Behind the scenes 🎥 at Aylmore HQ this morning
✋ We caveat this post that this footage was NOT taken with any intention of posting on our socials. 🙈 Hence the slightly fed up sounding husband and wife (well, mostly wife 🤭) running commentary! 😆 We took this for our records to compare to previous ridden footage of Delilah in a different saddle but actually thought later that it shared good insight on how genuine this mare is. 🥰
During this clip, Delilah and Mike had already tried 4 different saddling combinations by this point which meant there had been a fair bit of getting on/off and general “faffing” throughout the session. With weather warnings ⚠️ in place for ‘Storm Babet’, it wasn’t exactly the best of conditions either with very heavy driving rain 🌧️ and 30mph+ winds 💨 at the yard this morning! 🙈
But I wanted to share this video because isn’t it a testament to this mare’s genuine temperament? ❤️ Aside from dropping behind the contact a little as she rode face first into driving rain, she carried on regardless like a pro, despite all the challenges of today’s ridden session, including Mike and I bellowing at each other over the weather! 🙈 You’ll have to excuse the conversation but I have left the sound on so that you can hear just how bad that weather was. 😳
Delilah is now consistently schooling towards medium level at home, and is throughly enjoying jumping under saddle! She’s going to make someone a horse of a lifetime when she finally goes on the market this year… 💕
Teaching collected canter 🐴 to a 6 year old: when a family walk, turned into a Dressage lesson
It all started when mini Aylmore, announced that she could canter like a pony and that when she cantered, she was faster than everyone else walking…
Daddy nodded and Mummy bit her tongue as he told her to let it slide. But when mini Aylmore kept insisting that canter was FASTER than trot, Mummy had to say SOMETHING! 🙈
And that got me thinking, how even as adults, it’s something many riders confuse. The differences between rhythm, speed and tempo.
Walk, is defined as a four beat gait.
Trot, is a two beat gait.
Canter, is a three beat gait.
And if you’re being chased by a horse eating crisp packet 😱 - then GALLOP, is a four beat gait. 😉
A gait is just that, a particular sequence of footfalls- there is no prescribed speed for each gait. Who says you can’t canter at “walk speed”? No one. In fact, Mike is well known for teaching horses and ponies to canter in hand at his walking pace.
To play around with these ideas we (and our horses) need to understand the differences between rhythm, speed and tempo. I define rhythm as the number of beats in each stride. Speed is the simple rate at which we cover the ground- mph if you like. Tempo is the speed of the rhythm. Is it a quick beat or a slow beat.
Some horses move with a naturally slow speed but a quick tempo- a short stepping and tight natural gait. Others may have a more languid pace, naturally covering lots of ground at a high speed, but a very slow tempo.
Once we identify our horse’s natural tendencies we can construct exercises to help them learn other ways of moving to give them a better, more complete understanding of how to cover the ground with a rider and find better balance.
Here is mini Aylmore beautifully demonstrating …
(sound on 🔊 for full effect!)
Some of Mike’s regular clients may even recognise the exercise! 🤭 😂
Mike's Friday afternoon musings ....
👉 Progress is relative 👈
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No expense spared 💁🏻♂️ this production 🎥 was brought to you from the roadside in Mike’s car 🚘 before he drives home at the end of a long, hot, and sweaty day teaching in Gloucestershire-Wiltshire! 🤭 😂
Keeping it real. 👌
Our lovely Delilah 🐴 having her feet trimmed this morning with Naomi from Bare Remedy Equine Podiatry.
Naomi has been trimming all our horses now for the last 2 years & not only does she do a great job but she has such a sympathetic and patient manner with them all which we and the horses all really appreciate. 💗
And as you can see, Delilah is completely at ease having her feet trimmed 💁🏻♀️ … despite the tractor 🚜 & general farm traffic going past the yard as soon as I decided to start filming! 🎥 🤦🏻♀️
P.S. Delilah will be on the look out for a new 🏡 later this summer. ☀️
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Our much loved KWPN mare Delilah, is looking for a new 🏡.
