Vol57 Conversation with Nuno Oliveira: A Master

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Conte pg 46

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tent Highlight s PG 16

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Cover Photo Nuno Oliveira schools a young Lusitano cross developing self-carriage in piaffe at home in Portugal. (Photo by Stephanie Millham/BEA Archives) Sign and share the petition at: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ justsayyesto401/ On behalf of all of us at Horses For LIFE may the gift of the horses be with you always.

All material copyright protected by Horses For LIFE Publications. Please contact us for information, suggestions, comments and submissions at equestriansquest@horsesforlife.com or 1-306-383-2588

TWO FREE ARTICLES THIS ISSUE: “KERBRECH; BOOK EXCERPT” AND “BECAUSE OF LOVE” Subscribe to read the full 292 page Issue!!! We recognize and salute Dresssage &CT for their incredible contribution and as the inspiration for Horses For LIFE with the welcome blessing of Ivan Bezugloff Jr. the editor and founder of Dressage &CT.

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Eleanor Russell Last Interview Judging

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Eleanor Russell On Judging This is one of the last interviews that we did before Eleanor passed away, on a subject that was quite close to her heart. As a past judge herself, she was quite concerned about judging today. It was very important to Eleanor to do this interview. We had many discussions on this subject long before we even did the interview. She was concerned at so many different levels. She was concerned that the lower level judges were being bombarded with armchair critics, which she didn’t think was fair to the judges. She truly hoped that by doing this interview she could help people see how hard it was to be a judge, and that the judges deserve their support and respect. But she also was very concerned that we had too many judges who don’t have the kind of riding experience that she felt would make for a good judge. And of course, she wanted all judges to be brave. To be willing to mark the horses the way they saw it, although she was concerned that this was getting harder and harder to do because of the guidelines that the judges were being given from above. A few weeks after we did this interview, we came out with Volume 56 with a photo essay on Isabel Werth and the disconcerting amount of rollkur that was being shown in the ring. We talked about it in this interview. I was trying to help Eleanor understand why there was so much “judge bashing” as she phrased it. Her very reason for doing this interview was to hopefully help make it stop, but when she saw the article she was very upset that this was being allowed 16


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Conversations with a Master Nuno Oliveira By Stephanie Grant Millham

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An Interview with Nuno Oliveira he grey stallion walks calmly on loose reins, occasionally mouthing his bits with a gentle clink. Quietly the rider picks up the reins without changing position, though his mount grows suddenly animated, collecting himself for a canter depart. A moment later – again with only the most discreet aids, barely visible to those in the gallery – horse and rider skip down the long side of the arena in a series of fluid flying changes every stride. Another walk on loose reins follows; then the rider establishes collection again and the stallion lifts into a majestic, effortless passage – high, cadenced, with almost incredible suspension – that seems as if he could hold it forever. The figures that follow – circles and half pass – are executed in the same never-faltering rhythm of the passage. “Enough,” murmurs Nuno Oliveira as he drops the reins again and offers the expected sugar upon

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The Flexible Horse Horses For LIFE


This horse demonstrates the bend from the base of the neck, the lateral bend of the axis and the longitudinal bend of the atlas, as he reaches back to grab and play with the tassle of the lunge whip.

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So bendable that he is quite capable of bending his neck to the point that he is able to look out straight behind himself. 26


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The Horse wh NOT bend She was shocked. She simply didn’t understand. How could a horse with those kind of marks - a Grand Prix horse - lean through the corners. The rider had to be soing something wrong. But sadly this has become the norm not the exception. Calm forward and straight... have these perhaps become the 28


ho would Part 3 WEGames

most dangerous four words ever spoken. As ever since they were originally uttered, straightness had become a mantra without understanding and equitation as it was known in the past, has become a thing of the past. There are those who would say that the masters of the past gave too much attention to bend - to the point that the Lipizzan horses of the

Horses For LIFE


Horses that lean but don’t bend through the corners

The30 Horse who would NOT bend


Note the level of both of the rider’s shoulders

Spanish Riding School were ‘always’ ridden in plie. They were always working laterally, their heads always directed towards the audience. In those days it was not just piaffe, but a piaffe to the right or a piaffe to the left. A courbette to the left or a courbetter to the right. Everything was recognized to have a bend and every movement was trained in both bends. Today straightness is the what we have decided to look for instead and somehow through the process, training practices are used today that would never have worked in the past. Training practices that stop the horses from bending. But yes they are straight as they push out behind from mechanicaly overbent polls.

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Kerbrech on Straightmess

METHODICAL DRESSAGE of the SADDLE HORSE From The last teaching of Franรงois Baucher As recalled by one of his students: Franรงois Faverot de Kerbrech And DRESSAGE of the OUTDOOR HORSE recalled by one of his students: General George de Lagarenne Xenophon Press 2010 Translation by Michael L. M. Fletcher All rights reserved. Published by Xenophon Press LLC, 7518 Bayside Road, Franktown, Virginia 23354-2106, U.S.A.

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Foreword to the Translation The teaching of François Baucher was in constant evolution. Every new discovery would eclipse the old one, but if some techniques could change, the principles and objectives were maintained. He published several editions of his book, Method of Equitation. His Method became known as First Manner and Second Manner. The Second Manner appeared for the first time in the twelfth edition in the last part of the book that he called New Equestrian Ways. The Second Manner of the Method was fully exposed by General Faverot de Kerbrech, a loyal student of Baucher in his book Dressage Methodique du Cheval de Selle, D’Apres les Deniers Enseignements de Baucher. There exist translations in English of the books exposing Baucher’s First Manner but none of the book by Faverot de Kerbrech.

