Hey guys! I know I’ve been gone for a long time now. I want to thank all of my amazing followers and readers for their patience! I just finished up my PhD in Veterinary Medicine at the University of Cambridge in England.
Me graduating!
Okay, so now that I’ve graduated, you might wonder what I’m up to. As much as I love horses, I’m not a full-time trainer or riding instructor. But my love of teaching is a driving passion of mine, and it has led me to probably one of the craziest but most exciting decisions of my life: I’ve started my very own non-profit venture, called Black Mountain SOLE. I want to help anyone and everyone be able to discover and pursue their passions, as I have been so lucky to have the opportunity to do in my life. Black Mountain SOLE is offering four programs starting in September THIS YEAR! One of those programs is called Geronimo Gap Year; in nine months, we try to help each participant find his or her passion, figure out what he or she needs to learn to be able to pursue that passion, and then structure a personal curriculum for him or her to learn and practice everything that he or she needs to know! Totally outrageously ambitious, I know, but hey :) I’m a horsewoman. I don’t understand impossible.
I would love for everyone to check out our site, and if you feel like you could support me in this adventure, like our page on facebook!
Okay, enough about me, time for my first video post in absolute ages!!! Today I’m going to show you how to ride without stirrups. Happy trails :D
I read in a book once that the canter was the gait at which worry couldn’t keep up. I certainly subscribe to that belief ;) Cantering can be tons of fun, with its rocking-horse motion and the exhilaration of speed. But what is a canter? And how do you ask a horse to canter? The video below explains the basics of a canter gait and how to ask for a canter from the sitting trot.
This video is a start for beginners in understanding basic upward transitions. An upward transition is from a slower gait to a faster one, like walk to trot or trot to canter.
Your horse has a weird mark on him, and you call up the vet to ask about it. “It’s a big red spot on that part of his leg below the knobby joint. You know, the short part of the leg.” Just not going to work, is it? That’s why it’s very helpful to know all the parts of your horse! This video walks you through the names for all the common parts of the horse. Enjoy :D
-Ali
A dressage whip is a very useful artificial aid, but it can be a bit unwieldy to switch it from hand to hand. This video shows you how to smoothly change hands with you dressage whip!
Getting on a five-foot-high animal isn’t the easiest task. In this video, I walk you through the best way of getting on your horse–a process we call “mounting.” Then I show you how to get down again, with a step-by-step review of the whole process.
