Sheri Spencer, CEMT PTS
In this eloquently written manual, de Kunffy encourages as much the individuality of the horse as he does the athletic development for a fully-fleshed, evolved, and liberating approach to training.
He begins in genuine fashion of the Classical schools looking at rider education, and emphasizing the good that comes from accepting the horse’s individuality and sometimes-unique responses. Prioritizing “reward” and how to explain in your riding what is good of the horse. He also describes not just why a horse’s spontaneity is good, but how it can be channelled and re-employed as productive training.
From his educated perspective of that classical training philosophy, de Kunffy then takes you through practical exercises to empower your horse’s athletic fitness: to supple, strengthen, and offer corrective techniques if things go awry.
Rather than just focusing on figures, he breaks it down into exercises that focus on developing the horse as a whole, targeting on techniques that improve suspension, collection, and tightening transitions (to name but a few) while maintaining and encouraging that personality: their willingness to perform.
Providing a strong foundation for their education and performance ability, the program detailed in de Kunffy’s book will prove an asset to develop horses at all levels into equine athletes.
Every time you set the book down, you’ll be aching for your next ride to try things out.
