When did a well rounded education for horse and rider fall out of fashion?

[versatilechamp]

Since when did us riders all become so specialised? It seems to me that people have forgotten that a horse and riders' basic education consists of Dressage, Show Jumping, and Cross-Country and with this solid basis you can move on to concentrate on the discipline that the horse does best.
Is it la ack of good trainers that can teach all three disciplines REALLY well that has caused it?
I think that having a good trainer makes a huge difference! It seems like something that alot of people don't think about or talk about but having a trainer that can communicate effectively with the student is so important. Although your trainer may be able to ride the excercises and teach the horse, that doesn't mean that he will necessarily be able to teach YOU how to.
I searched far and wide and for many years for a trainer that I respected and trusted enough to take instruction from, namely Johannes Beck-Broichsitter. I first started with him when I lived in Germany and I haven't been able to take lessons from anyone else since!
I moved back to California about 2 1/2 years ago and had an impossible time finding anyone that could teach ME and the HORSE TOGETHER. Johannes analyses the relationship between horse and rider and helps them to understand eachother. So many trainers either fault the horse or the rider. Johannes Beck-Broichsitter doesn't balme anyone, he uses excercises to help the rider communicate to the horse what he wants and to enable the horse to understand and respond to the riders requests. All I can say is that everyone leaves the arena smiling including the horses.

Since I've been back in the US I've been trying to get Johannes Beck-Broichsitter here to teach me and others. Dec. 2006 was the first wildly sucessfull trip followed by another end of April 2007 which was also oversubscribed. Everyone is so grateful for his instruction, they can't wait to have him back!

I think we should start to compile a list of recognised trainers and a rating system! How are we as students supposed to be able to evalutate the teacher and know what he is supposed to be telling us untill after it's too late and we realise that our riding has gone downhill... We should help our fellow riders and share our experiences with others to help them make good descisions about who to take lessons from.
Does anyone know if something like this "trainer list" that I'm proposing already exists?

[NZdressage]

I agree wiht you that a horses education should consist of a bit of everything...to start with. Some horses for whatever reasons succeed better in certain disaplines. I am just a dresage rider for many reasons and I dont see that is a problem. People enjoy things for different reasons and thats why they specialise.

[NZdressage]

sorry..and to add to that, most good trainers I know fault the horse and rider together, eg, the horse is doing that because you are doing.... or you are riding like that because the horse isnt (fill in the gap) enough. Maybe its just where you live that is like that because its not like that here.

[Bay Mare]

I think we should start to compile a list of recognised trainers and a rating system! How are we as students supposed to be able to evalutate the teacher and know what he is supposed to be telling us untill after it's too late and we realise that our riding has gone downhill... We should help our fellow riders and share our experiences with others to help them make good descisions about who to take lessons from.
Does anyone know if something like this "trainer list" that I'm proposing already exists?


I can't see any point in compiling a trainers' list. There are a lot of high profile instructors who I wouldn't touch with a bargepole but who people rave about. Different people have different requirements and prefer different forms of instruction so it wouldn't be much use just having a list of names.

There was a video online recently of a person having a lesson with a trainer that she thinks is fabulous. Let's just say that I most definitely don't agree even though this guy is well known.

The best thing that we can do for our riding is to educate ourselves so that we can spot the good and the bad. I, for example, wouldn't go within a mile of anyone who asked me to use draw reins or rolkur.

It's obvious that you are pleased with your instructor as you've mentioned him several time in all of your posts but that doesn't mean that he would be suitable for me.

I think that it's best as it is now where people who are looking for a specific type of instructor post a thread saying what kind of instructor they're looking for and in what area.


To answer you original question, though, I think that the right instructor WILL provide a well rounded education for horse and rider.

[Yann]

Has it really fallen out of fashion? I'm only at the lowest of low levels but my instructor teaches all three and our lessons are as much about the horse as the rider. I'm sure that's far from unique, certainly in our part of the world anyway :)

[Skib]

My teacher will teach all three.
But as an older beginner, I am thankful that the old BHS straightjacket of obliging every riding teacher to be able to do all three is being relaxed.
I dont want to jump.
Many older returning riders may be in the same position - yet have the potential to become capable and sensitive riding teachers - with the maturity to relate well to their students and the horses.

[Keket]

How do you define a well-rounded education?

You mention dressage, showjumping and cross-country. To me, a horse that does those is not well-rounded. To be well-rounded, I would expect a horse to have some western training. It should be able to jog and lope and neck-rein on a loose rein, as well as trot and canter on a contact. And what about driving? Should a horse be able to drive as well?

I recently tested for my Equine Canada Rider 2, and the tester told me something that I liked: They strive to teach basic equitation. They don't want their students specializing, at least not until later. Once you have basic equitation, a rider can go pretty much wherever they want and do whatever they want, whether dressage or jumping or western, with minimal adjustments.