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How to Find the Natural Posture of the Rider Horses For LIFE


Natural Posture for the Rider BREATHE LIFE INTO YOUR RIDING by Jenny Rolfe NATURAL POSTURE FOR THE RIDER from TOP –to- TOE During a lesson you may be instructed to ‘place your shoulders back’ or ‘push your heels down’, to help you achieve a correct ‘rider’ position on the horse. Unfortunately, a position can be totally ineffective without an understanding of core mobility, energy flow, balance and release of tension. An awareness of core breathing can support the essence of good posture and have a profound influence on the whole body. Over years of teaching, I have learnt that the foundation for an effective and connected rider begins on the ground. I spend hours teaching riders how to become more self aware, using exercises and techniques akin to Chi gong and Tai chi. When the rider is tuned in

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At the End o

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of My Rope

with Carlos Tabernaberri

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At the End of my Rope With Carlos Tabernaberri

At the end of my rope, what is it I see – just an ordinary horse or a soul that needs me? At the end of my rope, is there fear or real trust, frustration and pain or understanding to gain? At the end of my rope, just how would it feel, to be me – not my horse – at the end of that lead? Through my eyes I would see; through my body I’d speak, to make all of my fears disappear. At the end of my rope, what now do I see? Is it simply a horse, or a reflection of me?

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Have you ever stopped to think what it feels like to be at the end of your rope? By that I don’t mean being at your wits’ end or lacking patience, I mean being clipped on at the end of your lead rope. Having little say in matters, and expected to follow as the rope is tugged or jerked, shaken, held tight, tied – without complaint. And without the ability to speak or to express your concern, fears or pain. If you’ve never taken the time to do that, it will be hard to learn how to see things through the eyes of the horse. Many of the people I work with see what they want to see at the end of their lead rope, and that usually involves the horse as a means to achieving a goal. Now don’t get me wrong, I believe in having and achieving goals. But what if achieving your goal isn’t in the best interests of your horse? Are you willing to sacrifice his wellbeing in the pursuit of that goal? And how do you know?

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Those are tough questions. Thankfully, a good way to find out the answers is also fundamental to training and working with horses – Versatility. Versatility in training gives you the tools to find out what your horse excels at. With that information, you can acknowledge and work with his abilities. After all, success is about pushing the boundaries of our natural abilities, not fighting them. Constantly working to the best of our abilities is what eventually helps us to realise our full potential. Our horses deserve no less. So just how do you go about practising versatility and how do you create a versatile horse? You’d be surprised at how much fun it can be. And you might be surprised at the effect it can have on you. Versatility is…present perfect Training in the present is awareness. Training in the future is anticipation. Only humans train in the

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Editorial: The Missing Element

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Editorial: The Missing Element A fun-filled afternoon. That was the plan anyway. An advanced student - a veterinarian and her instructor planned to while away the cold winter afternoon, warm in front of the tv, watching the endless DVDs of trainers and instructors from around the world. Their main focus was on classical work, but they were open to watch anything that was in the pile of unseen DVDs. But first the tv quit working - then the computer DVD slot wouldn’t open, and then where were the silly speakers? It was a comedy of errors that took determination to resolve, but eventually a brand new monitor was picked up and an alternative computer and speaker were set up and the watching could begin. It was almost as if it was a portent of what was to come. The agreement was that we would watch each

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Because of Love by Nancy Kaiser

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“In the beginning of all things, wisdom and knowledge were with the animals; for Tirawa, the One Above, did not speak directly to man. He sent certain animals to tell mean that he showed himself through the beasts, and that from them, and from the stars and the sun and the moon, man should learn. Tirawa spoke to man through his works.” Pawnee Chief Letakota-Lesa spoke these words in 1904. This is the story of one such animal. Although she only lived for four months, she taught lessons that will remain with all who knew her for the rest of our lives. I can’t speak for the others, but she changed my life immeasurably. In the spring of 1993, a friend asked my husband, an equine veterinarian, for an opinion on a foal that had been born with scoliosis,: curvature of the spine. The condition prevented her from standing on her own or walking once helped up. Bob examined the Quarter Horse filly and really couldn’t recommend euthanasia, although several other veterinarians had. He didn’t feel she was suffering inhumanely. Our friend was willing to try whatever Bob suggested.

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Yielding to the Bit A Warning

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Yielding to the Bit A Warning

What is it? Do we want it? Why do we want it? What kind of things do we need to watch for? What are the dangers, or possible errors, that we need to be aware of?

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W

e don’t even need a bit to have yielding to the bit, which makes it even more confusing. Because in reality, yielding of the bit is actually the yielding of the head and neck. This is a very important point to remember, as this is one of the effects of yielding to the bit - a point that we need to take into account as we think about the benefits and possible problems of the work that we are doing. The yielding of the bit is a yielding of the head and neck, or at least this can be one component of having the horse yielding to our hands. So instead of calling it yielding to the bit, we should perhaps call it, yielding to the hand. Because in the end, this is what this is all about, having the horse yield to our hand. So we will use these two terms

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The Great European Schools of CLASSICAL DRESSAGE by Alain Laurioux and Guillaume Henry Reprinted with kind permisson from CADMOS http://www.cadmos.co.uk/ and Trafalgar Square http://www.horseandriderbooks.com/ 58

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