I know- that's a long title and totally not recommended for a blog article. But this is a very common and legitimate question. It's also the question I had when I first discovered that "feel" is a thing.
My answer is based only on my experience as a learning rider, and then later, as an instructor trying to teach riders new feels.
I've narrowed it down to three ways that we can learn new feels, whether we're new to riding, or whether we've already developed a wonderful repertoire of feels from years of learning. There's ALWAYS more to learn, and there's ALWAYS more feels.
Let me start by telling you that the way you know a "feel" is good is by listening to your horse. (Honestly, that's where the whole concept of Horse Listening came from for me.) Your horse will tell you. You will know because suddenly, your horse will be smoother, rounder, more energetic, or simply just happier. So while you're questioning what you're doing, or what your instructor is telling you to do... you'll know if you're on the right track because of what your horse tells you in response...
So how can you find a new feel?
1. Keep trying new things on your own, in your own time.
I call these the "freebies", because once in a while we're lucky enough to figure out something new on our own. It does happen.
This is probably what most of us do when we don't or can't have access to an instructor. I bet we've all done it at some point. But in the long run, we realize that it's pretty hard to make any significant changes - simply because we don't know.
When you don't know what you don't know, you end up in this reinventing-the-wheel kind of cycle. You might actually learn new skills that will bring about new good feels, but it will take a long time, many mistakes, and would have probably been learned much quicker and even easier if you had a good instructor.
Now, there is a situation when trying things out on your own is very beneficial, and that's AFTER you've had one or a series of lessons and you want to consolidate your learning. We all need to "practice" and it can often be helpful to make your mistakes on your own, ride more independently, and fine-tune your skills until the next lesson. But you still need the feedback, theory and new challenge over the long term.
2. Learn From An Instructor or Mentor
This is by far the easiest and most time-efficient way to learn anything new.
There are three things that an instructor can do for you:
- watch you and let you know what you're actually doing!
- give you ideas on new things you can do (teach new skills)
- DO IT FOR YOU
I want to talk about the last option a bit.
There is no replacement to finding an instructor, or mentor, who has a schooled horse, or is willing to school YOUR horse, and will let you ride the horse after they have ridden, so that you can feel (at least, to some extent), what something feels like.
Let me give you an example.
When I was learning about flying changes, I needed to learn the aids, the timing, the balance, the body position. If I had tried to do all that with my own horse, we would have gone through many a wreck and discomfort (especially for my horse) through the process. Plus, I bet that I would not have been able to learn the intricacies and details to make me good at changes.
And so, my instructor would let me ride her horse, after she did a few to warm up her horse and get him in the groove, so to speak. And THEN, I'd get on, and basically let him do his thing while I did my best to follow. It was the horse that taught me how to time the aids (well, with lots of tips from my instructor too!). It was the horse that allowed me to find my balance, because he was balanced himself. Wow! You can imagine the many feels from those experiences (it didn't all come at once).
I could never have done that by myself, on my own horse.
And it might have taken years, if at all, to feel all that on a horse that didn't do flying changes to begin with.
Now, if there is no school master, then an instructor could get on your horse, improve something for you, and then let you feel it immediately after. Plus the bonus in this instance is that your horse gets additional training.
3. Lunging Sessions
They're so hard to find in this area of the world! But lunging lessons can teach so much - especially the feels you need to find in your own body.
You might be forever stuck in your canter departures because you repeat the same movements and fall ahead or behind the horse.
If you could find a well-balanced horse, not have to deal with controlling him, and have someone coach you from the ground, you might be able to change your aids significantly over a short period of weeks or months.
What Next?
Finding the feel is just the beginning! It does help a lot to know what it feels like.
But then...
You have to be able to reproduce the conditions that brought about the feel. In this stage, you work on the feel until it becomes easier and more automatic.
And finally,.. you can move on... to a new feel!
Finally! The Ultimate Rider-Centered Program!
