Carl Hester on the significance of coaching and accepting criticism
We all know many, if not most, opponents have common coaching, however for these attempting to compete on the prime degree, the satan is more and more within the particulars. Classes from a coach you belief and put your religion in need to be a very powerful factor to prioritise if you wish to progress. Discovering a coach who can provide the instruments and data to progress is of the utmost significance.
In fact, with the results of the cost-of-living disaster, or for individuals who work lengthy hours each week, or for many who can’t afford common classes, it’s not all the time potential to get constant assist from a coach. However did you realise you may obtain helpful paperwork that can assist you along with your coaching?
The FEI Dressage Judging Guide, for instance, is free to entry on-line and offers clear definitions of the final rules of dressage and the way elementary errors are marked. Generally it may be useful to learn the necessities for the actions you’re doing. Studying concerning the actions and the explanations for doing them could be a lesson in itself.
Years in the past, once I was requested to guage a younger teacher of the 12 months competitors it was wonderful what number of instructors threw out the phrase “half-halt”. I puzzled what number of of these being taught knew what a half halt was and find out how to apply it. I’d hazard a guess that if I’d requested 10 individuals I’d have obtained 10 completely different solutions.
Effectively, should you’re in search of readability, you may learn up on it on web page 9 of the handbook. It’s a reality – the half-halt is “an nearly simultaneous, coordinated motion of the seat, the legs and the palms” that’s key to the general stability of your horse and organising every motion.
Grooving at Hickstead
The I.C.E Horseboxes All England Dressage Pageant at Hickstead is actually discovering its groove. It’s slickly run with tremendous surfaces. After a deluge on the Tuesday, you wouldn’t have even identified there was a showground beneath the water. By Thursday, nevertheless, it had warmed as much as a brilliant competitors.
From a future workforce viewpoint, for Charlotte Dujardin and I, it gave us a way verify on find out how to enhance our scores. After a winter’s work on the fundamentals, we’d hoped to come back out and smash our marks from final 12 months, however that’s not all the time the case.
All 4 of our grand prix horses had been excited and rusty in Hagen – and so had been the riders – so at each present between now and choice it’s essential to up our sport for these increased scores we want.
There’s a pattern for scores to be decrease this 12 months and I respect the the reason why. The game has been underneath such scrutiny that the judges have to be stricter. That they appear to be stricter on the fundamental approach of going can solely be a great factor.
The optimistic aspect of criticism
It’s nonetheless exhausting for some to simply accept that social media may be merciless and damning however have a look at it this manner, as bestselling creator Deepak Chopra says: “What different individuals consider you isn’t your small business.”
Some will all the time discover the positives in criticism, and a few wrestle to take action. This story the legendary Jennie Loriston-Clarke instructed me from greater than 40 years in the past made me giggle.
The well-known dressage critic of the day and former H&H dressage correspondent Anthony Crossley wrote a chunk after considered one of Jennie’s many wins. In it, he mentioned that though the masterful Jennie Loriston-Clarke gained her class she does carry her palms someplace between her tits and her enamel. Jennie instructed me she by no means carried her palms up there once more. The message is: there’s something optimistic available from accepting criticism!
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This unique column will even be out there to learn in Horse & Hound journal, on sale Thursday 6 June
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Charlotte Dujardin and Imhotep at Hagen CDI 2024.
Credit score: Stefan Lafrentz
Credit score: Elli Birch/Bootsandhooves
Charlotte Dujardin and Alive And Kicking (aka Audrey) competing on the I.C.E. Horsesboxes All England Dressage Pageant at Hickstead.
Credit score: Spidge Occasion Pictures
Credit score: Future
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