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Rigor
Oct 1, 2016 15:33:43 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 1, 2016 15:33:43 GMT
I was watching Bloomberg TV and the guest was the former president of Stanford University. He was asked a question about how Stanford, already a highly rated school University, rose to the very top of America's universities under his direction. His answer was "rigor".
He said that the fact that the school was in Silicon Valley during the birth and globalization of the internet presented great challenges for the school and the tech businesses that surrounded it. Stanford had high academic standards but there was a kind of elite intellectual atmosphere there that lacked the groundedness (my word) required to keep up with and lead the local tech revolution. This retired university president said that he introduced a standard of rigorous discipline throughout the university aimed at practical solutions and applications of academic principles that kept the school relevant as the tech entrepreneurs demanded upgraded answers to all their tech and business questions.
After the interview, I had a moment of simple insight. Rigor is what's lacking in horsemanship. It's what I miss from my early days of military standards in every aspect from tacking up to cooling down. Everything I learned was based in a practical solution to the challenges of horsemanship. It was indeed rigorous to remember that there was a right and wrong way to do every detail of the experience from how to close the feed bin to sliding down a steep slope into a slippery smooth stone bottom creek. We were never let off the hook. The standard applied in every condition. There was never a sense that there wasn't enough time to do it right, or it was too heavy a rain to do it correctly. Rigor demanded that every detail was done correctly for the sake of the horses every time. Likewise, distractions from the rigorous standards, whether they be frills, or boys being boys at the expense of their horse, or anything that got in the way of this rigor was forbidden, but more importantly was seen as weakness.
For years I have posted about our decline in Olympic eventing, in general lower riding standards and about how many of today's riders place so much emphasis on caring for their horses in what I see as impractical ways. In a word, it's about rigor. Stanford brought rigor back into style.
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Post by rideanotherday on Oct 3, 2016 20:24:02 GMT
It is difficult to bring quality riders into a sport where, on average, you are SPENDING rather than EARNING. Today, most people that have the focus and ability to perform are finding different ways to use their talents that help them live much more comfortably than horse riding. Horse riding is a passion and an art form, but it doesn't always pay the bills.
That's a choice I had to make to raise my daughter. I am a single parent...dedicating and focusing on horse riding wasn't in the cards, and honestly, still isn't. At least not yet.
Not making money is one thing, the other thing that really puts people off the sport is the elitism.
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Rigor
Oct 3, 2016 21:46:18 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 3, 2016 21:46:18 GMT
... Not making money is one thing, the other thing that really puts people off the sport is the elitism. Yes, I agree. There are so many examples. Pony Club was started after WW1 by the British Horse Society because the War's mounted service recruits proved to be so lacking in horsemanship and basic horse management. It was for the "backyard" rural horse owners not the elite, who were brought up with a great deal of horsemanship training. The idea was to get better prepared cavalry recruits for the next war. Over the past 30 years Pony Club has shifted away from teaching rural backyard kids to well off young girls. I have often thought that because Pony Club has such a great curriculum, they should "lease" their program to 4 H, which in my experience has one of the most uneven horsemanship programs I have ever seen. In some places, because of a knowledgeable person in an area, the 4 H program can be first class, but not far away a 4 H equestrian program can be the absolute worst. I have seen both kinds. Having the PC books and info would elevate 4 H horsemanship. And speaking of elitism in horse people, last week a woman inquired about the new barn where we are boarding. It's a nice place, nothing fancy, big stalls, no wash stall, good turnout, just a nice small basic kind of stable. This horsewoman asked if there were people there who could hot walk her horse and if there was a locker room. The manager said no to both. The woman replied, "I thought you were a horse farm not a cattle farm". That woman was pretty lucky that I was not the one showing her around. It's my experience that horse owners like this snobby woman never know how to ride well. They say they do dressage because they are afraid to canter a horse. Owning a horse for them is an extension of their self focused identity, not a sport or recreation. They drive Porsche Boxsters, an entry level Porsche that costs $10 to $15 thousand more than a large number of less statusy cars that will out perform the Boxster on all levels, but they gotta have a Porsche. They are a type and there are more of them each year in the horse world every year. A locker room? Come on. |
