AQHA Professional Horseman, Robin Frid, breaks down the fundamentals of the All-Around classes. Frid, a Ride TV coach, will explain why he focuses on the hind end, and helping his horse learn balance and structure to excel in the All-Around classes.
Focus on the Hind End
“I work hard at maintaining a rhythm and cadence when my horse is traveling. If I start from the hind end, that is the power. We have a rear-wheel drive vehicle. I constantly focus on my horse’s hind end propelling us forward.” “I want a little bit of a cant to my horse, but I don’t want him traveling sideways.”
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Hind Leg Power
“That hip and joint is a pivoting joint. For his hip to drive up underneath himself, it has to drive up under to the left or the right to be situated properly underneath him. My horse’s outside hind leg is his most important leg in every single gear. That is the most important and powerful leg he has, and I want it directly underneath his body.”
“In everything I do, I want my horse’s hip to be underneath himself. If I’m going left, my hip is underneath him to the left just a little bit. If I’m going to the right, it’s the opposite.”
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Keep the Ribcage Square
“I just want that ribcage staying square between my legs. I don’t want them leaning to the left or right in any manner. In most cases, when our horse gets away from us—whether he goes forward or leans sideways—it’s the ribcage that is the first thing to move.”
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Control the Shoulders
“The same thing applies here; we want his shoulders to be right in front of his ribcage. I often tell people I’m coaching to keep their horse’s shoulders up. Up doesn’t mean up in the air or way out in front of me. It means up and maybe slightly outside the direction that I’m going. So when I’m traveling to the left, I want his shoulders up with me and maybe just outside to the right. Remember, his hip is propelling him forward all the time.”
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Head and Neck
“When we’re watching a horse travel, their head and neck are a huge piece we tend to watch.” “I want his neck to be level with his nose a little out in front of him. It is the hardest piece to teach and the last piece I worry about teaching. I don’t worry about it as long as I can control the body. The topline is the last piece I focus on when training.”
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Focus on Frame
“In everything that I teach, I am very focused on my horse being balanced, structured, and in frame at all times. I may take them out of their frame, but when I release, my goal is to teach them to find that frame on their own. Again, through repetition. It takes 5,000 times of me showing a horse to do something for them to get it right once.” “It’s about showing them repetitively over and over with multiple small corrections, constant communication, and connection.”
“My main focus is not that my horse can do things perfectly, but that my rider can communicate with him and get a positive response from that horse.”
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