Clinic Versus Lessons

There is a deal of difference between participating in a clinic as opposed to taking a lesson. As a Grand Prix dressage trainer offering both I am often asked by regular students whether they should bother participating in one of our clinics if they already take regular lessons. The answer is yes.

While we (myself and my fellow Brit husband) offer coaching at showgrounds to both regular students and clinic students, the latter we may see only a few times per year so our influence over their progress will be minimal. In a clinic we meet many new faces as well as returning ones, so we have very little time to address all the training issues we may see and have to focus on the key ingredients for improvement taking the most major faults first. Once these have been successfully addressed we can make sincere progress with the horse and rider. At a regular lesson, we can clearly see the result of what homework has or hasn't been done by the student. Our influence is obviously significantly increased as we are able to work together on a regular basis.

However at a clinic, our regular students will have a chance to work in front of an audience and at a different location. The number of auditors at a clinic varies considerably as some hosting barns highly encourage and solicit auditors and others do little to bring in new faces. This is an opportunity as a hosting barn to showcase your facility and bring in new boarders and students, so it is a shame if you don't take it up. At a clinic the regular lesson students will have a chance to showcase their work and improvement and while they may receive a similar lesson to one we would give them at home, they will be duly challenged just as the other clinic participants will be. They will have the opportunity to share their learning with the auditors, and will see how they handle riding in a higher pressure environment. This is a great outing for both horse and rider. Whether or not you intend to show, trailering your horse off the farm to a new environment is refreshing and a great test of your partnership. If the clinic is at your regular barn where you board, you have the chance to meet new horse people that come in to ride and to audit.

Paul Alvin-Smith training Kate & Patch at Northfield Farm, Otego, NY

As a clinic participant you also have the opportunity to audit lessons of eight or ten others on the same day. This will give you a chance to see how the clinician progresses riders and their horses past your own level as well as reminds you of how far you have come and helps you retain the knowledge you have already obtained and consolidate your understanding of the gifts in your riding toolbox.

A clinic is not a symposium and many riders get this mixed up. At a symposium the clinician will address the auditors and explain in detail what they see and showcase how they resolve issues and improve the rider and horse. There may be a question and answer session between rides. The riders have often already been taught by the clinician the previous day and the clinician is not training riders they have not seen go before. The text and content of the symposium has often been discussed beforehand between clinician and riders and the ride road-mapped.

At a clinic the rider will receive a lesson based around their individual needs. The auditors will benefit from listening to a wide variety of training issues and advice. As an added bonus you might also receive sponsor prizes or gifts as a thank-you for participating in the event.

Clinicians at a clinic will usually make themselves available over lunch to chat with all attendees. However, at a symposium they may disappear with the host of the event to eat and relax.

As a regular lesson student attending a clinic you will have the chance to meet other riders and network in others in the horse world over lunch. You may receive feedback and lots of support from other auditors attending who have enjoyed seeing you ride. It is a wonderful opportunity and one you should not miss.

The Best Tool to Improve Your Riding Is?

Although it is cold and dull outside right now it really won't be long until Spring arrives. I always figure when the Patty's Day parade is over, we can look forward to seeing the green grass pop and start the arduous chore of grooming out those winter coats for the horses that did not get clipped out.

Willowview Hill Farm's Tiberio Lafite,  one of my husband's Grand Prix mounts is always happy to see Spring

My Grand Prix horse Charrington is always exuberant in the Spring. Luckily my husband is always up for the excitement of those first outdoor Spring rides. Working outside is always a great way to condition your horse, working gentle hills, interval canter/trot and videos taken outside are always more fun to watch.

I've usually already started the horses that have had a winter break back up before this, using the longe line to build their strength and top-lines up before I ride them on a daily basis. Even 2/3 times a week with side reins on the longe line will condition them quickly. Horses have great muscle memory.

Winter months are a good time to reflect on how we can best improve our education and riding skills before the new season arrives. With the flurry of activities of booking clinics, filing show entries, calling the vet in for vaccines and ordering new show gear and fresh saddle pads and tack, it is good to enjoy the anticipation of a better season than last year.

It goes without saying the best way to improve quickly is to have a regular lesson with a good trainer. If you are looking for a trainer there are lots advertised on the magazine here at Catskill Horse and differentiated in the Business Directory by discipline. Not everyone can manage to afford that, but it certainly better to work with someone even once a month than no-one at all. How to make the best of the time you spend in the saddle when your paying for the advice from the trainer? Have a video taken of your ride.

There is a lot more to taking a video than just point and shoot. Focus needs to be on the key points of the lesson so you can easily assimilate those ideas. Watching yourself go around endlessly NOT getting it diminishes your self confidence and serves no purpose. As a competitor and earnest practitioner of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), I am a big believer in all things positive. Having said that if the cinematographer can edit you down a video that captures your 'Ah-Ha' moments, of which there should be a few during any lesson if your trainer is worth their money, these moments will transfer to the other side of your brain if you watch them enough times. This is extremely beneficial for success with improvement. One of the many hats that I wear includes  professional video services ( & photography services) on a limited basis at any clinics/lessons I attend and this is how I always edit them. Sure, I might fancy the video up with fade ins/outs, wipes, etc. but the content is always succinct.

