Becoming a Horseman_ What Does it Mean Today?

the horse all week and then go out and ride on the weekend. It may be a joy ride for them but it probably isnt a joy ride for the horse.
He provided another example saying Lets say youre a really driven competitor and in a month theres some big show and your main goal is to do well at the show. As you get closer to the show if your horse isnt going well its very easy to start thinking of the horse as an impediment to the goal. And then you start to grind on the horse ride them harder whatever. But you take somebody else who is primarily a horseman and their main goal is to get their horse going as well as it can and the show is much less relevant. Therefore Emerson says Thinking about what the horse is feeling and considering how your desires and motivations are affecting the horse thats being a horseman.
Although Cardinal struggled to define a horseman she says it certainly includes putting the horses welfare first. She explained When I get on my horse I try to imagine how I can do the best thing for that horse. Not only bring them to their potential but just be kind to them. Theyre a living being and theyre really sensitive animals. So if I can be kind to them that day and not get a whole lot done thats not going to bother me. I try to leave my ego out of it as much as possible.
Cardinal continued The goal of a horseman is to see how much your horse is willing to do for you and how much you can teach them to be a good learner rather than just how fast you can get them to spin or how long of a reiningstyle stop track you can make. Build their mind their emotional state as much as their physical body and teach them how to learn.
She says A lot of times I think riders kind of run over their horses feelings and get focused on maneuvers. I try not to drill my horses. I try to have them think critically and ask questions where a lot of riders prefer that their horses dont ask questions and just do what theyre told.
When considering how good horsemen act Cardinal says I look at the little things like how someone leads their horse