Frog Pond Farm NC

05/29/2024

There have been a few times in my life where I have been in an experience that has allowed me to see the past, present, and future- simultaneously. In these experiences, I have met those versions of myself all at once. I know that these times have been pivotal and special because they have been surrounded by the experience of grace and a real feeling of safety that comes from within.

Most of the time the ratio of the “self” that shows up is more weighted to the past, and less so to the future. In other words, the information I receive seems to be more crucial to help clarify something murky behind me or difficult to focus on in front of me.

I have spent 30 years seeking help for improving my skills with horses. I deeply value being a student. I consider myself fortunate to be a lifelong learner. I’ve explored and experimented and put my trust in many people who have gathered much experience and expertise.

And, I am proud of this. I stand on the shoulders of giants. I have used my experience to benefit as many as I can. I am grateful and I do my best to live that gratitude.

In the last few years change has been faster. I’ve hustled to keep up with the horses and the information and myself!

I’ve asked for deeper understanding. I’ve spoken out loud to the universe that I no longer want to “farm out” what I know is my work.

The people who have entered my life to help me and educate me and support me have been the very finest humans.

All of this has carried me here. To this weekend where I said to the universe- “I’m ready to be seen, no more hiding, It’s time to say YES to what is being asked of me”

And, with a deep breath, hugs from friends, and loving support from strangers, my beloved Anchovy and I shared collaborative, respectful, joyful space with one of the finest master teachers I’ve ever met - and, each other.

My horse experienced joy and so did I. We felt love and kindness from so many.

My past and future selves joined the present and we heard some of the most profound messages that have been whispering in the background.

To All that were a part of this amazing experience, I tip my hat to you. You all held the portal open just a bit wider so that what I needed came barreling through.

Thank you doesn’t seem quite enough- but for now, that is the highest honor I can offer.

Now to charge ahead with my present self in the lead- bringing along the important past and future- but letting them take a much needed rest.

05/07/2024

This is so relatable.

If you want what I have I will do everything I can to see that I help you understand how to achieve it.

Send a message to learn more

04/25/2024

This is great information!

DRESSAGE TRIVIA:

Do you know the answer to this "CORNER CONUNDRUM?" 🤔

How deep are you supposed to ride into your corners?

The answer is, it depends, and here's why:👇

Information is VAGUE out there! But according to the USEF Rule Book, “Corners should be ridden as one-quarter of a volte appropriate to the level of the test (10 meters at training-First Levels, 8 meters at Second-Fourth Levels and 6 meters above Fourth Level).”
[USEF Rule Book DR109]

But in reality, it depends on the development of both the horse and the rider. And in my humble opinion, this is the BEST answer. 🙌
It is far better to ride a good corner that will help support you and your horse for the next movement than to try to jam yourself into a black hole 😉

So definitely strive for the USEF guidelines, but only go as deep as you and your horse can without disturbing the rhythm, balance, and harmony.

04/22/2024

We power slid into the horse show this past weekend after a busy week with Casey M. Jones, Osteopath.

Sporting Services put on a great show at CHP and the Frog Pond Farm crew started competition season off with a list of attainable goals and some stretch goals.

Jordan Mackenzie-Solis' Rick put in super solid first level tests. Kudos to this team for doing their homework over the winter!

Amberly Rowles-Lawson's Orion had an amazing first time out at training level. We came home with experience, a couple of wins, and qualifying scores!

My dear Anchovy was wonderful. We definitely have improved over the winter in strength and relaxation. The PSG felt great and our first time at I1 was a success!

Im really excited for the upcoming Manolo Mendez Symposium in May to help us find the next level in carrying and collection.

Lastly, having my friend Bailey Cook join us for the weekend was a total bonus! She and I have been supporting each other over the winter and her help has been so appreciated! Congratulations on such a successful weekend with Snazz!!

Our next trips down centerline wont be until Dressage at Lexington in July so we all have some great time and space to work on the lessons we've brought home from the weekend.

The last thing I want to share is about the experience of having a safe community to compete in. Over the years Ive been horse showing, Ive come across lots of different types of approaches to the experience of horse showing.

In the last couple of years Ive learned so much more about horse welfare, anatomy, and overall care. Combining this information along with the competition experience and environment has been a work in progress.

Being in a safe environment requires that I actively participate in creating a safe environment for both horses and humans alike. Im thinking about this a lot as we are watching the top riders in our sport. It is up to all of us to work together to begin to have these conversations out loud and with each other.

Perfection is never going to be attainable, but striving to be better every day for our horse and each other is.

04/14/2024

Great visual!!