We genuinely welcome ❤️ anyone ❤️ to view her - Delilah isn’t a horse who can only be ridden or handled by a professional & would equally suit someone just looking for a smart, well schooled happy hacker. ‘Potential’ and ‘talent’ are only human concepts. 😉
Delilah is a LW, modern Warmblood of athletic build & impeccable bloodlines - Blue Hors Zack x Krack C - making her a promising breeding, as well as top class allrounder ridden, prospect. Best of all, she has the most beautiful, gentle & kind temperament. You will struggle to find a more genuine horse than this affectionate mare. ❤️
Imported from Holland almost 6 years ago as a then 3 year old, Delilah has lived with us free range between yard & field ever since as part of a mixed herd without fuss. She is happily barefoot across all surfaces, with worming, vaccinations & teeth all up to date. ✔️ She is light and polite to handle on the ground, and just generally very straight forward and easy to do for a horse of her type.
Delilah is Tori’s personal horse & has been allowed to fully mature before starting any formal education. Our intention was never to move her on and as such, she has been brought on with lots of love & time; very slowly through extensive classical in hand and ground work, only starting ridden work this year.
Delilah is very trainable, with large, flashy yet exceptionally comfortable paces and is a genuine pleasure to ride & train, both in and out of the arena. She has the potential to be a top class alrounder, with impeccable bloodlines that make her a future breeding prospect too.
But as well as a beautiful mover on the flat, Delilah is also a calm & careful jump
First we begin with a • c a l m • horse …. ✌️
One of the things that we spend a LOT of time on in the backing process, is mounting. But it’s not just important when starting the young horse either. This moment of calm and mental stillness is something we expect from every horse, at the start of every schooling session. ❤️
Why? 🤔
Because before we can even think of addressing the horse’s way of going under saddle, we feel it’s essential that a horse calmly accepts a rider on board. This mutual moment of calm sets the tone for a positive ridden session ahead and we feel that we cannot reasonably ask a horse to perform well under saddle, unless they are first mentally at ease and “with us” in mind as well as body.
A schooling session that begins with a stressed horse, rarely goes well. 🙈 The horse isn’t mentally prepared for the physical questions being asked and a tense horse, will be tense throughout their whole body and posture.
We also have to ask ourselves - IF a horse isn’t happy to stand calmly at the mounting block - W H Y ❓
❗️What are they communicating here?
❗️Are they worried?
❗️Are they in pain?
This moment of stillness at the beginning of each schooling session, is about so much more than just getting on. It’s setting the tone for ride ahead but also checking in with our horses and finding out - how are you today? 🙂 It is for the same reason that we always tack up our own horses at liberty (loose) on the yard - so that there is an open line of communication where the horse can move away and clearly tell us if something isn’t right.
Demonstrated here by the beautiful Delilah 💜 on a sunny ☀️ day a few weeks ago …
Calm and relaxed on the buckle of the reins as Mike gets aboard, even when another horse lose in the field wanders over.
(Communicating here with her swishy tail that she would however prefer that the flies 🪰 naffed off! 🤦🏻♀️)
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Behind the scenes… 🤭
We finally did it, and yesterday afternoon, we finally put Delilah on the open market on Horsequest! 🙈 *gulp*
Whilst searching through my phone for video 🎥 of her, I found this old one 🤔 from a little while bac ot Mike schooling Delilah & just had to share it! 🤣
Watch until the end, with the sound ON 🔊 .. he’s a very serious Classical Dressage trainer, don’t you know! 😉
As ever - we don’t have a “Go Pro” and Mike filmed this from aboard with his mobile phone in one hand 🤳, whilst holding the reins in the other! 🤦🏻♀️
P.S. If anyone would like a nosey, then Delilah’s is advert ref #: 289862 on HorseQuest and any feedback would be very gratefully received. ❤️
To say that she has a • B I G • canter … is a bit of an understatement!! 😯 😍
When you have a horse with as much natural talent and such enormous scope as Delilah, who is also so amiable and amenable by nature, it is easy to forget that although 9, she is still only months under saddle and therefore naturally, still green in some areas.