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Rigor
Oct 4, 2016 14:20:51 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 4, 2016 14:20:51 GMT
I received an email that mentioned Philippe Karl today and I read about him online. He has long been known in dressage circles for his opposition to harsh training methods like rollkur. He posted this on his webpage - a system that melds impulsion, gymnastics, free and flowing gaits, lightness at the base of training as much as a result, the release that teaches, rigor of progression, isolation and separation, establishment of consistent boundaries, riding with your spineThis says a great deal. Only a rider who has refined insight and an extreme depth of experience could distil the thoughts contained there into so few words. I will pick one phrase, rigor of progression. This is one element of teaching and learning that has been largely lost over the past few decades. It's as if when we stopped building houses one brick at a time we suffered a cultural loss that brought on a form of cultural ADD. This is not to say that we cannot do a variety of things with a horse or rider in training. It says that we must have the rigorous discipline to stay in the progression of the horse's or the rider's skills training. For example, I might be training a young polo horse and the season ends. Hunt season begins and I will take him hunting, but in doing so I will have to find a way to continue the progression of his learning in the new context. During polo season I would have used my spine in powerful ways in halts from speed combined with a roll back. In hunt season the horse would feel that same strength of spine in descending a steep slope with unstable footing combined with a turn at the bottom and a swift upward transition in order to stay with the pack. Very different context with seamless progression of content from the rider. Horses really enjoy that.  |
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Rigor
Oct 5, 2016 15:42:11 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 5, 2016 15:42:11 GMT
I was driving down the road thinking about the "rigor of progression". Yesterday my first take on those words was the progression of training. Then it hit me, it's in everything. It's in walk, trot, canter. It's in a balanced halt. It's the rigor of the steps of anything. The first step is "square zero" Ray Hunt's concept of the trainer being conscious of and inserting him/herself in the process of the progressive steps. Not inserting one's self in a separate way, but in unity.
The "rigor of progression" is the discipline of riding all the time, as opposed to being a passenger. Another phrase in Karl's words is the release that teaches. In thinking of this I picture a typical trail ride where horse are in a line in the woods and the first horse canters off. Invariably, the next horse canters off, then the next and so on. The horses are allowed, released by their riders to follow the horse in front of them. In a typical trail ride the horses are released most of the time. This teaches them to take their cues from the other horses. What could be worse?
If there is one trait of a good polo horse, it is that they do not take their cues from other horses. That just doesn't work in that game. Polo is an equestrian sport where the horses expect the rider to be conscious and ride all the time, and when the rider releases them into a play or onto a new line, it is a release that teaches. That's part of the rigorous progression.
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Rigor
Oct 6, 2016 14:28:39 GMT
Post by jimmy on Oct 6, 2016 14:28:39 GMT
Interesting take on the "release that teaches" I'm no Phillipe Karl, but I think he would be referring to the release of pressure as pertains to the use of the aids. It is not the aid that teaches, but the release of the aid, or pressure, that teaches, rather than just the pressure itself. Yes.Training is progressive. And teaching must be built on a progression. And it is rigorous and disciplined. I think in any endeavor, that is must be true to truly master an art. I came across this just today. youtu.be/ie0aWR8FUW8 |
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Rigor
Oct 6, 2016 21:43:23 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 6, 2016 21:43:23 GMT
Jimmy, I like your take on this. I was thinking about the release into a specific task and the horse learning a repetitive task from the release. You went deeper into the mechanics of how that learning actually happens. Thanks.
And what's with the JD Gator video. Is that what you meant to post?
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Rigor
Oct 6, 2016 22:52:26 GMT
Post by jimmy on Oct 6, 2016 22:52:26 GMT
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Rigor
Oct 6, 2016 23:21:48 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 6, 2016 23:21:48 GMT
British Cavalry 1950 from Jimmy (the US dismounted its Cavalry in 1943)
The sergeant driving a pair over the jumps with no side barriers is wildly impressive.