Can you make all the banana shapes?

BANANA BALLET

This is one of my favorite drills…

Changing the angle of travel without changing the bend, changing the bend without changing the angle of travel.

When you’re changing the angle of travel within the same bend, for instance, shoulder-in to haunches-in, that’s a great way to test their ability to balance front to back.

When you’re changing the bend within the same angle of travel, for instance, shoulder-in to haunches-out, that’s a great way to test their ability to balance side to side.

You can do this on a straight line, or on a circle.

When keeping the bend but changing the angle, I like to mobilize the shoulders rather than the hindquarters, in order to develop the diagonal/unilateral half-halt.

03/09/2024

Have you thought much about what is required of you and your horse to achieve that “relaxed hack”?

This is why I focus so much on alignment, balance, and basics.

Next time you start thinking about heading out, ask yourself, how much can you accomplish UNDER THRESHOLD, and then quit.

Building on positive experiences is the best way to build a strong partnership with a confident mount.

“Hi Karl, I don’t want to do anything much on my horse, just want to have a nice
relaxed hack”

So, just to check, you want to take the horse into uncontrolled conditions where we might encounter anything, whilst ‘relaxing’ and leaving the horse to deal with stuff itself.
When you think about it, that’s really quite an ask. REALLY quite an ask.
And yet you’re describing it as “nothing much”
Jumping a bit of a course in your arena is way simpler. Events and activities are simpler. All the things you think of as “a bit too challenging” is simpler.
Respect the hack, chaps!

03/04/2024

Shouting this from the rooftops since 2014.

02/19/2024

Team Frog Pond had a great first outing at Sporting Services schooling show at the Harness Track.

Amberly Rowles-Lawson’s, Orion, wasn’t too sure about it all but we really were able to show the good training and hard work we’ve been doing at home. The first test was filled with tension and distraction with good moments peppered in. And, our second test was a great improvement for a 70.8% and a win!

I’m so excited about this year with this super cool
Horse! Thank you for the opportunity, Amberly!

Jordan and Rick have been working diligently this winter and it really showed in the arena! They were both ready to take the leap to first level and the scores showed it!

Frog Pond is ready for a great season!

01/30/2024

Sage words re: the opportunity for a student as well as the responsibility.

01/21/2024

We had such a great season! It was so wonderful to celebrate together at the NCDCTA Gala!

Having the chance to show a classical and compassionate training system is a privilege. Achievement and success as a result is a wonderful bonus!

But, the best part of all is having the chance to be with these kick ass women and their amazing horses!

Cheers to all who won awards! We are excited for next year!

12/24/2023

May you all have a beautiful holiday!

10/22/2023

GOALS

‘MASTER’S TRIANGLE’

IT’S NOT A POSITION, IT’S A PRINCIPLE… NATURE’S NEUTRAL

Always begin and end in stillness…

We cannot create order from chaos, and with a horse whose mind and body are ‘pinballing’ -faster and slower, left and right- trying to contain them between our legs and hands is about as effective as trying to contain water with our legs and hands…

The more we do, and the less stillness we have in ourselves, the more turbulent things become.

Like the pinball player frantically jamming at the controls, we have no true influence, we have only reactionary motion.

A MODERN PROBLEM
We can only create order by beginning from stillness, in both horse and rider.

Only from stillness can we channel the horse into a deliberate, mindful flow.

But stillness from the rider… the quiet mind, the quiet hand, the quiet leg, is sadly missing in modern riding.

In the past, there was a necessity of stillness and efficiency, due to riding many miles, or many horses, or doing a job from horseback, all things which required riders to conserve energy.

So there was no driving a horse with the seat in each stride, no constant kicking, no constant pulling.

Stillness was born from necessity.

Today’s riders, riding less miles, less horses, both themselves and their horses less physically challenged, must instead find stillness in self-awareness and self-discipline.

We must learn to be mindful of things like the ‘master’s triangle.’

The elbow dropping straight down to gravity, the hands finding a neutral place together, forming a triangle between our forearms, is not some arbitrary, formal position.

Neither is the still, steady ‘master’s heel.’

It’s the neutral of nature, found either by wet saddle blankets, or the mastery of our own ‘busyness.’

CALM, FORWARD, STRAIGHT…

Do less to get more.

Establish rhythm…
Find stillness in the natural rhythm and tempo of the horse’s ‘migration’ mode.
It’s not our job to maintain gait, and most steering problems are forward problems.

Establish straightness…
Find stillness in the horse’s natural ‘follow a trail’ mode.
It’s not our job to maintain direction.

