Somatic Rider and Energy Medicine

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One of the strangest things about traditional animal training is how often calmness is confused with consent.

An animal freezes…
and we call them “well behaved.”

An animal suppresses their discomfort…
and we call them “respectful.”

An animal gives up trying to communicate…
and we call them “bombproof.”

But what if some of the behaviors we praise most are actually signs the animal learned their voice doesn’t matter?

Because truly relaxed animals don’t just obey.
They express.
They explore.
They question things.
They say yes freely.
And sometimes…
they say no.

That “no” is not failure.

It’s communication still alive inside them.

And honestly?
I think that’s something sacred.

The future of horsemanship — and animal relationships in general — may belong less to those who can control animals most efficiently…
and more to those who can make animals feel safe enough to stay emotionally honest.

That kind of trust can’t be demanded.

It can only be protected.

To ALL the moms, Happy Mother's Day!

The most important lesson ♥️
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There were maybe eight of us in the arena that morning.

Just a handful of his most devoted students, standing quietly by the rail, watching the old man walk across the dirt toward the mounting block.

He was 83. Maybe 84. I can't remember now. What I remember is the way he moved. Slow, deliberate, like every step cost him something but he was willing to pay it.

Quatar was already tacked. A big bay gelding, 20-something years old, with kind eyes and a neck that had learned to arch without being asked decades ago.
___________________________

We all knew what this was.

His last ride.

He'd been saying it for months, but none of us believed him. Men like him don't retire. They just keep going until they can't anymore.

But that morning, standing in the early light with the arena dust hanging in the air like fog, I believed it.

One of the younger students, maybe 19, still green, still hungry, whispered to the woman next to her: "What do you think he's going to do?"

Linda, the older woman, didn't answer. Just shook her head slightly.

I wanted to tell the girl: He's not here to perform for you.

But I didn't. She'd figure it out.
___________________________

He mounted from his step with the help of one of his grooms.

Took him a full minute to settle into the saddle, adjust his reins, find his seat.

Then he nodded and the groom stepped back.

And he walked.
___________________________

That's it. He just... walked.

No warm-up trot. No collected canter. No piaffe, no passage, no extended anything.

He walked a 20-meter circle. Slowly. Quietly.

Quatar's ears were soft, flicking back toward him every few strides like they were having a chat no one else could hear.

The old man's hands were still. His legs barely moved. His seat, my god, his seat, it was like he'd dissolved into the saddle.

One lap. Two laps. Three.

The young student shifted her weight. I could feel her confusion radiating off her in waves.

This is it? This is the last ride of a man who trained Olympic horses?
___________________________

But Linda, she understood.

I saw it happen.

Her face went still first. Then her eyes filled. Then her hand came up to cover her mouth and she turned away so no one would see her cry.

But I saw.

Because I was crying too.
___________________________

See, here's what that young student didn't understand yet:

After 65 years of training horses, 65 years of piaffe and passage and Grand Prix and podiums and students and lessons and competitions, you don't need to prove anything anymore.

You don't need to remind people that you were once great.

You just need to walk with your horse.

Just two old partners who've spent decades learning how to talk together, saying goodbye the only way that matters.
___________________________

He only rode for maybe 15 minutes.

Then he halted. Sat there for a long moment, one hand resting on Quatar's neck.

His horse stood perfectly still. Not tense. Waiting for the next command that would never come.

Just... there.

Together.

The old man dismounted, slowly, carefully, with the groom's help again and stood next to his horse for a minute, forehead pressed against Quatar's shoulder.

None of us moved.
None of us spoke.

What the hell do you say after witnessing something like that?
___________________________

Finally, he turned and walked toward us.

The young student opened her mouth, maybe to ask a question, maybe to say something polite, but Linda put a hand on her arm.

Don't.

The old man stopped in front of us. Looked at each of us, one by one.

Then he said, voice quiet and rough:

"It was always about the walk."
___________________________

When he left, the groom led the horse back to the barn.

We stood there in silence, watching him go.

The young student looked at Linda and asked, voice shaking:
"Why are you crying?"