Whilst Delilah is not an established schoolmistress and still needs an experienced rider to bring her on, she is however NOT a horse who can only be ridden by a professional rider or only suited to a competition home. We genuinely, welcome anyone to try her as we feel she would equally suit someone looking for a smart, well schooled, happy hacker as she would a Dressage or Eventing home. But that someone will have experience in riding on young horses so they can “show her the ropes” and be someone who isn’t going to be nervous because she has big movement and such power in her paces. 🤩
Delilah would absolutely NOT do well with anyone who tried to ride her “front to back” because they were frightened of her power 🙈…
Seriously, can you IMAGINE what would happen if a handy rider 😳 got on THAT canter 👇 and just tried to pull her into an outline? 🤪🤦🏻♀️
It just wouldn’t work, would it? 😂
💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜
Our own Delilah, 17hh, 2013, Blue Hors Zack x Krack C, KWPN mare. Brought on slowly following classical principles, having been allowed to fully mature first. Looking for a new 🏡
• 1 6 K • Based in S.Devon, TQ13 •
💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜 💜
Please share this post 🤗 to help us spread the word! 📢
✨⭐️ UPDATE ⭐️ ✨Delilah passed a very thorough 5 stage vetting earlier this week. ✔️
However, on reflection, her prospective new owner has sadly decided not to go ahead 😢 as she is unsure whether she has the necessary experience to bring on a novice horse.
Which is sad, because we know she could’ve offered Delilah a wonderful home, similar to how she lives now and she also rode her beautifully for the viewing.
But, this does now mean that Delilah is re-available to the right person. ❤️
Spread the word! 📢
✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
💜 Delilah 💜
Our much loved KWPN mare Delilah, is now officially looking for a new 🏡.
We genuinely welcome ❤️ anyone ❤️ to view her - Delilah isn’t a horse who can only be ridden by a professional rider & would equally suit someone just looking for a smart, well schooled happy hacker. ‘Potential’ and ‘talent’ are only human concepts. 😉
And so on to her “spec” …
Delilah is a LW, modern Warmblood of athletic build & impeccable bloodlines - Blue Hors Zack x Krack C - making her a promising breeding, as well as top class allrounder ridden, prospect. Best of all, she has the most beautiful, gentle & kind temperament. You will struggle to find a more genuine horse than this affectionate mare. ❤️
Imported from Holland almost 6 years ago as a then 3 year old, Delilah has lived with us free range between yard & field ever since as part of a mixed herd without fuss. She is happily barefoot across all surfaces, with worming, vaccinations & teeth all up to date. ✔️ She is light and polite to handle on the ground, and just generally very straight forward and easy to do for a horse of her type.
Delilah is Tori’s personal horse & has been allowed to fully mature before starting any formal education. Our intention was never to move her on and as such, she has been brought on with lots of love & time; very slowly through extensive classical in ha
🗣 “I’m holding my horse back, he’s too talented”
🗣 “That horse is wasted with her, he’s got so much potential”
🗣 “A horse like that should be doing so much more. It’s cruel.”
Sound familiar? 🤔
Mike hears it a LOT.
He works with a LOT of talented horses, who ooze this much discussed concept of “potential ”.
We ourselves have 2 performance bred, young Warmbloods from famous, highly sought after bloodlines who show a natural talent for just about everything & anything asked of them…
But, how important is this “talent” & “potential”? 🤷🏻♀️
Here’s Mike’s take on it …
🎶 Easy like Sunday morning 🎶…
We’re all high tech here 🤓 & Mike captured the below 👇 video 🎥 of Delilah, happily hacking out this morning☀️, on his mobile phone 📲 ... whilst riding her… one handed! 🤭😂
So please excuse the slightly jolting 🥴 camerawork in places - Delilah isn’t hoping lame - Mike just can’t keep his phone still whilst rising to the trot. 😂
But here she is … confidently striding out on her own, down country lanes & bridlepaths, ducking under low branches, riding through farms, ditches & water, with vehicles driving up behind & past her. All without any fuss or so much as a moment’s hesitation. 😇 Surefooted across all terrains, in all three gaits, without shoes or boots.
As well as all the other strings to her bow, Delilah is an absolute pleasure to hack. 💕
You needn’t be a competition rider to own this beauty. She would equally suit someone just looking for a smart & well schooled, happy hacker to enjoy. If that’s you, then here she is.. 😍
➡️ Tentatively looking for a new 🏡 ⬅️
Please see our other posts on Delilah 💜 for more info about her or drop us a message though the Aylmore Classical Dressage page.
