What it actually takes: Professional Equestrianism

Roger Yvest Bost

I have en counted a countless amount of people who have these "huge Aspiring dreams" of achieving/competing in top level equestrian events. This is great. What is not as great, is the manner in which they expect to do it.

It is actually quiet underestimated the  immense time of Effort, hard work, expertise and skill that is required for anyone to be successful at the top level. You have to find the correct horse, trainer and of course you have to be relatively competent. This is all much easier said than done, in order to find the best horse for YOU to jump the big classes; it takes Capital, a fantastic eye and a lot of risk. Lets face it, not all of us have millions to blow on horses. Many serious riders these days, particularly  in show jumping / Dressage/ Eventing source their horses from Europe- and rightly so. Europe offers the "smorgasbord" of options. It is rare for a local stallion's progeny become a top horse, The local horse may have a fantastic father- most likely from Europe' but often the Dam's line weakens the overall gene pool potential OR the way in which the horse is produced does not do it justice.

This brings me to my next point- production. If been told on countless occasions; " You don't have to go overseas to find a young horse potentially capable of Jumping World Cups, we have the bloodlines here". Hello? If we have supposedly have some of the European bloodlines here, which we do, why are there so few South African Bred horses jumping in the 1.50's? One may rightly so argue that there are Namibian horses competing in the 1.50's but Namibia has done it differently to SA. Namibia makes great use of Imported Semen and furthermore, the mares they use are also of very strong European bloodline descent. Don't get me wrong, I have seen a handful of South African bred horses which are serious prospects but personally, I feel strongly that for the price you pay, it can become a bit outrageous. For 700k for a young horse in South Africa is what some of our top young horses fetch- and rightly so as they are undeniably the best quality- but for R700k, you could import with all costs included a 5/6 year old show jumper competing in the 1.30's. This may be why we see such a huge amount of top riders, as well as aspiring ones, choosing overseas over local.

 Europe is believed to have a "system" in which they train horses. If we have the same bloodlines, is it perhaps the "system" in which abroad horses overseas are trained which results in a greater success rate abroad? These are all just some questions what have arisen into which i have explored.

Trainer. This person is probably one of the greatest "make-or-break" individuals in ones quest for Top-level success whether it be dressage, showjumping or Eventing. The Trainer has to know you well enough as a rider to identify the type of ride that would suit you. Your Trainer also has to have a very critical eye when investing in buying a new horse. Horses that jump the top levels aren't just grown on trees. Temperament, build, scope, rideability and train-ability of the horse must all be taken into account. Especially when looking at young prospects with the hope of future high-level success; choosing the right on is not easy and there is a huge risk involved. An experienced and knowledgeable trainer/instructor will be able to identify TRAITS of the horse which may SUGGEST POSSIBLE future potential- with horses, there is never any guarantee.

The Greatest extent to which i have seen this is the ever circulation " Warmbloods are better than thoroughbreds" - yes, in many cases that is true, but there are many thoroughbreds which i have seen that are MUCH nicer that warmbloods. Just because it is a warmblood doesn't not automatically place it above another breed. Yes warmbloods are dominating and fantastic but over the last few years particularly within the Young rider ranks up to 1.30m, the Thoroughbred has come out on top of the warm blood. One must consider carefully when buying a horse; if one wants to jump 1.30m/ 1.20m FOR INSTANCE - the thoroughbred you are looking at might actually be more likely successful than the "average" warmblood you are also considering. Personally I have dealt with both breeds and although i agree that for the higher ranks the modern day warmblood is ideal, i do not believe in discounting thoroughbreds AT ALL.

So to sum up my rather lengthy post, there is much more to "achieving success" than what one observes at a glance. More often than not success comes from the correct combination of above combined with a serious amount of Hard Work and Passion!

Steve Guerdat, Los Vegas World Cup Final winner 2015

GRIDWORK for green- experienced horses & showjumpers

Hey guys sorry i haven't posted in a while, been crazy with new young horses.
My latest "experiences" with these new young horses of mine have prompted me to write this post so here goes:

Young horses can be relentlessly difficult. Okay I am BIG time generalizing but the past month of so i have acquired a few prospects is addition to my string. The one horse in particular, a very hot 5 year old has been very challenging. Now i'll be blunt, this horse can be unbelievably difficult to ride because it is so hot. However, out of all the horses it is my favorite, it is careful, quick, EXTREMELY scopey but most of all, has the right mindset- although hot, it WANTS to jump and always gives 150% ( that's right, 50% too much). Anyway, I am sure i'm not the only one riding horses like this so i thought id share some tips which have been beneficial to all the youngsters (but in particular this one)

[ Please note in advance i have done equine science and been competing nationally for many years- the horse is by nature a hot one and its hot streak is not due to "incorrect feeding" or such thing.  Thus my choice of such exercises]

The following exercises have also been used with my top horses right up to jumping in world cup qualifiers- i find these grids very useful for all who have young horses/ going horses

EXERCISE 1 - Creating flexion through rib-cage
It can be seriously frustrating when you have to go around corners while jumping with your horses head bent to the outside because it wont bend and support through its body! He's an exercise to help!

