Drums keep pounding rhythm to the brain…….La Dee Da De Dee….La Dee Da De Da or something like that.  You know the old song from Sonny and Cher.  Oops, I’m dating myself.

In Breathless Aaaaah I spoke about the beat.  Let’s look at that more closely.

Horses gates have different beats.  Walk is a four beat, trot two beat, canter three beat, and gallop four beat.  Listen as your horse walks on concrete or a hard road.  You can now hear each individual foot fall.  That’s why I say pick a song with the beat of the gait you are doing, and maintain that beat.

Music can make us move or relax depending on the song we pick.  Think about the songs that you just can’t stay still with.  Now think of the songs that make you take a deep breath and relax.  The ones that call to mind pleasant memories.  Now I’m not saying that a few fast songs can’t remind you of great times too, I’m only saying think about the different way each one makes you feel.

My girlfriend called me one day saying that her daughter was having trouble with her Dressage Tests at the shows, could I help?  I am not a “Dressage” Instructor, but all basic riding, in one form or another, is dressage.  I told her to bring her over and let me look where the problem might be.  I knew the horse and I knew her daughter.  She was an excellent rider and the horse would do anything she asked.  So where could the problem be coming from?

I watched them warm up – no problem there.  So I asked for a copy of the test she was going to be riding at the show the next day, and there was the problem.

!!!!!”TEST”!!!!!!  There was no problem with the riding, it was the simple four letter word, “Test!”  She was doing the exact same movements when warming up, but go and do the test, and she tightened up.

It’s amazing how certain words can change everything.  To some people the words dentist, marriage, tax audit, shark, test, and tornado trigger certain responses in our bodies.

So back to how I redirected her thought process.  Music.  A simple CD player.  I asked her to ride the movements to different songs, not necessarily in the sequence of the test.  Notice I used the word movements, not test.  She did fabulous, smiling, singing, having a great time with her horse.  They were confident, free-flowing, dancing together as one.  I simple told her never to think of it as a test, think of it as a choreographed dance number that the two of them were performing together.  She should sing her way through the next days class, just like today, and that I would be there.

So I guess you want to know what happened?

Of course nothing ever goes smooth at the barn the morning you’re looking to get out of there early.  So we got there just as she was about to enter the ring.  The color was drained out of her face, she had a death grip on the reins, and a blank stare in her eyes.  There wasn’t any time to try to reason with her, so I did what any other instructor would do.  I told her that the judge was sitting there totally naked and how can you take anyone who is naked seriously – just sing.  She started laughing so hard I figured she’d be excused.  She laughed and smiled through the whole test and when she was done, had come up with the best score she had even received.

So just have fun with your horse.  Instead of doing the same old thing you do everyday, jazz it up and add music.  It will give you a whole new feeling for what you are doing, and your horse will love it too.  Mainly because you are having such a good time, you will be relaxed.

And the beat goes on.