Posted: 26th June 2015 | Back to news feed
Guy Robertson Horsemanship welcomed renowned international horseman, Martin Black, to the UK recently for a four day clinic at the Northern Racing College. Here we caught up with students to find out more.
With a wealth of experience and knowledge and said by many to be the best natural horseman in America, Martin Black travelled to Yorkshire to share his extraordinary skills. A four day clinic was held at the Northern Racing College, Doncaster which attracted riders from all over the country.
Martin Black grew up on the Ace Black family farm in Idaho, America and was born into horses. He is in the fifth generation of working horseman so certainly has the equine blood in his genes. Indeed this lifestyle has been in the family for one and a half centuries, having worked in the horse and cattle trade for 150 years. Having grown up working cattle from horseback, he has developed an enviable bond with horses and the ability to train them to be calm and confident in any situation they are put in and be a useful and well respected work partner. Martin is willing to give advice to any rider who is dedicated to making improvements to the partnership with their horse and has successfully done so with all levels of rider from recreational to top level sports people.
The Clinic
The Doncaster clinic was organised by Guy Roberston, a highly successful horseman in his own right and several of the riders attended the course on his recommendation. There were two groups, Level 1 and 2, which were split over the morning and afternoon sessions, with eight riders in each. These highly valued sessions with Martin Black certainly proved a resounding success, equipping each rider and spectators too with enough information to allow them to continue developing their horsemanship skills for many months.
Whilst visiting the clinic, we caught up with a couple of the riders who shared their experience with us. Stafford based Jo Wightman was a spectator at this clinic two years ago and having been inspired decided to bring her horse along this time, after being unable to attend last year. Mojo is a seven-year-old traditional cob and a good allrounder having enjoyed dressage, trek and fun rides. Jo wanted to focus on building his confidence in unfamiliar surroundings as he has a tendency to be nervous and unsure. “This clinic has been fantastic and has taught me many things including the difference between a horse moving away from pressure and seeking relief,” said Jo. These are crucial elements in the successful communication between horse and rider and Martin continuously highlighted them throughout his training.
Clare MacLeod, an equine nutritionist travelled from Swindon to take part in her third clinic with Martin Black. When asked what it is about Martin that makes him stand out, she simply stated, “he is an outstanding horseman and communicator.” Clare brought her quarter horse, Levanah, a seven-year-old she has owned since a yearling. She said that one of the main things she has learnt from Martin is the importance of “being able to work out ways of communicating without getting in the way of the horse.” Due to Martin’s fantastic ability to interact with both horse and rider he is able to “give a taste of how easy it can be when you communicate properly,” continued Clare, “riders tend to try too hard, if we make things simpler, the easier it is for the horse to understand.”
Martin’s techniques are both safe and humane for the horse whilst being clear and direct with aids, as opposed to continuous asking and confusion. When watching the lessons, it was evident that Martin’s techniques are highly focused on ensuring the horse moves away from the leg and stops when the aid is removed. To achieve this he incorporated quick successive transitions, including trotting with only one stride of canter and then back again. Halt and rein back were also taught to ensure that the horse could move forwards and backwards without resistance. To achieve sideways movement, turn on the forehand exercises were also a crucial element of the clinic instruction. The rider must have the ability to turn the horse around each one of its legs, forward and reverse directions, chosen before the exercise begins. With all of the combinations successfully accomplishing these tasks, it was evident that Martin’s approach received universal praise. Indeed, Clare MacLeod commented that “he teaches you exercises that gives you moments of brilliance.”
When given the opportunity to catch up with Martin in the lunch break, he gave us an insight into the five most common problems that riders come to him with. Indeed 95% of cases fall into these categories. The most common issue is the over use of the rein aids and being too heavy handed is commonly seen. This comes from the predatory instinct of the human wanting to have control and not understanding the mindset of the prey animal, a horse. To combat this, riders must learn to re-direct the horse’s energy rather than stop it and in doing so are working more with them than against them so that they feel less threatened.
Besides this, the horse may either be scared and doesn’t know what to do or is resentful, as a result of consistent pressure, which often results in behavioural issues. In addition, the horse seeks comfort in safety and does not have greed or ego like a human, so the rider must be sympathetic to this and ensure that correct behaviour is an enjoyable and positive experience for the horse.
The afternoon session saw another group of horses and riders take to the arena with them clearly benefiting from their four days of training. Martin focused on the ‘pyramid of behaviour states’ which shows the different mind sets that the horse experiences. Horses are addicted to "adrenaline", we try to develop an addiction to dopamine which can only be reached by a dose of adrenaline first. This is done by taking the horse out of his comfort zone and bringing his awareness up, which is when he gets the adrenaline, then as he experiences relief he gets the dopamine. Learning the pathways from the adrenaline to the dopamine parallels the learning of a maneuver or a thought process that we are trying to obtain.
It is the old pressure relief system, but often times people don't stress the horse to the point they get the adrenaline and don't give them enough relief that they obtain the dopamine.
The clinic was a resounding success, with horses and riders going home with a great deal of information to absorb and digest. Guy Robertson rode in the afternoon session and showed high levels of horsemanship with his young horse, which was a great spectacle.
Catch up with Guy and the team at his clinics and workshops throughout the summer months.
For further information contact 07876 033028, email info@guyrobertsonhorsemanship.co.uk or visit www.guyrobertsonhorsemanship.co.uk
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