EXPERT TRAINERS! Richard Waygood Harry Meade The UK’s best-selling equestrian monthly
BIT
bonding secrets
ON TEST
FOR YOUR HORSE
LIGHTWE IG TURNOUT HT S
Is your horse healthy? 14 ways to tell
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FEEL CONFIDENT WITH ANY HORSE
EXPERTS
solve all your problems
Horsey SOS
When to call a behaviourist and how they can help
FIX YOUR FIELDS Post winter recovery
GRASS SICKNESS Is your horse at risk?
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EVENTING SUCCESS Spring 2017
Issue number 564 Spring 2017 n Harry Meade’s jumping tips n 14 ways to tell your horse is healthy n Bonding secrets n Eventing training guide with Richard Waygood n On test: lightweight turnout rugs
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In this feature. . .
➤ Boost
his mental and physical agility
Tackling
Photos: Bob Atkins. As told to Tilly Berendt. With thanks to Airowear for their help with this feature, airowear.co.uk. For more information about Harry, visit harrymeade.com
technical questions with
Our trainer
Eventer Harry Meade has tasted success at the highest level, riding for Team GB at the World Equestrian Games and completing Badminton nine times. He’s known for his quiet, sympathetic style across country.
Our model Harry rides Nigella Hall’s Catherston Definitive, an eight-year-old Thoroughbred-cross. The quick-thinking horse came to Harry as a three-year-old and is now competing at Intermediate.
Harry Meade
Stuck in the school but craving crosscountry? Eventer Harry Meade shows you how to set your horse up for success without leaving the yard
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ross-country riding is the ultimate test of not only a horse’s athletic skill, but also his intellect and his ability to problem-solve. With the increasing technicality of crosscountry courses, it’s essential to hone these skills in order to be safe and competitive. For a whole host of reasons, however, it’s sometimes impractical or impossible to school regularly over solid fences. This is a particular concern in the winter, when the ground is either too hard or too boggy, but the new competition season is just around the corner. Fortunately, you can set your horse – and yourself – up for success by working on essential cross-country skills in the school.
Polish your position
I’m a stickler for stirrup length. Most people, in my opinion, ride too long in the jumping phases and should be shortening their stirrups considerably, particularly for cross-country riding. My cross-country length is four holes shorter than my showjumping length – they should be verging on uncomfortably short, because this will help you to stay stable and out of the saddle when riding across country at speed. For these exercises, you should ride in a modified cross-country position, with your stirrups midway between showjumping and cross-country length. This will help to stabilise your body, but will also allow you to get yourself back into the saddle to effectively ride the tighter turns that you inevitably have to do in the school. It’s all about biomechanics.
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44 HORSE&RIDER
In the saddle
➤ Nine
steps to the perfect warm-up ➤ Improve co-ordination
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Bit by
bit
Looking for a new bit for your horse, but don’t know where to start? H&R helps you break down the process and find the perfect solution
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hoosing the right bit for your horse can be a minefield. There are several different classes of bit, all with lots of subcategories, and for each bit there’s usually many different mouthpiece options choose from. So where to start? To avoid getting bogged down by the multitude of different bits, it’s best to keep it simple and think about your horse’s mouth conformation, how he carries his head and what he’s like to ride. Maybe he has a fleshy tongue, bears down on your hands and is strong to ride, or maybe he has a spacious mouth that’s sensitive and he has a tendency to carry his head too high? This information will help you narrow down the selection to a smaller number of bits and mouthpieces that might be suitable.
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TOP TIP
Photos: Bob Atkins
Before you resort to changing your horse’s bit, especially if it’s one he’s been happy with for some time, get his teeth and back checked to make sure he’s not in any discomfort, and book a lesson with your instructor to make sure it’s nothing that can’t be solved by tweaking your riding skills.
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Management know-how
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Perfect partnership Whether you and your horse are the best of friends or could do with being a bit closer, Rachel Dyke has suggestions to help improve your bond
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e all love our horses – let’s face it, would we spend so much time mucking out and wading through mud if we didn’t? But sometimes it would be nice if they showed a little more appreciation for all our hard work. If you want to improve your partnership, then try some of these suggestions...
g Vary his workload and spend time doin just than r rathe s, enjoy things that he what you want to do. You might be keen to spend all week practising for your upcoming dressage test, but if he’s more of a Big Star than a Valegro, then he’ll appreciate taking a break from leg-yield or and doing a gridwork session instead, let can he so hack why not take him for a fun? have and off some steam
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Spend some time just watching your horse interact with his friends in the field and try to emulate this in how you behave around him, too. Keep out of his blind spot, stay relaxed and confident, don’t raise your voice and give him a scratch on the wither to reward good behaviour. Treat him as an individual. Every horse has his quirks and accepting these will help bring you closer together. So, if he r prefers to be tacked up on the yard rathe cular than in his stable, enjoys a parti out flavour lick or gets upset if he’s turned and tic athe symp be to last, do your best accommodate him.
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Don’t be afraid to give him some space. Some horses don’t enjoy being constantly fussed over, so if he’s that le way inclined, let him chill out in his stab with field the in with a big haynet or out his mates. He’ll appreciate it all the more when you come to see him again.
TOP TIP
A healthy horse is a happy horse, so check out our tips on p112 to make sure he’s in the best condition.
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Management know-how
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Mutual grooming is how your horse bonds with his friends. Rather than just giving him a quick flick over with a dandy brush before you ride, take a little longer to really focus on all his itchy places, particularly as he starts to lose his winter coat. You may end up covered in hair, but he’ll really enjoy the attention.
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We all lead busy lives, and when you’ve got to fit in grooming, riding and yard chores between work and dinner, it’s hard not to do everything in a rush. But if you’re tense and in a flap because you’re running late, you’re not going to be the sort of person he enjoys being around. Instead, try out some timesaving techniques, such as filling all your haynets for the week in advance or swapping to a bedding you can deep-litter, then use those freed-up minutes spending some quality time with him. Take the longer route when you bring him in from the field, spend a little more time grooming him, chat to him while he’s having his dinner – whatever it is, he’ll enjoy being around you a lot more if you’re relaxed.
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Experiences can bring people together, and the same is true with horses
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