Who carries your burden, who carries your load
On tumbleweed land or a long dusty road
Who asks you no questions, who tells you no lies
That four legged friend with the two honest eyes
--"A FOUR LEGGED FRIEND"
From the film "Son Of Paleface" (1952)
(Jack Brooks) (sung by Roy Rogers)
You and your horse have worked hard toward the privilege of riding. Give yourself a big pat on the back for having invested many months and countless hours earning respect and establishing a balanced relationship with your horse. Now it's time to get on!
My last article walked you through some very important final preparations (aside from all the groundwork exercises) to ensure success and safety once you are in the saddle. Click here to read Final Pre-Ride Preparations.
This week we start to build the basics for communication and respect in the saddle. Your horse should be familiar with these skills and maneuvers because you have taught them on the ground already, therefore teaching a cue from the saddle should be an easy transition.
Any advanced maneuver, whether executed on the ground or under saddle, is nothing more than basic skills put together. Therefore it is important to put quality effort into getting the basics just right. Continue to put the same diligent and detailed effort into your mounted exercises as you did with your groundwork and you'll see big results!
Mounting in Partnership (or, How To Get On Without Your Horse Thinking You're a Jerk)
Goal: To have your horse stand still and be relaxed while you mount.
This exercise is not designed to re-invent the wheel. This is not about coming up with new-fangled ways of mounting. Rather, mounting in partnership is simply about slowing things down enough to consider the horse.
I can't tell you how often I see someone heave themselves up by the saddle and haphazardly plop down on the back of the horse, acting as if the horse had no opinion of the process. No wonder some horses learn to walk off - they have come to dread the mounting moment.
Before you attempt to mount, be sure your horse is in partnership with you, your saddle is adequately snug, and your horse is desensitized to the movement of the stirrups against his side. If you are unsure what it means to have your horse in partnership, refer back to "The Privilege of Riding" for a list of suggested criteria.
Instructions: Before you put your foot in the stirrup, help your horse get prepared to receive your weight by grabbing hold of the saddle horn (on a western saddle) or the front of the pommel (on an english) saddle and rock it back and forth. This movement will encourage your horse to arrange his feet in a way that he becomes steadfast and balanced, therefore able to handle your weight without getting thrown off balance.
Once your horse has assumed a good steady stance, you can move on to the next part of mounting in partnership.
It is important that we ask our horse's permission before mounting. This is one of the key elements that make mounting in partnership different from the traditional "just throw a leg over" mentality.
This is done by standing up in one stirrup long enough to ensure that the horse is giving the go ahead to put your other leg over and settle into the saddle.
When you stand up in the stirrup you will turn slightly so that your body is facing forward. You will also want to lean your upper body weight over the horse's back slightly to counterbalance yourself, so that your weight self sustains. If you are truly balanced you should not feel like you are grabbing or straining to stay in this position.
Remember the goal is to have the horse stand still and be relaxed, both of which are signs that they are willingly accepting us on their backs.
If your horse walks off at any point in this mounting process, do your best to maintain whatever movement you were doing at the point they decided to leave. Continue that movement until they stand still and relax.