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Post by jimmy on Oct 13, 2016 23:32:21 GMT
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Rigor
Oct 14, 2016 15:42:51 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 14, 2016 15:42:51 GMT
- From the book 'Think Harmony With Horses' by Ray Hunt.
This sums up the military type "rigor" applied to horsemanship. The standard was effectiveness. I always preface this with the fact that those troopers rode six days a week, and their horsemanship skills could mean the difference between living and dying in combat. Those soldiers had a special focus along with a special life with horses. That context is almost completely gone now except for a few top competitors. Still, we must work to maintain some of this rigor each time was are with our horse. If not, it "will cause your horse to get cranky and take over".
I am slowly getting used to the new and general contemporary standard at the new barn. All the horses there are cranky and expect to take over. I have been helping out by feeding. I go out to the barn alone, and to a degree it's a real scary experience entering the paddock with a bunch of this type of horse. I was picturing doing the late day feeding as the days get shorter, when it is dark and the ground icy. Then it will be truly dangerous.
When I had boarders every horse had a purpose. There was rigor at my barn. Here at the new barn it's like a bunch of pet horses and when they want to eat they get impatient. It's rubbing off on my horse, but I am fixing that. It finally dawned on me that people actually go out and buy a horse solely based on the color or the breed, or something besides what the horse can do. Then they board it and never really get to know the horse. The person who feeds alone in the herd learns much more about their horse than they ever will, and that allows the owners to maintain a fantasy based relationship with their horse. After getting that understanding I got THE BIG INSIGHT, which is that today the boarding business is basically enabling the boarder's fantasy. Keep their horse fed and fat, looking good, and that's all you need to do. No use in bringing reality into the equation. Effectiveness and rigor are just rain drops on their parade. I never thought I'd be in this position. It's interesting.
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Rigor
Oct 14, 2016 16:10:50 GMT
Post by horseguy on Oct 14, 2016 16:10:50 GMT
Henry Wynmalen, one of my all time favorites and an authentically unique human being.
- From the book 'Think Harmony With Horses' by Ray Hunt. This sums up the military type "rigor" applied to horsemanship.
The standard was effectiveness. I always preface this with the fact that those troopers rode six days a week, and their horsemanship skills could mean the difference between living and dying in combat. Those soldiers had a special focus along with a special life with horses. That context is almost completely gone now except for a few top competitors. Still, we must work to maintain some of this rigor each time was are with our horse. If not, it "will cause your horse to get cranky and take over".
I am slowly getting used to the new and general contemporary standard at the new barn. All the horses there are cranky and expect to take over. I have been helping out by feeding. I go out to the barn alone, and to a degree it's a real scary experience entering the paddock with a bunch of this type of horse. I was picturing doing the late day feeding as the days get shorter, when it is dark and the ground icy. Then it will be truly dangerous.
When I had boarders every horse had a purpose. There was rigor at my barn. Here at the new barn it's like a bunch of pet horses and when they want to eat they get impatient. It's rubbing off on my horse, but I am fixing that. It finally dawned on me that people actually go out and buy a horse solely based on the color or the breed, or something besides what the horse can do. Then they board it and never really get to know the horse. The person who feeds alone in the herd learns much more about their horse than they ever will, and that allows the owners to maintain a fantasy based relationship with their horse. After getting that understanding I got THE BIG INSIGHT, which is that today the boarding business is basically enabling the boarder's fantasy. Keep their horse fed and fat, looking good, and that's all you need to do. No use in bringing reality into the equation. Effectiveness and rigor are just rain drops on their parade. I never thought I'd be in this position. It's interesting. |
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Rigor
Nov 1, 2016 22:59:19 GMT
Post by horseguy on Nov 1, 2016 22:59:19 GMT
From a time when a horse's job really mattered. Marine pack horse Reckless memorial.
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