Time for some ‘out of the box’ thinking .. 💭
As our followers will (hopefully!) already know, we start all young horses on the ground; working through an extensive in-hand work program to establish correct balance & posture, before they even think about ridden work! 🐎
ONLY once a horse has shown a thorough understanding of the necessary correct biomechanics required to work under saddle with a rider & developed a comprehensive understanding of the ridden aids, is a rider’s weight introduced.
We then continue this groundwork with the handler still working the horse from the ground, now carrying a passive rider. By only changing one thing at a time, it also means that if ever the horse has a problem we can easily trace back to where. 👌
Previously, we’ve always worked these young horses together, but Delilah has posed a bit of a problem .. 🧐 Well, we say “Delilah” but actually what we really mean is “Tori’s growing belly” 🤰🤭😂 So, we had to think outside the box a little on this occasion. 🤔
Introducing: Dilly the Ardall dummy rider! 💁🏻♀️
As Tori had previously lightly backed her last year, Delilah was already very comfortable with being mounted & seeing someone on her. This next step for us is about preparing & conditioning the horse physically, not desensitising her to a rider, which Tori had already done extensively. This clever weighted dummy, with its internal springs to mimic the movement of a rider, has proved a great tool.
Here’s Delilah’s first “hack out” with Dilly aboard earlier in the week, showing our approach to hacking young horses.
Conventionally, trainers might use an older lead horse for first hacks out, but we don’t follow this method. 👎🏻 This is because we don’t want to teach a young horse to be reliant on another horse for confidence - we want THEM to take the lead. We feel this grows from a horse who has been correctly prepared. That is one who understands what
Making your horse “go vertical” … in a good way! 😉
When I’m working horses in hand, lunging or long reining there are two questions I ask myself to assess how things are going:
1. Does the horse show signs of actually understanding the work we are doing; the balance and posture questions I am asking? 🤔 Or, do they seem to be just “going through the motions” without any sort of mental engagement or interaction?
2. Am I creating a posture and gait that looks like something I would like to ride?
The primary goal of the groundwork is to prepare the horse for ridden work, not to create a specific size pace, outline or “shape.” If I’m not watching the horse and thinking “that looks like a horse that would be nice to ride” then something has gone wrong! 🥴
So whilst longreining Delilah yesterday morning I decided to take a short video and apply my own criteria….. 📝
Does she seem to be understanding the work? 🤔 Well, as a modern KWPN Warmblood, she has always been forwards and flashy in her paces. Her strength has been her extravagant movement and her natural understanding of horizontal balance - although never on the forehand, not when you’re built like her! 💁🏻♀️ 😂
Something that ISN’T however always an initial strength for horses of her type is the more refined movement, and the beginnings of a more vertical balance; because of the crowd-pleasing-leg-flinging her sort can effortlessly display, a lot of these horses happily coast through their working lives, moving like this - all flash with little substance or base of support. 😒
It is something we have been working on with Delilah and I’d like to think this little rainy day 🌧 clip shows she is understanding the work… Although it was only taken for my own reflection and had I known I would be later sharing it, then I might have brushed her tail first! 🙈
Nonetheless, here we see a nice active trot, softly flexing all the joints of her hind le
Starting Delilah… 💜
You see THIS 👇 is the problem with these ‘ere “hot 🔥 warmblood types” …
Says young KWPN mare Delilah 🐴, (Blue Hors Zack x Krack C), “hacking out” in long reins, bitless, off a cavesson. 😉
For the first time this year. And having not even worn so much as a headcollar in weeks. 🤭
Yet here she is - happy, forwards and relaxed. 👌 A far cry from the sad & skittish baby we bought 4 years ago.
It just goes to show, that a little time & understanding goes a very long way, especially when it comes to baby horses. ❤️
Finally aged 6 & 7, we feel like our two leggy youngsters are now physically & mentally mature enough to begin formal education under saddle.
See the comments 👇 for a giggle with the video of when it was Zach’s turn 😂 & watch this space for more updates over the coming weeks! 🎥 📸