Establish relaxation…
Find stillness in the natural tempo and posture of migration mode.
Can your horse start to self-regulate on a loose rein with less and less reminders and co-regulation from you?
On a loose rein, can they maintain their own relaxation in their topline, their own relaxation of tempo?

Are we riding the way the herd moves?

If we can get stillness while maintaining rhythm, straightness, relaxation, if our horse is calm, forward, straight, then we are ready to begin…

Mark Russell, Sarah Dawson

10/13/2023

Since I’ve been exposed to this conversation, I’ve made some changes in how I use the rope halter, too.

There is no shortage of new info to help us make adjustments to our training.

Why do I use a cavesson conversion when I work in a rope halter?

I don’t always, but if we aren’t working mainly off the slack, I will.

The reason being, it allows me to stay out of the horse’s way rotationally, and therefore laterally and longitudinally.

Because the direction of the pull in a rope halter comes from underneath the chin, this can pull the nose up and create inverted rotation in the poll, with the tell-tale ‘head tilt,’ where the nose is no longer hanging plumb under the ears.

And while true bend does originate from the hind, if the horse attempts to swing the inside hind under while there’s inverted rotation in the front end, the barrel swinging out of its way will ‘wring‘ the spine in two different directions, like wringing out a towel.

So, the horse will begin to brace, less swing in the hind, less swing in the back.

Hollow on the lunge most often originates from inverted rotation on the lunge.

There are a lot of really good horsemen who have figured out how to work the slack in a rope halter to avoid all this, but there’s a reason why classical horsemen throughout history have chosen to use the cavesson.

I used to be a rope halter purist, and it’s still my go-to 99% of the time, but I think it’s important to acknowledge any adverse effects we can have with different tools.

What do you think?

Should we just work on getting our ‘feel’ better?

Does switching to a different tool make it a gadget?

10/08/2023

What a great weekend!!!

Anchovy rocked his first PSG thanks to help from Patrick Tigchelaar.

Judges comments said he was adorable and willing.

BOTH JUDGES!!

Liz Scott’s Lanciero was fabulous at his 3rd show EVER having qualified for a SUPER competitive Training level. He said yes to every request and put his best foot forward. I’m so excited for the future with this super cool horse. We missed you Liz!!!

Jordan McKenzie-Solis made me one extremely proud trainer. What a transformation she and her Rick have made. I’m thrilled to see such progress!

Amberly Rowles-Lawson you are Frog Pond Farms MVP! Thank you for giving your weekend to hang with us and help out!!!

I’m feeling so excited but also so very supported. Looking out after my PSG test to see colleagues and good friends who were there just to watch and support and cheer me on was so incredibly special. I’m deeply grateful to each of you for holding such a caring space for me and my horse.

There is plenty of negativity that can be observed all around but I keep working hard to stay positive and constructive. And, I have to say that my experience is that all the love and support I work to put out there is truly reflecting back to me and my horses.

Joy and beauty are everywhere and I’m so grateful to be able to see it.

09/28/2023

This is a term every dressage rider should know.

Susanne Hamilton explains this German term that describes a concept of relaxation, looseness, movability and freedom.

09/07/2023

I’m not used to this much success at once in the competition arena.

I’ve spent years striving to be “good enough” to achieve the type of success I see my colleagues achieving. I’ve tried hard to stick to my principles and always mine meaning and important lessons from every experience.

I’ve felt lost and defeated and confused a lot of the time. So, if you are feeling this too, know that you are not alone.

But what has been happening in the last couple of years has been the process of allowing myself to trust the horses AND trust myself, my experience, my intuition, my integrity.

I’m truly allowing the experiences I am having to reflect back my commitment to growth and development.

This is my very first high score award. I’ve been at this for almost 40 years.

I’ve never bred before and here is this incredible being who is the top dressage sport horse c**t of 2023. (For now!! Let’s see how Devon shakes out!!)

Competition isn’t everything, but it is something that I enjoy. Being able to do it with some confidence and some joy is such a bonus and sometimes sharing joy is the risky and vulnerable thing.

I would not have all of this joy without this amazing team that is developing.

Jordan, your drive to be better is inspiring. I’m so grateful to walk this path with you and dear Rick.

Liz, I know this is new! I so appreciate your trust. I believe in you and your fantastic horse. Thank you for trusting me with your education.

Regionals, here we come!!!

07/29/2023

Adding nuance and subtlety to the connection by focusing on the relationship from the tongue and hyoid to the whole body is where it’s at!!!

