Wellington, Fla. – March 25, 2019 – Tuesday, March 19 at the Wanderers Club in Wellington, Florida, saw a group of equestrians come together to listen in on an evening of discussion, hosted by the Equine Tech Collab. Spearheaded by founding member BarnManager, the Equine Tech Collab is a group of top equestrian companies who have joined together and includes JumpFax, Equo, Electronic Vet, StableGuard, Etalon Diagnostics, Event Clinics, and Epona Exchange. Hosted by the team of equestrian technology companies, the Masterclass Innovation Series: A Mindful Approach to Horse and Rider featured two panels of speakers to answer questions and talk about their personal experiences related to horse soundness and overcoming mental obstacles.
Panel A, titled “Soundness Spectrum: Maintaining Horses’ Soundness through Proactive Management,” brought together speakers Daniel Bluman, Israeli show jumper; Dr. Tim Ober, US Equestrian show jumping team veterinarian; Dr. Sheila Schils, equine rehabilitation and injury prevention specialist; and Danny Ingratta, FEI groom for Team Millar. Panel B was focused on the skills and practices that top riders use to help them with mental and emotional challenges, and featured Adrienne Sternlicht, US show jumper; Kasey Perry-Glass, US dressage rider; and Bluman, and was moderated by Tonya Johnston, a mental skills coach who competes in the amateur hunters.
Panel A – Soundness Spectrum
First Impressions
Dr. Tim Ober
“The goal of the first exam is becoming familiar with the horse as a whole. I identify the weaknesses – every horse I look at has its own map of issues – and I want to develop an understanding of what the map is for each horse. I look at what limitations it may have in terms of mobility, and how that may affect the lower limbs. Then I assess the shoeing and then start looking at how the horse moves in the stall, during flexions, and in hand. I then like to see the horse move under tack as that gives me a whole picture idea. This gives me a baseline of what the main issues are and what we can do to move forward. ”
Daniel Bluman
“It is important that we extend our knowledge a little bit beyond the basics so we can see how the horse is standing on its feet, and how the muscles look. You can tell a lot about a horse just by seeing where he has more muscle, as that can tell you which side they favor. When I ride a horse for the first time, I like to start on a loose rein and walk both ways, then do the same at trot and canter and feel what we have to work on as well as where the weaknesses are. I really like to work with cavalettis, it tells you a lot about their straightness and preferences of leads, or if they like to drift, and that can help you build a program for them. It is very important to give yourself a couple of weeks with a new horse. I think a fast judgment is a wrong judgment, and you never know how they will develop and what you have.”
Dr. Sheila Schils
“I look at the mechanics of the horse. I look at four main areas, the first being under saddle, their length of stride and the tempo. Then I look at straightness, which for me specifically means how does the hind hoof fall into the front hoof, and then I look at the bend from poll to tail, and if there is flexibility under the saddle, or if they have a lack of ability in the neck or the spine. The last assessment is the lateral flexion, from side to side. This lets me know if they are symmetrical, or if they have one side that is better than the other.”
Danny Ingratta
“For me, I have never seen the horse when it comes to me. I always look at the general wellbeing, its temperament, and so on. I run my hands over it, and see if it’s sore or if it has skin issues or bumps on the legs. This all helps us move forward in a way to work with the horse. With nutrition, it is important that they are fed well as they have to be eating enough to gain muscle mass to then perform well. Everything is linked together, so the riders, vets, farriers, bodywork people, and grooms need to work together to make a plan.”
Continued Care
Dr. Tim Ober
“I try to divide exams between major and minor exams. A minor exam might consist of a scenario like this horse jumped on Saturday night and it jogs on Tuesday, so on Sunday morning, I run my hands over the horse, trot it in a straight line and on a circle and listen to the rider if there are complaints. A major exam is a full set of flexions and trying to see the horse both in hand and under tack. For performance horses, I recommend an exam every two weeks for horses showing an intense grand prix schedule, up to every six weeks for horses with lower intensity workloads.”
“It is important to know your horse and familiarizing yourself enough with anatomy to be able to run your hands down the legs and know what is different one day to the next. I see people calling me too early in certain cases, and usually, people can walk themselves through it and that is an educational thing for the person in charge and the rider.”
