[QUOTE=Pocket Pony;7275138]
How funny - I was just asking Mr. PoPo the other day why everyone listens to men. I wasn’t thinking of riding specifically (actually, I was thinking of ‘gurus’ or spiritual leaders, but the same kind of ‘worship’ could be applied to any hobby/interest/area of study), but it certainly applies. Why do I listen to men? Gosh I wish I knew. I guess because they are out there more than women? There are so many more women at the lower levels, but when you get to the top, a lot of men stand out moreso than equally knowledgeable women. Sigh.
With regard to blindly worshipping these guys . . . there are some things that I saw at the BB clinic I went to that I questioned about his horses and what was going on with them. But I’ve just kept my mouth shut on those things because I don’t know the whole story or any sort of background. I found his teaching to be immensely helpful to me and what I’m working on. Others, not so much. And others, maybe - I’d like to spend more time with them to figure some stuff out.[/QUOTE]
That is true that, as you realize yourself, everyone, men and women, listen to a man rather than a woman, both being equally interesting or knowledgeable.
There have been many studies showing that, it is not “a ridiculous analogy”, as some may want to insist.
When it comes to the clinicians in question, many of those really didn’t learn under someone that was showing and competing in the more technical disciplines or “cross pollinated” between disciplines, so that is one reason they are not as knowledgeable about those parts of horsemanship.
I already mentioned before the coke bottle turns, not properly over the hind end and in the early days, some were not even quite clear what leads were or how they mattered, or how to ask a horse to back, although they could do it themselves, they didn’t know how to TEACH it, because they lacked that knowledge.
I call real horsemanship having an educated eye for everything and many do very good with seat of the pants riding and talking, but miss so much they are not aware of is there, because they have not learned to “see” it.
All that doesn’t take anything from their clinic work, they help many people, but when you want to do more with a horse, you really should go to a traditional trainer that will show you more.
All those years Parellis spent making fun of dressage in their entertainment spiel to the public in their demonstrations would have helped them more to have learned what dressage is really all about and applying some of it themselves.
Eventually they realized that and hired some to help them with that hole in their knowledge.
Won’t comment on how that worked, we can see that plainly for ourselves, but that doesn’t mean it could have been a real improvement on what they were already doing.
Try that, complement what you are getting from those kinds of clinicians with some lessons in stables that compete seriously, in most any discipline, that will answer some of the questions you have.
The more you are exposed to, the more you hear, the more you see, in all kinds of different situations and disciplines, the better an all around and knowledgeable horseman you will become.
With horses, you never quit learning, that is the fun part of being around horses.
We learn what to do and what not to do and more important for the human part of the pair, the WHYS of what we are doing what we do.:yes:
