{"id":23579,"date":"2024-05-15T03:45:21","date_gmt":"2024-05-14T17:45:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/?p=23579"},"modified":"2024-05-15T21:12:00","modified_gmt":"2024-05-15T11:12:00","slug":"eventing-with-william-fox-pitt-part-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/2024\/05\/eventing-with-william-fox-pitt-part-one\/","title":{"rendered":"Eventing with William Fox-Pitt: Part One"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"WilliamFoxPittCoolMountain1\"<\/a><\/h3>\n

William Fox-Pitt, multi-medal winner in the British eventing team, conducts a Master Class, great tips for everyone from a master trainer.<\/b> <\/b><\/p>\n

Although they were riding novice level horses, Catherine Davies on Jen Jan Zenith and Katja Weimann on BP Valentina – interestingly, Katja has had a win in Europe in 2021.<\/p>\n

William used the two to demonstrate the work he does with \u00a0young horses:<\/p>\n

\u201cMy main principle when teaching, is you work on the rider and improve the rider, and the horse can only get better. Secondly, you should teach young horses to think for themselves. Right from the beginning, what we\u2019re going to be getting the horses to think about, is where they\u2019re putting their feet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI chose these two combinations because one is a big, relaxed horse (Katja\u2019s BP Valentina) and the other is a more athletic, small, hotter type (Catherine\u2019s JenJan Zenith).\u201d<\/p>\n

\"CatherineFoxPitt1-Feb11\"Catherine on JenJan Zenith<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

No matter the type of horse, the session begins in walk and William studies both riders\u2019 positions: \u201cLet them walk on and be brave in the walk, sit yourselves up nice and tall, relax your shoulders back.\u00a0 When I\u2019m looking at the rider on the horse, I\u2019m looking at a position that\u2019s in balance, and secure. If I was to take the horse out from underneath the rider and stand them on the ground, they shouldn\u2019t fall over. They should be in their own balance, they should not be relying on the horse to carry them, that\u2019s not his job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Creating a secure contact is the goal: \u201cThe horses should learn to go from the leg into the rein and accept your leg. The leg needs to be softly around the horse\u2019s side to give him more confidence and to communicate. If your legs are not on the horse, then he\u2019s very surprised when you suddenly give him an aid. If they\u2019re into the rein nice and soft and confident, they are easier to adjust, no matter what the discipline.\u201d<\/p>\n

William describes what he wants to see when both combinations pick-up the trot work: \u201cThink about having the horse in front of your leg, taking the rein forward. You can have your horses deeper, as long as that\u2019s what you\u2019re wanting. If you want him round to keep him more secure, that\u2019s fine, but the rider must be aware that\u2019s what they\u2019re doing. The horse needs to know what you want from him, from the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flatwork for eventers starts out no differently \u2013 riding lots of transitions: \u201cWithin the trot vary the pace, move them on, bring them back, change the rein, make it more interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the easiest things to do is focus too much on the inside rein, and therefore tend to either have the horse bent or falling through his shoulder. Just keep offering the inside rein and let the horse carry himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth these horses have great trots, I think as far as eventing is concerned, they\u2019re showing impressive movement. What their riders need to do is improve on that by instilling some confidence, until their horses hold themselves in balance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cConcentrate on having the horse nicely in the outside rein and only use the inside rein for support, when you need it. It\u2019s easy to rely on the inside rein too much, they need to carry themselves, support themselves, and go on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Catherine<\/a><\/p>\n

Catherine and Jenjan Zenith (left), and Katja on BP Valentina<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

William looks to the canter: \u201cYou can see how easy a horse is on himself, how athletic he is, whether as an event horse he\u2019s going to take all that work in the future and stay sound.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cCatherine\u2019s horse (Jenjan Zenith) has a shorter canter and that\u2019s got its benefits, and its weaknesses. As far as showjumping is concerned it\u2019s a great thing, easy to shorten in front of fences. But as far as galloping is concerned, perhaps he\u2019s a horse that\u2019ll have to learn to lengthen and cover more ground. To do this you need to make changes within the canter, engage more, then move him along, do a bit of counter canter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKatja\u2019s horse (BP Valentina) on the other hand, has got a great, big, lopey canter. Great for galloping, difficult to shorten, so she\u2019ll need to work on adjusting. Think of riding the horse up, but not holding her there, lower your outside rein. It\u2019s really important for the eventing horse that he carries himself. As much as you can help him through the dressage and show jumping, you can\u2019t hold them together cross country, they need to carry themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Think about riding the horse up, but not holding her there, lower your outside rein.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cBoth these riders have got very nice positions, but you could both bring your shoulders back more and sit softly in the saddle. If you can\u2019t be soft in your back, your horse won\u2019t be soft in his back.\u201d<\/p>\n

The focus was on establishing the fundamentals, a secure contact and correct rhythm: \u201cSometimes what eventers do is take a horse that\u2019s not going very well and start riding test movements. Then of course the movements don\u2019t go well either.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a big believer in getting everything right, and then moving on and really paying attention to details right from the word go. Sometimes we forget and just think, oh well I\u2019ll crack on anyway and it\u2019ll all come right in the end<\/i>. That\u2019s partly true, but I think in the eventing world we\u2019re all guilty of not being fussy enough, early enough, and there\u2019s a way of being fussy, and a way of being disciplined, without annoying your horse. You\u2019ve got to reward them when they\u2019re doing their best, and know when they need to have a break.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