Linda wiped her eyes. Laughed a little.

"Because I just spent twenty years trying to make my horse do something impressive," she said. "And I just realized I never learned how to walk."
___________________________

I think about an 83-year-old man choosing to spend his last ride doing the simplest thing a horse and rider can do together.

Walking.

Not because it was easy.

Not because it was all he had left.

But because after sixty years of making horses dance, he finally understood:

The walk was never the beginning.
It was always the destination.

These classes are in-person, but if you are interested in on-line classes let me know.

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Internationale Vrouwendag: een eerbetoon aan een bijzondere paardenvrouw – Sally Swift

Op International Women’s Day staan we stil bij vrouwen die de wereld hebben veranderd. In de paardensport denken we vaak aan grote namen uit de wedstrijdsport, maar sommige vrouwen hebben iets misschien nóg waardevollers nagelaten: een manier van denken die generaties ruiters blijft inspireren.

Eén van die vrouwen is Sally Swift, de grondlegger van Centered Riding, Inc..

Een persoonlijke uitdaging die haar visie vormde

Sally Swift werd geboren in 1913 in de Verenigde Staten. Al op jonge leeftijd kreeg ze te maken met Scoliosis, een zijwaartse verkromming van de wervelkolom. In een tijd waarin medische kennis en revalidatie veel beperkter waren dan nu, betekende dit dat bewegen en balans voor haar niet vanzelfsprekend waren.

Toch wilde ze rijden.

Juist door haar scoliose werd Sally zich uitzonderlijk bewust van haar eigen lichaam. Ze moest voortdurend zoeken naar manieren om balans te vinden, spanning los te laten en efficiënter te bewegen. Die persoonlijke zoektocht werd later de basis van haar levenswerk.

Anders kijken naar houding en balans

In plaats van ruiters simpelweg te vertellen dat ze “rechter moesten zitten”, begon Sally Swift zich af te vragen hoe het lichaam eigenlijk georganiseerd is wanneer een ruiter in balans is.

Ze verdiepte zich in bewegingsleer, lichaamsbewustzijn en ontspanning. Daarmee ontwikkelde ze een vernieuwende manier van lesgeven waarin voelen, ademen en lichaamscoördinatie centraal stonden.

Zo ontstond Centered Riding.

Centered Riding: rijden vanuit balans en gevoel

De methode Centered Riding leert ruiters dat echte stabiliteit niet ontstaat door spanning of kracht, maar door een goed georganiseerd lichaam en een aanwezige maar zachte focus.

Dit resulteerde in de Centered Riding basis principes :
• zachte ogen
• bewust ademen
• een gecentreerd midden
• stabiele blokken bouwen
•Gronding

Deze basics worden vandaag de dag wereldwijd toegepast in ruitertraining.

Haar boek Centered Riding, gepubliceerd in 1985, groeide uit tot een klassieker binnen de paardensport en inspireert nog steeds ruiters, instructeurs en therapeuten.
Het is tot op de dag van vandaag een van de meest aanbevolen rijkunst naslagwerken die wereldwijd gebruikt wordt.

Een blijvende invloed.

Wat Sally Swift zo bijzonder maakte, was dat haar inzichten voortkwamen uit een persoonlijke uitdaging. Haar scoliose dwong haar om dieper te kijken naar balans, beweging en samenwerking met het paard.

Wat begon als een zoektocht naar hoe zij zelf comfortabel kon rijden, groeide uit tot een methode die wereldwijd ruiters helpt om zachter, bewuster en effectiever met hun paard om te gaan.

Op Internationale Vrouwendag is het mooi om stil te staan bij vrouwen zoals Sally Swift: vrouwen die obstakels niet alleen overwinnen, maar er iets waardevols uit creëren voor anderen.

Want soms begint een revolutie niet op Olympisch niveau
maar met een instructrice die rustig tegen een ruiter zegt:

“Maak je ogen eens zacht, centreer jezelf en reguleer je ademhaling … zodat je kan gaan voelen wat je paard je wil vertellen .” 🐴🌸

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Will you be my Valentine? 💘

©️Emily Cole Illustrations