Daniel Bluman
“Nowadays the schedule is so busy, and I think it is important to make a schedule where you spend enough time with the horses. Enough hours need to be spent on the horse and on the ground speaking with your grooms, vet, and farriers so you can keep track of them.”
Danny Ingratta
“I am the first person to see them in the morning, and you can usually tell how they will be for the day. Noticing a little heat, or skin irritation, or listening to the way they are walking, will tell you if you can manage it or if you need to call your vet.”
Stress
Dr. Tim Ober
“The condition of a horse is a cue for what type of stress they are under. Their weight and muscling, hoof and coat quality can tell you a lot. How they eat also tells you, do they eat well or do they eat slowly? That can point you to stomach ulcers. From there you make a plan to treat what you need to.”
Dr. Sheila Schils
“For me, stress is different. Stress to muscle is necessary for the muscle to be built. Often when horses have a sore back we think they need time off, but in reality, as long as that soreness doesn’t become pathological it will make the horse stronger. We don’t want distress, but we have to look at minimal discomfort in a different way. The way to reduce stress so it doesn’t become a problem is we use the muscle more. Muscles need consistent work and movement to continue to strengthen and to release all the toxins that build up when the break down of muscle happens.”
Panel 2 – Mental and Emotional Challenges
Routines
Adrienne Sternlicht
“Routine brings comfort to uncomfortable situations. I find comfort in meditation and listening to books. I think how you develop your routine is a lot of trial and error, and it’s a process. I am constantly trying to bring myself back to a place that works for me, and I find that running before I ride works really well. With the 12 week schedule down here it is very easy to stray from your routine, so for me taking care of myself is the biggest part of it. Being unapologetic about what works for yourself is important; trust your own instincts.”
Kasey Perry-Glass
“For me, I am such an overthinker, so I try to simplify my life in any way that I can. Even though competing can be such a big thing, I try to think of it as such a small thing. If it becomes too big in my head it becomes overpowering, and then I can’t focus. The organization is key to keeping it simple, and at shows my horse is on a very timed out schedule and I braid myself because it gets me in the zone. My confidence can get really low, especially when things get challenging, and I have a hard time getting out of my head, so things that can help me feel empowered and bigger really help. For me, if it goes badly, I look back on the best ride that I had ever had, and think about what I did to prepare for that ride. I realized I was laughing in the barn. Sometimes we think we need to be so focused and not smile, but for me the lighter I keep things the better I ride.”
Daniel Bluman
“For me, I try to think about why I started riding. I didn’t do it because I wanted to win 5* grand prix classes, I started riding because I love horses. When I am anxious or my head is getting ahead of me I try to remember that the horses are here to bring us peace and calmness. Spending time with them right before a big competition is a part of my routine, and I try to ride them as close to the event as possible. It gives me comfort that I have that guaranteed time to be at peace and put me in the zone for the competition ahead of me. I also love napping, and if I had done it once and the class went badly I probably wouldn’t have done it again but it works for me so I do it.”
On Making Mistakes
Daniel Bluman
“If I have a rail down I am for sure angry, it is a constant battle. But we compete a lot, so it is something I have tried to master through the years. Every weekend I try to be better, I look at my mistakes and try to improve and move on. If I dwell I start affecting the people around me and people don’t want to be around that. If we spend the time dwelling from the time we lose to the time we win, we will spend most of the year dwelling.”
Kasey Perry-Glass
“I think it is important to have one person who you can vent to, it helps me to go to my one person and say my peace and then be done with it. There is a reality outside of what we are doing, and the more you dwell the more you kill yourself internally. You have to find peace with what happened in the ring and then practice so it doesn’t happen again.”
Adrienne Sternlicht
“I try to remind myself that I can handle anything that comes up. My catchphrase is “I am committed yet unattached.” So yes, I am committed to my long-term goals in the sport, but I find I make the most mistakes when I am focused on my results and I have an attachment to the result. I will still be here tomorrow, and regardless of what happens we come back tomorrow and fall back on our program and work on what went wrong.”
*Please note this is a condensed version of remarks.