Learning to ride - on a mechanical horse!

Good schoolmasters are worth their weight in gold, but they can be hard to find. Fiona Harrison explores an alternative which has something to offer all riders.

The ideal combination Inexperienced or nervous riders need a quiet, sensible mount who will do what is asked (or what he thinks is being asked) without taking advantage or behaving too unpredictably.

It can be difficult to concentrate on following instructions if you are tense or worried about what the horse might do. The more experienced rider can work on his or her riding position and effectiveness in a more relaxed way, if they have expert tuition on a calm but responsive horse. But finding this ideal combination can be easier said than done.

A problem solved Michelle Cogger offers a solution on her
"schoolmasters", but with a difference: they are mechanical horses or simulators, suitable for any level of rider. Riding a mechanical horse means you can concentrate fully on listening to your instructor without worrying about spooking or the horse running off! Michelle is an experienced instructor with wellhoned observation skills and the ability to assess riding faults quickly, thus enabling riders to improve position and effectiveness.

Helping the horse and rider Michelle has always been particular about her own riding posture and admits to being tough on herself in the quest to improve her riding. An event rider in the past, Michelle now competes in dressage and is a British Dressage trainer. She soon realised that communicating to riders about what they needed to achieve was challenging for any instructor. She was also conscious of the detrimental effect which inexperienced and "unbalanced" riders have on a horse's back. There had to be a way of helping both horse and rider.

Using a simulator
The mechanical horses available were only suitable for racing, Western riding or polo. So Michelle helped to produce a general riding model, which has since been updated. Today, she has three simulators each catering for riders with different "abilities". When clients ride the simulator, Michelle can identify riding faults, which she points out using enormous surrounding mirrors. Seeing for themselves in this way, clients understand better and Michelle can literally stand alongside the rider, helping to correct and improve position.

This is just an extract of the published article. To read the entire article purchase Horse Buyer Issue 6 March 08.

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