British staff dressage medallist Michael Eilberg shares the modern methods he makes use of poles to assist develop younger horses’ early coaching, from corners and circles to counter canter and lateral work
1. Prepare poles round your area as per the diagram, under
“I exploit a 3 determine method with my younger horses: circles, to examine the horse is free and supple; straight traces, to examine you’ll be able to management the bend, that you just don’t must have it when you don’t need it; and corners, to characterize extra management and the introduction of assortment,” says Michael. “All the pieces you do in an area is made up of 4 straight line and 4 corners, so that they all the time must be good.”
2. Use the poles across the edge that can assist you experience higher corners
“Journey across the pole to assist push your horse into the nook so that you don’t must do an excessive amount of together with your aids,” advises Michael. “Then flip throughout the varsity between B and E and experience by way of parallel poles to offer the horse route and hold him straight so that you don’t must be too robust together with your aids.”
3. Journey circles of various sizes across the poles in canter, to assist develop power and the primary steps in direction of educating assortment
“The canter within the smaller circle may get a bit extra laboured because the horse has to work more durable, so that you want a extra lively help to maintain the power within the canter,” says Michael. “The larger circle then gives extra reduction, the place you’ll be able to ship him ahead.”
4. Now make circles in between two of your nook poles, quite than round them
“This works them a bit more durable, and so they might get tense. Even when your horse will get robust, attempt to let go — don’t be robust again,” says Michael, who advises taking the horse onto an even bigger circle, or down the straight line after a few smaller circles, to permit him to calm down.
“The minute you get the chance to melt, it’s essential to soften — it’s important to make the primary transfer your self generally.”
5. Use this association of poles to start out educating counter canter
To start out counter canter, experience a small half circle across the pole popping out of the nook, then a loop again in direction of the observe at B or E. On the center marker, experience again in direction of the centre line and make a half circle around the pole on the different finish.
“Don’t panic when you can’t get all the best way to the observe at first,” says Michael. “Work on difficult the horse’s steadiness and getting nearer. Attempt to be black and white together with your corrections; say, ‘Not like this, like this’.
“If the rhythm will get too quick within the loop, await the circle on the finish to catch the pace — you don’t have to drag.”
6. In between workouts, give your horse an opportunity to stretch, and examine he’s relaxed
“Once you’re stretching a horse, all the identical issues nonetheless matter,” factors out Michael. “You continue to need him to be rhythmic and balanced, simply with an extended neck. You don’t need him to fall on the ground along with his nostril.”
7. Rearrange your poles as per the second diagram, under, to make use of them to assist introduce younger horses to the early phases of lateral work
“When beginning lateral work, don’t overlook that it must be forwards and sideways, not simply sideways,” says Michael. “Utilizing poles helps give route, and so they give the horse confidence as a result of he is aware of the place he’s going.”
8. The primary lateral motion Michael teaches his younger horses is the leg yield
Make a half circle in trot and experience down the surface of the diagonal line of poles, again in direction of the observe to start out the leg yield.
“Push the quarters away from the poles — the horse wants to grasp the best way to be extra reactive off the leg.”
In between, add some transitions to examine the horse is staying reactive to your aids, and to take care of a high quality trot.
“The horse should be taught to grasp going sideways with out dropping an excellent trot. You’re all the time seeking to not must work too laborious,” says Michael.
9. Progress to utilizing the poles to assist educate a horse to half-pass, utilizing travers
“The toughest factor about half-pass is positioning the horse appropriately — the quarters are sometimes main or there’s not sufficient bend,” factors out Michael. “By using travers down the surface of the diagonal pole line you’re already more-or-less doing half-pass. The great thing about it’s that each time you experience it you’re getting the identical half-pass and it begins to really feel acquainted. The poles assist hold the horse in place and rhythm and you’ll experience positively ahead as you realize the place your line is.”
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Credit score: Future