EXERCISE 2- shortening and lengthening 

This is probably my most used "lateral" exercise with all my horses. I advice particularly with a green horse that is learning to do the pole exercise about 2 x per week [do about 5 + run throughs: you should do it until your horse does it as you desire (within reason)]  

EXERCISE 3- Multi-purpose exercise

This exercise has MANY benefits, it builds strength in the hindquarters as well as encouraging the horse to jump through its withers (the oxer must be square for this to happen). I like this exercise for young horses as i gain the benefits from the previously mentioned BUT the main and best reason for use is the trotting poles. The trotting poles force the horses to slow down after the oxer and accept the weight on their hindquarters as you always want to train. This teaches them adjust-ability and strengthens their hindquarters at the same time. your horse, especially young/green horses may "fall" or tripp over the trotting poles the first few times- don't worry about this- they'll get the idea pretty soon.

               
Hope you enjoyed this post!

PLEASE COMMENT IF YOU WOULD LIKE SPECIFIC EXERCISES/ ADVICE on ANYTHING Equestrian related!!

Gridwork, a show jumpers essential

Daniel Deusser with his horse showing an incredible style

Gridwork is incorporated into every top showjumpers training program and should be incorporated into those training programs of all showjumpers. Gridwork has huge benefits for all horses, young or experienced as well as riders. The level of technicality of the gridwork should be directly proportional to the level of the horse and rider combination.

What are the benefits?

• Improving balance of horse
• Improving confidence of horse, especially young horses
• Improving horses technique + style
• Improves areas which horse need correcting 
• Allows combination (horse and rider) to practice straightness and accuracy.
• Allows rider to improve balance 
• Allows rider to improve style - seat, hands ,leg etc. 

Gridwork should ideally be done under the eye of an instructor/ knowledgeable helper who can help with adjustments of poles, riders position, way about doing gridwork etc.

Things to note:
- distances must be correct
- amount of girdwork should not be overdone, very taxing on horse + rider
- better to start of slow and build up on technicality and height



Very useful Distance calculator

Gridwork exercise example 1

Gridwork exercise example 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1a8AdZvKvs

Brilliant further explanation of the demands of the sport.

What its about

What makes a top horse? Top rider?

What do we define this by? 

Many of the most successful riders are far from stylish while other paint the picture of perfection. We have a driving desire for success, so much so that in my country, and many others, professional riders, as hope to one day be, fly to Europe to purchase the most "suitable" horse for the demanding task the 1.50 + classes present. These top horses can fetch up to well over €1 000 000.

Roger Yves Bost "Bosty". One of the most successful show jumpers on the international circuit.

Steve Guerdat, another incredibly successful show jumper on the international circuit.

  However this comes at a serious price which is perhaps why majority of the successful competitors at the highest level of most classical disciplines have the financial support to make this all possible . The best rider is nothing without a capable horse. A capable horse will not perform its best without a good rider which works with it as a COMBINATION. 

The upbringing of young horses primarily define their future. The most "correctly"  and "well-produced" feature in the top classes along their superior bloodlines bred of generations to ensure success. There are always exceptions, however this is the general rule i have personally found.

 This is why one may see studs with outstanding bloodlines fail to produce horses which end up reaching the top. The sport is so demanding these days there is no or little room for error. An "incorrectly" brought up horse will never reach its full potential, it may turn out to be above average, but not reaching its full potential. 

However, i do believe there are many areas which one can improve to potentially bring out the optimal potential of a horse. These areas are close to perfection of professionals, the level of care and attention given to these areas has a dramatic effect on performance. A few areas being:

• Diet
• Upbringing- careful schooling etc.
• Exercise schedule
• Gridwork / training programmes
• Equine management - stabling, grazing, healthcare etc. 
• therapy: bemer, hydro, ozone etc. 

In this blog i aim to explore theres areas,especially methods used by the top riders therefore common between the successful.