34 • THE PLAID HORSE
RIDING: THE MENTAL GAME
Good riding requires you to be both physically and mentally fit. You must be able to feel your horse and move with him. It is important for you both to control them and get out of their way. This, in itself, requires you to be physically fit. Good riding requires consistent thought. Riders must work and rework exercises to instill consistency in the rider, the horse, and the combination of both. Good riding involves repetition and learning to work with the horse through difficulties and misunderstanding in training. Yet,
the most difficult element to master is the mental piece. Mentally preparing and reacting to the horse properly requires time. It also tends to be a more influential piece as you age or if you have suffered an accident. The two most common situations that the rider must mentally overcome are basic instincts in moments of physical fear and fear of making mistakes. Physical fear occurs when the rider feels out of control of their horse. This feeling of panic happens more often with novice riders who
have not learned to adapt. For example, if the horse locks its jaw and bolts a novice rider will tend to lock up and clamp onto the horse with their legs, while also locking the elbow to try to overpower the horse to stop. Basic instincts tell them to hold on. They do not realize in clamping on with their legs, they are communicating to their horse to go forward. It is a trained response to relax the leg when bringing the horse back. While doing so properly requires you to keep leg, it is not a clamped leg. It is a steady