A little bit of cross-training...

So this is going to be a little more upbeat than last time.

Last weekend, I hosted a vaulting clinic with Karin and Rebekah Meister of the Heart of Illinois Vaulters. What is vaulting? More or less, gymnastics on horseback. Most importantly, it's a lot of fun. I had a turnout of fifteen, most of them under eighteen, but a few adults who had just as much fun as the kids.

So what on earth does this have to do with dressage? In my opinion, quite a bit. Just as we cross-train our horses with jumping, trail riding, and roadwork, there's a lot to be said for cross-training ourselves.

Vaulters gain:

• Strength: To vault safely, you need to have strong ab, back, and leg muscles (or core muscles!). These are the same muscles you need to ride effectively.
• Balance: Vaulting moves are ultimately done on the back of a moving horse. Not only do vaulters have to keep their balance on the horse in a sitting position without hands, they have to do gymnastic exercises while staying with the horse's movement. The horse sets the rhythm and pace, and the vaulters need to move with the horse.
• Flexibility: Just as with gymnastics, flexibility is an important part of making the moves look graceful and correct. Muscular flexibility helps keep tissues healthy and in good shape.
• Trust: When you're hanging upside down off the side of the horse, you have to trust not only in the person lunging the horse, you have to have faith in your mount. While we probably don't want to do vaulting on every horse, vaulting horses are specially trained to be very good at their jobs. But regardless of the riding style, just as in any relationship, there must be trust. The horse trusts us to get on their backs and treat them fairly, and we have to trust that they are acting from their instincts and training. Where there is no trust, there can be no beautiful riding. Dressage is about communication, and there can only be open communication when the two parties trust each other.
• Teamwork: Vaulting is traditionally a team sport. It helps vaulters work with each other towards common goals, recognizing the strengths of every vaulter and helping each other along the way.
  

So these are some of the benefits of vaulting. We had a great time at the clinic, young and older alike. Visit americanvaulting.org for more information.