European and English speaking countries,
driving is a competitive equestrian sport. Many horse shows host driving competitions for a particular style of driving, breed
of horse, type of vehicle. Show vehicles are usually carriages, carts or buggies, and occasionally sulkies or wagons.
Terminology varies, the simple lightweight two or four wheeled show vehicle common in many nations is called a “cart”
in the USA, but a “carriage” in Australia. Internationally, there is intense competition in the all round
test of driving. Combined driving, also known as horse driving trials is an equestrian discipline regulated by the FEI with
national organizations representing each member country. World championships take place on alternate years, including
single horse championship, horse pairs championships, four-in-hand championships as well as four-in-hand competition at the
World Equestrian Games, held every four years.
Polo
- A game played by two teams of three or four players on horseback who are equipped with
long-handled mallets for driving a small wooden ball through the opponents' goal. The
objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Riders score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the
opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. The traditional sport of polo is played at speed on a large grass field
up to 300 yards in length, and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts.A
modern variant is called arena polo which is played indoors or more commonly outdoors on an enclosed all-weather surface (the
field of play is much smaller, rarely exceeding 100 yards in length). In arena polo there are only three players on each team
and a small inflatable leather ball is used instead. Arena polo matches usually consist of four 6 minute periods (called chukkas
or chukkers), as opposed to field polo matches which consist of between four and eight 7 minute chukkas (depending on the
level being played).Another modern variant is snow polo, which is played on compacted
snow on flat ground or a frozen lake. The format of snow polo varies depending on the space available.
Reining – An equestrian western riding competition for horses where the riders guide the horses through a precise
pattern of circles, spins and stops. All work is done at the lope or more commonly known as the canter and gallop. Reining
is often described as a western form of dressage riding, as it requires the horse to be responsive and in tune with its rider,
whose aids should not be easily seen and judges the horse on its ability to perform a set pattern of movements.
Team Penning - A western equestrian sport that evolved from the common
ranch work of separating cattle into pens for branding, doctoring and transport. Today team penning is a fast paced
and exciting event that gives a team of three riders on horseback from 60-75 seconds to separate three same numbered cattle
from a herd of 30, and put them into a 16’ x 24’ pen through a 10’ opening, at the opposite end of the arena.
Teamwork is key with all three riders working in harmony to cut out the correct cattle and drive them to the pen while keeping
the wrong numbered cattle back. The history of the sport is thought to date back to 1942 when brothers Ray and Joe Yanez,
along with Canadian cowboy Bill Schwindt were sorting steers from a herd of cattle on a Ventura County, California ranch.
During a lunch break the trio reportedly came upon the idea of organizing what were routine cowboy chores into their competitive
sport, one in which the cowboys could showcase their horsemanship.
Endurance/Competitive Trail – An equestrian sport based on controlled long distance races. It is one of the international competitions
recognized by the FEI. There are two main types of long distance riding, competitive trail riding and endurance rides.
In an endurance ride, discussed in this article, the winning horse is the first one to cross the finish line while stopping
periodically to pass a veterinary check that deems the animal in good health and “fit to continue”. In the
U.S., most endurance rides are either 50 or 100 miles long, though shorter rides are organized for beginners and a few longer,
multi-day rides exist. Competitive trail rides are shorter and factors other than speed are considered, horses may not
come in under or over a certain time, and veterinarian checks, rider behavior and other elements play a role in the placings.
Ground Training: The simple act of teaching your horse: forward, back,
collection, softness, stop, proper self carriage, impulsion, rhythm, canter departs and more. Hip-Shoulder-Shoulder,
refers to the movement of the horse. The beauty of this is its' simplicity. In a short time, you will have
a horse that is stopping and backing better than ever before. Your horse will actually calm down, you will
be able to get him out of a sticky situation, and turn a wreck into a controlled and beneficial series of movement.
Ground training is like teaching a toddler, remember you have to crawl before you walk and walk before you run, the horse
is no different.
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