Gerd Heuschmann Conference - my musings!!!

[twinkle11]

God that was long, but i LOVED every min of it. 

You write so well dont no how you jotted that all down.

thank you vicky really really hit home with the lameness stuff aswel some great stuff to think about

THANK YOU so much would love to have gone

[epona]

If I remember correctly Kelly, he said two consecutive days off from SCHOOLING work to give the muscles chance to recover, as working sore muscles leads to tension / spasm.

He advocated gentle hacking on a long rein between schooling to aid recovery.

[issywizz]

Well so far the feedback on BD is all very positive-everybody very grateful for such a WONDERFUL report;


Thanks ID - will copy and paste it into a word document so I can read and digest later.

Much appreciated!

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PolarBear

07-04-2009 11:23
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

ID, many thanks for your efforts to post this, and please thank your friend for producing this interesting account. I have also tranferred it into a word doc so I can take it all in. From a quick scan, there are words that will be music to my trainer's ears. He is always telling me to listen to my horse, and to work off the horse to improve my balance and co-ordination, so that i can feel more and control my actions without tension.

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Sudocrem

07-04-2009 11:35
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

Fantastic write up - many thanks to yuor friend for taking such comprehensive notes.

Sounds like you got a lot from it too?



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grandma

07-04-2009 11:36
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

How wonderful of your friend to do this so perceptive report, and who-ever did the typing, too, thanks a million.
I thought it was simply terrific, so informed and exact. Very many thanks all round.
... xxx

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stantheman

07-04-2009 11:39
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

thanks IB, you've written this up very sympathetically and in an understandable way

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barefooter

07-04-2009 11:40
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

fantastic write up you must thank your friend
wish i'd gone now!!!
haha

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Fritz

07-04-2009 11:41
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS!!!

Good training has to be the key to success - not short cuts and abuse of the horse. What a wonderful day for all who were able to go. What a pity that it was not compulsory for all who presume to call themselves 'trainers'!

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clover

07-04-2009 12:00
   RE: Heuschmann clinic write up

Thank you so much for taking the time to type all this, and to your friend for writing it. I was dissappointed not to be able to go but you have made my day by putting it up here!

[flintfootfilly]

Thank you from me, too!  Great to have such a detailed write-up, and it sounds as though it was a conference well worth going to.  Lots to bear in mind for when I ride my own gang.

Will re-read it later on too.

Thanks! 

Sarah

[Appy2quarter]

Thanks SO much Vicky - I really wanted to go but sadly couldn't.  REally interesting write up.

I live near the TTT so can hopefully go in September!!!
 

[epona]

so pleased about the comments!!    Of course, its invaluable information for me, but its GREAT that people are getting so much from the weekend to, indirectly 

Issy - thats a good reception from BD  Did anyone from there go? Id be interested in their interpretations 

[luckyrider]

Fantastic report Vicky, thanks so much.

Did not read everyone's rejoinders, but wanted to ask about the wheels -- front and back, clockwise and anticlockwise.  Cannot visualise this... are we looking at the horse side-on, perhaps?  Is that when we see the wheels???  If so, is horse facing towards the left or towards the right?

[Flocklhouse]

Thank you so much Epona for writing that up. It is BRILLIANT 

[Heather]

Thanks for the report Vicky, fantastically in depth!

I am so tied up with the Epona workshop atm, I can only comment briefly. I thought that Svend came in as the 'fixer' of the problems, and as such was on a very different path to Gerd, but to his eternal credit, he seemed very open and actually fascinated by how the training affected the horse. He was virtually in front of me for the whole of Sunday, and it was interesting to see his reactions. I have a feeling that he went away with a lot of food for thought.

I had some feelings about the riding/training on the Sunday. Gerd is clearly on a learning curve, and is moving away from the very rigidly German approach that he would have trained with as a Bereiter. He commented on the fact that his publisher had asked him to go and visit the yard where she kept her horses. He didnt mention any names, but it was of course, Anja Beran's. He said this yard rides very differently, horses have no suspension, and he didnt want to go. But he saw them doing lots of  lateral work in walk, something that just doesnt exist normally within the scales of training. He was very impressed with the work that Anja was doing to literally ride unsoundnesses out of horses, and went home and tried it on the horses he had in for diagnostic work. He also took on board the giravolta work, and used it with a couple of the horses on Sunday in hand.

