Favorite Finds Week Six
Favorite Tip From Felicitas
Considering that I am in Maryland this week at First Choice Farm, it seemed fitting to share one of my favorite tips from Felicitas. In this video she shows how to think about staying over your leg in the posting trot and she even shows you what happens when you land too far back in the saddle! There are lots of practical tips on her Facebook page so I encourage you to scroll through her videos; you might find something extremely helpful for your riding.
Favorite Article From Susanne
Many of you know Susanne von Dietze from Dressage Today or Practical Horseman where she critiques a photo that someone sends in and gives exercises and suggestions based on the photo. She also has a couple fabulous books and teaches many clinics all over the world. I’ve had the wonderful opportunity of riding with Susanne a number of times, including this week while at First Choice Farm. She is truly amazing and she knew exactly what parts of my body needed to find stability and what parts needed to be relaxed. This article is just one of many on the Dressage Today website but I like this one in particular because I think many adult amateurs can relate to a part of this picture. I’ve also shared one of her books below in case someone is looking for even more content from Susanne.
Saddle Pad
I am always looking for ways to help the horse with their body and enhance the balance and correctness under saddle. This saddle pad comes with adjustable bands that go around the horse’s hind quarters and also under the horse’s abdomen. They help create resistance to develop strength and stability in a horse’s body. For this pad to be most effective they suggest using it regularly although I don’t use mine every day, I still find it beneficial to the horse as an awareness tool. This is also a great tool for horses coming back to work as part of a rehabilitation program. The only bummer is that the company is based out of the UK, you can find similar options in the US but from what I have seen, they tend to be more expensive. If you find a friend who would like to order a pad as well, then you can share shipping which is helpful. The last thing I will mention is sizing. There are lots of options on the website for sizing and upgrades for the pads. I ordered the Universal size and I am very happy I did. The dressage square pad would have been huge on some of my horses and even on my 16.2 and 17.1 horses the universal size is not too small.