(“This minute’s advice may not be the next minute’s .”)

 

“Knock knock!”

“Who’s there?”

“Control freak (self interrupting before he/she can respond) Now YOU say ‘control freak who?’”

There may be some teachers who like the person above want to control your every move. But that’s not normal. Rational–minded instructors know that it is impossible for them to tell you everything to do in real time. Nor should you expect them to.

We teach you to ride your horse. We teach you to think and to make decisions as you ride. When you have a lesson, you aren’t supposed to put that skill aside. We don’t want you to behave like an automaton. If your horse is getting heavy, do something about it!
Likewise if he’s falling on a shoulder or stiff to one side or speeding up. Yes, there are limits to how much “freelancing” we’ll want you to do. Disappearing into the far end of the arena to make endless little circles is probably beyond the scope of the freedom most instructors will grant you. But be sure to understand that the learning process (and the training of your horse) is a collaborative effort. All instruction must be received acknowledging the context in which the ideas were presented. This minute’s advice may not be the next minute’s or tomorrow’s. It’s about learning to feel what the horse needs and when. In the long run learning how to think aces learning what to think.