MARK RASHID

by Monica S

Well I spent the afternoon watching Mark Rashid working at a clinic in Sunland, CA today. It was the first time we had met, although I was on line when he spent an afternoon on the USDF bb, and we spoke on the phone one time when I emailed him about my stallion's 'separation anxiety'

First of all, let me say, he comes across in person just like in his books He is easy going, friendly and always has the horse's best interest in mind The biggest point that he made was that riders were tending to 'over cue' their horses The first rider we watched was riding a 3-year-old who was 'lazy'. But the truth was the rider was push, push, pushing every step of the way She also wasn't very sure of herself and the horse supposedly tended to be spooky at times. Mark told her that she needed to 'be there for her horse, and give him something that he can hang his hat on' (He returned to this point later in the clinic when asked about horses having show ring nerves He agreed that usually it is the rider who ~s nervous, and if the partnership has been properly developed, then hopefully when the rider is worried, they can rely on their horse, just as the horse can rely on the rider in times of need) Anyway, it became obvious that this well-intentioned lady was always asking - even when the horse was trying to offer her the right answer Just in going from walk to trot the horse would begin the transition, and the rider would give one more cluck and squeeze. How was he to know he had the right idea? And since going forward didn't seem to be right, and yet stopping wasn't quite it either, he had just given up, and plodded around Just a few minutes of reminding the rider about her timing, and the horse's strides increased 9" He also got quiet in his mouth where he had been fussing with the bit earlier

Now the next participant that we watched was a nice woman with a Lovely seat for the sitting trot, on a 4 year old TB mare She had started this mare in Mark's colt starting class last year and this year was enrolled in the trailriding class Her biggest problem was that when she would ask the mare to jog, she got this big forward trot, and it would take half a lap around the ring to settle her Mark first had the woman walk around the arena and asked us if the horse was staying at the same tempo Everyone's initial reaction was Yes. But careful analysis showed that the mare had moments of slightly slowing down, and moments where her energy was increasing He suggested that when you are working with a green horse, you Use these natural variances to your advantage If you want a downward transition, feel for the moments when the horse is naturally slowing, and Then ask If you want an upward, feel for the horse to already be increasing m energy, and then ask

Then he began to address the issue of too much trot. He noted that the rider was giving aids that while for most horses would be considered light, for this mare, they were too much He asked the rider to trust the horse to do the right thing, and ask Very quietly, and give the mare a chance to respond This produced some much quieter upwards where the mare trotted quietly along on a loose rein He also pointed out to the rider that she was constantly hooking down, which failed to give the horse clear direction After calmly and clearly reminding the rider Not to Look Down more times than I can count she began to catch herself But there was never a critical or degrading comment Mark would just blend the 'look up' comment into whatever else he was talking about - eg "Karen is going to LOOK UP as she gives that light squeeze starting at the knee and working down with a gradual increasing pressure"

Now, I won't say that Mark is the Messiah of horsemen, and he didn't address some rider position issues that I might have made take top precedence, BUT he helped all the horses and rider improve in their relationships He used simple exercises and was clear in his instructions He never made the rider a brunt of a joke, and yet he made the riders laugh at themselves He included the audience so they could understand what was going on He asked the riders for input, and checked to see that the really understood what and why he was asking them to do something. Every horse remained calm and focused, and he was about to take this group of riders out on a trail ride to work on real world problems! He did not have a standard routine, and he did not watch the clock! There was never a session where he said, "whoops: time is up for today, we will see where we get tomorrow" Every horse and rider got however much time they needed It was a very pleasant afternoon - I wish I could go again for the rest of the week For any of you who have a chance to ride in a clinic with Mark, or even audit -take advantage. You will see a lot of classic horsemanship taking place You will get some ideas that you can take home and you will start thinking about lightness, rewarding intentions, staying attuned to your

horse, and developing a partnership based on trust Not to mention, you will have a good time laughing at horse jokes and visiting with honorable horse people trying to do right by their horses If you can't see him in person, then I really will recommend his books "Considering the Horse" an "A good Horse is Never a Bad Color" They may not hold earth shattering new information, but they will remind you to think about your equine partner, and you will keep trying to develop trust. Anyone who is located in Southern California, this clinic will be continuing through Sunday Auditing is only $15tday to ETI members, and $20 to non-members. The location is beautiful and the hospitality is great (Robert and I went down and forgot to take jackets. Here in Lancaster it was 75 degrees but we dropped over the hill into the San Fernando Valley, it was overcast and maybe 55i The owner of the ranch went up to her house and came out with coats for us both!!!) Anyway, you can contact Lisa at (818) 541-5049, or just go to Peacock Hill 10330 McBroom Street, Shadow Hills. And Just so you know, I am not connected with this group at all and this is unsolicited support. I think that everyone could benefit from this man's gentle attitude

Good riding M