So now, we had a mix of German traditional school,with some French thrown in- pretty much what I do myself much of the time! But he is also working with PK now, and tried to do some of the very extreme head raising with a couple of the horses, one in rein back, which merely hollowed the horse with no lowering of the haunches as PK would achieve. This is the danger I have always felt with PK's work, in that with his skill there is no danger, but in the wrong hands, it could be  potentially almost as damaging as rollkur in the other direction. I do hope that members of the audience wont go home and try it.

I am also slightly at a loss as to why he insisted in riding everything in a two point seat. He got the mare Cadbury well back on her hocks in rein back - although she reacted by doing some levade type airs!- but had he ridden her forwards again in a rhythmic rising trot, the shoulders would have come up and the forehand really lightened, whereas she dropped straight back onto the forehand with him in a very forward two point seat.

He was taking a lot of weight on the stirrups, and this will drive the points of the saddle down into the shoulders and prevent the back from rising. I felt that this seat prevented the horses from attaining a good rhythm at times- they are used to the rising trot being used as a tool to obtain rhythm and 'schwung', and to me, they were sometimes looking for the help that this would have given them. There were times too, when I felt he was quite strong in his use of the hand,albeit mostly in an upward manner, but nonetheless, it was with a lot of tension.

I had not seen him ride before- we were lecturing in the same arena at Equitana 2 years ago, over the 9 days, but he didnt ride the horses then at all.

I agreed absolutely with the need for the release of the neck though, and it was pretty shocking that most of the riders found it very difficult to let go. He admit he is not a rider trainer- we had a chat about what was going on with some of the riders, and he said that he can see something is wrong, but wouldnt know how to correct it. I was dying to get in there to sort out several riders who were blocking their horses and causing the problems!!

The rider of the two lovely bay warmblood mares- half sisters- admitted to him and the audience that it was her riding that was holding the horses back, although the first was Intermediare 11 and the second PSG- god knows how the horses get to that level with a rider so behind the movement and crooked! Her shoulders were btv in rising trot, so behind the movement was she. I shot out of the school after her first session and showed her how to get the correct angle of the body in rising trot. I didnt think that she had taken it on board, but on the second horse, she was so much better, upper body inclined forward from the hip, and the pelvis making the arc as I had shown her.

But all in all a very interesting weekend- I would love to do a more holistic approach still with the rider also being worked on. It is all very well saying that the seat needs perfecting, but it needs someone there too, who can elaborate on the interaction of the seat with the movement of the horse. I would love the chance, but I doubt it will ever arise!!

Heather

[NickeringNotions]

very very interesting, thanks Vicky 

Especially re mechnical lameness!

[lizrv]

Epona

What a brilliant write-up - I couldn't have put it better myself and it puts my pathetic notes to shame. I hope you don't mind but I would you object to me cutting & pasting into a word doc for me to refer to in future.

I found the whole weekend inspiring and was very pleased to see two very eminent vets working together over the two days. It would have been very easy for Svend to have not stuck around on Sunday - but to his credit he did and I caught up with him a couple of times to discuss a couple of things and found him to be very open to what he witnessed.

Thanks again

Liz

[issywizz]

Nobody else that has been has commented yet on BD,but I thought this would interest you Vicky;


Sadly one report here is about the fault of a trainer versus the rider who obviously loved her `pony`.
Sorry but on this occasion she has a super trainer - but an over ambitious parent - novice pony being constantly pushed into medium tests badly - thank goodness someone re-inforced the need to stretch before working. However, I very much doubt it will be acted upon!!!!!!!!!!!
We have all tried.......
Just off to hide behind a very large DFS sale sign.


Btw,you really should do this professionally in some way,you are *so* good at it.

[epona]

Yes - thanks Issy.  Poor pony, whomever is at fault, it is him thats coming off worse    I am at least glad that the training isnt at fault, as I would hate this kind of riding to be encouraged by proffesionals.  Perhaps parents should get a life  and leave their daughter to live hers! 

Do you think I could get to watch these demos for free in return for a 'write up'??  How marvellous would that be! 

I have a word document that I copied and pasted from - if anyone wants it PM your email addy  But feel free to copy and paste 

[Jenny]

Another massive thank you!!!!!!!!!!! I was really really gutted that i wasn,t able to attend but your report is so clear and concise i no longer feel like i,ve missed out 

[Trudi]

Btw,you really should do this professionally in some way,you are *so* good at it.

Couldn't agree more Sarah. Vicky you should maybe send some of your reports to people like Horses for Life so they can see the quality of your writing!! You definitely have a flare for it.

T xx