William and Chilli Mountain at the 2014 WEG\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Then it was on to some jumping, William talked stirrup lengths: \u201cI like to see quite a short stirrup. When I go from dressage to jumping, I know I\u2019ve got long legs, but I would go up five or six holes and another three for cross country. That way you can be secure around the horse and yet allow him to jump underneath you.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s come in trot over the cross rail,\u00a0 thinking about keeping them straight, I want them to look at the fence, I want them to decide when to take off. I don\u2019t want you to tell them when they should jump. As they land keep them straight, maybe move them away from the fence a little, or if they\u2019re quite exuberant just quieten them down and let them relax.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Catherine and Zenith had a refusal on their first attempt: \u201cDon\u2019t worry about that, just be more confident. You could expect her to go, or you can make sure she goes.<\/strong> Use more leg, get a reaction quicker, she was clearly spooking and you sort of let her go on spooking.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cI like the horse to come in and look at the fence. I like the horse to prick his ears and go to his fence in an eager way. I always find it quite unnerving if I\u2019m riding a horse and you\u2019re three strides out from quite a tricky combination and their ears are still back, thinking about what you\u2019re saying, it\u2019s a bit late for you to say something then. Just watch these horses\u2019 ears and their eyes, they\u2019re looking at what they\u2019re doing, even though it\u2019s a small fence.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got one horse (Zenith) that\u2019s clearly more extravagant in the air, while the other mare (Valentina) has got a nice technique, but maybe not the same power. Which is what I was expecting, given how they are in canter, and their slightly different conformation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t use a lot of trot poles coming into fences, I think there\u2019s certainly a use for trot poles, but for me, if you put a trot pole there, you\u2019re telling the horse when to take off. You\u2019re not actually asking him to make the decision when to take off himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI find a lot of riders, including myself, hate jumping in trot. There\u2019s something about it that\u2019s\u00a0 unnerving, it\u2019s unpredictable. But especially for eventing, you need to be able to do this, so they\u2019ve got more time to figure out where they\u2019re going.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMake sure they jump straight, these small things are so important at this stage and when the jumps are low you can make these alterations. Don\u2019t get your horse into a habit of jumping to one side. If the horse comes to the centre, he lands in the centre. If you want to be off centre that\u2019s fine, but be straight. Horses often do like to jump to one side, just be very quick to correct and then quick to reward them when they\u2019ve done it right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"Sequence1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cFor eventing, the horses don\u2019t have to be amazing jumpers, they don\u2019t have to jump very big. What they have to do is learn to jump fences clear. If I go and try out an event horse, I\u2019d rather see him jump 1.15 metres ten times without touching it, rather than knocking down 1.15 metres twice and then clearing 1.50 metres amazingly.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Sequence2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes we get carried away by amazing jumpers, but you can\u2019t use height to make them careful. They\u2019ve got to be careful themselves, they\u2019ve got to learn. These horses aren\u2019t quite sure what they\u2019re doing, they\u2019re not quite sure where their feet are.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWalking to the jump slows everything down and it\u2019s not always going to be pretty when you\u2019re jumping slowly. Sometimes it\u2019s ugly and sometimes eventing can be ugly, so it\u2019s quite good to get in that position, get the horses learning how to get out of trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

It\u2019s really good for the riders as well, to make them wait and keep their balance behind the horse.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re jumping narrow fences they\u2019ve got to learn to jump what\u2019s in front of them, they\u2019ve got to learn to not look for a way around. Come in nice and slow, but positive when you get there, because they\u2019re going to think there\u2019s no reason to jump that, but when it\u2019s slow you can correct them. It\u2019s really good for the riders as well, to make them wait and keep their balance behind the horse. When you\u2019re teaching a young horse, and there\u2019s nothing to say a four or five-year-old can\u2019t learn to do this, he\u2019s got to learn to lock onto the jump that\u2019s in front of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet the horse do the jumping, let the horse make their own mistakes, this is how they learn.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Sequence3\"\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The lesson finished on a combination with William bringing straightness to Katja\u2019s attention: \u201cThat was nice, but it\u2019s a little bit to the right again. Cross bars are great for keeping them straight, keeping them central. Put your right leg on and open your left rein, much better. See, you can keep her straight. She\u2019d like to go right but you\u2019ve just got to be disciplined with yourself.\u00a0 She needs to work on a lot of gymnastics to learn to use herself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teaching the horse to be brave is William\u2019s priority: \u201cThat\u2019s one of the most important rules when you\u2019re training a young horse, that he learns to go. He\u2019s allowed to have a look, but he\u2019s got to go when you say go.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the difference between eventing and show jumping. Show jumpers might accept for the horse to stop because they\u2019re given a better option penalty wise than knocking it down. But with eventing that doesn\u2019t apply, you can\u2019t afford those 20 penalties for a refusal. First and foremost over the jump, secondly, clear the jump. That mare (Zenith) could now do with more insistence from the rider (Catherine), I think you\u2019re giving her a nice ride, but I think she\u2019s ready for a bit of a kick.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Breeding an event horse this season in Australia? Go to www.ihb.com.au<\/a> and find the right stallion for your mare – stallions like Britannia Royal<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This article first appeared in the February 2011 issue of THM.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Training with William Fox-Pitt. He’s won medals, produced his own horses. Lots of wisdom, and exercises to try at home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23593,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[81,5],"tags":[1244,827,413],"class_list":["post-23579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","category-eventing","tag-eventing","tag-training-the-eventer","tag-william-fox-pitt"],"acf":[],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23579"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23579\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67934,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23579\/revisions\/67934"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}