05/31/2023

There are some great things to bid on and it’s for a great cause! Help support our friend, Elizabeth Hart, as she recovers.

https://www.32auctions.com/organizations/109340/auctions/144673?r=1&t=all&fbclid=IwAR2B0lMFPfG80gxDupEcxAUy8yRV5kuBnrXNy35WGmoMAuOu0RCI8VCU_iI_aem_th_AXTvPsjFg_bhGbLOPSd1Qc4hxpqsbb_wwajZlHKh8Xlx3GhVgDgt078WaV0D_FKs3lw

03/09/2023

Learning how to sit in a balanced and effective way so you don't need big thigh blocks makes the horses job easier and helps them stay sounder.

**THURSDAY RESEARCH MEME**

Todays research meme relates to knee block size. Some riders prefer a large knee block in order to provide extra support, however we need to be mindful that in “supporting” the rider, the knee block may restrict the movements of the rider, which may affect the rider-horse interaction and consequently affect equine locomotion. Important to consider the fit of the saddle for the rider as well as the horse and be cautious of restrictive knee blocks 🤓

For more information www.centaurbiomechanics.co.uk/blog/

02/08/2023

FURTHER MUSING ON TAILBONE TUCKING (a Part 2 of sorts to this morning's blog!) 💃

One of the things I find challenging about talking about biomechanics from the perspective that I teach it is that it’s somewhat of a paradigm shift from the way we are used to thinking about the body and how it is we sit in the saddle.

The thing about the pelvis as a structure (and beyond that, the body generally) is that the entire structure of the pelvis changes between the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous system. Like I mentioned in the previous post, in our sympathetic or fight/flight nervous system, both the crest of the pelvis and the underside rim fold in towards midline, changing the orientation of the structures that are a part of it.

The entire pelvis narrows both in width and length. It's interesting as the pelvis starts to change its position out of fight flight, you will feel less soft tissue around the bony structures (and this occurs regardless of how much weight you carry), as the bones of the body sit closer to the outer tube. The same is true for all the bony structures of the body.

As we move through the sympathetic reflex chain, one of the first structural changes is that the pelvis starts to tuck and curl under; the musculature and soft tissue of the pelvic floor pulls in and up, the tail curls and the pelvic triangle (of which the sit bones are a part) shifts forward.

Anytime we mimic the sympathetic reflex pattern of the body by consciously assuming these positions- regardless of our start point- we trigger the same sympathetic response to occur if the brain were to choose it organically. So if we continue on with the conversation of tucking the tail, the tucking of the tail is part of the sympathetic chain of reflexes, beginning at the fight response.

The hallmarks of sympathetic physiology is:

- Joint space decreasing
- Line of pull of muscles changing to make some more available and some less available

It doesn’t matter what you consider your start point to be, tucking the tail or sitting back on your seat pockets mimics the sympathetic reflex response of the body, and results in a physiological consequence (the triggering of your fight flight nervous system).

The natural questions then arise, well, if tucking the tail isn’t the right thing to do, then should we poke our tail out behind?

Or how it is we should position ourselves if tucking the tail under isn’t it?

And again, this loops me back around to it being somewhat of a paradigm shift to consider things from this perspective.

We love to control and change the body according to outer appearances. Most of us consider these conversations from the point of view of outward postural aesthetic, rather than considering how the internal structures are moving and articulating.

Secondly, we love to think in opposites. Well, we say, if it’s down, this may need to go up, or vice versa. But in reality, it doesn’t work that way.

If your brain has chosen for your pelvis to be positioned in a certain way, altering the tube of the body to be different (by moving in the opposite way) doesn’t change how your internal structures are articulating; it just causes compression and compensation on another part of the body.

If you understand your pelvis to be either posteriorly or anteriorly tilted (and this is a conversation for another day but let’s play with it for a moment), then your pelvis is operating with a sympathetic movement or motor pattern. In order for that to change, the neurological template needs to change.

It’s not a matter of forcibly opposing the tilt or counterbalancing it through tightening this or releasing that, or weighting this or unweighting that.

Instead, it’s the entire pelvic bowl opening and widening; it’s the fascial trains hydrating and the pelvis floor releasing to allow for independent left right movement of the pelvis; it’s the shoulder girdle being lifted up of the rib cage to minimise the force output through the pelvis. It’s all of these things.

Why I singled out the tail in this morning’s blog is because it’s an excellent example of how we can mimic a fight flight reflex in the body. And to move out of that isn’t as simple as just “doing the opposite”. It’s a matter of the entire body widening and opening from a structural perspective, which requires a different approach to what we might typically be used to.

A paradigm shift.

Onwards.

❤️ Jane