It should be mentioned that before you take a video it is important to ask your trainer/clinician for permission. It may not be O.K. with them to share their usually hard earned knowledge and education for free on You Tube or facebook or others sources. Think of it as protecting their business. If you are a graphic designer, and you design a fresh idea, you do not give it away for free to the entire world. So it is important to be respectful of their wishes ( on a sidebar here, the same reason you should not expect to audit a clinic for free). Many top level competitors that run a proper clinic circuit will not welcome home made video appearances but will be happy for the hosting video professional to take clinic video.

Northfield Farm, Otego NY Dressage Clinic December 2013 with Grand Prix trainer Paul Alvin-Smith working with Joyce Northrrup who is returning to riding after the birth of her son and working on some dressage basics. When you have had a time away from riding it is a great opportunity to start back up without bad habits and gives a fresh start.

At home riding without a professional trainer of course you can do as you wish, and having a friend with unlimited patience, stand and take a video of your ride bearing in mind the points above as to content can be very useful. If you are starting back up as Spring arrives, take your fuzzy beast in his first back to school workouts and see how things improve. Review the videos critically and with honesty. The first time you see yourself riding there will be instant shame, so expect that.

" I am sitting over my hands," "Riding Front to Back," " Not Sitting Properly," etc. etc.
But because you can see the obvious errors they will be the easiest to fix. Then you'll find yourself reaching a plateau of sorts without some extra help.

This could come from a trainer or self education through good DVDs and books. Again select your material carefully and focus on one thing at a time. And here I will give one of our first advertisers a plug - who just happen to have the largest online selection of quality horse books and DVDs with frank reviews too. Check out TheHorseStudio.com The International Equestrian Shop. Just as it is silly to run around auditing every clinic in creation and never riding in front of a good trainer because it is not the way to improve, running around watching every video and trainer method in creation is not helpful either. When a clinician is instructing the riding student in a clinic, it is not just about what they suggest the rider do but the timing of when they make the suggestion and the method of correction if the student doesn't 'get it'. You can learn a lot from following a series of DVDs that takes you on a diligent path from basics to advanced. And just because you are an advanced rider don't think there aren't a myriad of bad habits or wrongly learned riding faux pars that you can't now recognize and re-learn.

When you reach the advanced levels and train with a big name or Olympic trainer etc. you will always hear that you need to address basics. That is true for everyone. So don't be surprised when you look at a video of yourself and say, "Hey - I see what happened but don't know quite what I did wrong."

So use the dull days of winter to start up your education, get some videos of your work in the saddle and evaluate yourself with a keen eye.

Happy Riding!

Catskill Horse E-Zine Can Help

Welcome 2014! I can hardly believe it is already here. The sun is shining on our snow covered mountains here in the Catskills and the horses are enjoying the break from the wind and white out conditions yesterday. No doubt many folks are still in bed this morning recovering from their New Year's Eve celebrations and indulgences. Thankfully I am not starting the year out with a hangover! I am one of many that have made some resolutions for the New Year and one of them is to continue pushing hard and growing Catskill Horse.

Hats off to the volunteer team that writes the articles and provides the content for the publication. Our unique hits are up to 5000 per week and that is not bad for a publication that only started out just over a year ago. Not only do our writers contribute their time and effort to the writing side of the enterprise, they also garner new advertisers and get together to formulate plans to develop the magazine further. In 2014 we are adding lots of new features to the e-zine and we are looking forward to helping local horse business owners achieve their dreams and develop their businesses as well as providing a great resource for all horse lovers.

Starting out in 2014 we welcome Mill Street Stables of Gilbertsville, New York and Northfield Farm of Otego, New York to our roster of advertisers. Mill Street Stables opened just six months ago and is already busy with lots of fun horse activities Northfield Farm has been a touchstone for many riders over the years and they continue to develop riders in all disciplines. Both farms have indoors and offer boarding as well as training services, so if you are looking to get a head start on the show season and keep working throughout the winter it would be worthwhile to set yourself up at least through April with a winter board program. You know how long the snow can last here in the mountains!

Our advertisers tell us that they have seen " A distinct increase in local business as a result of ad placement in Catskill Horse," and that is what we love to hear. While we offer free directory listings and free ad placement for horses and tack for sale and free listings of events, we appreciate the advertisers that support us as this allows us to create more help in return.

Beginning this year Catskill Horse will be offering a limited number of class/event sponsorships. So if you have a forthcoming event be sure to contact us if you'd like some help. And don't forget if you purchase a Catskill Horse T-shirt, mug or journal and send us a photo of the product with you and your horse, you are entered to win a $50 Gift Certificate to ' The International Equestrian Shop," TheHorseStudio.com  - The Horse Studio also do a good job of giving back to area businesses with their various sponsorships of events, and to horse rescues and therapeutic riding programs.

Other plans in the works include the transition of our facebook group Catskill Equestrian Group to a discussion based group, feeding the horse ads and events posted there directly to Catskill Horse facebook page and to the e-zine. While presently you have to email in your jpgs and free ad info we plan to add an interactive system that will allow you to place your ads directly.

The article slider will be extended as more contributing writers are added to the roster. You can also expect to see more Catskill Horse reporting on local events in 2014 as we extend our reach. There are lots more plans in the works so be sure to check in regularly to keep up to speed.

Please don't forget to support our advertisers and let them know you found them here. The more we can garner in advertising $$ the closer we will be to offering a print publication as well as digital download. Our goal is to bring together everyone in the equestrian community and provide a clearing house resource for services and products while educating and helping horse owners in the region and beyond.

Happy 2014 everyone. May all your dreams come true. And if we can help, please let us know.